Ep. 278 | The Hakka Kongsis of Borneo (Part 1)

The history of the Overseas Chinese in Southeast Asia is rich with all kinds of lesser-known or forgotten tales, like this one. A kongsi (公司) today means a company. But when Chinese immigrants from Eastern Guangdong and Southern Fujian were heading in the direction of West Borneo to engage in gold mining, kongsis were established as associations where its members were organized and led.

The Chinese migrants in West Borneo faced a constant barrage of challenges and these Kongsis, mostly Hakka, but also from the other main Chinese linguistic groups, were a mechanism with very democratic looking appearances, that took care of the needs of the group. This is Part 1 of an overview of their history. 

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Terms in Episode

Pinyin/Term	Chinese	English/Meaning
Fújiàn	福建	Coastal province in southern China where the Hokkien (Hoklo) and Hokchiu people originate from
Guǎngdōng	广东	Coastal province in southern China
Gōngsī	公司	A clan association or secret society. Modern usage uses the term gongsi for a company
Khoo Kongsi	邱公司	A clan association of the Leong San Tong 龙山堂 (Dragon Mountain Hall) clan, whose forefathers came from Xin'an Village, Haicang District, Xiamen Municipal in Fujian.
Ngee Ann Kongsi	義安公司	A kongsi founded in 1845 by Seah Eu Chin to look after the religious and humanitarian needs of Teochew immigrants in Singapore
Ghee Hin Kongsi	义兴公司	Originally a secret society in Singapore and Malaya, formed in 1820. Ghee Hin literally means "the rise of righteousness" in Chinese. The Ghee Hin often fought against the Hakka-dominated Hai San secret society.
Qiánlóng	乾隆帝	Qing emperor who reigned 1735-1796
Guāngxù	光绪帝	Qing emperor who reigned 1875-1908
Hakka	客家	Han Chinese subgroup, originally from Northern China but whose ancestral homes today are chiefly in the Hakka-speaking provincial areas of Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hunan, Zhejiang, Hainan and Guizhou
Hokkien	福建	People from southern Fujian (as well as their culture and language)
Teochew	潮州	People from the Chaoshan region of Guangdong (as well as their culture and language)
Dayak	达雅族	The Dayak people who were indigenous to the island of Borneo
Quánzhōu	泉州	Port city in Fujian
渤泥	Bóní	Former name used for Borneo
Póluózhōu	婆罗洲	Borneo
Yuán Dynasty	元朝	Dynasty founded by Kublai Khan in 1271 that lasted till 1368
Yǒnglè	永乐帝	Ming Dynasty larger than life emperor who reigned 1402-1424 and who called for the voyages of Admiral Zheng He
Zhèng Hé	郑和	Ming Dyansty statesman, official and admiral who lived 1371-1433. He is renowned for the many voyages he took to faraway lands
Sambas	三发	City in the most northern part of West Kalimantan. Sit of the regency seat of Sambas Regency as well as the Sultanate of Sambas
Pontianak	坤甸	Trading port city at the mouth of the Kapuas River. Present-day capital of West Kalimantan
Mempawa	携带	Coastal city between Pontianak and Singkawang
Montrado	打勞鹿	Inland city east of Singkawang that was the site of many Kongsis as well as the Heshun Zongting
Mandor	领班	Inland city east of Mempawa that was the site of Hakka Lanfang Kongsi
Jiāyīngzhōu	嘉应州	Former name of the land today known as Meizhou, the center of Hakka Culture
Méizhōu	梅州	City and county in eastern Guangdong province
Cháozhōu	潮州	One of the three cities that make up the Chaoshan region, ancestral home of the Teochew people
Shàntóu	汕头	One of the main port city in the Chaoshan region, ancestral home of the Teochew people
Jiēyáng	揭阳	One of the three cities that make up the Chaoshan region, ancestral home of the Teochew people
Dì Gōng	地公	The Earth God, also called Dà Bó Gōng 大伯公 by the Hakka People
Sān Shān Guó Wáng	三山国王	The Lords of the Three Mountains, a triad of Taoist deities worshipped in Southern China among the Teochews and Hakkas
Tiān Hòu	天后	The Chinese Goddess of the Sea, also referred to as Māzǔ 妈祖
Guān Gōng	关公	The God Guan Yu 关羽 who was the embodiment of trust, loyalty and bravery
Guānyīn	观音	The Chinese Goddess of Mercy
Guānyīn Tíng	观音亭	A Guanyin Temple, from which we get the Indonesian word: Klenteng
Jīn Shān	金山	Gold Mountain
Huì	会	A society, organization, association. In this case it was a smaller version of the "Kongsi"
Hoklo	福佬	Another term for a Fujianese, used interchangably with Hokkien
Lánfāng Kongsi	兰芳公司	The Kongsi that was setup in Mandor, West Kalimantan by Luo Fangbo that lasted 1776-1884
Héshùn Zǒngtīng	和顺总厅	The other main Kongsi that was setup in Mantrado, West Kalimantan that lasted 1777-1854
Luō Fāngbó	罗芳伯	Founder of the Lanfang Kongsi (or Republic)
Hóng Xiùquán	洪秀全	Hakka rebel leader who reigned 1851-1864 as the Taiping Heavenly King and the principle figure of the Taiping Rebellion
Nányáng	南阳	The South Seas, another term for Southeast Asia
Liáng Qǐchāo	梁启超	1873-1929, political activist, journalist, and intellectual who played a role in the Reforms during the late Qing and into the early Republic of China
Zhōngguó Zhímín Bādà Wěirén Zhuàn	中国殖民八大伟人传	“Biographies of China’s Eight Great Colonial Heroes”
Bànshānkè	半山客	Term for half Hokkien - Half Hakka people

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