Ardian Purwoseputro, Wayang Potehi of Java 布袋戏

Wayang Potehi, is a popular form of puppet theatre which comes from Southern Fujian province. The term potehi (in Mandarin : budai xi) literally means “glove puppet theatre”. No information is available about its historical development in Fujian. Xie Zhaozhi 谢肇淛 (1567-1624) in his Wu zazu 五杂俎 (“Five assorted offerings”, first ed. 1616, ed. Minguo 24, I. p. 213) alludes to the taste of Southern Chinese for “puppetry” (here called kuilei 傀儡, presumably a loanword, which can be traced back at le..

Biographical Dictionary of Mercantile Personalities of Penang

This dictionary, which focuses on the mercantile male personalities who pioneered the growth of George Town from the end of 18th century up to the mid-20th century, is the first of its kind. However the interest for local figures started much earlier when, in 1986, a book entitled Historical Personalities of Penang was published by The Historical Personalities of Penang Committee under the Auspices of Penang Festival’86, and an exhibition based on this publication inaugurated. This latter vol..

From Cemeteries to Luxurious Memorial Parks

The second half of the 20th and the beginning of the 21st centuries were characterized by high-speed urban development that resulted in the encircling of the old Chinese cemeteries by new settlements. In many cities, especially in Manila, Jakarta and Surabaya, incoming migrants squatted on cemetery land. Some municipal authorities issued new regulations intended to close old Chinese burial sites and eventually to demolish them. It is in the context of this grave burial crisis that the private sector came in. The first private-led initiative into the memorial park business appeared in 1964 when the multinational Castle and Cooke taking advantage of American models, founded Manila Memorial Park which opened the era of a new concept of deathscape in Insular Southeast Asia. This new concept of memorial park located at the periphery of cities was introduced in Malaysia in 1990-1991, and in Indonesia in 2002-2003. In both cases, the initiative came from local entrepreneurs. In this article we look at pioneers in the memorialization industry, development of memorial parks as gardens of dreams, new cemeteries as mirrors of cultural identities, legal frameworks, the memorialization industry, and finally marketing strategies.La seconde moitié du xxe s. et le début du xxie s. sont caractérisés par un développement urbain accéléré qui a entraîné l’encerclement des vieux cimetières chinois par de nouveaux quartiers. Dans de nombreuses villes, notamment à Manille, à Jakarta et à Surabaya, les migrants venus des campagnes s’installèrent dans les cimetières ce qui amena certaines municipalités à fermer ces derniers et éventuellement à les détruire. C’est dans le contexte de cette grave crise funéraire qu’intervint le secteur privé. La première initiative apparut aux Philippines lorsqu’en 1964 la multinationale Castle and Cooke, s’inspirant des modèles américains, créa le Manila Memorial Park qui allait ouvrir une nouvelle ère de cimetières privés en Insulinde. Cette nouvelle conception de cimetière situé à la périphérie des villes allait ensuite être reprise par les Chinois de Malaisie dans les années 1990-1991 et par ceux d’Indonésie dans les années 2002-2003. Dans cette étude, nous nous penchons sur les pionniers de l’industrie funéraire, le développement des nouveaux cimetières comme jardins de rêve, et comme miroirs des identités culturelles. Enfin, nous envisageons les cadres juridiques de cette industrie ainsi que les stratégies de marketing

Introduction

The essays presented here are the result of a workshop entitled “Death, burial rituals, and cemeteries among Chinese communities in Insular Southeast Asia (16/17th-21st centuries),” organised by Teresita Ang See, Catherine Guéguen and Claudine Salmon, and which was convened in Manila by the Kaisa Para Sa Kaunlaran on August 5, 2015. Some articles originated from this workshop while others were written subsequently. This workshop was made possible thanks to the Kaisa Heritage Foundation which ..

Ancient Chinese Cemeteries of Indonesia as Vanishing Landmarks of the Past (17th-20th c.)

