Skip to content

ONLINE EXHIBIT

Huaqiao’s Lifestyle in American Colonial Philippines

The Chinese and Filipinos have a long history of diplomatic ties as early as the Pre-colonial period. However, the Chinese only started to migrate during the Spanish colonization of the Philippines when commercial opportunities grew in the islands. The series of migrations continued to the American colonization of the Philippines (1898-1946). The era coincided with the late years of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) in China. Political instability, famine and war dominated the country which led its citizens to escape by migrating to the Philippines. During this time, the Americans called the Chinese as Chinamen, but among themselves they use the term Huaqiao.

A Huaqiao is an overseas Chinese worker, who left China to seek greener pastures but does not intend for a permanent settlement. Like modern overseas Filipino workers, they worked hard to provide for their families back in China, and eventually return to their home country for good. This exhibit showcases a selection of original documents and artifacts dating back to the American period in the Philippines (1898-1946) from the collection of Bahay Tsinoy Museum which extrapolates the lifestyle of a Huaqiao or Chinese immigrant who lived in the country during this era.

The Chinese Exclusion Act

The Treaty of Paris officially ended the Spanish-American war on December 10, 1898. By virtue of the treaty, Cuba became a protectorate of the United States of America, Puerto Rico and Guam were ceded to the U.S. and the Philippines was bought for $20 million. The American military government in the Philippines was officially established on August 14, 1898. American rule marked the implementation of systematic education, creation of public infrastructures, and opening of the Philippines to free trade with the U.S. These developments opened wide opportunities for the Chinese as they provided cheap labor in developing the islands.

Manila in American period depicted in rare postcards

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

From laborers, the Chinese role escalated to commercial agents or middlemen as they procured raw materials from different parts of the country and brought them to manufacturers for export to the world markets via European and American ships. They shared the biggest contribution to the country’s economy. In every industry, there was a Chinese presence; they were importers, exporters, wholesalers, retailers, and sari-sari storekeepers. This led to competition with the locals and sparked anti-Chinese sentiments among Filipinos.

The American legislators used this as a basis for the application of the Chinese Exclusion Act to the Philippines. This law had been in effect in America in 1882 for 10 years and was extended again for another 10 years. It is designed to restrict the entry of skilled and unskilled Chinese laborers to American soil.

In Philippine context, the purpose of the law was to eliminate the Chinese presence in the country for the natives to gain control in trade in order to “preserve the Philippines for Filipinos.” But the underlying reason behind it was to prevent mass immigration of the Chinese laborers from the archipelago to the mainland U.S.

On April 29, 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt signed the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1902 into a law which was applied to the Philippines. To manifest and enforce the law, Act No. 702 entitled Regulations for the registration of Chinese persons in the Philippine Archipelago was passed on March 17, 1903, it lasted until the 1940s. Under it, the American immigration to the Philippines listed certain types of Chinese to enter the islands. The new law only allowed entry of Chinese that were classified as merchants, sons of merchants, tourists, and teachers, which were permitted to enter only with proper documents.

Act No. 702 or Regulations for the registration of Chinese persons in the Philippine Archipelago,
Report to the Philippine Commissions 1903

Chinben See Memorial Library Rare Collections

Every Chinese person who wanted to enter or stay in the Philippines should provide a Certificate of Registration which can be divided into two:

Certificate of Residence – is obtained by Chinese laborers who are already residing in the Philippines at the time of the passage of Chinese Exclusion Act on April 29, 1902 who wished to remain in the islands. They should obtain this within one year, upon failure to provide, they will be deported from the Philippine islands.

Certificate of Residence of Yap Naya

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

Landing Certificate of Residence – Should be issued upon landing to the Chinese who belong to the exempted class and entitled for legal entry. It is also issued upon arrival to the Chinese who are residents in the Philippines but are not present in the islands during the filing of certificate of residence and are intended to return to the islands.

Landing Certificate of Residence or tua di of

Loo Chua Seng

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

Despite the challenges brought by the new law, the Huaqiao were able to find creative ways to enter the Philippines. The most popular was to forge or buy paper names for their Landing Certificate of Residence also known as tua di (大字) meaning “large certificate” because of its size that is 9 x 12 inches. Upon returning to the Philippines, a Chinese merchant would enlist invented names of his sons or daughters bearing his last name, these names were sold to Chinese parents who want to send their children to the Philippines.

