An important constituent factor in Chaoshan culture is marine culture. The first reason for the composition of marine culture is that the vast majority of the early inhabitants of the eastern coast of Guangdong are "fishing and hunting" aborigines who "eat the sea by the sea", as evidenced by the 8,000-year-old stone tools such as stone oysters and prys found on the Elephant Mountain on Nan'ao Island and the shell mound sites in various places. Since they often hunt and earn a living at sea, it is inevitable that they will have the experience of crossing the ocean to other islands (and later other countries), which is the so-called "passing".
In ancient China, there was a world view that thought it was the center of the earth: I was the "central country", the surrounding tribes or small countries, called The Northern Di, the Southern Barbarians, the Eastern Yi, the Western Rong, and then used one word to sum it up, that is, Fan.
The word "fan" originally meant the foot of a beast, a bear's paw, or the like. It is a hieroglyph, the upper half of the golden text and the small seal resemble the finger claw of the beast, and the lower half of the word "Tian" resembles the palm of the foot. It was later borrowed to refer to the barbaric land, the tribe or country outside of China. The early characters were also written as "蕃", with the word "艹 (艸)", and the meaning was more obvious.
"Panyu" was originally also known as "禺", or simply "蕃". In 1953, a lacquer box with the word "Fanyu" was excavated from the tomb of the early Western Han Dynasty in Shigang No. 1, Xicun, Guangzhou, and the inscription of the Tomb of the Nanyue King in Xianggang, Guangzhou had the place name "Fanyu". A large number of Yue-style and Han-style copper dings have been excavated from the tomb, one of which is a Central Plains Han-style copper ding, which is engraved with "Yu Yu Shao Nei" and so on. Some experts believe that "Panyu" refers to "the corner of the barbarians of the Lingnan kingdom". (Some people think that it is just a transliteration of the ancient Yue language)
Source: Museum of the Nanyue King of the Western Han Dynasty
Chaoshan dialect follows the Chinese saying in the Central Plains, and also calls foreign countries "Fan", not after "passing fan" to make a living overseas, but the traditional name that exists in Chao opera, "Fan Bang", "Fan Wang", "Fan Princess", "Fan Ying", "Fan General", "Fan Bing" and other words with "Fan" have gone. However, there are some words with "fan", but it is indeed related to the "fan" culture of the hipsters. For example:
"Fanpan" refers to foreign countries, and the colloquial saying is "Fanpan Money, Silver and Tangshan Fu". "Fanpan" and "Tangshan" are opposites, and their righteousness is self-evident. "Tangshan" refers to China (the cause is not determined), and the word "Tang" is pronounced as deng5 (tang). Chinese is called "Chinatown" and Chinatown is called "Chinatown". Some people think that it is the reason for the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty, so it is called "Tang People", but why is the "Tang People" called Deng5 (Tang) and "Tang Dynasty" called Tang5 (Worm)? Think nothing (no solution)!
Chinatown (Chinatown) in Thailand – Yaowarat
Going abroad (to make a living) is called "over", and the word "over" is probably the "passing" (crossing" of "crossing the ocean", and a period of nine deaths and a lifetime of wind and waves, sun and rain is so understated that the word "passed". The song "Zenith Flying Goose" sings: "Zenith Flying Goose, Adi has a brother who has a brother; a brother is called Uncle Da, and Uncle Da listens helplessly." Carrying up the shirt and wrapping up Siam..." is also a "pass" word! It's really "bitter...!" How can A 'pass' word get it?"
Chinese are called "Tang people", and foreigners (indigenous) are called FanYuan. When I first arrived in Banpan, the environment was harsh: "The face is unfamiliar, and the knife is used." Foreign women are called "Fan Sister" (番囝妹) "Fan Po", the wife of the Tang people in the country where they are located, even if the honorific title is "Fan Concubine" (foreign grandmother).
Waiting to get on the boat to "pass"
Later, after spending a long time in "Fanpan", the "Tang people" returned to Tangshan and were also called "Fanke" by the people in their hometown, of course, not that he was a foreigner, but that he was the one who returned from Fanpan. Chinese children born in Banpan are occasionally called "Fan Zai". Not long ago, I just read an article entitled "From Fanzai to Diplomat of the Republic", which tells the story of Chen Duan, who was born in Thailand (so called "Fanzai") and whose parents are from Puning, Jieyang, returned to China to study and joined the revolution, and was later appointed ambassador of Mauritius. Those who have passed a long time and are old are called "old fans".
The "guest" of "Fanke" does not mean guest, but refers to a certain person, such as "Hong Kong guest, no one thousand, there are eight hundred", which refers to Hong Kong compatriots who have returned to their hometown. There are also words such as "tea guest", "diner", "water guest" (early sender, later called "batch foot") and other words, "guest" also refers to a certain person, has the grammatical effect of the clustered meaning suffix, slightly similar to the English reference suffix "-er" (woker).
