Hakka Community Research Articles

Comparative evolution of vernacular settlements among the Cantonese, Teochew, and Hakka ethnic groups in Lingnan

ABSTRACT Cantonese, Teochew, and Hakka are three major ethnic groups in southern China that exhibit distinct characteristics despite their close geographical and cultural ties. This study employs an analysis of historical documents, architectural documentation, interviews, and observations to examine common settlement patterns and unique evolutionary mechanisms. The findings indicate that all three groups commonly feature a “tanghengshi” architectural prototype, rooted in Central Plains cultural heritage. Both Teochew and Hakka communities have consistently preserved this traditional structure. In contrast, Cantonese settlements have transitioned toward a “binglieshi” layout, characterized by the decline of horizontal houses and a reorientation of architectural elements. This study also investigates how large “tanghengshi” residences and smaller “binglieshi” dwellings may mutually transform. These adaptations in settlement form respond to Lingnan’s geographical and climatic conditions, influenced by social organization, Central Plains culture, and external factors. This research significantly advances our understanding of the relationships among the Cantonese, Teochew, and Hakka settlements and provides valuable insights for future restoration efforts.

Young Speakers of a Heritage Language: Hakka Speakers in Vienna

Increased global migratory mobility lead to ‘superdiverse’ societies especially in urban agglomerations, with many family languages. Overseas Chinese, frequently in a secon­dary migration, reached European countries and established their own close-knit communities. A smaller portion of the Hakka community from Calcutta settled in Vienna (Austria) showing an interesting layering of identities as Chinese, Hakkas, Indians, Austrians -- with family ties to Toronto and other places. While the first generation of migrants is typically restrained by the linguistic barrier of the literate national language which is practically inaccessible to adult newcomers, their offspring is firmly embedded in the new culture, and therefore presents a last generation of speakers of the heritage language. In a series of qualitative interviews, young Hakka speakers from the (Austrian) Indian Hakka community were queried about their linguistic and identitarian situation, as well as their linguistic competence in Hakka, in the context of our global research on overseas Hakka usage. The young speakers effortlessly shifted from Hakka to German at kindergarten age, keeping Hakka as means of communication inside the family; some had to act as family translators when growing older. The Hakka language is held in high esteem but is being used and perceived strictly as a family language. Contrary to the older generation, there are no strong ties to other Hakka speakers, let alone a wider Hakka community. Hakka identity and family origin relate back to India and often globally spread-out families with whom English is the best means of communication. A Chinese ancestry is a fact without much influence on the lives. The linguistic competence in Hakka is restricted to their own dialect and familial matters, as is typical of ‘weak speakers’ of a declining minority language. The language shift to German, higher education, and their emancipation from the ‘ethnic’ profession of running Chinese restaurants are indications of the full integration of the next generation into the local culture.

Landed and Rooted: A Comparative Study of Traditional Hakka Dwellings (Tulous and Weilong Houses) Based on the Methodology of Space Syntax

Both Tulous (土楼) and Weilong Houses (围龙屋) are important types of traditional Hakka (客家) dwellings whose architectural morphology is closely related to the historical origin, social organisation, and cultural values of Hakkas. Previous studies focused on the influence of Chinese traditional etiquette systems and ritual values on the physical morphology of Hakka traditional dwellings, where ancestral halls are often the core of the entire building. This article selects six typical case studies of Tulous and Weilong Houses and launches a comparative study on their spatial configurations through quantitative analysis of space syntax. This study found that compared to Tulous, Weilong Houses exhibit decentralisation and gridification in their spatial structure, in addition to a decrease in defence capability and an increase in residential privatisation. The ancestral hall of the Tulou is still the spiritual and living centre of Tulou residents, located in the geometric centre and possessing high spatial configurational values. However, although the ancestral hall of the Weilong House is still located in the geometric centre of the entire building, it does not exhibit the highest spatial configurational values, indicating that the increase in secularisation and the decrease in ritualisation of Hakka communities inhabiting Weilong Houses resulted in the separation of secular space and ritual space. It coincides with the “Centre–Periphery” distribution characteristics of Hakka communities related to Tulous and Weilong Houses, reflecting the different community existence paradigms of the Hakkas “landed” and “rooted” in the Guangdong–Fujian–Jiangxi border area.

