Looking for the perfect gift for your Hakka family or friend? Consider The Hakka Cookbook. It’s a great primer for those who want to know more about their Hakka history and identity.
Popo, my grandmother, always told me, “You should be proud to be Hakka.” I never understood why. Long after she passed away, I wrote the book to find the answer. This book follows my journey to find my Hakka identity. It explores our unique history of migration and shows how it shaped the Hakka character and cuisine. I traveled around the world and interviewed many Hakka who shared their stories and recipes in this book.
Best Chinese Cuisine Cookbook in the World in 2012
You can order the book from your local bookstore. Or you can find it online at many outlets around the world such as Amazon and Kinokuniya. Click this link to find other sources for different areas. You can also buy the book directly from the publisher University of California Press.
Lately, I’ve been meeting friends who tell me they are trying to learn more about their family history. They want to explore their Chinese roots.
I had the same thoughts when I was in my late 50s. At that time, I had just left a long career at Sunset Magazine and now had the time to explore my family history and Hakka identity. This exploration led to the publication of The Hakka Cookbook.My research started with my Hakka family history. It grew to encompass the unique history and story of the greater Hakka migration. Here I share a few pointers I learned along the way as I looked for my family history.
Tips for searching for your Chinese family history
Identify people in old family photos. Record their names in Chinese characters as well as other English names they may have used. Find out how they are related to you.
Interview your family elders now. Record or video their interviews. I wish I had begun my research earlier when my family elders were still alive. It’s much easier to get the information first hand.
Ask your elders to identify people in old family photos and their relation to you. Have them write their names in Chinese characters as well as other English names they may have used after migration. Try to date the photos and include where the photo was taken.
Ask family members to share their stories about their birthplace, their migration, and their new home. What were their parent’s names? Did they have any siblings? If they migrated from China, ask for the village name. Get Chinese characters for all names. Also record any English names.
Can they teach you how to cook favorite family dishes? Many elders do not have written recipes, but if you can cook alongside and record the process you will learn a lot. Video their cooking lesson, so you can capture the process and approximate amounts of ingredients. In the video you can ask questions about the ingredients, the technique, how do they know when it is done, what it should taste and look like.
Collect documents. Official documents–birth marriage, citizenship, and death certificates, military discharge papers, school graduation certificates–all can help map a person’s life.
If your relatives immigrated through San Francisco check out the National Archives at San Francisco. They found the Angel Island interviews of my grandparents and documents certifying that my grandfather was a merchant.
Ask your family to share stories about their life and special memories. What was life like after they immigrated to a new home? How did your parents meet? How did they celebrate Chinese New Year? What was their favorite hobby or passion? Who was their best friend? Was there a key person who changed their life?
If you’re Hakka and interested in learning more about your Hakka history, consider reading The Hakka Cookbook, Chinese Soul Food from around the World. It’s more than a cookbook. It includes the history and migration of the Hakka people. Read the stories from Hakka from India, Canada, Peru, Trinidad, Jamaica, Mauritius and more. You can ask your local bookstore to order from you or buy it online.
A chance encounter introduces me to a Hakka writer. In my last post, I wrote that I rarely found Hakka characters in books or stories. Recently I got an email message from Loren, a friend in New York. She met a Chinese woman, Jeannie Tseng, walking her dog in Central Park. As they talked, Tseng described her family history as a Hakka, migrating from China to India.
When asked about her cooking traditions, Tseng said her favorite cookbook was my book, The Hakka Cookbook. When Loren told her she knew the author, Tseng was so excited to meet a live connection to her favorite book. When Loren told me this story, I was surprised, flattered and honored. Stories like this make me feel that all my work was worthwhile.
I find that Tseng is also a writer and a creative writing teacher. She shared some links to her stories about the Hakka. I love them because they offer a window into Hakka culture and family. Check out these stories. Wasted Rice Child published in The Massachusetts Review reveals generational differences in an immigrant family. Number Eight Daughter won first prize in the Fall 2021 Story Contest in Narrative. The story depicts the life of a girl born to poor parents who sell her to a rich family as a future wife to their son. Enjoy reading the work of this Hakka writer, Jeannie Tseng.
