Altogether eight clubs and associations in Singapore founded in the period 1898 to 1932 used the term “Peranakan/Pranakan”. None of these were constituted by Chinese Peranakan individuals. In fact the Chinese Peranakans in Singapore initially formed an association called the Straits Chinese British Association (1900), which was only renamed Singapore Chinese Peranakan Association much later, in 1964. In 1966 it was renamed again as The Peranakan Association. This is not to say however that Peranakan Chinese in Singapore did not identify with the term – on the contrary the term was often invoked in the papers to refer to the ’Straits-born Chinese” – the 1894 Straits Chinese Herald was also known as Surat Khabar Peranakan, and the Bintang Pranakan billed itself as “the only Straits-Born Chinese Romanised-Malay Weekly journal in British Malaya”, running from 1930 to 1931.
However, it is clear from the example of the nine clubs and associations in Singapore not connected to Peranakan Chinese as their founders, that the term ‘Peranakan’ originally had a wider meaning and usage that was still current into the early 20th century that is not well-understood and almost completely forgotten today. The Malay and Javanese term Peranakan requires some explanation. It is often misunderstood to mean a person born from intermarriages. Although persons identifying as Peranakan may be the offspring of cross-ethnic unions, the term itself literally means a child of, or born of, some place. It is thus a qualifier for one’s place of birth and can also be glossed as an adjective that translates as “locally born”. Another implicit assumption in the quality of being locally born is also one of identifying with the locale of birth, which further implies some degree of acculturation or imbibing of aspects of the place of one’s upbringing, often in complex interactions with the inheritances of one’s non-local forebears.
A case in point is the following description on the Persekutuan Penang Kebajikan (Penang Benevolent Society), founded in 1912 in Singapore by Penang-born Capt N.M. Hashim, Inche Abdul Aziz bin Musa, and Inche Mohamed Razak: “Membership was originally confined to “Penang Peranakan” (Penang-born Malays) but now [ie in 1948] it is open to all Muslims irrespective of their place of birth.” (The Straits Times, 3 November 1948, Pg 8).
Likewise, for Arab Peranakan Association “only local and Malayan-born Arabs are eligible for membership”, again emphasizing place of birth (Malaya Tribune 25 November 1932 pg14).
It is with this meaning – identification with place of birth – that the term was used widely in Johore, which was opened anew as “Johor Bahru” and welcomed new settlers – Javanese, Bugis, and Banjarese chief among those who responded the call to open up new agricultural land along the Straits coast of Johor from Kukup to Muar.
Singapore Pranakan Association/Club 1899
‘Singapore Paranakan Association’ was exempted from registration on 14 Dec 1898 (SSGG 1899) with Club premises at 28-3 Weld Rd first listed for the first AGM reported in the papers in 1927, and last notice in 1938 for a ronggeng party (ST 15 February 1927 p.10; The Straits Budget, 6 March 1930, p.2; Malaya Tribune 21 January 1933, p.12; Malaya Tribune, 24 May 1938, p.5 ).
During a 1930 gambling raid it was reported that at the club premises were 2 Chinese and 24 Malays (Malaya Tribune 5 March 1930, p.10; The Straits Budget, 6 March 1930, p.2). In 1931 there was a gambling raid again on Singapore Peranakan Club Weld Rd (Straits Times 11 December 1931 p.12).
Composition of committee members
Composition of committee members shows diversity and inclusion (see lists in Table 3). AGMs were reported in 1927, and 1930. Biannual (half-yearly) GM were held in 1933, 1935, 1936, and 1937; and half-yearly GM in 1946.
Java Peranakan Club 1912 vs Jawi Peranakan Club 1900
Mention of a Jawi Peranakan Club first surfaced in the newspapers in 1900 of “a challenge match” to be “played on Sunday between the Police team and the Jawi Pranakan Club team, on the Darul Adab Club ground at Jalan Besar” (ST 11 Oct 1900, p.26; SFPMA 13 Oct 1900, p.2).
It also had another variant version of its name: It appears that an alternative form of its name is the Jawa Peranakkan. In 1919 first notice as “Jawa Perannakan F.C.” (1919-11-21-JPC-SFPMA-P12). The name “Jawa Peranakan” appears again in a notice in 1929 on its participation with seven other Malay clubs for a Lantern procession in honour of the visit of the Duke of Glocester to Singapore (The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser 24 April 1929 p.13).
However a report in 1932 states that the Club was founded 4th May 1912 (1932-10-12-JPC-SFPMA-P3). It is unclear therefore if the Jawi Peranakan Club is connected to the Java Peranakan / Java Pranakan / Jawa Peranakan Club. Yet it is clear that Jawi and Java/Jawa Peranakan was used to refer to the same club, as this form of the name, “Jawi Peranakan”, appears in 1920 and twice again in 1922:
In 1920 the Jawi Peranakan and a team of No. 2 Platoon of the Staffords Malaya was reported to plan on the SRC ground (Malaya Tribune, 26 Feb 1920, 5)
In 1922 the club was referred to as “Jawi Peranakan Club” in connection with the Malaya-Borneo Exhibition – the club’s well-known pancharagam (string or minstrel band) provided Malay music on several occasions during the exhibition in Singapore (Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser 3 March 1922 pg 7). Then it was again mentioned as “Jawi Peranakan” for an MFA League match against the Singapore Perranakan held in Singapore (The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser 28 Sep 1922, Page 12)
The distinctly different, thought similar-looking term ‘Jawi Peranakan’ is well known in Penang, the peninsula and in Singapore to refer to Indian Muslim Malay-speakers. For instance there is in Penang The Jawi Peranakan Marines Club, which unfortunately was ordered to be dissolved in 1919 (The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser 15 Nov 1919, p.6 and Malaya Tribune 15 Nov, 5). Meanwhile in Kuala Lumpur, there was a Jawi Pranakan Club at Batu Road, which held its AGM on Saturday 25 Jan 1930 (The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser 8 Feb 1930, 7)
Nevertheless, there are complex inter-ethnic links involved in entities using this term. In 1879, for instance, the Jawi Peranakkan newspaper was founded in Singapore – and while it has been identified with the Indian Muslim Peranakans, this is not a clear division as Javanese and Malays were also involved. For a period of time the editor for the Jawi Peranakkan was in fact a Javanese.