Feed plants, ethnoveterinary medicine, and biocultural values: insights on the Luchuan pig from Hakka communities in China

BackgroundThe Luchuan pig is an indigenous breed from Luchuan County, China, with cultural and genetic significance. However, traditional knowledge and conservation status have not been systematically documented.MethodsUsing ethnobiological methods, we surveyed 72 Luchuan pig farmers in 7 townships during 2021–2023. Semi-structured interviews and participant observation were conducted to document traditional knowledge and management practices.ResultsThe locals reported 51 plant species used as pig feed, with 30 wild species. Growth-stage-specific feeding and seasonal adjustment practices were documented. We recorded 62 ethnoveterinary plant uses, mainly for treating pigs' heat stress and skin conditions. Luchuan pigs play central roles in local Hakka customs, rituals, and cuisine. Additonally, the new ecological farming models minimize the environmental impacts to the local community. However, there are still some challenges remained for conserving and promoting Luchuan pigs.ConclusionsThe Luchuan Hakka people possess rich traditional knowledge and management experience in raising Luchuan pigs. Our study provides extensive documentation of traditional knowledge and recommends integrating cultural and genetic aspects for sustaining this biocultural heritage. Findings can inform initiatives supporting local breed conservation globally.

Türkiye’de Etkili Selefî Bir Şahıs: Ziyaeddin el-Kudsi ve Hakka Davet Cemaati

Salaf; the Prophet's companions refer to the first generation of Islam, which was formed by the tabi'un and the tabe-i tabi'un. Salafism, on the other hand, expresses the understanding of religion that is far from the discussions that emerged in this period. And it is a usage that expresses the Muslims who relate themselves to this generation. It was started to be used by Abu Hamid al-Ghazali (d. 505/1111). It is found as Salafiyya in the works of Ibn Taymiyya (d. 728/1328). It emerged as a religious and political movement based in Arabia under the leadership of Muhammed bin Abdul Wahhab (d. 1206/1792). It has passed through various phases in the historical process. It has become the official sect of Saudi Arabia. Religion is divine, Sect is human. In structures that cannot evaluate this situation properly, religion and sect are intertwined. Attempts to convey Salafist ideas emerged from here. Salafism began to be exported out of Arabia as a result of developing relations with different countries for some reasons such as learning science. As a result of these activities, Salafism was also seen in Turkiye in the 1980s. Various Salafist structures have emerged in Turkiye. While their numbers were few in the beginning, there were different divisions over time. It has created new formations thanks to some individuals coming from abroad. One of these is the Invitation to Hakka Community led by Cemil Awwad, using the pseudonym Ziyaeddin al-Kudsi. The leader of the community, Cemil Awwad, who is of Palestinian origin and was born and raised in Jordan, came to Turkiye for medical education in the 1980s. It started to be structured around Salafi ideas, first in Istanbul and the Marmara region. It has also spread to other cities. At the end of the 1990s, the conjuncture in Turkiye changed. Awwad went abroad after nearly twenty years of activity. His followers continue to walk the path he opened. Today, there is a publishing house under the name of Hak Publishing. He continues to broadcast to disseminate the thoughts of Awwad. Invitation work continues with a website. Awwad, in his definition of faith based on Ibn Taymiyya's description of tawhid, considers rejecting taghut as the first condition of faith. It also explains ideas on political issues. In our study, we tried to clarify Awwad's thoughts within the framework of the works published by Hak Publishing, by complying with the principles of publication ethics.

Rethinking marginalization and heritage language vitality in multilingual families