Shaded area indicates the concentration of the Hakka population in 1550.
For most of my life, I never understood what was so special about the Hakka. Popo (my grandmother) insisted, “You should be proud to be Hakka.” Research for my book showed me the answer–the Hakka history. As I learned about their long unique history of migration and how they coped with it, I began to understand how it shaped Popo’s independent, tenacious, hardworking spirit. And how these qualities taught her and other Hakka how to survive where others failed.
Our Hakka History
The ancestors of the Hakka originally lived in Henan, along the Yellow River, in north central China. This area was once considered the cradle of the Han, or Chinese culture. Around the 4th century B.C., invaders forced them out of their home. In a series of five mass migrations, war, flood, famine, and drought, sent the Hakka to the south and other remote regions.
The Hakka found shelter in Jiangxi, southern Fujian, and neighboring Guangdong Province. They lived there in relative isolation for almost 400 years (907 to 1279). During this period of relative seclusion they solidified their language, culture, and identity.
Dangerous bandits in Fujian forced them to move across the border to northern and eastern Guangdong Province. The local Cantonese had settled the fertile parcels of lowland. Only scraps of poor hillside land were left for the new migrants. They worked hard and were able to survive where others had failed. Locals labeled the unwelcome newcomers “Hakka” meaning “guest family.” By the sixteenth century, the Hakka began to call the area centered near Meixian in Guangdong and the Jiaying Prefecture (now Meizhou City) as their homeland.
The Hakka spread throughout Guangdong, central and eastern Sichuan, eastern Guangxi, and Taiwan. Through their hard work, they prospered and some become landlords. The local Punti (mostly Cantonese) resented their success. Fighting broke out resulting in the West River Wars and the Taiping Rebellion. This turmoil sent the Hakka all over the world. Now, their estimated worldwide population is over 75 million.
The Hakka Spirit
The history of the Hakka shaped their character and spirit. Chinese society long treated these homeless migrants with contempt. As a result, the Hakka became experts at pulling up stakes, moving on, and starting over. They established settlements in areas where others failed. Eventually they earned respect for their pioneering successes.
It wasn’t until 1933, that the status of the Hakka changed. For centuries, society persecuted the landless migrants. In 1933, Luo Xianglin’s genealogical work showed the Hakka are descendants of the Han dynasty (206 B.C. to 22 A. D.) the Chinese ethnic majority, the Han. This elevated the Hakka to the same status as those who treated them as lower class.
With a shared history of hardship, Hakka proudly see themselves as strong and independent. History tells them work and persistence will bring success.
Give The Hakka Cookbook, Chinese Soul Food from around the World, recognized as the Best Chinese Cookbook in the World in 2012, to Hakka family and friends. The book outlines the Hakka history and defines Hakka identity. Or give the book to a cooking enthusiast who loves Chinese food and history. It’s a great holiday gift for the Chinese foodie.
The Hakka Cookbook was recognized as the Best Chinese Cookbook of the World by the Gourmand World Cookbook Awardsin 2012.
Through recipes and stories told by Hakka from all over the world, discover the unique Hakka history, culture, and cuisine. Find 140 recipes, including Hakka classics such as stuffed tofu, lei cha, and salt-baked chicken as well as easy Chinese comfort food. The beginner cook will find sections on cooking techniques, equipment, and ingredients. Paintings created by artist Alan Lau gracefully illustrates the book.
Check this link for sources on where to buy The Hakka Cookbook. It is widely available online. Some of the major sellers are Amazon.com, Books Kinokuniya, and University of California Press. Or ask your local book store to order The Hakka Cookbook for you.
Best Chinese Cuisine Cookbook 2012 by Gourmand World Cookbook Awards
Need a holiday gift for your Hakka children or foodie friend? Consider The Hakka Cookbook. It’s a perfect and unique gift especially for Hakka who want to learn more about their history, heritage, and cuisine. The book tells the story of the migration of China’s “guest people” known as the Hakka. It follows my journey to discover my own Hakka identity as I travel and interview Hakka throughout the world. These transplanted Hakka share their stories and their food. Through the easy-to-follow recipes, cook your way to the Hakka soul.
