#trending: In viral video, man from China 'stunned' that S'poreans dislike being identified as Chinese; locals weigh in
A screen grab of the TikTok video published by user “The Singaporean Son”, which claimed that Singaporeans dislike being called Chinese.
SINGAPORE — In multi-national, multi-racial Singapore, what does melding one’s nationality with one’s ethnicity look like?
In a video posted on social media platform TikTok on Tuesday (May 7), user “The Singaporean Son” said that Singaporeans seem to have a strong disdain to being referred to as Chinese.
In the 36-second clip, the user, who implied he hails from mainland China, shared the observations he had made after moving to Singapore.
In a voice-over narration in Mandarin with English subtitles, the user said: “When I first came to Singapore, I thought Singaporeans and I share the same ancestry. I then said to a Singaporean: ‘Aren’t we all compatriots?’
“Little did I know, the Singaporean’s face turned black: ‘Since when are we compatriots? I’m Singaporean, not Chinese!’”
The user added that he was “stunned” by the strong response that Singaporeans disliked being identified as Chinese from China, so he decided to stop making such statements.
“They prefer to be called Singaporeans. With the passing of time, they have forgotten their culture and also their roots!”
As of Thursday, the video had garnered more than 130,000 views on TikTok and attracted more than 1,500 comments, with several netizens weighing in to offer different views.
DIFFERENTIATING BETWEEN ONE’S NATIONALITY AND ETHNICITY
Some defended the original poster, saying it was a “fact” that Singaporeans who are ethnically Chinese do share the same ethnic ancestry as mainland Chinese after all.
User “Chee Keong Ng27” said: “It is the same, Singapore Chinese is originally come from China. There is a fact.”
Others disagreed, highlighting the difference between one’s nationality and ethnicity, and saying it thus made sense that these Singaporeans preferred to be associated with their own local culture.
TikTok user “username5838483” wrote: “This entire video is so.... dense? Why wld (sic) Singaporean Chinese be glad to be called Chinese when they’re Singaporeans? We have our own culture, lifestyle, experiences etc.”
Some also denied the video’s claim that Singaporeans even disliked being referred to as Chinese, but said that some may prefer a more nuanced approach to differentiating between one’s nationality and one’s ethnicity.
TikTok user “Peterttc” said: “Malaysian Chinese, Singaporean Chinese, Indonesian Chinese, Thai Chinese are all descendant(s) of China Chinese, generally southern China. So yes we are Hua Ren. If call Tong Bau or bro also can.”
He used the Chinese term “tong bao” for compatriots, referring to a fellow citizen or national of a country.
One user, “BellyShiok”, said: “Singapore is a country, and all that is born in Singapore are Singaporean, if we are of ethnic (sic) Chinese, Malay, Indian or Eurasian, U (sic) can call us Singaporean Chinese, Malay, Indian or Eurasian.”
Another user, “2808Rtay”, agreed: “Perfectly ok to be called Singaporean Chinese, we are from different races living harmoniously next to each other.”
TODAY has reached out to “The Singaporean Son” for comment.