Aims and objectives: In the context of the complicated minority–majority language reality in Malaysia, this study seeks to address the issue of heritage language (HL) vitality among multilingual Hakka families in East Malaysia. It draws attention to powerful/dominant language(s) and to the idea that marginalization could be an important factor in language vitality. Design/methodology: The study was conducted through semistructured interviews with 52 Hakka families from 2 selected Hakka communities (Bau and Menggatal) in East Malaysia. Data and analysis: This study adopted the family language policy (FLP) approach and the frame analysis perspectives. Based on the data collected through interviews, three frames were developed, that is, the frames of choice/choiceless, security/insecurity, and power/powerless. Findings/conclusion: Families may not always have a ‘genuine choice’ or agency without ‘impositions’ in deciding the family language(s) and the language(s) that they wish to preserve and transmit due to their socioeconomic ‘needs’. Choiceless-, insecurity-, and powerlessness-focused frames reveal the deeper struggles and challenges that surface in the Hakkas’ attempts to comply with and negotiate in relation to dominant discourses in a wider multilingual context that, paradoxically, does not truly embrace small languages and multilingualism. Originality: By drawing attention to a very different perspective, that is, the role of marginalization in HL vitality, this study shows how and why the marginalization of HL matters in influencing FLPs and the maintenance or shift of HLs. Significance/implications: The theoretical development of language vitality or shift is worth reconsidering given that existing theories or models may not be well suited to lesser-known cultures and small languages. This study thus enriches the compatibility of existing theories with less-studied communities.

Konsep Feng Sui pada Tata Ruang Hunian Komunitas Cina Hakka di Kelurahan Lumut, Kecamatan Belinyu, Kabupaten Bangka

This article discusses the early settlement of Chinese Hakka communities in the context of the colonial mining industry both micro, meso and macro in the Chinese community living in Lumut village, Belinyu district, Bangka region, in Bangka Province Belitung. The problem to be solved was about the patterns in the old houses in Lumut village, and various possibilities of indications of the concept of Chinese geomancy applied in the pattern of the three hamlets in the village of Lumut. This study uses reason for thinking from views on landscapes in the understanding of post-processual flows. In this understanding, there was a concept of "taskscape" proposed by Ingold, which essentially is the concept which underlies the various uniqueness of living space inhabited by humans. The results showed that the concept of Fengshui which was seemed to have been lost in fact was not abandoned but rather it changed. The change in the way of this community is to interpret the source of energy ch'i as their main goal in implementing the concept of Fengshui.

The Paradigm of Hakka Women in History

Hakka studies rely strongly on history and historiography. However, despite the fact that in rural Hakka communities women play a central role, in the main historical sources women are almost absent. They do not appear in genealogy books, if not for their being mothers or wives, although they do appear in some legends, as founders of villages or heroines who distinguished themselves in defending the villages in the absence of men. They appear in modern Hakka historiography—Hakka historiography is a very recent discipline, beginning at the end of the 19th century—for their moral value, not only for adhering to Confucian traditional values, but also for their endorsement of specifically Hakka cultural values. In this paper we will analyse the cultural paradigm that allows women to become part of Hakka history. We will show how ethical values are reflected in Hakka historiography through the reading of the earliest Hakka historians as they depicted Hakka women. Grounded on these sources, we will see how the narration of women in Hakka history has developed until the present day.
 In doing so, it is necessary to deal with some relevant historical features in the construction of Hakka group awareness, namely migration, education, and women narratives, as a pivotal foundation of Hakka collective social and individual consciousness.

Family Language Policy in a Hakka Community in Sabah, Malaysia

Hakka has been the lingua franca used among various Chinese groups in Sabah, Malaysia, since the 1950s. Economic development and de-emphasis on ethnic identity within Chinese communities throughout Malaysia is now forcing Sabah Hakkas to confront external pressures on their language and culture. Language shift from Hakka is in progress as young Hakkas prefer speaking Mandarin, while their parents feel responsible for maintaining Hakka. This article presents a case study of family language policies in four Hakka families in Sabah. Whether a particular language is used in the family and passed down to the next generation is one of the significant points of enquiry in studying language shift. In this study, parents’ ethnic identity, children’s language choices, and the factors affecting family language policy are examined. The findings show that the quintessence of Hakka culture in Sabah is the Hakka language, and this helps to keep the language alive at home. However, concern for children’s education and wider social factors such as globalisation, economic changes and the media are influencing language practices in Hakka families.

