Peranakan Culture
Peranakan culture is a unique creation of Southeast Asia. It is the culture of an old immigrant Chinese community that settled in Malacca, Penang and Singapore. Baba refers to the male and nyonya to the female. The Babas were successful businessmen of Chinese descent who intermarried with the local womenfolk of Malacca and surrounding areas, as there were insufficient Chinese women available. They cultivated a unique high-class style of furniture, house decoration, fashion and music. The community can trace its presence in Malacca to at least the 17th century.
Throughout the centuries, Baba culture has managed to maintain many ancient Chinese traditions while adopting many customs of the land they settled in and their colonial rulers. You can find in Baba culture traces of Portuguese, Dutch, British, Malay and Indonesian influences.
The Babas have managed to maintain the refined 19th century customs and traditions of the Hokkien Chinese. Many of these practices no longer survive in China or in local Hokkien communities.
Peranakan food again shows the community at its most eclectic. Baba cuisine is a mixture of both Chinese and Malay influences. Many such restaurants have opened in Singapore and Malaysia in the last few years.
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