View Full Version : Hat-Yai History
To avoid interfering with the main purpose of Khun Wisaruth's SRT Forum, I think it would be a good idea if we proceeded with this subject here:-
http://www.angkor.com/2bangkok/2bangkok/forum/showpost.php?p=4673&postcount=3 ORIGINAL QUOTE:NCR
By the way, did Hat Yai only become so big and important because of the railway (I certainly think so)? Is it true that it only was some insignificant village before? When did the boom start - after the relocation of the junction from Utapao?
And where does the name Hat Yai come from? I mean, it translates as 'big beach', isn't that a bit strange for a place 25 km from the coast?
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ORIGINAL QUOTE: Khun Wisaruth
http://www.angkor.com/2bangkok/2bangkok/forum/showpost.php?p=4676&postcount=4 Hat Yai is derived from the giant Ma Hat trees ...and Southern dialect always shortens mahat trre into Hat ... :p
Utapao area is flood prone area so RSR decided to move the junction to
Hat Yai and upgradign to 3rd level station in 1922 while downgrading
Utapao to 5th level station.
Look at the Biography of Khun Niphatchinnkhon (October 31,1886 -
Decemebr 10, 1972), the developper of Hat Yai who also worked as the contractorfor Southern Railway Construction.
http://www.khlong-u-taphao.com/index.php?file=whatnew&file=forum&obj=forum.view(cat_id=hy2,id=5)
The Cemetery of Khun Niphatchinnkhon is near the defuct NamNoy station (Hat Yai - Sonkla line)
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Thanks for an interesting lead!
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I have heard similar interpretations about 'trees' and I suspect they're highly credible. But you would be amazed how many locals will tell you it means 'Big Beach' because the lakeshore used to be much much closer to the city, but has advanced North-East because of river delta development & silting on the lake. I've always thought this explanation sounded a bit unlikely. Perhaps they are winding us up!
Thanks for the lead! I sense a field trip & photo op coming on. A friend has already given me a bit of a run down on this article. He claims that most of Hat-Yai's wealthy Chinese arrived on the same boat as Khun Niphat; whose legacy lives on in the the three main streets of Niphat-Uthit 1,2 & 3. ('Uthit' is an 'add-on' for donated streets). I'm further told that the article says he contributed land for the stadium, the hospital and the massive Chinese cemetery in Ban Phru.
There looks like a wealth of information here!
As I said in the previous post, I'm also sceptical about the 'Big Beach' translations, but many locals say it refers to the lakeshore 'beach'. The canals in this area do actually form a classic delta formation into the lake, and there is no doubt the lake used to be much closer within living memory; but the doubts are strong nevertheless.
Yes, 'Hat-Yai' was just a village that just happened to be where the junction eventually materialised.
One of the most interesting quotes I have seen about Hat-Yai is in the book by William Warren about Jim Thompson. Apparently, Thompson had a brief sojourn here in 1967 just before his disappearance at Cameron Highlands. It must have been quite an arduous drive in those days, but Jim drove all the way to the Highlands, with a stopover in 'Yai'.William Warren describes the town at that time as resembling the wild-west. Bars actually had swingdoors similar to cowboy saloons, and there was considerable gunplay on the streets.
It seems that in the 50s the Thai Government conceived a plan for the rapid development of Hat-Yai in the 1950s. This was the time when they built all the concrete shophouses that still dominate Niphat Uthit 1, 2 & 3. Khun Niphat was almost certainly one of the folk who got the politicianss to initiate this project.
In one of the big photo shops they have old photographic prints of Hat-Yai in 1926. The railway junction had already brought some prosperity to the place. There were already a few cars on the streets, but no metalled roads.
Another famous photo from the 1940s shows one of the Comfort Women imported by the IJA, smoking an old stogie & decked out in some sort of reinforced corset thingy that would have put Madonna's stage gear to shame.
By the way, did Hat Yai only become so big and important because of the railway (I certainly think so)? Is it true that it only was some insignificant village before? When did the boom start - after the relocation of the junction from Utapao?
And where does the name Hat Yai come from? I mean, it translates as 'big beach', isn't that a bit strange for a place 25 km from the coast?
HEREWITH A MORE ACCURATE & COMPLETE BIOGRAPHY:-
From Khun Wisaruth's discovered website article, it seems that Tan Khun Niphatchinnakorn (a royally-sanctioned title & name; original Chinese name, Jia Gi Si) was a railway contractor of considerable esteem.
This brief biography is taken from the Thai language account of Laksamee Jiranakorn et al. on
http://www.khlong-u-taphao.com/index.php?file=whatnew&file=forum&obj=forum.view(cat_id=hy2,id=5)
STATUE:-
http://tinypic.com/54zy84
STATUE INSCRIPTION:-
http://tinypic.com/54zyhd
The Statue of Khun Niphat ('linked' in the previous post) is in front of Jiranakorn Stadium on Niphat Songkraw 1; both the stadium & the street being named after him. ' Niphat Jiranakorn' was the name he adopted when he
was granted Thai citizenship by the Interior Ministry in 1944. The inscription tells us that 'Tan Khun Niphatchinnakorn, Jor Mor Jaw Chor [a royal honorific] - 'Jia Gi Si' - was born on 30th October, 1886; and died on 10th December, 1972. He donated the 14 Rai of land for this sports stadium in 1955.'