Ask your local bookstore to order The Hakka Cookbook for you. Or buy online. Check this link for sources and details. Online retailers such as Amazon (North America, France, Germany, UK, Japan, and Canada) and Kinokuniya Online Store Bookweb (Southeast Asia) have sold the book in the past.
Dr. Vivienne Poy and lion dance opens Toronto Hakka Conference 2016
Growing up in a small primarily all-white town, I never felt like I belonged to a Chinese community. I didn’t know any other Chinese besides a few relatives. I understood some Hakka but never was very fluent.
Even when I moved to the San Francisco Bay Area where lots of Chinese lived, I never identified with any specific Chinese community. I rarely met any Hakka. Most Chinese spoke Cantonese or Mandarin, which I tried studying, but never really mastered. The only language that spoke to me was the food. I grew up eating Chinese food and it was always my go-to comfort food.
It wasn’t until I went to Toronto that I felt I belonged to a Chinese community. There I met Hakka who had migrated from all over the world. They were like me. We had a shared history of migration. Many didn’t speak or write Chinese but we could communicate in English.
When I went to my first Toronto Hakka Conference in 2008, I had never seen so many Hakka gathered in one place. Finally, I found my Hakka community. At the most recent 2016 Toronto Hakka Conference, I recognized people I had met on previous trips. I also met new people who were also searching for their cultural identity through food, through their ancestry, and through the conference. One of the greatest benefits of the Toronto Hakka Conference is connecting with Hakka from all over the world. This year some attendees came as far as India, Portugal, Australia, Hong Kong, Jamaica, and Mauritius. The majority of the attendees live locally because the greater Toronto area is home to many Hakka.
For me the conference celebrates being part of the Hakka community.
Dr. Shui Loon Kong at Toronto Hakka Conference 2016
What does it mean to be Hakka? It’s a question that I sought the answer to most of my life.
Keynote speaker Dr. Shui Loon Kong answered my question at the Toronto Hakka Conference 2016. I could identify with his remarks.
Being Hakka means adaptation. We Hakka learn to fit into the environment and transcend it. We achieve it in five ways: Accept, Access, Activity, Achievement, and Appreciate, said Dr. Kong.
A long history of migration forced the Hakka to new environments, often harsh and inhospitable. To survive, the Hakka learned to adapt. They accepted their new phase, figured out how to best survive in these new conditions, and acted to succeed. This is the Hakka story, repeated over and over, as they migrated all over the world. For me, Dr Kong distilled the essence of being Hakka in just one word, “Adaptation.”
When I attended my first Hakka conference in Toronto in 2008, a feeling of belonging overwhelmed me. It was the first time I was in the company of so many Hakka, guest people like me. All my life I lived mostly in a Western world, feeling different than most Chinese who spoke Cantonese or Mandarin. I knew few Hakka.
The feeling of finding family came again when I attended the first New York Hakka Conference last weekend. Reclaiming our Hakka heritage was the theme. Co-chairs Dr. Keith Lowe and Paula Madison Williams succeeded in bringing Hakkas together to learn about their shared roots and history. From the evening of October 16 to October 18, attendees immersed themselves in Hakka culture, often with a Jamaican vibe since many of the attendees had Jamaican roots.
We listened to speakers discuss how to find our Hakka roots through Chinese names and cemetery records. We learned about the Chinese success as shopkeepers, bakers, and businessmen in the Caribbean. We saw photos of Hakka earth buildings and Hakka food. Revealing films took us into the lives of Hakka searching for their long lost families in China, growing up in China, and living in India.
The Hakka are one people with a shared history. Find your Hakka heritage at next year’s Fifth Toronto Hakka Conference, July 1 to 3, 2016.