幫权结構下的华人社团: 以马来西亞文冬华人大会堂为例

Southeast Asian Chinese society is based on “Pang”, which can be simply understood as various geo-based ethnic/dialect communities. “The Power Structure of Pang Politics” is the internal organization structure of each community and the relationships between various “Pangs” consist of both competition and cooperation. Same with the Malaysian Chinese society as a whole, the Malaysian Bentong Chinese society is also a “Pang” co-existing society, with Cantonese (Guangdong) community, Hokkien (Fujian) community, Hakka community, Kwangsi (Guangxi) community and Hailam (Hainan) community. Even now, this “Pang” phenomenon still exists. The five comuunities (the Chinese called them “Wu Pang”) set up various associations with different ties between one and others. The Bentong Chinese Town Hall (Huatang in short form) was established by the five comuunities with the support of the British colonial government. The initial purpose was to reduce “Pang” fighting and maintain order and stability in the Chinese community. It is the highest leading organization of Bentong Chinese associations, and it is also the most typical “inter-Pang” organization. In this organization, the competition and cooperation between various communities was most directly presented, which is a typical case for the study of the power structure of “Pang”. Huatang was established a century ago under the background of competing and fighting between “Pangs”in Bentong, and the need to forge cooperation. Since then, based on the size of the communities, as well as the strength of their political and economic impacts, the various “Pangs” took their turn respectively to lead the Huatang during different periods of history, including the aiding China and resistance against Japanese aggression, Post World War II recovery, Emergency Period and independence of Malaysia until today, made the Huatang played different social functions in different time periods.

The impact of religion on language maintenance and shift

ABSTRACTThis article explores religious impact on language maintenance and language shift in two Hakka communities in Malaysia. While research has shown a trend towards language shift in these communities, whether religious institutions can play a role in heritage language maintenance remained unclear. The key findings are as follows: (i) language use patterns differ among various religious groups; (ii) this difference is due mainly to religious practices, that is, whether a heritage language is used as the ‘language of religion’; and (iii) most religious institutions, except Taoist temples and Basel churches, seem to fuel shifting. However, the tendency to move towards the ‘bi-language of religion’ threatens even the efforts of Basel churches. The study indicates interesting possibilities regarding religious impact but also shows, paradoxically, that the priority of Hakka-based religious institutions is to promote their religions, not to sustain the threatened heritage language. (Language maintenance, language shift, religious impact, Hakka Chinese community)*

Diversity and use of medicinal plants for soup making in traditional diets of the Hakka in West Fujian, China

BackgroundWild edible and medicinal plants were an important component of traditional diets and continue to contribute to food security, nutrition, and health in many communities globally. For example, the preparation and consumption of soup made of medicinal plants for promoting health and preventing disease are a key component of the traditional diets of the Hakka socio-linguistic group of China’s West Fujian Province. As environmental and socio-economic factors drive the shift away from traditional diets, there is a need for ethnobotanical documentation of the diversity of wild edible and medicinal plants as well as associated knowledge and practices.MethodEthnobotanical surveys were conducted in Hakka communities in West Fujian Province between 2017 and 2018 to document plants used in medicinal soups as well as associated traditional ecological knowledge, practices, and conservation status. Surveys included semi-structural interviews, key informant interviews, participatory rural appraisal, and focus group discussions. Quantitative indices, including cultural food significance index (CFSI) and relative frequency of citation (RFC), were calculated to evaluate the importance of documented plants to Hakka communities. The species with the highest CFSI and RFC values were ranked by informants and further evaluated according to their individual properties and growth environment.ResultsA total of 42 medicinal plant species, belonging to 25 families and 41 genera, were documented for making soup by the Hakka. The Asteraceae botanical family was the most prevalent, and their root or the entire plant is used for soup making. Informants incorporate different ingredients in soups for their flavors as well as medicinal properties on the basis of the local ethnonutrition system. The most prevalent medicinal uses of the documented plants for making soups were used for clearing inner heat (58.1% of the species), treating inflammation (37.2%), and counteracting cold in the body (20.9%). Informants perceived that the medicinal properties of soup-making plants are influenced by the time of harvest, the local environment, and the climate.ConclusionEfforts are needed to preserve the ecological knowledge associated with traditional diets towards supporting both environmental and human well-being in rapidly developing communities experiencing the nutrition transition and biodiversity loss.

