China News Agency, Zhengzhou, October 4th, Question: Why do "Hakka villages" appear in some European countries?
——Interview with Chen Xianzhang, Dean of Fujian-Taiwan Hakka Research Institute, Longyan University, Fujian Province
Author Yang Dayong
"As long as there is sunshine, there are Hakka people." In the process of going overseas from the Central Plains, the Hakka people also brought Hakka culture and Chinese culture to all parts of the world, becoming a window for cultural exchanges between the East and the West.
Chen Xianzhang, a master tutor of Fujian Normal University and dean of the Fujian-Taiwan Hakka Research Institute of Longyan University, recently accepted an exclusive interview with China News Agency "East-West Question", explaining in detail how the Hakka people went from the Central Plains to the world, why some European countries have "Hakka villages", South America Hakka puzzles such as why Suriname regards Hakka as the official language.
The following is a summary of the interview transcript:
China News Service reporter: What is the origin of Hakka culture?
Chen Xianzhang:
Hakka is a branch of the Han nationality in the big family of the Chinese nation.
The Hakka people have experienced a historical process from the formation of the late Tang Dynasty to the Song and Yuan Dynasties, the development of the Ming Dynasty, and the continuous relocation and redevelopment since the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. The process of continuously expanding development space around the world.
After several southward migrations, a large number of immigrants from the Central Plains moved to the relatively peaceful border area of Fujian, Guangdong and Jiangxi. During the historical process of regional development, they merged with the local indigenous culture to form a new unique group - the Hakka people, that is, Hakka. people.
Therefore, Hakka culture is the product of the interaction and integration of multiple cultures such as mountain culture, immigrant culture, and Confucian culture. It has accumulated and formed a spiritual tradition with Hakka dialect as its mother tongue and distinctive Han Hakka folk characteristics, reflecting the unique tradition of Hakka culture.
Children perform the dance "Hakka Nursery Rhymes".
Photo by Zhang Bin
It is generally recognized by academic circles that the Central Plains culture is the general term for the material culture and spiritual culture in the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River, and is the mother and backbone of Chinese culture.
Therefore, in terms of context and inheritance, Hakka culture originated from the Central Plains culture, and the origin of Hakka culture is the Central Plains culture.
According to historical records, the Hakka people moved south because of the war, and their roots came from the Central Plains.
The Hakka people have a particularly strong awareness of revering their ancestors. There are many ancestral halls in the Hakka area, and each surname has a clear prefecture. This is the root of the Central Plains identified by the Hakka people.
"Guests leave Daguguan", Luoyang, Henan is an important ancestral place for the Hakka people.
The 33rd World Hakka Kinship Conference will be held in Luoyang in 2024.
Luoyang Hakka Origin Memorial Hall.
Kan Lishe
China News Service reporter: How did the Hakka people go to the world?
Chen Xianzhang:
Hakka people are all over the world, with a large number of people and great influence.
At present, the number of Hakka people in the world is about 100 million and about 120 million.
Hakka people went to the world, mainly in the Ming and Qing Dynasties.
The Hakka people who have settled in the Fujian, Guangdong and Jiangxi regions have moved to Southeast Asia and other places in large numbers due to the rapid population growth and problems of survival, which is called "Nanyang" in history, and then moved to other parts of the world; the second is Tingjiang, Mei The estuary of the Hanjiang River where the rivers converge, the ports of the Pearl River and Guangdong, the ports of Quanzhou and Xiamen in Fujian and overseas trade are becoming more and more developed.
The main overseas settlements of Hakka people are Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Myanmar and other countries in Southeast Asia.
New statistics show that there are Hakka villages in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Australia, Canada, Panama, the United States, Cuba, Guyana, Suriname, Brazil, Papua New Guinea, Mauritius, Peru, Africa (mainly in South Africa) and other places. Many Hakka people.
They are very active in participating in every World Hakka Kinship Conference.
Over the years, the Hakka ethnic group has gradually become one of the outstanding ethnic branches of the Han nationality with a wide distribution and far-reaching influence in the world through continuous development and expansion.
China News Service: Why do some European countries have "Hakka villages"?
Chen Xianzhang: The
Hakka people went overseas. In the early days, they mostly worked as Chinese workers to plant, mine, build roads and trade. Therefore, most of them went to "Nanyang", India and other places.
Most of the Hakka settlements in the United Kingdom, Austria, Sweden and other places have "second migration" from "Southern Ocean", India and other places.
