Learning and speaking Mandarin as a second language did not make me feel a Chinese Singaporean or a China Chinese. I dare say I get along better with my Malay, Indian and Eurasian neighbors than with the China Chinese who have, in recent years, descended upon Singapore to work. After all, I grew up side by side with my Malay, Indian and Eurasian schoolmates and neighbors. We converse in English with each other. I was oblivious to the period when there was racial disharmony here because I was too young to understand its disastrous effects. Thanks to the efficient and forward-looking Singapore government, we were inculcated to live harmoniously with one another in land-scarce Singapore. Thanks to the able efforts of the Singapore government, I am proud to be a Singaporean. I am Chinese by genes and to the parents who gave birth to me. No matter when I am in the world, I would first be a Singaporean, then a Chinese.
Putting nationalism before family roots?... When it comes to identity, roots have more influence than locality, don't you think?
It depends, i think, especially for the generation who was born and grew up in Singapore. They have been exposed to Singaporean local culture as well as Chinese traditions... You may see some Chinese traits are not suitable for the Singaporean with Chinese roots any more...
if you wish to forever stay in this rock and never leave the country, this kind of frog-in-well attitude is fine. however if you go aboard you will soon fine that whatever prejudice the chinese recieve, you will recieve the same amount regardless of your background.
Chinese has always face prejudice during the colonial era, The Japanese target us all the same when they took Singapore, they ain't going to ask you if you are born in China, if you look the part you will be profiled and that attitude has not change because they really can't tell the difference, so we are forever link to the fate of Chinese. This I learn it the hard way traveling the world, they don't even understand Singapore is a different country.
You think a Singapore Malay traveling in the US won't have eyes look at them at the airport? they ain't Arab but Malay too are affected by prejudice against their culture group and that is the real reality of the world.
If we want our children to be able to stand proudly in the international stage, we have to support our own culture to end the prejudice against us. of course people from different city will have different social norm, even between people living in Shanghai and Suzhou. Every city on the planet has a different beat, however that is just a drop in the bucket of similarity and differences.
forgot to say that the experience and identification is not mine but a quotation on the internet...but it does reveal how a Singaporean with Chinese root identifies himself with though it may not the usual case...i post it here just to ask other opinions as it is probably the dilemma about identity of other Singaporean related to Chinese origin...
I really agree with your "support our own culture to end the prejudice against us"...but what is "our culture" in Singapore, the mixed culture with Malay culture, British culture and Chinese culture or just Chinese culture?
really, who cares?
ask not wad yr country can do for u, ask wad u can do yr garmen
country? patriotic? tats rubbish in this country
money is above all
Originally posted by akinkhoo:if you wish to forever stay in this rock and never leave the country, this kind of frog-in-well attitude is fine. however if you go aboard you will soon fine that whatever prejudice the chinese recieve, you will recieve the same amount regardless of your background.
Chinese has always face prejudice during the colonial era, The Japanese target us all the same when they took Singapore, they ain't going to ask you if you are born in China, if you look the part you will be profiled and that attitude has not change because they really can't tell the difference, so we are forever link to the fate of Chinese. This I learn it the hard way traveling the world, they don't even understand Singapore is a different country.
You think a Singapore Malay traveling in the US won't have eyes look at them at the airport? they ain't Arab but Malay too are affected by prejudice against their culture group and that is the real reality of the world.
If we want our children to be able to stand proudly in the international stage, we have to support our own culture to end the prejudice against us. of course people from different city will have different social norm, even between people living in Shanghai and Suzhou. Every city on the planet has a different beat, however that is just a drop in the bucket of similarity and differences.
forgot to say that the experience and identification is not mine but a quotation on the internet...but it does reveal how a Singaporean with Chinese root identifies himself with though it may not the usual case...i post it here just to ask other opinions as it is probably the dilemma about identity of other Singaporean related to Chinese origin...
I really agree with your "support our own culture to end the prejudice against us"...but what is "our culture" in Singapore, the mixed culture with Malay culture, British culture and Chinese culture or just Chinese culture?
Mandarin is not a mother tongue. It a simplified (or should I say bastardised) Chinese language.
I know my mother tongue is Hokkien and I'm proud of it.
I am a chinese who is a Singapore citizen.
I am a singaporean, who is chinese. I jiak kantang, and I treat singapore as my true and only home.
So there are many people who really identifiy themselves with either Chinese or Singaporean though these two cultures cannot be seperated in this land...and it is still a confusion for some others...
Originally posted by Clivebenss:Mandarin is not a mother tongue. It a simplified (or should I say bastardised) Chinese language.
I know my mother tongue is Hokkien and I'm proud of it.
