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TAIWAN FUN MAGAZINE,
May 2003.
Cover
Story :
Hakka
people and culture thrive in Taipei
Text
by Ken Lin
Photography by Ken Lin and Jean-Yves Aline
Translated by Yvonne Chen
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Taiwanese
whose ancestors migrated from China¡¦s southern Guangdong
Province have traditionally been regarded as Hakka, while
those from the Swatow (Shantou) and Amoy (Xiamen) regions
are known as Fulau. Many Hakka trace their ancestry to the
mountainous areas of Fujian, Jiangxi, and Guangdong.
Taiwan¡¦s
Hakka population is roughly four million. The Hakka dialect
is experiencing something of a revival due to the government¡¦s
¡§Restore Our Mother Tongue¡¨ program. My own discovery
of this ethnic minority dates back to junior high school,
when my best friend spoke to his parents in an incomprehensible
language. However, the main character in this story is my
new roommate, James.
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James
looks Chinese, speaks to me in English, but is French
and grew up in Tahiti. ¡§But, I¡¦m Hakka,¡¨ he says
in broken Mandarin, pointing out that a Hakka ancestor
immigrated to Tahiti at the end of the nineteenth
century. James¡¦ family motto is ¡§respect tradition,
work hard, and endure hardship.¡¨ It turns out that
most of Tahiti¡¦s ethnic Chinese are Hakka.
James
exhibits many Hakka traits. He works hard, and the
unity and solidarity of his family is impressive.
Family members dispersed around the world stay in
touch, and are brought closer by a family website
featuring updates and discussions.
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With
the encouragement of James and his family, he and I--a pure
Hakka from a Pacific island, and a Fulau Taiwanese--embarked
on a trip to discover Hakka Taipei. James will post the
results of our quest on his family's website.
1.Taipei
Hakka Culture House
11, Lane 157, XinYi (HsinYi) Rd., Sec. 3, DaAn
(02) 2702-6141, 2702-6142
Hours: Tues-Fri 9am-9pm; Sat & Sun 9am-5pm; closed Mondays
The
Taipei Hakka Culture House is a modern building with
a trendy exterior and a traditional Hakka interior.
The interior contains delicately carved window railings.
The ground floor reception hall is furnished with
traditional items for tea drinking, discussion, or
teaching, while the library contains books and reference
materials on Hakka culture. The receptionist says
a growing number of Hakka are seeking information
on Hakka culture and language.
The
2nd and 3rd floor exhibition areas display Hakka artifacts
reflecting religious beliefs, traditional foods, ethnic
identity, population distribution, architecture, and
industrial culture. Traditional Hakka buildings are
no longer found in Taipei, but through models and
pictures we can get a sense of Hakka lifestyles long
ago. Hakka people settle in groups and retain farming
traditions even after moving to the cities. A good
example is the Liu Linkang family. Fifty years ago,
they moved to Taipei¡¦s TongHua Street from Hsinchu
County's Hsinpu. Four generations live together in
a five-story building with a vegetable garden on the
roof terrace. TongHua Street has slowly become a Hakka
enclave.
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Ancestors
and temples are serious matters to Hakka people, who differ
from other ethnic groups in that they pay tribute to the
Sacred Dragon below their altar, and will guide ethereal
spirits according to fengshui. These ceremonies are still
practiced in Hakka villages and temples outside Taipei.
The
4th-floor culture classroom is a venue for Hakka language
and folk-song classes. The basement is used for dance and
theater rehearsals, while visitors can relax in the wood-and-stone
covered roof terrace.
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2.Taipei
Hakka Art and Culture Center
3F, 19, Lane 157, XinSheng S. Rd., Sec. 1, DaAn
(02) 2709-3234, 2709-4443
Hours: Tues-Fri 9am-9pm; Sat, Sun 9am-5pm; closed
Mondays
The
Hakka Art and Culture Center is a relaxing exhibition
hall for Hakka study. The spacious, bamboo-furnished
social room is a good place to socialize and exchange
information. A great place for in-depth studies of
Hakka culture, the library--Taiwan's first Hakka-theme
collection--houses over 4,000 books, including culture,
recipes, and original papers. Two display rooms show
Hakka artwork and artifacts; seminars and speeches
are held from time to time.