Fostering Multi-Functional Urban Agriculture: Experiences from the Champions in a Revitalized Farm Pond Community in Taoyuan, Taiwan

Urban agriculture (UA) with its multi-functional roles has recently become a globally important topic, as it is considered as an approach to address the emerging challenges to societies seeking greater sustainability. In Taiwan, the Hakka community of Gaoyuan in Taoyuan City, where a traditional farm pond was recently transformed into a public, multi-functional UA resource, is widely regarded as the first successful bottom-up, community-led, farm-pond-based UA in Taiwan, yet its actual performance is rarely explored in any depth. Little work has been done to provide details on the socio-ecological benefits of UA in the community redevelopment process. Through in-depth interviews, fieldwork, and participant observation, this specific qualitative study aims to explore the community champions’ experiences in the transformation leading to a revitalized community. First, by linking nearby nature to people, a green network of diverse spaces, low-impact landscaping, and an agricultural-community-like pondscape, the specific landscape character that makes UA in Gaoyuan distinctive is formed. Second, through active engagement, participation, and the agency of local people, the UA implementation process features cooperative working, mutual learning, and experience-sharing. Third, UA plays a crucial role in building social cohesion that promotes people’s participation in community affairs, and strengthens the community’s social network, which involves agricultural life, crop production, the ecological environment, and community care. It is revealed that the farm-pond-based UA with its multi-functional roles acts as a catalyst for the Gaoyuan community’s progress toward sustainability. The desired end-state of the agricultural landscape, as a synthesis of natural features and human interventions, is a more sustainable, characteristic, well-maintained and united place to fulfill people’s needs and enhance people’s overall health and well-being.

Socially sustainable ethnic tourism: a comparative study of two Hakka communities in China

ABSTRACTEthnic tourism is a catalyst for economic and sociocultural development in many countries. However, ethnic tourism development has given rise to many challenges associated with the sustainable development of ethnic regions within different cultural contexts. This paper addresses the social aspect of sustainable ethnic tourism through comparative case studies of two ethnic Hakka tourism destinations, Nanyuan and Sujiawei villages in Heyuan, Guangdong Province, China. The comparative case-study research design included in-depth interviews, document analysis and a household study in each case-study village. The comparative case study provides insights into factors contributing to socially sustainable ethnic tourism in China, including levels of community involvement, control of the tourism ‘product’, the benefits accruing to the ethnic community, perceived inconveniences/externalities and authenticity considerations. This study contributes to a better understanding of socially sustainable ethnic tourism in a Chinese context, and has practical implications for ethnic tourism destination marketing, management and policy-making.

Chemical Compositions and Antioxidant Activities of a Specialty Aquatic Vegetable Nymphoides hydrophylla in Taiwan

Nymphoides hydrophylla (NH), a lesser known aquatic vegetable, is a popular dish among the Hakka community in Taiwan. This study aimed to examine the proximate and polyphenolic compositions of NH and evaluate its antioxidant activities using various antioxidant assays. Results showed that the moisture, crude protein, crude fat, carbohydrate (crude fiber), and ash contents of fresh NH were 89.46, 0.46, 0.47, 4.11 (3.65), and 5.50%, respectively. In the antioxidant studies, the NH ethanolic extract (NH-E) exhibited higher antioxidant activities than the aqueous extract (NH-H) in the antilipid peroxidation, reducing power, metal chelation, and 2,2ʹ-azino-bis(3-ethylbenthiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) or ABTS radical scavenging assays, while NH-H possessed more potent activity in the superoxide and 2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging assays. Compared with NH-H (6.86 mg/g for total flavonoids and 48.83 mg/g for total phenolics), NH-E showed a higher content of total flavonoids (197.21 mg/g) and total phenolics (79.43 mg/g). High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis showed that the main difference between NH-H and NH-E polyphenolic contents was derived from the concentrations of kaempferol and quercetin.

History Made for Tomorrow: Hakka Tulou

The documentary film, History Made for Tomorrow: Hakka Tulou was an October 2010 release by History Channel International. This film is an in-depth study on the green building techniques and sustainable lifestyle of the Hakka people of Southern China with a focus on the ancient Tulou rammed earth structures. The television program follows West Virginia University research professor, Ruifeng Liang, as he initiates scientific studies to back claims that the rammed earth Tulou structures are “the greenest buildings in the world”, and Canadian architect, Jorg Ostrowski, of Autonomous Sustainable Housing Inc., who has been researching the ecological footprint of Hakka communities since August 2007, to promote them as “eco-villages” of best practices for planet Earth’s sustainability. The author is credited as Director, Writer, and Producer of this film. This paper is based on the script of the production.