Khun Niphat was born as the fourth son of a family of six, and was born in Zhuhai in China's Guangdong Province. His father was a teacher. His entire family eventually ended up living in Thailand. Niphat arrived in Bangkok in 1904, aged 19, on a Japanese ship with 500 other Chinese; the seven-day passage having cost them $5 each. Some of the 500 then set out on the journey South to the present day Hat-Yai area; and many of them went on to become Hat-Yai's wealthiest citizens. [One imagines that the authorities encouraged Chinese immigrants to settle in relatively undeveloped areas in order to consolidate the Government's control of areas with a 'muslim' element.]
Khun Niphat was first employed in the 'Tek Haeng Thai' Whiskey Company; by one of his father's old students. Khun Niphat was already married before he left China, and his Chinese wife came with him; they had one son some years after they arrived. This son eventually became Mayor of Hat-Yai. I'm told Khun Niphat also had one adopted son, who most locals called 'Loong Nin'. He also took another wife, Palian Sae Hiw from Ron Phibun in Nakorn Province; by whom he had a further ten children.
At this point, we'll FFWD to the high point of his early career. Khun Niphat was an undoubted risk-taker. Although some people have called him a railway contractor, he was originally employed as a railway construction manager in 1909; when King Rama V instigated the railway project from Petchaburi to the South. At this point, he had only been in Thailand for only 5 years. One imagines that he secured this post because of his good ability with the Thai language. It's unclear at what point he actually became more than just a manager.
Niphat found subcontractors to perform the individual processes of trackbed laying; and these were often undertaken by other Chinese immigrants. Thus, 'Kaeh' ('Black') Chinese were used to clear the land of forest, while 'Taeochiw' Chinese were involved in the creation of the cuttings, embankments, trackbed and bridge bases. The rails, track equipment and bridge fabrications were imported from the UK. Floods frequently washed out their work, so many sections had to be redone. The route was constructed in 30 Km stretches at a time, by cutting 40 Meter swathes of forest. About 200 subcontracted laborers were employed on each stretch, split into work-teams of ten people. Chinese laborers were mostly used because there were so few people living
in Southern Thailand at that time.
Again, it isn't clear whether Khun Niphat was employed to facilitate the construction of the route from its original southern terminus. What we do know, is that whilst he was involved in the clearing of land for the Songkhla Branch (presumably initiated early on, to facilitate the import of track equipment at that port), he stumbled on Wolfram (Tungsten ore) in the vicinity of Nam-Noi (his eventual 'resting place'). Later, he was to find other
deposits of Tin & Wolfram in the Bangkhlam area. Many other Chinese joined him here to exploit the ore; and it was probably this community that gave Nam-Noi the early Twentieth Century reputation of having many Chinese blacksmiths. (Tungsten is used to harden the tips of iron & steel tools.) At this point, it seems he decided to break with the railway & start his own mine. He was later to exploit & profit from these mines; but in the meantime, misfortune overtook him. Whilst off in Songkhla on business, almost all of his money & belongings were stolen from his Nam-Noi base. Thus, he was forced to take a cheap passage on a boat up Songkhla Lake & Thale Luang to Phattalung to meet up with a friend who was involved in the construction of the Trang & Kantang Branch.
I suspect that this is the point where he became a contractor.
PART TWO TO FOLLOW:-
Khun Niphat was eventually to win contracts that ran all the way from Chawaeng in Nakorn Sri Thammarat Province to Khok Pho in Pattani Province. One suspects that at this point he became more involved with track construction; rather than just clearance for the permanent way. He eventually employed an Italian engineer, with two other 'local' engineers. His main claim to fame was when he was bought in to successfully complete the mainline rail tunnel near Ron Phibun in Nakorn Province, after the Berli-Jucker Company (to this day, a big 'name' in Thai commerce) had failed in the same task; many of their navvies having fallen sick & died with Malaria. After completing the stretch to Khok Pho, Nipat's teams had to return to the original Songkhla Branch Junction at Uttapao and make good the flood damage which had washed out the track. (As documented by Khun Wisaruth) it was decided to move the Junction to the less flood-prone location of Khok Su-Met Choon (later to be renamed Ban Hat-Yai, at the suggestion of Khun Niphat).
The line to Sungei Kolok was completed in 1912, at which time Khun Niphat moved to live at Uttapao. However, the flood damage at Uttapao may have prompted him to move to Khok Su-Met Choon; which at that time had only 4 residences. He bought 50 Rai of land from local landowners, which he soon after sold to the Government to form Hat-Yai's still extensive (and still largely unchanged) Railway Quarter. Khun Niphat had seen the layout of downtown Sungei Petani in Malaya's Kedah State. He had presumably continued to buy other land in Khok Su-Met Choon, as he set out to create the streets 'Jia Gi Si 1,2 & 3' on roughly the same model as Sungei Pattani. After King Rama VII had bestowed the name 'Niphatchinnakorn' on him, Khun Niphat was instrumental in having the streets renamed 'Niphat Uthit 1,2 & 3'. On these streets he built three simple hotels, from timber & bamboo with attap roofs, to serve rail passengers: the 'Kien-Thai', 'Ye-Ki' & 'Si-Fat' Hotels. There was also a grocery shop. 'Si-Fat' Hotel was on the corner site of the present Nakon Luang Bank,
on the current Thanon Thammanoonvithi (from East from the modern station concourse). He also built further houses & shophouses along Thammanoonvitee (for sale & rent) in the area of the current 'Royal Bakery'. The 'Yee-Soon Song' & 'Win On For' were more substantial & slightly more luxurious two-floor hotels of wooden construction, with tiled roofs.
