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Jawi Peranakan

The Jawi Peranakan were an elite group among the Malay community in the mid-nineteenth century but lost their standing in the early decades of the twentieth century. The term Jawi Peranakan applied to Straits-born Muslims of mixed Indian (especially Tamil) and Malay parentage. Their publication, the Jawi Peranakkan, was the first Malay language newspaper of the region. Their illustrious era came to an end when they were caught in political troubles that led to their alienation from the mainstream Malays.

History
Since Singapore's founding in 1819, the population of Indian immigrants grew rapidly (from 756 Indians in 1824 to 13,000 in 1860) that by 1860, they formed the second-largest community. The numbers decreased by the late 19th century as many of them preferred to settle down in other Malayan states. Most of the Indian immigrants were men from southern India. Indian women travelled to Singapore only from the 1860s onwards, and even then, they were still few in numbers. This led to a shortage of brides, and the Indian Muslim men married Malay women. Their children made up for a new class or race known as the Jawi Peranakan. Jawi is an Arabic word to denote this part of the world including Malaysia and Indonesia, and Peranakan is a Malay word meaning "born of". Loosely-defined however, Indian Muslims without a mixed parentage but born in the Straits were also called Jawi Peranakan, as were children from Arab-Malay parentage. Other terms that point to peoples of Malay-Indian fusion were "Jawi Pekan" (mostly used in Penang) and "Peranakan Kling" (mostly used in Malacca), the latter made popular by the great early Malay chronicler, Abdullah Munshi. Back in Singapore however, Jawi Peranakan was the widely-used term. Jawi Peranakan families were found throughout Malaysia, especially Penang, and Singapore.

Description
The Jawi Peranakan chose their spouses carefully, screening prospective matches for ties of wealth and status and less their racial origins, hence permitting intermarriages between Jawi Peranakan and prosperous members of other Muslim communities like the Arabs, Indians and the Malay royalty. Despite their eagerness to adopt the Malay culture and be accepted totally as Malays, the Jawi Peranakan maintained a distinct identity which was captured in their architecture, clothing, jewellery and cuisine. Culturally, they also contributed to the to the art scene of the region, especially in music and dance. The Jawi Peranakan were an enterprising and progressive lot. By the late 19th century, they had accumulated considerable wealth and status and were contributing to the country's economy largely as merchants and land dealers. The Jawi Peranakan were also literate and English-educated, easily qualifying themselves for government jobs. A group of Jawi Peranakan consisting of prominent members of the South Indian Muslim and Indian-Malay communities financed the first Malay language newspaper, the Jawi-Peranakan. Its first editor was Munsyi Mohamed Said Bin Dada Mohiddin, a South Indian Muslim who remained as editor for 12 years, from 1876 to 1888. Being the first Malay language newspaper in the region, it was received with warmth and pride by all Malays.

Demise of the community
There are still a few Jawi Peranakan families left in the region, specially in Penang which used to be their largest settlement. However, most of them today register themselves as Malays. The loss of their identity could be attributed to various causes. Economically, other capitalist classes were emerging, notably the Chinese. By the 1930s, the Jawi Peranakan grew increasingly dependent on government and clerical jobs, and the political climate by the turn of the 20th century was favouring the Malay race. Projecting an identity that was distinctly apart from the Malays was not expedient. In the 1920s and 1930s, the Jawi Peranakan were criticised for their brand of religious belief which did not conform to the widely-practised Shafi Islam. To make matters worse, the Jawi Peranakan tended to be reformist and they challenged the authority of the Malay royalty in religious matters. Most of them, being born and bred in the Straits Settlements, had never been a subject of the Sultan, hence lacked this political and cultural tie that defined a true Malay. In addition, the Jawi Peranakan's affiliations with the India-inspired religious Tabligh movement came under fire from some religious and public figures as this association was not considered "patriotic".

Tabligh Affiliation
Jemaat Tabligh was founded in Delhi, India in 1925 with the aim of renewing the spirit of Islam. Missionaries and volunteers of the movement spread to other countries and set up bases in mosques or prayer houses. There, they recruited members from young men between the ages of 12 and 25. These recruits distinguished themselves with their Arab-styled clothes, and they indulged in extended religious discussions. This kind of retreat was favoured by some older Muslims as it reduced delinquency and waywardness among the youth while heightening their personal integrity. The local mosque which became the base owed allegiance to a counterpart back in India or Pakistan. The religious discourses were rarely conducted in Malay. Urdu, Tamil, Arabic or English was the language medium used and this further contributed to the alienation of the Jawi Peranakan and Indian Muslims from the Malay community.

Variant Names
Malay: Jawi Peranakkan.


Author
Naidu Ratnala Thulaja



References
Nagata, J. A. (1984). The reflowering of Malaysian Islam: Modern religious radicals and their roots (pp. 14, 118-122, 186, 249). Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press.
(Call no.: R 297.09595 NAG)

Tan, Y. S., & Soh, Y. P. (1994). The development of Singapore's modern media industry media industry (pp. 8-9). Singapore: Times Academic Press.
(Call no.: RSING 338.4730223 TAN) 

Urban Redevelopment Authority, Preservation of Monuments Board. (1991). Jamae Mosque preservation guidelines (pp. 7-9). Singapore: Author.
(Call no.: RSING 363.96095957 JAM)

Jeman Sulaiman. (1988, November 7). The rise of Malay newspaper. The Straits Times, p. 6.

Khoo, S. N. (2001, August 30). A rich legacy. The Star (Malaysia), Lifestyle. 

Mohani Musa. (2001, October 25). The Penang story: Flags of conflict. The Star (Malaysia), Lifestyle. 

The information in this article is valid as at 2003 and correct as far as we are able to ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. Please contact the Library for further reading materials on the topic.

Subject
Arts>>Literature>>Peranakan (Straits Chinese) Literature
Peranakan (Asian people)--Singapore
Racially mixed people--Singapore
Muslims--Singapore
People and communities>>Social groups and communities

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