It was during the 15th and 16th centuries that men from China's Fujian and Guangdong regions emigrated to a new world opening up along the Strait of Malacca. Some dreamed of striking it rich as traders. Others were merely looking to escape poverty or to flee after experiencing crop failures.
It was the time of the Ming and Qing dynasties, and women were forbidden from leaving China. So the migrants set up house with wives from the Malay Peninsula, or from the islands of Sumatra or Java. Their mixed-race descendants, born and raised under the bright tropical sun, eventually gave rise to a unique culture, neither Chinese nor Malay, that is noted for its appreciation of bright colors and beauty.
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