Rebuilding the Ancestral Village. Singaporeans in China

Rebuilding the Ancestral Village: Singaporeans in China illustrates the relationship between one group of Singaporean Chinese and their ancestral village in Fujian, China. This ethnographic study examines the reasons why the Singaporean Chinese continue to maintain ties with their ancestral village and how they reproduce Chinese culture through ancestor worship and religion in the ancestral village. In some cases, the Singaporeans feel morally obliged to assist in village reconstruction and infrastructure developments such as new roads, bridges, schools and hospitals. Others help with small-scale industrial and retail activities. Meanwhile, officials and villagers in the ancestral home utilize various strategies to encourage the Singaporeans to revisit their ancestral village, sustain heritage ties, and help enhance the moral economy. T

Khun Eng Kuah-Pearce is an associate professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Hong Kong.