Peranakan culture

The name 'Peranakan' is used for the descendants of Chinese migrants who relocated to the Malayan archipelago during the C15th-17th.  This term 'Peranakan' in Malay and Indonesian means 'descendants'. In this context, it means that the Peranakan are the descendants of Chinese, who came here to claim local girls as brides. They grouped closely together, knew several languages, knew how to trade and bargain, and their culture slowly prospered as a result. Over many centuries a unique Peranakan culture developed. - a fusion of Chinese, Malay and Indonesian cultures. National dress appeared, household objects, their own unique cuisine, traditions of family life... and also their own language. The language, however, is now beginning to be forgotten by the present generation. Peranakans have a special fondness for combinations of bright colours, and such traditions are further reflected in the decorations used on porcelain, the remarkable embroidery on their clothes and shoes, on the decorations of the facades of their traditional houses.

 There are Peranakan Associations to be found in Singapore and other Asian countries, whose primary concern is the preservation and promotion of the Peranakan national culture.

There are a number of private buildings in Katong which function as musems, shops or workshops where traditional Peranakan crafts are made.