Overseas Chinese clan association

This page is about overseas Chinese organizations (often known as clans) known as kongsi. For a list of commercial enterprises in the Greater China region, see PRC companies, Hong Kong companies, or Taiwanese companies.
The headquarters of the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association in San Francisco, California


An Overseas Chinese clan association or Kongsi (Chinese: 公司; pinyin: gōngsī; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: kong-si) or "clan halls", is a benevolent organization of popular origin found among overseas Chinese communities for individuals with the same surname. This type of social practice arose, it is held, several centuries ago in China. The Chinese word Kongsi is used in modern Chinese to mean a commercial "company"; the modern term for such associations is 會館 (Pinyin hui guan, literally meaning "meeting hall").

The system of kongsi was utilized by Cantonese throughout the diaspora to overcome economic difficulty, social ostracism, and oppression. In today's Cantonese communities throughout the world, this approach has been adapted to the modern environment, including political and legal factors. The kongsi is similar to modern business partnerships, but also draws on a deeper spirit of cooperation and consideration of mutual welfare.

It has been stated by some that the development and thriving of Cantonese communities worldwide are the direct result of the kongsi concept. A vast number of Cantonese-run firms and businesses that were born as kongsi ended up as multinational conglomerates. In the Chinese spirit, derived in large part from Confucian ideals, these kongsi members or their descendants prefer not to boast so much of their wealth but to take pride in earning worldly and financial success through their work ethic and the combined efforts of many individuals devoted to group welfare.

In Borneo, mining kongsis united to form kongsi federations that functioned as self-governing states. Among the largest kongsi federations was the Lanfang Kongsi, which organised the mostly Hakka Chinese miners who had settled in western Borneo and established a republic, the Lanfang Republic, in what is now the Indonesian province of West Kalimantan.[1]

Picture of a Cantonese districts Association & Temple in Penang, Malaysia.
Picture of Teochew Clan Association of Muar, Johor, Malaysia.

Clan associations In Singapore

Hainanese Clans

There are several Hainanese clans, all separated by their surnames. Hainan Tan Clan Association, 12 Seah Road (Opposite Raffles hotel)

Hakka clan Associations

Hokkien clan Associations

branch of original Ming Imperial Choo clanhome at Tiananmen, Beijing.

Foochow clan Associations

Teochew clan Associations

Surname clan Associations

There are numerous surname clan associations in Singapore. These associations organize cultural activities for their members during traditional festivals such as Chinese New Year and Mid-Autumn Festival. Some clan associations also provide scholarships and bursaries to young students within their clan association.

Examples include

List of Clan associations In Malaysia

Kwongtung clan associations

Kwongtung Clan Associations are associations of people from Kwongtung province in southern China.

The Kwan Tung Hui Kuan (Guangdong Clan Association) in Taiping, Perak is based in the Temple for the Immortal Woman He, Temple Street. It was founded in 1887 by Chung Keng Quee and others. The temple was renovated in 1948 and 1954. A pair of old stone lions still grace the forecourt. The Ho Hsien-ku Miaou, or temple for Ho, the Immortal Girl, shares the same compound as the association. Ho is one of the Eight Immortals of Chinese legend and is said to have come from Tseng-ch'eng county, Kuang-chou prefecture.

There is also a Shunde Clan Association (Shun-te Hui Kuan) in Taiping. It was probably founded in 1895. It is located at 36 Kota Road.

Hakka clan associations

Tseng Lung clan associations

The Tseng Lung Hui-Kuan is the association for Hakka people from Tseng Ch'eng and Lung-men counties of Kuang-chou prefecture in South China.

Hokkien clan associations

Hokkien Association is an association for immigrants from Fujian province in South China.

Hainan clan associations

Hainan island was originally part of Guangdong, but it was separated as its own province in 1988.

Surname clan associations

Clan associations In the Philippines

Surname Family clan Associations

Hokkien clan associations

See also

Triều Châu (Chaozhou) Assembly Hall in Hoi An, Vietnam
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Overseas Chinese benevolent associations.

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Overseas Chinese benevolent associations.

References

  1. ↑ "Hakka Lanfang Republic". 2002. Archived from the original on December 31, 2005. Retrieved 2006-04-21.
  2. ↑ Binglang Yu Hua ren shi tu lu The Chinese in Penang: A Pictorial History By Kim Hong Tan, 陈剑虹, Published by Areca Books, 2007, ISBN 983-42834-7-4, ISBN 978-983-42834-7-6, Page 67
  3. ↑ Persatuan Keturunan The Si Eng Eong Tong @ No.148, Jalan Hutton, 10050 Penang, Malaysia. Tel：+604-228 4304 Fax：+604-228 4304

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