Kristang: the Portuguese Eurasians of Melaka

At the Portuguese Settlement in Melaka, an old fisherman greets his grandchildren in a language that is not Malay, English or Portuguese, yet is partly all three. It is Papia Kristang, the "Christian speech".

The story

In 1509 the first Portuguese ships reached Melaka. Two years later, in 1511, Afonso de Albuquerque took the city. The Portuguese stayed for 130 years. Many of the men married local women, Malay, Indian and Chinese among them, and their children and grandchildren became a new community. They called themselves Kristang (from the Portuguese cristão, Christian). Another name is Serani (from "Nazarene").

They spoke a creole, a new language that grows when peoples meet. Its words are largely Portuguese, but its way of building sentences follows Malay. It is called Papia Kristang (papia means "speak", Kristang means "Christian": Christian speech), and also Linggu Mai (mother tongue). Its home village is known as the Portuguese Settlement, or Padri Sa-chang (land of the priest). In Malay it is Kampung Portugis.

Moving on. In 1641 the Dutch took Melaka. Some Eurasians left for Makassar. When the Dutch attacked Makassar in 1660, another group moved to Larantuka on the island of Flores. This is how Kristang spread beyond Melaka.

Today Papia Kristang is the only Portuguese-based creole that survives in Southeast Asia. It is an important mark of identity for the community but does not have much prestige. Many young people now speak mainly Malay and English, and the community is working to teach children the language.

The village is small today. The people remaining in the Settlement are described in one source as a small group of fishermen who have become a tourist attraction as well as a living community.

Most Kristang are Catholic, and religious festivals are a big part of life in the Settlement. Over the years the community has also been counted by the government as Portuguese-Eurasians.

Where you can still see it today

The Portuguese Settlement (Kampung Portugis) on the Melaka coast.
Feast days and church festivals, open to visitors who come with respect.
Portuguese-style names such as De Costa, Sequerah, D'Silva and Pereira.
Words in everyday Malay that came from Portuguese, such as "sekolah" (school), "meja" (table) and "bendera" (flag). The BiblioAsia article lists how many words Malay borrowed from Portuguese.
Papia Kristang, taught in classes and spoken at home.

What DNA can tell, and what it cannot

A Kristang family's mother line and father line may point in different directions. A father line may go back to Europe and a mother line to Southeast Asia, but it can also be the other way, since families mixed for many generations. A region estimate may show a blend of European and Asian ancestry.

DNA cannot say that you are Kristang. That is a community, a faith and a language, not a test result. DNA does not decide race, religion or bumiputera status.