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3.Taipei
Northern Hakka Culture Hall
161, MingDe Rd., Peitou (near Mingte MRT station)
(02) 28250034
Hours: Tues-Fri 9am-9pm; Sat, Sun 9am-5pm; closed Mondays
Folk
songs are central to Hakka culture. While working in the
hills, Hakka women used to sing to raise their spirits,
or to communicate or compete with each other. Also unique
to Hakka culture is the ¡§Three-legged Tea Picking Play,"
a comedy based around folk songs and ballads.
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Taipei Northern Hakka Culture Hall is an exhibition
hall centered on Hakka plays and music. The entrance
cleverly engages theatrical and temple spatial elements
to give a sense of the old outdoor play days. The corridor
displays the history of Hakka plays. The display area
periodically schedules small exhibitions of Hakka performance
groups. Miniature Theater puts on Hakka plays and provides
classes on Hakka folk songs, the ¡§Three-legged Tea
Picking Play," and children's puppet plays. The
goal of these activities is to instill the importance
of Hakka culture in the next generation. Information
on Taipei's 31 Hakka folk-song clubs can be found here. |
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One
group of activists has begun writing Hakka pop songs. The
members include Yen Ziwen, Chen Yungtao, Hsieh Yuwei, and
the popular Hakka rock band Jiao-Kong-Da-Dui.
4.Yiming
Day
To
remember those who died in the Lin Shuangwen uprising in
1786, Hakkas in northern Taiwan constructed temples and
present annual offerings. The government has declared the
20th day of the seventh lunar calendar to be Hakka Yiming
Day.
The
most memorable activity on Yiming Day is the hundred-year-old
Male Pig Contest. The overfed, colorfully adorned 600-kg
male pig is a sight to be seen. This Hakka celebration has
grown larger every year, and besides the male pig offering,
there is also a march to welcome the gods and bring good
luck, and rice-offering activities. This year¡¦s Yiming
activities will begin from Taipei City Council, pass Taipei
City Hall, and go through to Warner Village.
5.Hakka
cooking
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Hakka
foods are known to be greasy, fragrant and salty.
Because Hakka people used to do a lot of laboring,
they preferred salty dishes that could replenish the
salt lost by sweating.
Well
known Hakka dishes are Plain Boiled Chicken eaten
with kumquat dipping sauce, Salt Roasted Chicken,
sweet and sour tasting Julienne Ginger With Intestine,
Hakka Stir-fry (preserved meat and squid), Salted
Egg With Bitter Melon, various pickled vegetables,
and Meinong Chow Fun.
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Hakka
desserts are noteworthy. The pounding of glutinous rice
into a sticky paste is always seen at Hakka festivals. The
paste is cut up into chucks, and eaten with peanut powder
or powdered sugar. It goes best with Hakka tea.
Other
delectable dishes include Barbeque Sauce Squid Broth, Dashi
Beancurd, Hot Licorice Soup, Papaya Milk, Shihai Soybean
Milk, and Fengyuan Cake from Shue-Hwa-Chia in Fengyuan.
Also
important to Hakka people is Lai-Cha--green tea, sesame,
peanuts, Chinese herbs, rice, beans and other ingredients
are ground up in a mortar and mixed in hot water. Special
Hakka rice is added. Lai-Cha can be sweet or salty, vegetarian
or non-vegetarian; other foods can be added as well. In
Hakka villages, it is considered impolite not to offer Lai-Cha
to guests.
6.Taipei¡¦s
Hakka neighborhoods
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are many Hakka in Taipei even though there are no Hakka
villages. Hakka strongholds are WanQing Street, NanChang
Street, Roosevelt Road, TongAn Street, and XiaMen Street
in the ChungCheng district; TaiShun Street, TongHua
Street, WoLong Street, JiaShing Street, WuShing Street
and HuLin Street in DaAn; HerJian Street, WuChang Street,
ChangChun Road, and TaCheng Street in ChungShan district;
and ShiPai Road in Peitou. The land god temple on TongHua
Street is a Hakka shrine. Hakka elders can be found
singing folk songs everyday in Youth Park. The Hakka
Boxing Association, located at 3F, 251, BaDe Rd., Sec.
2, is also an important part of Hakka culture. |
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Frequent
migrations and discrimination have instilled great fortitude
and determination in Hakka people. Like other minority cultures,
Hakka culture deserves our respect and appreciation. In
addition to the cultural centers described in this article,
various websites provide information about Hakka culture:
1. Hakka
Grandma website: http://www.hakkaup.org.tw
2. Hakka website: http://ihakka.net
3. Official website of the central government¡¦s Council
for Hakka Affairs: http://www.hakka.gov.tw |