Understandable since Hokkien is indeed an important dialect in Singapore as well as other countries in Southeast Asia... and it is still part of Chinese origin, so it deserves well preservation.
born in singapore with ancestral heritage from china (and before tt i dunno is where)
every singaporean chinese ancestors all came from china , so we are also part of china ppl , just that our accents is different from them. lets just face the fact! =))
i a singaporean
race : Chinese
Originally posted by Resentment:every singaporean chinese ancestors all came from china , so we are also part of china ppl , just that our accents is different from them. lets just face the fact! =))
hope i will not look at it this way now. how about the aussies, americans, english. are they not one way or another related? some says english alsooriginated from german, the saxon's origin. so what come first ? chick or egg?
yest true our chinese ancestors came from china. now i am glad they did.
Originally posted by Bus&Soccer l0v3r (VO3x 1):i a singaporean
race : Chinese
right. our pink IC already explained TS' thread.
Originally posted by ditzy:I am a singaporean, who is chinese. I jiak kantang, and I treat singapore as my true and only home.
jiak roti, and prada, frech fries, pork chop, hala sometimes dadah babi
Originally posted by Clivebenss:Mandarin is not a mother tongue. It a simplified (or should I say bastardised) Chinese language.
I know my mother tongue is Hokkien and I'm proud of it.
last time also fight war, becasue cannot understand one abnother. so why some tyrant king sule decided to come up with a set of common language so that people can understand one another. no more wars. but it seems like even with a common tongue, these people still cannot really quite undersatnd the world. i go foreign land call chick, cannot undersatnd language can also get chick.
Originally posted by troublemaker2005:
last time also fight war, becasue cannot understand one abnother. so why some tyrant king sule decided to come up with a set of common language so that people can understand one another. no more wars. but it seems like even with a common tongue, these people still cannot really quite undersatnd the world. i go foreign land call chick, cannot undersatnd language can also get chick.
common language also fight lah so many dynasties...
Originally posted by Clivebenss:Mandarin is not a mother tongue. It a simplified (or should I say bastardised) Chinese language.
I know my mother tongue is Hokkien and I'm proud of it.
Yes
MANDARIN IS NOT OUR SINGAPOREAN CHINESE MAJORITY MOTHER TONGUE
I agree with you whole heartedly 100%
But I don't understand why so many noobies students nowadays is psycho-ed by the government education that Mandarin is our mother tongue, and the Fathers & Mothers are noobies themselves, telling their kids, Mandarin is their mother tongue !
Mandarin is a forced-upon-unto-us alien tongue , and our real mother tongue is either Hokkien, Teochew, Cantonese, Hakka, Hainanese, Hockchew, and others southern chinese languages la!
So simply and so many people dunno : >
They should read this ::>>>
http://sgforums.com/forums/8/topics/370029?page=6#post_9279018
Originally posted by BanguIzai:Yes
MANDARIN IS NOT OUR SINGAPOREAN CHINESE MAJORITY MOTHER TONGUE
I agree with you whole heartedly 100%
But I don't understand why so many noobies students nowadays is psycho-ed by the government education that Mandarin is our mother tongue, and the Fathers & Mothers are noobies themselves, telling their kids, Mandarin is their mother tongue !
Mandarin is a forced-upon-unto-us alien tongue , and our real mother tongue is either Hokkien, Teochew, Cantonese, Hakka, Hainanese, Hockchew, and others southern chinese languages la!
So simply and so many people dunno : >
They should read this ::>>>
http://sgforums.com/forums/8/topics/370029?page=6#post_9279018
政府剥夺了他们说“真æ£æ¯�诔的æ�ƒåˆ©
用骹食é¥.
Originally posted by BanguIzai:Yes
MANDARIN IS NOT OUR SINGAPOREAN CHINESE MAJORITY MOTHER TONGUE
I agree with you whole heartedly 100%
But I don't understand why so many noobies students nowadays is psycho-ed by the government education that Mandarin is our mother tongue, and the Fathers & Mothers are noobies themselves, telling their kids, Mandarin is their mother tongue !
Mandarin is a forced-upon-unto-us alien tongue , and our real mother tongue is either Hokkien, Teochew, Cantonese, Hakka, Hainanese, Hockchew, and others southern chinese languages la!
So simply and so many people dunno : >
They should read this ::>>>
http://sgforums.com/forums/8/topics/370029?page=6#post_9279018
政府剥夺了他们说“真æ£æ¯�诔的æ�ƒåˆ©
aiyah, the common tongue is for tanjiak 1. learn it can communite with thos echeapo .
Originally posted by Clivebenss:common language also fight lah so many dynasties...
can fight very good, but small country like japan cannot fight them and win