By purchasing paper names, they became minor children of Chinese merchant residents in the Philippines. This is the reason behind the different Chinese and English names of many Chinese in the Philippines. Their paper names are different from their actual Chinese names. They adopted their paper father’s surname which is a different English or Chinese name.

Landing Certificate of Residence or tua di of Co Na.

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

Landing Certificate of Residence or tua di of

Lee Chiong Bun

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

Another method to enter legally can be done with the help of a licensed immigration broker at the port of Manila. Immigration brokers acted on behalf of a Chinese immigrant who was required to procure documents from the immigration office to gain legal admission to the Philippines.

Chua Gong’s Immigration document from

Immigration Brokerage Office of Juan F. Hilario

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

Chua Chiat’s Immigration document from

Immigration Brokerage Office of Juan F. Hilario

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

Huaqiao who left for the Philippines were usually dressed in traditional attire and carried a suitcase that contained their necessities such as clothes and food. Their hearts were full of aspirations and hope for the families they left behind. In Lagalag sa Nanyang (南洋漂流記) (literal translation: Nomadic voyage in South Seas), author Bai Ren chronicled a Huaqiao’s departure to the Philippines. It is based on his own sojourn to the country in the 1930s.

“Sa pagpasok ng tagsibol noong 1932, sa isang umagang humihiging ang malamig na hangin kasama ang isang achiak (tiyuhin, nakababatang kapatid ng ama) nagpaalam ako sa mga kapamilya. Nakasuot ako noon ng puting pang-itaas, itim na pantalon at bagong sapatos na de-goma. Dala ko ang isang simpleng maleta.”

One windy morning in the beginning of Spring of 1932, I was with my achiak (uncle) and bid goodbye to my family. I was wearing a white top, black pants and a new pair of shoes made of rubber. I brought a simple suitcase.

From Lagalag sa Nanyang (南洋漂流記)
(Literal translation: Nomadic voyage in South Seas) by Bai Ren,
translated into Filipino by Joaquin Sy.

Old suitcase

Measurement: 28.6 x 16 inches

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

The primary mode of transportation were passenger ships that would take three days to sail to the Philippines. Once they arrived, they were quarantined to check if they were infected with cholera. If they were cleared by the doctors, they would go to the American Immigration to the Philippines to arrange their admission. Then, they were interviewed by the Immigration Officer to assess their affinity with the Chinese merchant listed as their father in the tua di. 

Filipino and Chinese seamen of the vessel Uranus

Photo from Tsinoy: the Story of the Chinese in Philippine Life

Teresita Ang See.

Before the interview they were briefed and instructed to memorize their new name, father’s name, and his other family members’ names, all residing in the Philippines to convince the interviewer that he is related to a resident Chinese merchant. The names could be easily memorized because these were based in Confucian virtues like zhong (loyalty), xiao (filial piety), ren (benevolence), yi (righteousness), li (propriety), zhi (wisdom) and xin (trustworthiness).

“Siya ang nakalagay na papa mo sa tua di. Li Xin ang pangalan mo, Siya naman si Li Zai Xing.” Paliwanag ni Mr. Ng. Mamaya pag tinanong ka ng taga-immigration, kailangang sabihin mo na siya ang papa mo. Ang mama mo naman si Li Wang Shi, isang maybahay sa Tengsua (Tsina).
May anim kang kuya sina Zhong, Xiao, Ren, Yi, Li at Zhi. Lahat sila’y narito
na sa Nanyang (Pilipinas). Lahat sila’y negosyante. Kaya mo bang tandaan?”

He is your father as stated in the tua di. Your name is Li Xin. His name is Li Zhai Xing explained by Mr. Ng. Later when the immigration officer asks you, you should say that he is your father and your mom is Li Wang Shi, a housewife from China. You have six brothers namely: Zhong, Xiao, Ren, Yi, Li and Zhi. All of them are residing in the Philippines as merchants. Can you memorize it?

From Lagalag sa Nanyang (南洋漂流記)
(Literal translation: Nomadic voyage in South Seas) by Bai Ren,
translated into Filipino by Joaquin Sy.

