Beyond Tan Kah Kee: The Forgotten Southern Fujian 'Shuike' and the Small Remittance Networks of Nanyang Overseas Chinese
Introduction: The Capillaries Behind the ‘Great Men’ In traditional narratives of overseas Chinese history, the massive donations of patriotic leaders like Tan Kah Kee often occupy center stage. However, examining the digital archives of the Xiamen Finance Chronicles and Longhai County Chronicles reveals a more vast and resilient financial ecosystem: an informal network composed of millions of ordinary migrants, thousands of mobile couriers known as ‘Shuike’ (water guests), and ‘Minxin Bureaus’ (Qiaopi Bureaus) scattered throughout urban and rural areas. ...