To complicate matters, the term Jawi in Javanese can mean “Javanese” in its high/polite register (krama), while in Malay, Jawi is the adjective form to denote someone coming from the Malay-Indonesian Archipelago or ‘bilad al-Jawa’ in Arabic.
Sri Peranakan Kallang Mahil Batul Eklas 1902
This club was registered on 16 Oct 1902, with its premises at 139 and 164 Kampong Kallang from 1902 to 1905. The ‘Class of Society’ was given as “parental” (SSGG 1906). It was reported in 1914 that the closure of the club in 1914 “may be of interest to some sportsmen” (ST 7 Nov 1914, p.8; Straits Echo 9 Nov 1914, p.6), suggesting that it was primarily involved in sports.
Singapore Arab Peranakan Club 1908; Arab Peranakan Association 1932
This club first emerged in the records in 1908 as The Singapore Arab Pranakan Football Club, also known as Singapore Arab Pranakan Club for short, when it was exempted from registration on 28 Aug 1908 with an address at Weld Road (SSGG 1910; ST 5 Sep 1908, 8; SFPMA 7 Sep 1908, 4). In its AGM published in 1908, it is significant that a Penang-born Malay Noor Mohamed Hashim, who later became famous as the Capt NM Hashim who advocated for the formation of a university in Singapore in three public addresses – twice in the Legislative Council on Oct. 26 and Dec. 7 1936, and in a long public address at the Victoria Memorial Hall on 3 Feb 1937 at the auspices of the Arab Peranakan Association (APA).
The club was registered as Arab Peranakan Association (often abbreviated as A.P.A.) on 4 Nov 1932 with an address at 121 Kitchener Road and a newspaper report noted that “Membership is confined to local and Malayan-born Arabs, who are known as Arab Peranakans” (SFPMA 25 Nov 1932, 3). The Straits Times also referred to APA by its hybrid Malay-English name as Persekutuan Arab Peranakan of Singapore (The Straits Times 10 February 1937 p.16).
A remarkable development occurred in 1934: At an Annual Re-Union Dinner with H.H. Raja Muda of Selangor as guest of honour, it was stated that the members of the Malay Students Society of London would become life members of the Arab Pranakan Assoc (A.P.A.). The event was held at the bungalow of the President of A.P.A., Mr A.M. Alsagoff, in Siglap. In an example of yet further links across associations, the Penang Kebajikan Orchestra played for the evening (SFPMA 3 Apr 1934, 9).
It is significant to note that the Association’s name was changed to just ‘Arab Association’ in 1937 (SSGG 1937). It appears that there was enough of a change in overall sentiment among the key members to occasion the dropping of the term Peranakan, which denoted the local-born and hybridized cultural affiliation of the Arabs in Singapore.
Stia Bugis Pranakan 1909
Established in 1909 its inauguration ceremony of the Stia Bugis Peranakan Club was held at premises located at Kallang Road with E. E. Colman (President of Malaya Football Association) as the VIP. A Ronggeng party held in the evening (The Straits Times 27 July 1909 pg 8). Stia Bugis Peranakan Club was part of the forty Malay Clubs affiliated to the Malayan Football Association when it first formed in 1909 (Malaya Tribune 31 October 1930 pg 12).
Malacca Peranakan Club 1919
The Club was registered on 16 Jan 1919 (SSGG 1919). Its 1st AGM of 1919, held at its clubhouse at 68 Syed Alwee Rd, is published with the list of its executive committee (see Table 3) (The Straits Times, 19 March 1919, 8).
Malacca Peranakan Club ceased being listed in the Gazettes in 1926. It then re-registered a decade later on 6 March 1936 (SSGG 1936) with an address at 1377-A Kampong Marican, Serangoon Road. In 1937 its address shifted to 197, Geylang Road (SSGG 1937). It does not seem to have been revived after World War 2.
Unfortunately nothing further is known about the Club from the newspapers.
Batavia Pranakan Society 1913
This Society was registered on 17 April 1913 (SSGG 1914). It was asked in the Gazette to furnish proof of existence in 1916. (The Straits Times, 25 Mar 1916, 6). The Gazette in 1920 no longer published its name, indicating that it had ceased to exist. Nothing further has been found thus far from gazettes and newspapers.
Stia Bawiyan Pranakan Football Club 1916
This football club, bearing a variant spelling of the Baweanese community, was registered on 9 May 1916 (SSGG 1917). A search in the newspaper archives has been fruitless. The Gazette in 1917 no longer published its name, indicating that it had ceased to exist within a year of its registration.
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