When the rail contracts eventually ran out, Khun Niphat used his navvies to plant rubber gardens in Hat-Yai's hinterland.
In his communications with businessmen in Malaya, Khun Niphat found it easier to address his house as being in Ban Hat-Yai, as he considered the name Khok Su-Met Choon too much of a mouthful for non-Thai passengers
& business folk. To this same end, he was able to persuade the Government to follow suit and name the station 'Hat-Yai Junction' in 1918.
The list of his benevolent donations to the city of Hat-Yai is impressive. He donated the land for Hat-Yai Witiyalai. Another 14 rai was donated for the construction of the Jiranakorn Stadium. 4.5 Rai for Hat-Yai Hospital. 180 Rai
for the massive Chinese cemetery in nearby Ban Phru and 1.5 rai on Niphat Uthit 3 for a home for the elderly. The Municipal Hall was also built on land adjoining his 'first' house on Petchakasem Road. All of these establishments are still in existence, but its unclear whether his various houses are still with us. He also donated land to the City Municipality for Niphat Uthit 1, 2 & 3 (the current main streets), as well as for Niphat Songkraw 1, 2, 3, 4 & 5 in more residential areas.
There is actually some local conjecture that the land for these establishments was not completely donated. It has been suggested that Khun Niphat often donated some of the land, and then sold adjoining land at the same time.The word 'Uthit' probably indicates a complete donation, whilst 'Songkraw' indicates that he encouraged other landowners to join him in donating land. [To this day, these are common practices, with the Municipality making the road & gaining ownership; whilst the original owners lend their name & benefit from gaining access to inaccessible (& thus undeveloped) areas of their property.] In this way, Niphat probably engaged in about 25 complete donations, whilst encouraging a further 14 donations from multiple sources. He also encouraged landowners to allow the widening of some streets, and was able to get the authorities to improve the road from Khlong Ree-un to Saiburi in Pattani Province; probably with a view to improving his own trading links with Kelantan & other East-Coast Peninsular Malay States.
Khun Niphat also encouraged Penang Chinese to settle and start business in Hat-Yai. To this day, many Hat-Yai folk still have Penang in-laws. Indeed, in the middle of the century many Hat-Yai folk were sent to Penang for their higher education; which is partially why some older locals in the 'Santisuk Market' speak far superior English to younger generations.
In 1930, Niphat moved to a new house on Thanon Petchakasem, within sight of the present 'Fountain Circle'. This was set back off the road and surrounded by trees. It would have been behind the current Kasikorn Bank. Part of his land here was eventually 'donated' for the adjacent building of the current Municipality.
In the 1930s, Khun Niphat was given several honoury titles by Prime Minister General Pibun Songkhram; which doubtless suggests a strategic political alliance.
Another Hat-Yai building initiated by Khun Niphat was the 'Chalerm Yon' Movie Theater, on the site of the current Odean Department Store. This burnt down during a movie showing in the 1960s; to the confusion of some of the audience, who found it hard to differentiate a movie fantasy from a rather hotter reality. He also built the three-storey building which was eventually rented out to the 'Bank of Asia'.
World War II saw major fuel shortages for autos in the entire South-East Asian region. In 1943, after six months of experimentation, Khun Niphat opened a small refinery where locally-produced latex was converted into an auto fuel. This was produced in sufficient quantities to be exported down most of the length of the East-Coast Peninsular Malay States. [I suspect latex 'sweepings' were actually used; as the Japanese undoubtedly coverted South East Asia's Rubber for their war machine & economic development.]
In 1955, Khun Niphat 'donated' 14 Rai for the current Jiranakorn Stadium. As I have previously said, there is some conjecture as to whether he actually donated all the land, but it is clear that he gave 200,000 Baht for the construction of the gymnasium.
Khun Niphat died at 87 years old on 10th December, 1972; probably at another Petchakasem Road house (possibly near the intersection with Thanon Samchai). He was buried in a Chinese-style burial plot 'behind' Nam-Noi Station.
[I intend to try & find this burial plot for a few photos; and I'm very hopeful of finding it. It is unlikely that the plot has been neglected, as the 'Jiranakorns' are undoubtedly still very active & affluent in this region. There are many Chinese burial plots in Nam-Noi; although most are located on higher ground North of the main village.]
