Chinese language romanisation in Singapore
Encyclopedia
The romanisation of the Chinese language
in Singapore
is not dictated by a single policy, nor is its policy implementation consistent, as the local Chinese community
is composed of a myriad of dialect groups. Although Hanyu Pinyin is adopted as the preferred romanisation system for Mandarin, the general lack of a romanisation standard for other Chinese spoken variants and their dialects results in some level of inconsistency. This may be illustrated by the many variants for the same Chinese characters often found in surnames such as Low, Loh, Lo; Tay, Teh; Teo, Teoh; Yong, Yeong.
The surname 郑/鄭 alone has several variations including Teh, Tay, Tee, Chang, Chung, Cheng, Zeng, Zheng. The variations Teh or Tee normally have roots in Malaysia, Tay or Tee coming from Singapore, Chang, Chung or Cheng from Hong Kong, and Zeng or Zheng normally from China.
-based names mostly given by the Orang Laut
communities. These names, however, are usually referred to in the dialects of whichever group accords that place a certain name, with some places having entirely different names for the same feature. In most places, however, the same name is used, but referred to by an individual's dialect.
When there was a need to record place names by the British administration, therefore, Chinese place names were anglicised using an almost ad-hoc means of finding the closest set of letters reflecting local pronunciations of these names, a situation which often spawned conflicting spellings, some of which still persist to this day. The older spelling of Chua Chu Kang (蔡厝港; Pinyin
: Càicuògǎng; POJ: Chhoà-chhù-káng), a suburban area in western Singapore and taken after a village by the same name, is now more commonly spelt as Choa Chu Kang
after the new town
by the same name took its spelling from Choa Chu Kang Road
, itself an anomaly as the village and the surrounding cemeteries were then spelt in the old way. Today, the village no longer exists, but the cemeteries continue to be referred to as Chua Chu Kang, while all placenames in Choa Chu Kang New Town take on the newer spelling.
From the mid-1980s, the drive to encourage the use of Pinyin filtered down to place names, resulting in some amendments. Aukang (also spelt "Aokang") is Teochew for 后港, but was romanised as Hougang
when the Hougang New Town was built. Some changes met with popular opposition, particularly over the English spelling of Yishun
(义顺), which has been well known as Nee Soon in Hokkien (Min Nan
) until the government tried to introduce pinyin when Yishun New Town
appeared. The disagreements led to "Nee Soon" retaining its presence in Nee Soon Road, as well as some place names such as Nee Soon Camp and in the names of political subdivisions.
In contrast, pinyin was generally welcomed in Bishan
(碧山), named after what was popularly known as "Peck San" in Cantonese. The popularity was not over the pinyin system itself, but over the fact that Peck San was well known for its association with the Peng San Cemetery, which has since been exhumed to build Bishan New Town. To the local Chinese, Bishan, although actually similar in name to Peck San in Chinese, is as good as a different name by virtue of its different romanisation spelling alone.
Another controversy surrounded the re-naming of Tekka Market (derived from Hokkien Tek Kia Kha (POJ: Tek-á-kha), literally meaning "foot of the small bamboos" http://ourstory.asia1.com.sg/neatstuff/tanss/sstekka.html), then one of the largest wet markets in Singapore located at the junction of Serangoon and Bukit Timah Road. When the old market was torn down and rebuilt across the road, the new multi-use complex was named Zhujiao Centre, which is the pinyin version of that name. However, to locals, especially non-Chinese, the new word was both hard to read and pronounce and bore no resemblance to Tekka. Eventually, the complex was officially named Tekka Centre in 2000 after 2 decades of public pressure.
speakers), and a lesser number Teochew. Hokkien and Teochew share many phoneme
s to the point that they are mutually intelligible. Thus the romanisations are similar and surnames such as Tan (陈), Chua (蔡), Koh (许), etc., are very common.
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
in Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
is not dictated by a single policy, nor is its policy implementation consistent, as the local Chinese community
Chinese in Singapore
Chinese Singaporeans are people of Chinese ethnicity who hold Singaporean nationality. As of 2010, Chinese Singaporeans constitute 74.1% of Singapore's resident population, or approximately three out of four Singaporeans, making them the largest ethnic group in Singapore...
is composed of a myriad of dialect groups. Although Hanyu Pinyin is adopted as the preferred romanisation system for Mandarin, the general lack of a romanisation standard for other Chinese spoken variants and their dialects results in some level of inconsistency. This may be illustrated by the many variants for the same Chinese characters often found in surnames such as Low, Loh, Lo; Tay, Teh; Teo, Teoh; Yong, Yeong.
The surname 郑/鄭 alone has several variations including Teh, Tay, Tee, Chang, Chung, Cheng, Zeng, Zheng. The variations Teh or Tee normally have roots in Malaysia, Tay or Tee coming from Singapore, Chang, Chung or Cheng from Hong Kong, and Zeng or Zheng normally from China.
Place names
Since the founding of modern Singapore in 1819 and with large numbers of migrants predominantly from Southern China, Chinese placenames began to enter local vocabulary in place of traditionally MalayMalay language
Malay is a major language of the Austronesian family. It is the official language of Malaysia , Indonesia , Brunei and Singapore...
-based names mostly given by the Orang Laut
Orang Laut
The Orang Laut, or Bajau Laut are a group of Malay people living in the Riau Islands of Indonesia. It also may refer to any Malay origin people living on coastal islands, including those of Andaman Sea islands in Thailand and Burma, commonly known as Moken.-Etymology:The Malay term orang laut...
communities. These names, however, are usually referred to in the dialects of whichever group accords that place a certain name, with some places having entirely different names for the same feature. In most places, however, the same name is used, but referred to by an individual's dialect.