In the process of historical relocation, Hakka people all over the world have been able to inherit and carry forward the excellent traditional Chinese culture, forming the Hakka spirit of patriotism and love of the homeland, respecting the culture and education, harmony and unity, pioneering and enterprising, and possessing the spirit of prudence and pursuit of the end, respecting the ancestors and the family, farming, reading and heirloom, The practice of loyalty and filial piety, perseverance and courage, hard work and other excellent qualities are the embodiment of the excellent traditional Chinese culture and the spirit of the Chinese nation.
It is because of these spirits and qualities that the Hakka people can take root, develop and make extraordinary achievements all over the world.
In September 2020, the original ecological Hakka style song and dance collection "Shen Yun of Tulou" was staged at the Performing Arts Center of Yongding Hakka Expo Park in Fujian Province.
Photo by Zhang Jinchuan
"It is better to sell the ancestral fields than to forget the words of the ancestors" and "not to forget the origin" are the duties that the Hakka people strive to abide by. Where the Hakka people live together, there must be ancestral halls and genealogy. Always remind yourself where you come from and where your roots are.
Taking the Hakka dialect as an example, it is the core part of the Hakka cultural identity and the imprint of the Hakka culture in the blood of the Hakka people.
Therefore, the uniqueness of the Hakka people makes them retain many Hakka customs, such as Hakka dialect, wherever they go.
It is precisely because of the persistence and inheritance of Hakka culture that the phenomenon of "Hakka Village" has been formed in Europe and around the world.
For example, the "Hakka Village" in Vienna, Austria, will entertain all the "Hakka Village" immigrants in Vienna when they get married and arrange weddings for their children.
They also established the first local Hakka Chinese association, the Austrian Hakka Association.
For another example, in Suriname, South America, most of the Chinese here are from the Hakka region of Guangdong. Due to the large proportion of Chinese in the country, Suriname regards Hakka as the official language, and the whole people celebrate the Spring Festival.
I call this the native language and Chinese character worship consciousness of the Hakka people.
The cultural psychology of the Hakka people attached to language is the oath of the migrating ethnic groups to keep the core national context.
China News Service reporter: What role can Hakka culture play in mutual learning between Eastern and Western civilizations?
Chen Xianzhang:
As mentioned in the previous article, the Hakka people have a strong concept of hometown. They brought the Chinese culture with Hakka characteristics to all parts of the world, and at the same time brought the cultures from all over the world back to the ancestral land of the Hakka people, which played an important role in promoting the cultural and economic development of the world. positive effects.
At present, the Hakka people in many parts of the world have an increasing influence on the local economy, culture and politics.
The World Hakka Kinship Conference is one of the most influential Chinese events in the world. It is an important carrier for Hakka folks at home and abroad to contact fellowship and conduct cross-border and cross-regional exchanges. An important stage, its importance is self-evident: carry forward the Hakka spirit, enhance the unity of Hakka people at home and abroad, and promote economic cooperation and cultural exchanges.
In November 2012, the 25th World Hakka Kinship Conference was held in Sanming, Fujian, and the Hakka surname was displayed at the opening ceremony.
Photo by Wang Dongming
Today, we should give full play to the advantages of Hakka people and Hakka culture at home and abroad, and make extensive use of the Hakka people's networking and communication platforms such as the World Hakka Association Conference, so as to further enhance cultural exchanges and cooperation between the East and the West.
With the further opening of the "Silk Road", the passage of Eastern and Western civilizations in the contemporary era, we must strengthen further exchanges with Western culture, carry forward the Hakka spirit, carry forward Hakka culture, and create a new pattern of mutual learning between Hakka culture and Western culture.
(Finish)
Interviewee Profile:
Chen Xianzhang is currently the dean of the Fujian-Taiwan Hakka Research Institute of Longyan University, the director of the Hakka Research Center, the vice-chairman of the Western Fujian Hakka Friendship Association, and the master tutor of Fujian Normal University.
Mainly dedicated to the teaching and research of Chinese literature, Hakka culture, red culture, cultural communication and tourism development.
He has published more than 60 papers in national official journals.
Published monographs "Folk Belief and Hakka Society", "Singing: The Rhythm of Life", "Research on Hakka Folk Beliefs and Customs in Western Fujian", "Language Education and Culture", "Introduction to Chinese Traditional Culture", etc., undertaken and presided over a number of provincial and ministerial scientific research He is also the executive editor of Global Hakka magazine.