Si Gim Yong was the Chinese Immigrant who built the famous Si Gim Yong Market in Hat-Yai. A contemporary of Khun Niphat; he donated the land for Si Nakarin Chinese Boy's School. This statue (on Thammanoon Vithi, outside the school) pictures Khun Si Gim Yong Chaiyakhun (standing) with his wife Lamai (seated). The Thai surname suggests he became a naturalised Thai citizen, but he retained his Chinese first name. Si Gim Yong also donated several roads to the city; and built a Chinese Vegetarian Temple in the area now served by the modern 'Vegetarian Festival'. He also contributed to the construction of other temples; and probably curried favor with the local muslim populace by also contributing to mosque construction. He also helped to establish the reputed 'Mission Hospital' in Hat-Yai Nai (now derelict). [I believe the Mission Hospital closed about 15 years ago after being replaced by Hat-Yai's first major private hospital: Rajyindee Hospital on Thanon Rajyindee (Sam-Sip Met).]
http://tinypic.com/55jzps
Wisarut
19-05-05, 12:30 PM
Well, ther was INDEED some refinery that turn para rubber latex into automobile fuel ... it has been used for the automobiles of the natioanlized mine companies in Songkla, Pattani, Yala, Narathiwat, Kelantan, Trungganu.
However the fuel from pararubber latex has very bad smell though ...
You will get the whitened nose if you inhales that para rubber latext
too much or inhale too long. :D
Proceeding along Route 3 from Rayong to Klaeng in Rayong Province, your olfactory senses may about half-way along be heavily assaulted by the noxious stench of a latex-processing plant. This is the second Ban Hat-Yai, presumably created as a ‘company village’ by the Tek Bee Hang Company; which used to have a similarly pungent factory in downtown Hat-Yai, Songkhla Province. Indeed, it was the similar ‘whiff’ signature that initially alerted me to ‘Yai’ Two. Rayong residents later informed me that to this day ‘Yai’ Two is mainly populated by the southern ‘immigrant’experts & rubbertappers that TBH brought with them; and is considered a local enclave of southern food & customs. I believe the company also runs its own rubber estates in the hinterland, as they do down south. I believe this company were originally based in Malaysia.
On a sidenote, TBH’s pungent presence in ‘Yai’ One was demolished a few years back, and has recently been occupied by the new (somewhat more sanitary) Carrefour. TBH now occupies a factory in nearby rural Bang Khlam. Despite the Bang Khlam plant being a a lot more modern, there is still some ‘olfactory assault’. The factory was moved out-of-town by a Municipal directive banning latex plants. This directive has certainly made the canals less smelly & less polluted; but the rehab still has a long way to go. Needless to say, Bangkhlamians now have the dubious (farty breath) pleasures of TBH as a neighbor.
Another downtown ‘rubber’ factory on Petchakasem in Hat-Yai used to be the Nanyang Dap Factory. This was an interesting old colonial-era building opposite Hat-Yai Witiyalai, in its own walled compound; which has certainly been disused for over 14 years to my knowledge. Since 1996, it has been host to a ‘ghost’ construction site. Rumour had it at one point that it belonged to Mr T, and that it was to become a local version of ‘The Mall’. This plan seems to have changed at some point; although it still isn’t clear exactly what is intended. The individual shophouses & offices are nearly completed, but they still haven’t got round to demolishing the old perimeter wall. One imagines that this kind of development doesn’t really warrant the deep underground car-park that it is still saddled with. It could also be that the 2000 flood further set back the project; although there still seems to be a local trend for underground parking. The current project is almost certainly targeted at the hordes of high-shool students across the road; so expect a high preponderance of tutors, online game parlours & ‘snake’ bars.
‘Nanyang’ is still a player in the dap market, albeit with only a Bangkok factory these days. You may have seen their ‘value-added’ ‘Breaker’ hitech daps as advertised on TV by machoman tennis player & Tata Young Wooer/Shunner Paradon Srichapan (Stick to tennis & ‘vacant lot’ footie, Khun Ball; it pays better!). ‘Nanyang’ is the Chinese word for SE Asia. I have no idea whether this was originally a ‘Hat-Yai’ startup company. The architecture of the old factory suggested it had been in town almost as long as the Junction.
[I intend to try & find this burial plot for a few photos; and I'm very hopeful of finding it. It is unlikely that the plot has been neglected, as the 'Jiranakorns' are undoubtedly still very active & affluent in this region. There are many Chinese burial plots in Nam-Noi; although most are located on higher ground North of the main village.]My contact tells me that the Jiranakorns were actually rather modest people. Their houses were often tin-roofed, just like those of the majority of Hat-Yai folk. They were not known to be boastful about their achievements & possessions.
Our search for the ancestral graveyard commenced at about 12 PM; at a wedding on Jiranakorn Road of a family related to Kreng Suwannawong, Lord Mayor until about 4 years ago. [His son was also Lord Mayor until less than a year ago.] The area of the wedding could definitely be termed a ‘Suwannawong’ area, but it is named Thanon Jiranakorn in remembrance of Gi Jiranakorn, who was an earlier Mayor of Hat-Yai. There were originally plans to call Thanon Samchai by the name Thanon Jiranakorn, but the ‘Three Chais’ and/or their families objected. [One wonders whether the Suwannawong in-laws were much happier when they had the name imposed on them.] The wedding was at the Thanon Jiranakorn ‘Chum-Chon’ (community center). [Incidentally, it’s literally on the backstep of the famous JB Hotel; and I hear the Queen was officiating at some event there today. There’s a helicopter hanging overhead.]