Huaqiao’s lifestyle

The Huaqiaos were usually employed in a Chinese merchant’s businesses. Often, referred by a relative already working in the Philippines, they would engage in menial jobs. They do any kind of work ranging from shopkeeper, porter, food peddler, furniture maker, tailor, baker, fruit dealer, shoe repairman, etc.

Starting from scratch armed with hard work, patience, and perseverance, Huaqiaos were able to save their accumulated income from working in these jobs to establish their own businesses.

One of the popular jobs for a Huaqiao is a shopkeeper in a sari-sari (variety) store which serves the everyday needs of the community. A Huaqiao owner usually hired several Huaqiao workers to tend his shop and fulfill duties like bookkeeping, cleaning, store managing, and cooking.

Wooden abacus

Measurement: 27.5 x 19 centimeters

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

To save on living expenses, they shared room and food together. Their rooms are tight without ventilation, packed with the objects they use in daily life, they were also careful in spending money, so they usually cook for themselves or eat in small eateries. Their usual meal included bihon guisado (sautéed noodles), tokwa (bean curd), lumpia (spring rolls) and ginisang gulay (sautéed vegetables).

Chinese cooks

Photo from Tsinoy: the Story of the Chinese in Philippine Life

Teresita Ang See.

 

Modern Filipino cuisine is largely influenced by the Chinese as we still use culinary terms that have Hokkien origins and eat food that originated in China. The Huaqiao community taught us food processes like preparing different kinds of noodle dishes such as bihon, lomi, miki and pancit. They also brought food that are made from soybeans such as toyo, tokwa, and taho. See Filipino words with Hokkien origins for a complete list.

Bihon Factory

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

Miki and Misua makers

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

In terms of clothing style, the Chinese appearance in the Philippines before was anchored in the context of sojourning. They remained tied to their motherland, so their clothing style was still influenced by Manchu China even if they were in another country.

Early Chinese immigrants were recorded wearing loose, wide drawstring pants called jareta or cut-off pants that reach up to the knee or mid-thighs either black, blue or khaki in color. For their top, they wore a blouse distinct to the Chinese called bisia, described as short and tight, with unfolded standing collars and Chinese-style knotted buttons. Some are sleeveless and usually white in color. For footwear, they wore distinct Manchu-style shoes made of rubber or cloth and bakya (wooden sandals) during summer.

Their most notable feature was their hairstyle called queue. As a symbol of subjugation to the Manchu rulers, Queue Order of 1645 was promulgated. All Han Chinese men were required to shave their heads and wear the rest of their hair in a single plait that resembles a horse’s tail. The animal whose speed and stamina helped in conquest of China. Furthermore, this hairstyle is a humiliation to their proud cultural heritage. Based on Confucian values of filial piety, it is dishonorable to damage a person’s body which is a gift from one’s parents.

Rare postcards and prints from Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

By the turn of the 20th century, modern styles started to enter both China and the Philippines. Chinese elites supported the creation of the Chinese Republic by renouncing traditional Qing elements in their clothing and appearance. Men started to cut their queues. They gave up their Chinese garbs and adopted a more “Western style” of clothing, even ordinary Chinese followed suit, Huaqiaos were seen wearing americana suits during special occasions. The American period depicted the shift from traditional Manchu China’s wear to Western style of clothing among the Chinese in the Philippines.

Men posing for a photo

Calbayog, Samar (Circa 1920s)

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

Courtesy of Eduardo Chan de la Cruz Jr.

Thomas Dy (Circa 1920s)

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

Courtesy of Eduardo Chan de la Cruz Jr.

Vicente Dy Ping (Manila, Circa 1920s)

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

Courtesy of Eduardo Chan de la Cruz Jr.

The American period also marked the emergence of Chinese newspapers in the Philippines. These newspapers report about events in the country and in China. Among them, is the Chinese Commercial News which was established in 1919 and is still operating to this day.

Chinese Commercial News 1931

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

Chinese Commercial News 1935-1936

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

Chinese Women

Chinese immigrants in the Philippines and Southeast Asia were predominantly male. Women were restricted to their homes in China while waiting for their husbands’ letters and money remittance from the Philippines. Chinese men did not bring their wives because they did not intend to settle here permanently. Furthermore, factors like higher cost of living and quarreling with Filipinos prevented them from bringing their families to the Philippines.