Scrub Typhus and Comparisons of Four Main Ethnic Communities in Taiwan in 2004 versus 2008 Using Geographically Weighted Regression

Purpose:On the main island of Taiwan, a higher risk of scrub typhus infection has been reported in endemic clusters in Southeastern Taiwan and in mountainous township areas. However, research on health care problems associated with scrub typhus in Taiwanese ethnic peoples is limited. This study employs spatial analysis of areal data to determine spatial features related to scrub typhus and the four main Taiwanese ethnicities: Hoklo, Hakka, Mainlander, and aboriginal communities, respectively.Methods:We used a GWR spatial method to analyze the local regressed relationships between scrub typhus incidence and ethnic community percentage in 349 townships in Taiwan, and the subsequent spatial regressed resultants and local parameter estimates were compared between two periods of 2004 and 2008 by kappa statistics.Results:In the GWR models, the spatial regressed relationships of scrub typhus incidences and the Hoklo communities showed significant and negative parameter estimates in numerous locations, showing clusters in Southeastern and Southwestern Taiwan, and areas of the central and southern mountainous townships. Both Hakka and Mainlander communities in the mountainous townships showed less-regressed clusters with scrub typhus prevalence. However, clusters of Aboriginal populations were positively correlated with scrub typhus in highly infected mountainous areas and in Southeastern Taiwan. The kappa value results and the comparisons of local parameter estimates in the 349 townships in Taiwan between 2004 and 2008 indicated that the incidence of scrub typhus in the Hoklo communities was substantial, in the Hakka communities was fair, in the Mainlander communities was slight, and in the aboriginal communities was moderate, respectively.Conclusion:The aboriginal communities have been closely associated with higher risks of scrub typhus in the mountainous townships and in the southeastern portion of Taiwan.

Spatial analysis of tuberculosis in four main ethnic communities in Taiwan during 2005 to 2009

The aim of the present study was to assess spatial features of tuberculosis prevalence and their relationships with four main ethnic communities in Taiwan. Methods of spatial analysis were clustering pattern determination (such as global version of Moran’s test and local version of Gi*(d) statistic), using logistic regression calculations to identify spatial distributions over a contiguous five years and identify significant similarities, discriminant analysis to classify variables, and geographically weighted regression (GWR) to determine the strength of relationships between tuberculosis prevalence and ethnic variables in spatial features. Tuberculosis demonstrated decreasing trends in prevalence in both genders during 2005 to 2009. All results of the global Moran’s tests indicated spatial heterogeneity and clusters in the plain and mountainous Aboriginal townships. The Gi*(d) statistic calculated z-score outcomes, categorized as clusters or non-clusters, at at 5% significance level. According to the stepwise Wilks’ lambda discriminant analysis, in the Aborigines and Hoklo communities townships with clusters of tuberculosis cases differentiated from townships without cluster cases, to a greater extent than in the other communities. In the GWR models, the explanatory variables demonstrated significant and positive signs of parameter estimates in clusters occurring in plain and mountainous aboriginal townships. The explanatory variables of both the Hoklo and Hakka communities demonstrated significant, but negative, signs of parameter estimates. The Mainlander community did not significantly associate with cluster patterns of tuberculosis in Taiwan. Results indicated that locations of high tuberculosis prevalence closely related to areas containing higher proportions of the Aboriginal community in Taiwan. This information is relevant for assessment of spatial risk factors, which, in turn, can facilitate the planning of the most advantageous types of health care policies, and implementation of effective health care services.

Taïwan—Musique des Hakka: Chants Montagnards et Musique Instrumentale Bayin (Taiwan—Music of the Hakka: Mountain Songs and Bayin Instrumental Music) (review)