Despite the incessant expenditures over time, both individually and collectively, by the Chinese of Indonesia to conserve and secure their graves, they have never been really protected from destruction. As early as 1668, the community of Batavia lodged a complaint against a group of Ambonese who resided near the cemetery and who had desecrated some four hundred graves. During the following century, another danger came in addition to the risk of looting; by following the development of the towns of the Northern coast, some cemeteries once plotted in the countryside were enveloped by settlements and gradually threatened with demolition. Here we focus on the historical development of certain cemeteries including those of Batavia, Banten, Cirebon, and Semarang which to some extent mirror the evolution of the Chinese communities that founded them. In so doing we also give attention to the tombs which escaped destruction and have become the subject of a genuine worship by the part of the populations, newcomers, local born Chinese and even Indonesians who do not hesitate to spend to maintain the sites. Last but not least we reflect on the way burial grounds were granted in concession by the authorities, and how they were managed.Malgré les incessantes dépenses effectuées au fil des temps, tant individuellement que collectivement, par les Chinois d’Indonésie pour protéger et préserver leurs tombes, celles‑ci n’ont jamais été à l’abri des destructions. Dès 1668, en effet, la communauté chinoise de Batavia portait plainte contre un groupe d’Ambonais qui, habitant à côté de leur cimetière, avaient profané quelque quatre cents tombes. Au cours du siècle suivant, un autre danger est venu s’ajouter à celui du pillage. Suite à l’expansion des villes de la côte nord de Java, certains cimetières autrefois nichés dans la campagne se sont retrouvés au cœur des nouvelles agglomérations et progressivement frappés de démolition. Dans cet article, nous mettons l’accent sur l’histoire du développement de certains cimetières incluant ceux de Batavia, Banten, Cirebon et Semarang qui, d’une certaine façon, sont le miroir des communautés qui les ont créés. Ce faisant, nous insistons sur les tombes qui ont échappé à la destruction et sont devenues l’objet d’un culte de la part de la population, qu’il s’agisse de nouveaux venus, de Peranakan, ou d’autres Indonésiens qui, tous, n’hésitent pas à engager des dépenses pour entretenir ces tombes considérées comme sacrées. Pour finir, nous envisageons la manière dont les lieux de sépulture étaient donnés en concession par les autorités et comment ils étaient gérés

Introduction

The essays presented here are the result of a workshop entitled “Death, burial rituals, and cemeteries among Chinese communities in Insular Southeast Asia (16/17th-21st centuries),” organised by Teresita Ang See, Catherine Guéguen and Claudine Salmon, and which was convened in Manila by the Kaisa Para Sa Kaunlaran on August 5, 2015. Some articles originated from this workshop while others were written subsequently. This workshop was made possible thanks to the Kaisa Heritage Foundation which ..

Tamao Zhou, Migration in the Time of Revolution: China, Indonesia and Cold War. Singapore: ISEAS Publishing, 2019, 301 p. index, plates. ISBN: 97898114843331.

In this book, Tamao Zhou investigates the ethnic Chinese dimension in the making of the governmental relations between China and Indonesia, from the surrender of the Japanese in 1945 up to 1967 – year which marks the breakdown of diplomatic relations between the PRC and Indonesia – with numerous flashbacks into the first half of the 20th century. In the introduction, the author explains that she relied on the Chinese Foreign Ministry Archives (declassified in 2008, but reclassified in 2013), ..

Of the Use of Calligraphy in Sino-Javanese Communities (18th-Early 21st Centuries)

Calligraphic art was conceived by the Chinese as a technique allowing the acquisition of certain virtues, and the mastery of this art as a proof of eminent qualities. This art dates back to the ancient times. Calligraphy has also been practiced by artists, either amateurs or professionals, who had practical and economic motivations, such as some Ming loyalists who having refused to serve the new dynasty were compelled to rely on this art for negotiating everyday life. Here, we intend to explore the part played by calligraphy in a diasporic milieu, and more especially in Java where Chinese communities have a rather long, but quite eventful history. We will successively review the development of calligraphy during the Qing times, its ups and downs during the 20th century, and its revival during this century in relation with the new political conjuncture.L’art calligraphique a été conçu par les Chinois comme une technique permettant d’acquérir certaines vertus, et la maîtrise de cet art comme une preuve de qualités exceptionnelles. Cet art remonte à la haute antiquité. Il a aussi été pratiqué par des artistes amateurs et professionnels dont les motivations étaient économiques, tels certains loyalistes Ming ayant refusé de servir la nouvelle dynastie, qui furent amenés à pratiquer la calligraphie comme moyen d’existence. Ici, nous entendons explorer le rôle de la calligraphie dans la diaspora et plus particulièrement à Java où les communautés chinoises ont une longue histoire passablement mouvementée. Nous étudierons successivement le développement de la calligraphie sous les Qing, ses hauts et bas pendant le XXe siècle, et son renouveau au début du XXIe siècle en rapport avec la nouvelle conjoncture politique