However, during the American Occupation, the government despised Chinese mestizos as a race because a lot of them were members of Filipino insurgents. Subsequently, they encouraged Chinese merchants to bring their wives and minor children to the islands to prevent intermarriage between Filipino women and Chinese men that produced the Chinese mestizo class. As political conditions worsened in China, more and more women came to the Philippines. In 1916, Philippine Supreme Court made it easier for women to come without presenting a Landing Certificate of Residence. They could come as long as there is clear evidence, oral or written documentation of their marriage.

Chinese women of Chan-Dy family

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

Courtesy of Eduardo Chan de la Cruz Jr.

Since the American period coincided with late Qing Dynasty years and the establishment of the Chinese republic in 1912, the transition from traditional style into modern style is expressed as well in women’s clothing and style.

In Manchu China, elite women wore the ao, an upper garment which is elaborately decorated, made from silk damask with wide plain and embroidered bands at sleeves, neck, hem and curve opening called tou jin. The ao was worn with a skirt or gun, which could be very colorful and decorative.

Elaborate carved silver chatelaines were fastened to the top button on the ao. A chatelaine is a set of short chains attached to a woman’s garment, used for carrying needle cases and tongue scrapers, as well as toothpick, ear pick, nail cleaner and tweezers.

Silver tongue scraper

back (left), front (right)

Length: 24.3 centimeters

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

Courtesy of Ang Chak Chi

Women in Manchu China spent many hours applying cosmetics and dressing their hair. Hairpins made of gold, enamel, silver, or semiprecious stones such as jade or coral, and fashioned into the shape of insects, birds, or butterflies were inserted into a stiff arrangement of the hair.

Hairpins

Length of each hairpin varies from 7 – 8.4 centimeters

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

The Han Chinese tradition of binding women’s feet to make the feet appear as small as a lotus bud known as lotus feet continued to be practiced in the Qing Dynasty. It started between the end of Tang Dynasty (618–906) and the beginning of the Song Dynasty (960–1279). According to a legend, a favorite consort of the emperor danced for him, having bound her feet to represent a new moon. It has been practiced nationwide since then. A girl is considered not marriageable if she does not have bound feet.

Foot binding was extremely painful and usually began at any time between ages of three and 12. A binding cloth made of cotton or silk was wrapped around the foot, starting at the toes and finishing at the heel. The feet were usually bound to a length of 13 centimeters or 5 inches.

Chan family picture taken in Calbayog City, Samar

Chinese woman Dy Hiuku had bound feet.

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

Courtesy of Eduardo Chan de la Cruz Jr.

When Western influence penetrated China, fashion started to shift into a modern one too. Even the lotus shoes have undergone changes in terms of design to fit the new trend.

Traditionally, lotus shoes were made of silk, intricately hand-made by Chinese women. In the 1910s, Chinese fashion plates began to depict stylish young women dressed in Western clothes and leather mid-heel pumps which showed how leather was incorporated in traditional design.

International company Bata shoes sold brocaded “Mary Jane” style lotus shoes for bound feet until the late 1950s for Chinese women with bound feet in Malaysia. Therefore, leather shoes fashioned in Western style started to appear in the 20th century.

Western style lotus shoes

Length: 4.6 inches

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

Courtesy of Ang Chak Chi

China’s opening to Western ideas paved the way to modernization. When the Republic was established in 1912, huge reforms for women had taken place specially in terms of clothing. Foot binding was legally abolished in the same year and women started wearing Western style clothing, however retaining traditional Chinese elements on it.

In 1925, the traditional ao gun which comprises the top, blouse and skirt had combined to create a one-piece garment called a qi pao literally ‘banner gown’ also known as cheongsam. At the time it was considered daring, for its body fitting style.

In 1927, when Nanjing became the capital of the Republic of China, two styles of clothing were designated as formal wear for women. One of them is the cheongsam. But by this time, the qi pao’s sleeves were shortened to elbow length and widened and given a curved edge, echoing western style dresses. During the 1930s, hemlines dropped to the ankle; by the middle of the decade, the dress, in some cases, was long enough to cover the feet. Gradually, the garment became quite fitted and shorter, ending just below the knees.