Gi Jiranakorn was Khun Niphat’s only son from the first wife he married in China; but was not Khun Niphat’s first-born. Apparently, the first wife, Jong Saun Yin, didn’t arrive in Thailand until some years after Niphat; by which time he’d already had three children with Palian Sae Hiw, a later-generation Thai Chinese woman from Ron Phibun in Nakon Sri Thammarat Province. He married ‘Lian’ in 1910, not long after the inception of the railway project. [We were to find that his first son was born in 1910 too.]
At the wedding, one guest quickly identified Nam Noi Station as being on Kanchanavanit Road opposite Rong Ree-un Chum-Chon Ban Nam Noi; about 9 kilometers out of town towards Songkhla on Route 407. It figured that a Chinese family would prefer a hillside graveyard behind, or to the side of the school. However, a local householder there (somewhat hindered by a recent tracheotomy) was able to inform us by lip-mime that it was about a kilometre further west. He further told us that the old station was actually near the fish canning plant, where there used to be a level-crossing; and we couldn’t miss it, as there was a sign. Well, we didn’t find the cemetery until we’d asked again at a builder’s merchant beyond the crossing. Here we got the more precise instructions that the graveyard was slightly before the fish canning plant. So we backtracked and eventually saw a Chinese shrine up in the trees. I’ve often wondered about this shrine in passing. 1:50,000 Scan of the vicinity:-
http://pub8.bravenet.com/photocenter/album.php?img=76984&usernum=633867102
TO BE CONTINUED
First impressions were that Khun Niphat’s Graveyard looked a bit overgrown. Having crossed the dangerous road, we could see that the 50 Meter approach track had probably been mowed for this year’s ‘Ching-Ming’ grave cleaning ceremony. We noticed the broken sign to the cemetery in the road ditch; presumably smashed by some (then under-the-influence) now ‘cursed’ truck driver. The sign probably reads ‘Su-san Khun Niphat’, but I felt it would be sacrilege to rearrange it so I could read it better. (‘Su-san’ is Thai for a cemetery.):-
http://pub13.bravenet.com/photocenter/album.php?img=72772&usernum=1114337427
The ‘Sala’ type shrine appeared from its photos & Thai inscriptions to contain the (probably cremated) remains of a son & (possibly) his wife; and perhaps two grandsons; one with a wife. It is likely that more naturalised later generations would have been cremated and their ashes placed in a shrine with Thai inscriptions.
There were two large conventional Chinese graves over to the west. The first was the larger of the two, and as such probably contains the uncremated remains of Khun Niphat. Without a knowledge of Chinese characters, it would be impossible to state categorically that this is true, however:-
http://pub13.bravenet.com/photocenter/album.php?img=72770&usernum=1114337427
The second might have been for the uncremated remains of his wife or wives. Again, there were no Thai inscriptions on this grave:-
http://pub13.bravenet.com/photocenter/album.php?img=72773&usernum=1114337427
I had no problem reading the Thai descriptions of the more naturalised second & third generations in the shrine:-
http://pub13.bravenet.com/photocenter/album.php?img=72776&usernum=1114337427
The first photo we saw at the front of the shrine was that of Nai Yongyuth and (presumably his wife) Nang Linjong Jiranakorn. Both were born in 1930. Not being on the website list (below), Yongyuth was probably Khun Niphat’s grandson; possibly a son of the first-born Sukkit, whose picture is also in the shrine. If Yongyuth was Sukkit’s son, Sukkit would have been about 20 at the time of his birth; as we were later to find that Sukkit was born in 1910. Yongyuth died in 1991 and Linjong in 2004:-
http://pub13.bravenet.com/photocenter/album.php?img=72774&usernum=1114337427
On the right-hand side of the shrine was a picture of Nai Yoti Jiranakorn; born in 1938, died in 1986. The fact that all these pictures are in the same shrine suggests that they are all Sukkit’s side of the family. So, Sukkit would have been about 28 when this son was born:-
http://pub13.bravenet.com/photocenter/album.php?img=72775&usernum=1114337427
Then at the back of the shrine, I found the picture of Nai Sukkit Jiranakorn. Born in 1910 and from the list (below) obviously Niphat’s first-born son. This was the year Khun Niphat married his second wife, Palian; and about one year into the railway construction project. Sukkit died in 1999. A picture of a woman called ‘Khun Mare’ Kobsoop is seen to the left. From the title, she was obviously someone’s mother & somehow connected to Sukkit, but the fact that she is not pictured in the same image as Sukkit suggests that their ashes were not placed together in the same side of the shrine. This makes it unclear whether she was a 'wife' of Sukkit's or not. Unfortunately, at this point the mosquitoes put me off taking a further photo from which I could have read the all important life & death details later. A second longer visit is obviously called for. Another empty photo space over to the left suggests that Sukkit might have one child still alive:-
http://pub13.bravenet.com/photocenter/album.php?img=72771&usernum=1114337427
There was also another grave over to the right; which we didn’t have time to explore. The graves we had visited so far had been reasonably well tended. This ‘East’ grave was somewhat overgrown, and it looked like there had only been a very minimal effort to clean it for this year’s Ching-Ming.
Between the Sala and the East Grave, there were also the remains of an abortive attempt to build another ‘Sala’ type shrine.
Back at base, we went back to the website description and looked at the list of Khun Niphat’s numerous offspring. [I remembered the famous comment of a farmer who went on to have dozens of grandchildren & great grandchildren. When asked by a bank manager what he would do about farm labour (which became ‘expensive’ around WW1), said ‘flat-cap’ is reported to have said ‘Don’t worry about that Gaffer, I breeds me own!’] We then compared these with the pictures we had taken. Here’s the list; presumably in birth order. Offspring (1)-(3) & (5)-(11) were born by the second Thai-Chinese wife, Palian. Offspring (4) was born by the first Chinese wife, Jong Saun Yin :-
(1) Nai Sukkit Jiranakorn [Undoubtedly the oldest ‘inhabitant’ of the Sala Shrine]
(2) Nai Sutham Jiranakorn
(3) Nang Um-Pha (Chee-um) Juttrakul
(4) Nai Gi Jiranakorn [Once Mayor of Hat-Yai]
(5) Nang Choojit Choojitboot
(6) Nang Jintana Saechua (died 1962)
(7) Nai [mistake?](Nang?) Juree Dtunpanit
(8) Nang Malee Jiranakorn
(9) Nai Niphat Jiranakorn (died 1978)
(10) Nang Grongkahn Sinsakul
(11) Nai Kitti Jiranakorn
My contact also informed me that there was a ’self-confessed’ informally-adopted son who old Hat-Yai families called ‘Loong Nin’. By all accounts Loong Nin was also a man of modesty; although not so modest when there was a drop to drink.
There were originally plans to call Thanon Samchai by the name Thanon Jiranakorn, but the ‘Three Chais’ and/or their families objected.
Older Samchai locals will tell you that one of the Three Nai Chais was actually a Nai Chuay; but this obviously didn't get in the way of a 'snappy' street name. And Nai Chuay's name really did mean 'help' in the sense of helping others.
Doubtless, everything would be different if this same street was named now; in this era where you only have to include the spinword 'ruk' or 'chuay' in a name, for it to have instant & uncritical popularist appeal. That said, the current 'Samchai' doesn't 'ruk' or 'chuay' the popularist party-party that much. I half suspect that the modern Thai spin-verb 'chuay' might be better translated as 'helping oneself'. And 'ruk' as a narcissistic form of 'loving oneself'.
Up until about ten years ago, there was a very interesting old wooden covered bridge spanning Hat-Yai's Khlong Toei (about 2 Kms North of the present Carrefour) in the midst of a rather gloomy rubber garden. Then, it was only served by a laterite road; but it was considered a convenient shortcut from Ban Khlong Toei to Niphat Songkhraw 5; avoided a 2 Kilometer detour North or South.
I now find that Khun Niphat Jiranakorn saw the need for this bridge, and organised a group of interested locals to pay for it (and probably to build it). The only reason I can think for it being covered was to act as a sort of community focal point; such as you still see in more traditional tambons & moobahns. Perhaps it even had a rack for several-day-old Bangkok newspapers. And perhaps in those days it was in the middle of 'paddy'; and thus doubled as a field shelter for the local 'chao bahn'.
Fortunately, I remember this bridge. Unfortunately, I didn't witness its passing. The new bridge certainly serves the same function as a shortcut; but now it is actually becoming a busy arterial. At least I now appreciate why I always had some sense that there was an element of 'deja vu' about the original bridge. Or was it just that I've never seen covered bridges elsewhere in Thailand? One wonders whether this bridge owed something to Niphat's Chinese motherland.
This old house is located on Thanon Petchakasem, just East of the Fountain Circle; between the corner site's now-disused Shell Pump and the shophouses just before Thai Farmer's Bank. Access to this property is through the yard of the Mahanakorn Crane Company. It's possible that the house is actually part of the Mahanakorn Crane Company's yard:-
http://tinypic.com/5bu1cm
This old house is located on Thanon Petchakasem, just East of the Fountain Circle; between the corner site's now-disused Shell Pump and the shophouses just before Thai Farmer's Bank. Access to this property is through the yard of the Mahanakorn Crane Company. It's possible that the house is actually part of the Mahanakorn Crane Company's yard.
My informant suggests that this is not actually Khun Niphat's house. However, I'm told that Niphat built houses in the area around his house to accomodate his numerous children; thus forming a traditional family compound. My informant agrees with my idea that this is probably the house of one of his sons.
It would be interesting to know whether there is any connection between the Jiranakorns and 'Mahanakorn Crane'; given some name similarity, and the fact that Jiranakorns obviously had interests in construction & engineering. Indeed, my informant had contact (ten years back) with a Hat-Yai-based Civil Engineer (connected to the construction of Lee Gardens Plaza) said to have married a daughter of the Jiranakorn family.
I think it's highly likely that I will eventually meet Khun Niphat's descendents.
David K. Wyatt (2nd Ed, 2003, Silkworm Books, Chiang-Mai, P 204) 'Thailand - A Short History':-
'Increasingly, the Government came to hire Chinese laborers for such tasks as canal construction, in preference to unpaid corvee labor by unwilling Siamese. Some, perhaps many, Chinese Immigrants prospered. ..... In the expanding rice-export economy of the late nineteenth century, local peasants were making the rational decision to specialize in rice agriculture, the occupation of their ancestors, the calling they knew best. They had little desire to work for other people for appallingly low wages, bound to the equivalent of the time clock; nor were they anxious to live in what must have seemed to them an alien city, dominated by Chinese, carrying on unfamiliar occupations. If they were ambitious, young Siamese set their sights on a career in the bureaucracy or in the Buddhist monkhood - again, traditional pursuits. It was the Chinese, therefore, who literally built the modern sector of the economy of Siam. They dug the canals and constructed the railways and erected the fine new government offices and shop buildings and bridges of Bangkok. Both independently and as the employees of Western firms, they developed the institutions and services necessary to make the rice-export economy work. .... From the turn of the century, more Chinese women were immigrating into Thailand and marrying Chinese men; their children were Chinese, not Siamese. In this social sense, then, there were at least two Siams by 1910.'
So Niphat's experience very much followed the lines of most Chinese immigrants. Niphat had to go and labor in a badly-paid distillery job (Wyatt tells us that most Chinese started out employed by earlier Chinese immigrants) for some years before he had some basic capital and experience under his belt with which to launch himself into better-paid work; controlling large teams of more recently-arrived Chinese, who came from more of a peasant background than himself. As a schoolteacher's son, he probably had a good enough knowledge of the maths & basic science needed for the supervision of navvies; and thus had good long-term prospects of becoming a 'self-made' man.
It's interesting that he had a Chinese wife before he came to Thailand, who remained childless for some years after her belated appearance in Thailand; and then only had one child. One half suspects that the Chinese wife
told Niphat that he must go out and make a reasonable sum of money before starting a family. And so he came to Thailand. Admittedly, that single child went on to become an important member of Hat-Yai society. But perhaps
Niphat was well aware that he would have a better chance of being locally assimilated & accepted by important people if he chose to have numerous Thai-speaking children with a later generation Thai Chinese woman who knew both the Thai & Chinese culture. And 'Lian' probably picked on Niphat because he was obviously hard-working & ambitious.
Having got herself over to Thailand, the Chinese wife would probably have known better than to make a huge scene about a second wife who had already produced three children. Instead, she would probably have gotten Niphat to install her in a fairly decent residence (we know he had more than one) and made sure he gave her at least one child with which to maintain or improve her dignity. Meanwhile, his more culturally Thai children were there to ease his later career, by 'laboring' in his various businesses. Thus, the graves of Khun Niphat & his wives appear to have no Thai script; whilst Thai script dominates the shrine containing the probably-cremated remains of his children & grandchildren. And doubtless he started more than one hotel at the outset to keep the two wives separately occupied.
I'd like to know who the grave I didn't visit belongs to. It might be another wife or the 'Chinese' son who became Mayor. The graves are obviously more Chinese in character than the Sala Shrine as would befit an entirely Chinese wife or her 'only' son brought up in a more Chinese environment.
Long-term Hat-Yai residents still refer to Khun Niphat as Tao-Gae Gi; a combination of the Chinese word for ‘merchant’ and his original Chinese name, Jia Gi Si. It seems that his trade in the somewhat smelly latex-derived car-fuel lasted until the 1960s, as a person of my own age can remember seeing it on a stand in a local trade exhibition. The same person told me that Nipat had learned how to make the fuel from experiments by the Japanese occupation force.
Niphat seems to have had some contact with the Japanese, but no more & no less than any other person forced to trade by difficult economic circumstances. Most Chinese in Thailand probably despised the Japanese for the brutal invasion of China; and they too were often very badly mistreated by the Japanese. To show one example of the sort of fraternisation that occurred, the IJA commandeered an area of rubber gardens off Petchakasem Road (near the current Carrefour). A pond on the land was used for watering the IJA’s pack mules. The IJA created a bunker (probably with anti-aircraft guns) in a very large old termite mound on the land. [No evidence exists today, as the land was bulldozed flat decades ago.] As Thailand was nominally not ‘occupied’, the IJA were expected to pay for the land. Khun Niphat was amongst those who tried to help negotiate a price, but the issue was complicated by a heavy claim for compensation by some local gardeners over whose land access was gained to the encampment. This impasse eventually resulted in no one receiving compensation; although the necessary funds had almost certainly been forwarded to some local ‘governor’. There is still a certain bitterness over this in some Sois.
If you are ever on Thanon Rajyindee (AKA Sam-Sip Met), look out for a blue-tiled apartment building & house (completed about 3 years back) at the entrance to Soi 1. The building has the name ‘Gi Jiranakorn’ above the entrance, with Chinese characters and the initials ‘KC’ which suggest that at least one part of the family would prefer the name to be rendered as something like ‘Ki Chiranakorn’. The next door residence has the name ‘Bahn Gi Jiranakorn’ in Thai script. An English sign in the window of the downstairs office tells us it is also the registered office of the ‘Shieh Clansman Foundation’.