I am putting together a slide show for The New York Hakka Conference. My subject is Hakka Cuisine so I plan to show photos of Hakka food and share stories I encountered on my global journey to research The Hakka Cookbook. Register for the conference and learn more about Hakka history, identity, and food. Following is a tentative schedule of events:
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2015
Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA) at 215 Centre Street, New York, NY 10013
RECEPTION at the Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA). 7:00 PM Feature presentation – The Nation Music of Jamaica’s Byron Lee. Starting a calypso and mento group in high school, Byron founded the Dragonaires as a big dance band that held sway over four decades in Jamaica and the Caribbean, as well as in the diaspora cities of London, Miami, New York, and Toronto. From ska to rock-steady to reggae and soca, mambo and cha-cha-cha, Byron reproduced the international signature music of the Caribbean.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2015 NYU Cantor Film Center at 36 East 8th Street, New York, NY 10003
9:00AM
OPENING CEREMONY (Room 200)
9:15 – 10:30AM
THE SEARCH for MY CHINESE FAMILY – Paula Williams Madison screens her documentary and reads from her book, “Finding Samuel Lowe: From Harlem to China” (Room 200)
10:30 – 10:45AM
BREAK
10:45 – 11:30AM
CHINESE NAMES, HAKKA GENERATIONS – Dr. Keith Lowe, co-founder of the Toronto Hakka Conference, uses the Lowe family to illustrate the clan system that is the backbone of Chinese civilization. (Room 101)
10:45 – 11:30AM
RESTORING THE CHINESE CEMETERY – Robert Hew and Robert Lee, leading members of the cemetery team of the Chinese Benevolent Society of Jamaica, describe the restoration of the cemetery that was unused for three decades. Records have been translated and carried over to a database which reveals the location of one’s ancestors. (Room 102)
11:30AM – 12:30PM
AFRO-CHINESE RELIGIOUS PRACTICES in CUBA – Dr. Martin Tsang, Florida International University (Room 101)
12:30 – 1:30PM
LUNCH (Non-hosted) Please enjoy the wide selection of local restaurants.
1:30 – 2:45PM
CHINESE SUCCESS AS SHOPKEEPERS, BAKERS, ENTREPRENEURS, Part 1 – Alexandra Lee moderates a panel consisting of business leaders Vincent HoSang, Vincent J. Chang, Butch Hendrickson, and Dalton Yap. (Room 102)
1:30 – 2:45PM
REVOLUTIONARIES AND CHANGE MAKERS – Prof. Richard Bohr, Dr. Samuel Lowe (Room 101)
2:45PM – 3:00PM
BREAK
3:00 – 4:00PM
CHINESE SUCCESS AS SHOPKEEPERS, BAKERS, ENTREPRENEURS, Part 2 – Alexandra Lee moderates a panel consisting of business leaders Vincent HoSang, Vincent J. Chang, Butch Hendrickson, and Dalton Yap. (Room 102)
3:00 – 4:00PM
HAKKA CUISINE – Linda Lau Anusasananan, author of The Hakka Cookbook: Chinese Soul Food from Around the World (Room 101)
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2015
NYU Cantor Film Center at 36 East 8th Street, New York, NY 10003
9:30 – 10:30AM
HAKKA EARTH BUILDINGS AS WORLD HERITAGE – Ruifeng Liang, Professor of Engineering, Western Virginia University (Room 101)
9:30 – 10:30AM
HAKKA MIGRATIONS – Patrick Lee, author of Chinese Canadian Jamaicans & Chinese Jamaicans Worldwide (Room 102)
10:30 – 10:45AM
BREAK
10:45AM – 12:00PM
MASTERING CARIBBEAN MUSIC and ART, Part 1 – Panel Discussion: Broadcaster Francine Chin, VP Records President Randy Chin, and author Kevin O’Brien Chang (Room 101)
10:45 – 12:00PM
MIXED RACE PERSONS Screening of documentary, “Half,” produced and directed by Jeanette Kong (Room 102)
12:00 – 1:00PM
LUNCH (Non-hosted) Please enjoy a the wide selection of local restaurants.
1:00 – 2:30PM
MASTERING CARIBBEAN MUSIC and ART, Part 2 – Panel Discussion: Broadcaster Francine Chin, VP Records President Randy Chin, and author Kevin O’Brien Chang (Room 101)
1:00 – 2:30PM
CARIBBEAN CHINESE LITERATURE and ART – Easton Lee reads poems and stories from his many books based on a lifetime spent developing Jamaican culture from the village square to the international stage. (Room 102)