In the Philippines, Chinese women immigrants who were born in the early 1900s kept wearing the ankle-length qi pao, possibly to cover their bound feet. While those who were born in the 1910s and 1920s usually had their feet unbound, they adapted the shorter-style qi pao.

Woman wearing qi pao

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

Chinese Commercial News 1931 showing women’s fashion in 1930s

Shorter-length qi pao (upper right)

Bahay Tsinoy Museum Collections

Research & curation: Mauri Lyn Doblado

References:

Alejandrino, Clark. “A History of the 1902 Chinese Exclusion Act: American Colonial Transmission and Deterioration of Filipino-Chinese Relations.” In More Tsinoys than we admit, Chinese Filipino interactions over the centuries, edited by Richard Chu, 261-300. Quezon City: Vibal Publishing, Inc., 2015.

Bai Ren. Nanyang Piaoliuji (Lagalag sa Nanyang) Translated by Joaquin Sy. Quezon City: University of the Philippines Press, 2007.

Chu, Richard T. Chinese and Chinese Mestizos of Manila: Family, Identity, and Culture, 1860s-1930s. Mandaluyong City: Anvil Publishing, Inc., 2012.

Fonacier, Tomas S. The Chinese in the Philippines During the American Administration. PhD diss. California: Stanford University, 1932.

Garrett, Valery, M. Chinese Clothing: an illustrated guide. Quarry Bay, Hong Kong: Oxford University Press (China) Ltd, 1994.

Lebra, Jose, and Paulson, Joy. Chinese Women in Southeast Asia. Singapore: Singapore National Printers, 1983.

Jensen, Irene Khin Khin Myint. The Chinese in the Philippines during the American Regime 1898-1946. PhD diss. University of Wisconsin, 1956.

Ko, Dorothy. Every step a lotus shoes for bound feet. Los Angeles: University of California Press, 2001.

See, Teresita Ang, Tsinoy: the Story of the Chinese in Philippine Life. Edited by Go Bon Juan, Doreen Go Yu, Yvonne Chua. Manila: Kaisa Para Sa Kaunlaran, Inc., 2005.

Uytanlet, Juliet Lee. The Hybrid Tsinoys: Challenges of Hybridity and Homogeneity as Socio Cultural Constructs Among the Chinese in the Philippines. Eugene, Oregon: Pickwick Publications, 2016.

Philippine Commission (1899-1900). Report of the Philippine Commission to the Secretary of War. U.S. Government Printing Office.

Online References:

“Carlos Palanca enlightens the Americans – 2” Tulay Fortnightly Chinese-Filipino Digest, June 19, 2018, https://tulay.ph/2018/06/19/carlos-palanca-enlightens-the-americans-1/https://tulay.ph/2018/07/10/carlos-palanca-enlightens-the-americans-2/.

Claude Moore Health Sciences Library exhibit, http://exhibits.hsl.virginia.edu/clothes/western_lotus/

Coo, Stéphanie Marie R. . Clothing and the colonial culture of appearances in nineteenth century Spanish Philippines (1820-1896). Nice, France: Université Nice Sophia Antipolis, 2014. https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-01126974/document

De la Cruz, Eduardo Chan, “Relative Finder: Unidentified, unnamed”,Tulay Fortnightly-Filipino Digest, July 10, 2021, https://tulay.ph/2021/07/10/relative-finder-unidentified-unnamed/

Garrett, Valery. Chinese Dress: From Qing Dynasty to Present. Vermont: Tuttle Publishing, 2008. https://books.google.com.ph/books?id=dhPRAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA214&lpg=PA214&dq=chinese+tongue+cleaner+19th+century%5C&source=bl&ots=zAts1ZDzcO&sig=ACfU3U0wj9l9C9ElPF2j778RAkm6wdgMXg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiO142B7PrnAhVm8HMBHSd1BGkQ6AEwF3oECAsQAQ#v=onepage&q=chinese%20tongue%20cleaner%2019th%20century%5C&f=false

Thank you for viewing our Huaqiao’s Lifestyle in American Colonial Philippines Online Exhibit. We hope you learned a lot from it.

Please take a moment to fill out the online survey.

Follow us on our social media accounts: