In 2024, Tan Wanxuan (陳婉璇), a video director and editor from Gim-zieh (金石) town in Teo-ann, shared the story of Sister Hung (芬姐) from Vĩnh Châu, Vietnam, during an exclusive interview with The Teochew Store. According to her, most of the Chinese in Vĩnh Châu are of Teochew descent, earning the town the nickname “Little Teochew”.
Sister Hung, who was born there and is now in her seventies, traces her ancestral roots to Koi Mui (溪美), Teo-yor (潮陽). It has been her lifelong wish to set foot on the soil of her ancestral hometown and see its scenery. However, for various reasons, this wish had never been fulfilled. Helping Sister Hung return to Teo-yor became one of Wanxuan's greatest wishes. This year, through the joint efforts of young Teochews in China and Vietnam, Sister Hung finally fulfilled her wish, setting foot on Teochew soil and returning to the place of her ancestral roots. The moment was truly moving and joyous.
2024年，来自潮州金石镇的视频编导与剪辑师陈婉璇，在接受潮舗 The Teochew Store 专访时，分享了越南珠洋(Vĩnh Châu)芬姐的故事。据介绍，珠洋的华人主要是潮裔，故有“小潮州”之称。在此出生的芬姐年逾七十，祖籍潮阳溪美。踏上家乡的土地、看看家乡的风光，是她毕生的心愿。然而由于种种原因，这个心愿一直未能实现。帮芬姐早日回潮阳，也成了婉璇最大的心愿之一。今年，在中国和越南两地潮州青年的共同努力下，芬姐终于如愿踏上潮州的土地，回到了自己的祖籍地。这一幕着实让人感动和欣喜。
Exhibition on Teochew Vernacular Architecture this weekend, 12–13 September, at Level 4, Chui Huay Lim Club 醉花林俱乐部, Singapore.
There will be a talk in Chinese on Sunday (13 September) at 3 pm by Chua Haisong 蔡海松, a distinguished researcher from Swatow who has written extensively on Teochew traditional architecture and received numerous international awards for his photographic documentation of Teochew architectural heritage.
The lecture will introduce the layout, architectural elements and decorative arts of Teochew residences through examples of traditional buildings from different regions. Highlights include the ancestral residence of Tan Yeok Nee 陈旭年, the former residence of Chen Cihong 陈慈黉, and several filming locations featured in the hit movie "Dear You".
Register here for the talk on Sunday, 13 September.
In 1949, a woman in Teochew received a letter and a remittance of 200,000 gold yuan from her husband’s elder brother in Siam. She wrote back, not to her brother-in-law, but to her husband — the man she had not heard from for many years.
In her letter, she wrote:
“Since you left for Siam, you have not sent a letter home for several years. Fortunately, your elder brother has been sending us money, otherwise we would have starved.
“We have been married for almost ten years. Although our family is poor, I have no complaints. My only wish is for you to earn enough to support the family. Yet all these years, you have lived freely overseas, without concern for your wife and son. You are indeed a man without conscience!”
We may never know the truth behind this family’s story. Was the husband truly heartless, or did he suffer a fate like Bhagseng — one that his elder brother knew, but could not bring himself to reveal?
The Teochew Letters (or Khieu-phue 僑批 — literally “the sojourner’s letter”) are correspondences exchanged between tens of thousands of Teochew emigrants in Southeast Asia and their families back home. These letters, often sent together with remittances, preserve countless real-life stories of devotion to elderly parents, longing between separated spouses, and worries for children left behind—revealing struggles that shaped the resilience of the Teochew people.
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