What is a bitch?

The new edition of little nyonya recently ushered in a grand finale. After the broadcast of this Singapore TV series, which was remake by China director Guo Jingyu, the ratings and topic degree climbed all the way.

In fact, as early as 2008, little nyonya, directed by Xie Helu, premiered and became popular in Southeast Asia. Two years later, it was broadcast on many domestic TV stations and became a classic in the hearts of the audience.

Gorgeous buildings, gorgeous costumes, exquisite clothes, delicious dishes ... The whole play is interspersed with elements full of Nanyang characteristics, which makes people unforgettable for a long time. Aside from the plot, the human relationship in the play is believed to be mysterious and strange to young people in China. Nowadays, the popularity of the drama has brought the long-standing "Nyonya culture" back to attention.

What is a bitch?

"Baba Nyangnya" is translated as "Ganyangla" in Chinese, also called "Cina", which means "local Chinese" or "overseas Chinese". The origins of Zen and Nyonya can be traced back to at least the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

In the early Ming Dynasty, Zheng He, the eunuch of Sambo, made seven voyages to the Western Ocean, with a fleet of tens of thousands of people, which lasted for about 30 years.

During this period, a large number of China people from Guangdong and Fujian also came to Southeast Asia to settle down and engage in business and farming. Fujian and Guangdong are located in the coastal areas, with many fishermen, developed shipbuilding and navigation industries and convenient navigation. Many fishermen were recruited by Zheng He as helmsman, boatman or attache, and have long formed a tradition of communicating overseas and seeking overseas development.

In the Qing Dynasty, a large number of China people "went down to South Asia" and migrated to Southeast Asian countries, especially the British "Strait Colony".

With the increasing number of immigrants from China, the phenomenon of intermarriage and reproduction between China people and local aborigines has also increased, and finally the integration of culture and language has been formed, and it has developed into a "mother-in-law" group. It is generally believed that the descendants of Chinese and local aborigines are called "Baba" by men, and "Nyonya" by women of Chan nationality, which means miss and Mrs..

At that time when Mandarin was not popular, after China people in southern dialect married Malay-speaking Malays or local aborigines, Cantonese and Fujian dialect+Malay became the special languages of Chan Chan and Nyangra-Chan Chan Malay.

For example, in the TV series "little nyonya", do you still remember that there is a porcelain called "Kamm City" in the play? This kind of porcelain for holding food has special significance for women, because "Kamcheng" is "emotion" in Fujian dialect, which symbolizes eternal and intimate feelings. Therefore, ladies cherish this special object very much.

In addition to language, Chan Niangya also demonstrated the integration of China traditional culture and Malay culture in costumes, food and wedding ceremonies.

In fact, Nyonya costume is to replace traditional Malay costume with western-style low-cut shoulder lining and add traditional lace decoration in China. Its colors are not only the bright red and pink of China, but also the auspicious color of Malays-Turkish green. The decorative patterns on the clothes are traditional flowers, birds, fish, insects, dragons and phoenixes in China.

It is reported that today, in Singapore, many politicians and wives of celebrities will choose some modern Nyonya clothes when they want to go abroad or entertain VIPs, because they think that wearing Nyonya clothes can represent Singapore.

Nyonya embroidered beaded shoes. (Singapore Lianhe Zaobao)

Women are very particular about shoes as well as clothes. Niang's shoes are called Kasut Manek. At that time, they were made by hand. Embroider about 1.8 million beads with one hand, and weave flowers, birds, peacocks and goldfish.

Kasut Manek was not originally designed for women. In the early years, a pair of embroidered beaded shoes not only symbolized the identity of the wife, but also showed the social status of the owner. Until today, embroidered bead shoes are still regarded as synonymous with national and traditional costumes.

My mother dresses well and eats well.

In terms of food culture, the native Chinese in Southeast Asia have a unique form of family banquet called "Long Table Banquet", which combines the food culture of China, Malaysia and the West and is often used for birthday banquets or wedding banquets. Its dining form is similar to that of European and American countries. It adopts a rectangular dining table that can seat more than 8 people and pays attention to table manners. The food has a strong Chinese and Malay eating style.

Before the banquet officially begins, there will be "warm-ups" such as longan tea, Nyonya cake and betel nut. In the first episode of TV series little nyonya, Huang Yuan, a businessman from Malacca, hosted a "long table banquet" at home to entertain guests.

Adhering to the tradition of China people that "men are the masters of the house and women are the masters of the house", Niang provokes people to study diet, and all of them are masters of cooking. Because many classic dishes are made by women, they are called "mother's family dishes".

Nyangka takes advantage of the unique geographical position in the Straits of Malacca to cook traditional China cuisine with various spices and ingredients from Indian, Malaysian and Western countries, which has become the characteristic of Nyangka Diet.

For example, the seasonings for curing meat include not only traditional Chinese prickly ash, star anise and cinnamon in China, but also Indian citronella leaves and Indian cumin. "Niangjia" cuisine combines sweet and sour, spicy, slightly spicy and other flavors, and has a strong taste. This is one of the most special and exquisite cuisines in Nanyang.

On 20 1 1 year, Laksa, a "Nyonya" dish, was selected as the 7th among the top 50 delicacies in the world by CNN's travel websites. Nasi Lemak, the highlight of Nyonya cuisine, is also praised as a national treasure food by the people of Malaysia and Singapore.

Golden cassava cake is the most favorite cake, with brown appearance and fragrance. Although there are many production processes, it is supplied every day because of the large demand. (Sin Chew Daily, Malaysia)

In addition to the aroma, spicy, sour, salty and sweet taste in food, the visual color of maiden dishes has always been talked about. In the play "little nyonya", the delicious Nyonya noodles, the soft and waxy Nyonya cakes and the lovely tortoise shells make people drool.

According to reports, in the eyes of the local elderly, the craft of "making cakes with my mother" is an important standard for scoring new wives and a compulsory course for married mothers.

In marriage, the "mother-in-law" kept a lot of China traditional customs. For example, when the groom rides a horse to marry the bride, the couple must bow down to their elders, burn incense and worship the Buddha and ancestors, and go back to their parents' home for tea 12 days after marriage.

Some customs have long since disappeared in Chinese mainland, but "punishing women" still exists.

In the TV series little nyonya, at the wedding of Jadin Wong and Bobby Chen, the bride "twisted her steps" and the groom "shook her fan", which made people curious.

In fact, the groom must always hold a paper fan during the whole wedding, folding it when sitting and opening it when standing. The introduction of the bride's "twisting step" looks more elegant and generous.

The groom's gown and jacket and the bride's rockhopper dress are the embodiment of China's marriage custom in Ming and Qing Dynasties. Today, there are still some Chinese in Singapore and Malaysia who, when preparing their children's weddings, spare no expense to hire etiquette teachers for a traditional wedding and hold a wedding that follows traditional customs.

The funeral of "mother-in-law" also comes down in one continuous line from China tradition. In Dai Xiao, family members need to wear linen, and the form of burial is basically the same as that in the southern provinces of China.

Today, we can still feel the traditional Nyonya culture in Singapore, and Malacca and Penang in Malaysia also retain traces of Nyonya culture. "chan chan" and "Sister Niang" have become symbols that are far away but very close.