Overseas Chinese History

Fuzhou, Xiamen, Quanzhou, Jinjiang, Nan’an, Huian, Yongchun, Anxi, Tong’an, Fuqing, Putian, Yongding, Xianyou, Datian, Changting, Shaowu, Mawei, Gulangyu Have you ever been to school? To most Chinese today, the question sounds absurd. But a hundred years ago, in Fujian, being able to attend school was a luxury. The people who changed that were a group of Fujianese living far from home. One Man’s Obsession In 1894, the 20th year of Guangxu’s reign. A man named Tan Kah Kee from Tong’an established a small school called the “Tizhai Academy” in Jimei. ...

Geographical Connections Specific locations mentioned in this article include: Quanzhou Prefecture, Jinjiang, Nan’an, Hui’an, Tong’an, Anxi, Yongchun, Dehua, Luzon (Philippines), Calicut, Malacca, Singapore, Zaiton Port, and Houzhu Harbor. Here’s a number that stopped me cold. 9 million. That’s how many people of Quanzhou descent live outside China today. Spread across 170+ countries and territories. To put it in perspective: that’s more than the entire population of Iceland, twenty times over. All from one prefecture in coastal Fujian, a patch of land barely 11,000 square kilometers. ...