When there was a need to record place names by the British administration, therefore, Chinese place names were anglicised using an almost ad-hoc means of finding the closest set of letters reflecting local pronunciations of these names, a situation which often spawned conflicting spellings, some of which still persist to this day. The older spelling of Chua Chu Kang (蔡厝港; Pinyin
Pinyin
Pinyin is the official system to transcribe Chinese characters into the Roman alphabet in China, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan. It is also often used to teach Mandarin Chinese and spell Chinese names in foreign publications and used as an input method to enter Chinese characters into...
: Càicuògǎng; POJ: Chhoà-chhù-káng), a suburban area in western Singapore and taken after a village by the same name, is now more commonly spelt as Choa Chu Kang
Choa Chu Kang
Choa Chu Kang is a major residential town and neighbourhood and is a suburban area in the West Region of Singapore...
after the new town
New town
A new town is a specific type of a planned community, or planned city, that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed in a previously undeveloped area. This contrasts with settlements that evolve in a more ad hoc fashion. Land use conflicts are uncommon in new...
by the same name took its spelling from Choa Chu Kang Road
Choa Chu Kang Road
Choa Chu Kang Road is a road in Singapore now in two parts, one from Upper Bukit Timah Road and continues through via Bukit Batok Road, and another one, from Kranji Expressway all the way up to Jalan Sungei Poyan under Old Choa Chu Kang Road. It continues through the SAFTI area, at Poyan Reservoir...
, itself an anomaly as the village and the surrounding cemeteries were then spelt in the old way. Today, the village no longer exists, but the cemeteries continue to be referred to as Chua Chu Kang, while all placenames in Choa Chu Kang New Town take on the newer spelling.
From the mid-1980s, the drive to encourage the use of Pinyin filtered down to place names, resulting in some amendments. Aukang (also spelt "Aokang") is Teochew for 后港, but was romanised as Hougang
Hougang
Hougang is an urban planning area and a suburb in the north-eastern area of the city-state of Singapore. Under classification by the Urban Redevelopment Authority, the area is part of the North-East Region, an urban planning division. Hougang borders Sengkang in the north and Serangoon to its...
when the Hougang New Town was built. Some changes met with popular opposition, particularly over the English spelling of Yishun
Yishun
Yishun, or Nee Soon as it was initially named, is a suburban town in the northern part of Singapore, encompassing the Yishun Planning Area, in the North Region, which includes Yishun New Town and the Nee Soon private residential estate....
(义顺), which has been well known as Nee Soon in Hokkien (Min Nan
Min Nan
The Southern Min languages, or Min Nan , are a family of Chinese languages spoken in southern Fujian, eastern Guangdong, Hainan, Taiwan, and southern Zhejiang provinces of China, and by descendants of emigrants from these areas in diaspora....
) until the government tried to introduce pinyin when Yishun New Town
Yishun New Town
Yishun New Town is a housing estate in the north of Singapore. The Lower Seletar Reservoir is found there.Shopping centres in Yishun include Northpoint Shopping Centre, which is situated next to Yishun MRT Station and Yishun Bus Interchange....
appeared. The disagreements led to "Nee Soon" retaining its presence in Nee Soon Road, as well as some place names such as Nee Soon Camp and in the names of political subdivisions.
In contrast, pinyin was generally welcomed in Bishan
Bishan
Bishan is a neighbourhood of the city-state of Singapore situated in the Central Region, measuring approximately three by three kilometres. Primarily a housing estate, Flats here are generally more expensive compared to other estates due to its location in the central region, which commands a...
(碧山), named after what was popularly known as "Peck San" in Cantonese. The popularity was not over the pinyin system itself, but over the fact that Peck San was well known for its association with the Peng San Cemetery, which has since been exhumed to build Bishan New Town. To the local Chinese, Bishan, although actually similar in name to Peck San in Chinese, is as good as a different name by virtue of its different romanisation spelling alone.
Another controversy surrounded the re-naming of Tekka Market (derived from Hokkien Tek Kia Kha (POJ: Tek-á-kha), literally meaning "foot of the small bamboos" http://ourstory.asia1.com.sg/neatstuff/tanss/sstekka.html), then one of the largest wet markets in Singapore located at the junction of Serangoon and Bukit Timah Road. When the old market was torn down and rebuilt across the road, the new multi-use complex was named Zhujiao Centre, which is the pinyin version of that name. However, to locals, especially non-Chinese, the new word was both hard to read and pronounce and bore no resemblance to Tekka. Eventually, the complex was officially named Tekka Centre in 2000 after 2 decades of public pressure.
Person's names
A large majority of Chinese people in Singapore are Hokkien (Min NanMin Nan
The Southern Min languages, or Min Nan , are a family of Chinese languages spoken in southern Fujian, eastern Guangdong, Hainan, Taiwan, and southern Zhejiang provinces of China, and by descendants of emigrants from these areas in diaspora....
speakers), and a lesser number Teochew. Hokkien and Teochew share many phoneme
Phoneme
In a language or dialect, a phoneme is the smallest segmental unit of sound employed to form meaningful contrasts between utterances....
s to the point that they are mutually intelligible. Thus the romanisations are similar and surnames such as Tan (陈), Chua (蔡), Koh (许), etc., are very common.