"Water Passenger" Certificate (Source: Meizhou Overseas Chinese Museum)
The silver letter with remittance sent back from Banpan is called "Fan Batch". After the "Fan Batch" was received, the letter sent back by the Tangshan Family Entrustment Approval Bureau was called "Hui Batch" in Tangshan, and Fanpan was called "Tangshan Batch" because it came from Tangshan.
Foreign dialects and foreign languages are called "Fan Dialect", and the common saying is "seeing the Tang people talking, seeing the Fan Yuan's mouth", which means that when you see Chinese, you will pounce on foreign languages, but when you see real foreigners, you can't speak the foreign language (don't dare to say). Originally, this was used to satirize people who had only "half a bucket of water" in foreign language proficiency. "喎", tide tone uê5 (word 5), "mouth 喎喎", with his mouth open and unable to speak.
The Arabic numerals 1-10 are also called "panji", corresponding to the local "sweet potato code" and other numerals.
Western architecture, especially Western-style churches, is often called "FanyuanLou". In the old days, there was a Gothic Catholic church "FanyuanLou" built in 1899 at Chenghai West Gate, which was often used by The Chenghai people as a coordinate to indicate the direction.
Source: Chen Sikai, "There is a "Fanzai Building" at the West Gate"
Things imported from foreign countries are basically titled "fan", such as the sewing machine series of "fanche" (also called nail shirt car, tin7 shirt car), fan yarn (for sewing machines for the use of the yarn group), fan yarn (for the sewing machine for the thread of the wooden shaft, the center has a hole), fanche needle (steel needle for sewing machines). In the past era, the standard equipment of rural men in Chaoshan - water cloth, also called bath cloth, Chenghai in some places called "Fan Man" (Chaoyin muan1, "Hemp 1"), indicating that it was originally imported goods, some people think that it may be transformed from Southeast Asia "sarong" and the like.
"Fanzai" with "Fanche" nail shirt (foreigners use sewing machines to sew clothes)
Sweet potatoes, white potatoes, etc., are called "sweet potatoes" or "fan ge" (Chaozhou Fucheng dialect becomes "pink kudzu"). As the saying goes, "this year's sweet potato is better than the old year's sweet potato", which means that the time is different, the situation has changed, and it is said that "the world is like a chess game new". Speaking of "sweet potato", I think of the legend that "Protecting the Country's Vegetable Soup" (Shangtang Sweet Potato Leaf Vegetable Soup) was given a name by Zhao Fu, the last emperor of the Southern Song Dynasty. According to some sources, sweet potatoes were first introduced to China during the Ming Dynasty, when Chen Zhenlong, a merchant from Changle in Fujian Province, often went to Luzon (now the Philippines) to do business, saw sweet potatoes for the first time, and found that it was a good thing full of hunger. Therefore, he secretly brought it back to Fujian to try planting. In the 21st year of the Ming Dynasty, Fujian was plagued by famine, and the local inspector ordered that the peasants be granted planting, and that year they were greatly rewarded, surviving the famine, and then spreading it throughout the country. If this is true, the legend of "protecting the national cuisine" began with the Song Emperor's Fu as "nonsense". But some people believe that before the Song Dynasty, there was already a discipline of planting "potatoes". But what that "potato" is, I don't know.
sweet potato
In addition to "sweet potatoes", there are also "melons" (pumpkins), "tomatoes" (also called "tomatoes", that is, tomatoes), chives (onions), "bananas" (a sisal plant) and so on. Cantonese has "senchi" (i.e. "Lin Qi" of Chenghai, "Shakya" of Taiwan), "Guava" (i.e. Shantou and Chenghai of "MuYuan", Chaozhou Fucheng "Shu Bhug8 囝", Taiwan's "Bale"), "Pan pear" (pineapple, Taiwanese, Fujian Min language called "pineapple", some people also think that "pineapple" is not pineapple, but all fruit varieties imported from Brazil are no problem).
Animals are also called "fan", such as "fan duck" (ducks from foreign sources), and ducks that mate with native ducks are called "half-dish fans", and sometimes they are also called "mixed-race children" of Fan and Tang. "Fanji" refers to the long-tailed pheasant, two long feather ornaments on the helmets of martial generals on the stage of Chao opera, called "Fan chicken feathers".
Fan Duck
There are also some imported things, not with the word "fan" to indicate that they are foreign things, but directly marked by "Dutch", such as "Dutch beans" (peas), "Dutch potatoes" (potatoes, also called "sweet potatoes", some people say it is Malay. The north is called "potato", etc., which also shows that it is imported). This may have been introduced from taiwanese Min, as the Dutch had illegally occupied Taiwan for decades. There are some things from the West that are directly crowned with "red hair", such as "red hair gray" (red hair) and so on. Similar introduced plants and animals, such as the "Czech pig" and "Sarawak (sweet potato)", are directly named after the introduced place names.
Plaque of Chaozhou Bayi Hall, Singapore. (Photo courtesy of Mr. Chen Chuanzhong)
Source: Lin Lunlun dialect tea
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