Reviewed by: Taïwan—Musique des Hakka: Chants Montagnards et Musique Instrumentale Bayin (Taiwan—Music of the Hakka: Mountain Songs and Bayin Instrumental Music) Chuen-Fung Wong (bio) Taïwan—Musique des Hakka: Chants Montagnards et Musique Instrumentale Bayin (Taiwan—Music of the Hakka: Mountain Songs and Bayin Instrumental Music). 2007. One CD (76:47). Performed by the Chung Yun-Hui Ensemble. Maison des Cultures du Monde, Inédit, website: www.label-inedit.com, W260127. Booklet (28 pp.) with black/white photographs and lyrics, as well as liner notes by Wu Rung-Shun in French translation by Pierre Charau and English translation by Frank Kane. Generally subsumed into the Han nationality as an ethnic/national subgroup, the Hakka earned their name—which literally means guest families—as centuries-old immigrants from central China to the southern provinces of Jiangxi, Hokkien (Fujian), and Canton (Guangdong), and subsequently also to Taiwan and Southeast Asia. Currently accounting for 20 percent of Taiwan's population, or about 4.6 million, the Hakka Taiwanese have been migrating to the island from mainland China since the mid-17th century. Musical continuities among diasporic Hakka communities are manifested in the transnational popularity of the two well-known performance traditions: mountain songs and the bayin instrumental music; both are represented on this Inédit CD. Derived from the name of the ancient instrument classification system, the term bayin, literally eight sounds, is today a shared designation for a few instrumental traditions of variegated settings. Characterized by its idiosyncratic shawm-and-percussion sonority, the repertoire of bayin is enjoyed as a refined and intricate musical descendant of ancient court traditions. The bayin music of the Hakka people in Taiwan assumes two closely related regional styles, [End Page 217] identified broadly as the northern and southern traditions. Compared to the larger-sized northern bayin ensemble—which consists of six to eight performers on various flutes, bowed fiddles, plucked lutes, double reeds, and percussion instruments—the southern bayin ensemble is typically smaller and includes only four performers. The selections on the CD, all performed by the Chung Yun-Hui Ensemble, represent the finest of the southern tradition. Led by the renowned performer Chung Yun-Hui (b. 1938), members of the ensemble are natives of the Hakka town of Meinung in the Liudui region of southern Taiwan. The core of the ensemble is the double-reed shawm zuona of various sizes and a small percussion section of drums, woodblocks, cymbals, and gongs. A pair of bowed fiddles nixian and huxian and an end-blown flute xiao are also commonplace in the southern Hakka bayin tradition, which remains closely tied to ritual and ceremonial occasions such as weddings, funerals, and religious festival in Taiwan today. The CD also includes three representative Hakka mountain songs, a highly expressive Chinese folk song genre, featuring a female vocalist called Wen Tzu-Mei accompanied by the ensemble. Recorded at the Maison des Culture due Monde in Paris during the ensemble's tour to France in March 2005, the 14 tracks on the CD represent a faithful selection of Hakka mountain songs and the southern bayin tradition of various settings, including, firstly, the dachui tunes ("big tunes"), a category of shawm-and-percussion pieces; secondly, xiaozi diao tunes (called dizi diao in the booklet; "tunes for the flute"), performed by the end-blown flute and the percussion section; and finally the xiansuo diao tunes ("tunes for strings"), performed by the shawm, the two bowed fiddles, and the percussion section. The uniformly excellent quality of the studio recording is accompanied by a well-sequenced selection of pieces from various styles and genres, attempting to mimic the actual succession of ritual acts and music. It begins with Chuihao jiao ("horn call"), an invocation to the gods, played on the shawm (with the double reeds removed), and is followed by a dachui tune that normally starts a bayin performance, called Tuanyuan xiangdi ("gathering and playing the flutes"), for the shawm-and-percussion combination. The music then proceeds with alternations among mountain songs and the three bayin instrumental settings, eventually leading to a closing shawm-and-percussion tune, called Da tuanyuan ("big gathering"), an abridged musical response to the opening shawm-and...

Disaster Resilience in a Hakka Community in Taiwan

Survivors of the 921 Earthquake in the Tung Shih areas were the target population for this study. The researchers used purposive sampling strategies to select information-rich participants for study in depth. A total of 15 interviewees and 8 focus group members participated in this study. Qualitative data analysis software, ATLAS.ti 5.5, was used for cross-case and content analyses. The results indicate that acceptance, preparedness, self-reliance, spirituality, Hakka spirit, resource availability, social support networks, and serving others have positive impacts on disaster resilience. Participants from the in-depth interviews group affirm the importance of government involvement. Participants from the focus group pay special attentions on re-establishing social support networks. Furthermore, they reinforce the importance of understanding culture and meanings for the local people.