If you are ever on Thanon Rajyindee (AKA Sam-Sip Met), look out for a blue-tiled apartment building & house (completed about 3 years back) at the entrance to Soi 1. The building has the name ‘Gi Jiranakorn’ above the entrance, with Chinese characters and the initials ‘KC’ which suggest that at least one part of the family would prefer the name to be rendered as something like ‘Ki Chiranakorn’. The next door residence has the name ‘Bahn Gi Jiranakorn’ in Thai script. An English sign in the window of the downstairs office tells us it is also the registered office of the ‘Shieh Clansman Foundation’.
I should point out here that the name of this building & house almost certainly refers to Khun Niphat's son (by his entirely Chinese wife), KI CHIRANAKORN; who was to become a Mayor of Hat-Yai. I have no information on when 'Ki' passed away, but my informant knows people who worked for him and who were well-acquainted with him.
It would be interesting to just go & knock on the door of this house, and declare an interest in the family history. I guess there is a reluctance to take this gamble, for fear of losing one's historical illusions. I might find we just don't hit it off; which would be an encumbrance & embarrassment for both our parties. On balance, I think I would prefer to adopt a 'blundering' approach to this (as I have throughout); by which I mean I would rather accidently 'bump' into a member of the 'clan' and take it from there. Not impossible by any means!
The article extracts below provide us more evidence on how Jia Gi Si (here called Cheah Ky See) AKA Khun Niphat was able to build up his ‘empire’ in Hat-Yai so quickly. It seems that the Thai Government deliberately encouraged development by Chinese immigrants as a means to fend off British interests in developing Southern Thailand:-
http://www.penangstory.net/docs/Abs-PhuwadolSongprasert.doc
The whole site is worth checking out too. Hat-Yai's Chinese community still maintains numerous family links with Penang:-
http://www.penangstory.net
The Implication of Penang Connection in Southern Thailand
Phuwadol Songprasert,
Department of History, Faculty of Social Sciences
Kasetsart University, Bangkok, Thailand
The Penang Story – International Conference 2002
18-21 April 2002, The City Bayview Hotel, Penang, Malaysia
Organisers: The Penang Heritage Trust & STAR Publications
……….
In other respects, Khaw Sim Bee played a vital role from the moment when the government decided to construct the southern railways. Moreover, he successfully convinced the government to recruit only Chinese labour about 10,000 men in each year, reasoning that if the government mobilised new coolies directly from South China, at least 50% of them, or 5,000 men a year would decide to live permanently in the south. Later on, they would also be absorbed by new mines and rubber estates, which would be developed by Penang investors and other wealthy Chinese in the region. Such outcome would serve to increase local population and tax revenues as well as the government could use these Chinese inhabitants and their occupied land as a pretext to refuse any approach of British investors who would try to invest their capital in the region during that period.
Hence, Khaw Sim Bee and his close business associates in the Khean Guan Co. and the Chong Lee Co were successful to utilize their benefits from the programme of railway construction and the new company namely the Bangkok-Southern Railway Construction Co. was founded by these associates within few months in 1909. Also, the Eastern Shipping Co. took this opportunity to conclude with the government for monopolising the labour transportation from South China into the region.
Under the agreement, the government would finance each steamer for shipping new workers from China, without calling at Bangkok and Singapore, to a particular port of Southern Thailand directly. At the same time, both companies had to establish their own labour agents in China and forced the coolies to sign long term contracts before arriving in the south. In return, the government would permit both companies to survey mineral deposits and opened new forests along both sides of the rail line for planting any kind of cash crops in any quantity they desired.
Subsequently, when the railway construction began in 1910, the Eastern Shipping Co. and the Bangkok-Southern Railway Construction Co. comfortably monopolised the whole process of labour import from China until the southern rail line was completed in 1918. .
……….
When the construction of southern railways was fulfilled and the region could communicate with Butterworth directly during the early 1920s. The holders of Bangkok-Southern Railway Construction Co. was ready to develop the new biggest trading centre in the south: namely Hat Yai. It was well planned and developed by the investments of Chee Ui Jiw, Chee Yok San and Cheah Ky See, the big share holders in this company. Under the guidance of these Hakka investors from Penang and Medan, the government functioned other infrastructure around this new city in line with their planning programmes. At the same time, local officials also acted as the supporters of these powerful Chinese in order to claim additional land throughout Hat Yai for further development. Later on, they developed a particular site of their land and built trading shops for leasing around this biggest Hakka community in Thailand. For example, only Cheah Ky See owned more than 1,000 trading shops in Hat Yai during the 1920s.
……….
Li Lirou, History of Cheah Ky See's Struggle (Bangkok: Thai Wisin Press, 1964), pp. 19-22.
http://www.thai-tour.com/eng/songkhla/introduction.html
In the reign of King Rama V, the city of Songkhla was under Monthon Nakhon Si Thammarat.
There was a packet boat running between Songkhla and Bangkok and among various cities in the South and Singapore. Songkhla became the center of a commercial port in the South. A rubber plantation was also begun at this period.
In 1917’s, a railroad was built in Amphoe Nuea (later called Amphoe Hat Yai). This was the biggest railway junction. In the region of King Rama VII, the Monthon administration was abolished and Songkhla has become a province since then.
Ahoerstemeier
19-08-05, 04:19 PM
...and Songkhla has become a province since then
Songkhla was a province (Mueang) before the establishment of the monthon, and also when the monthon was active (1896-1932). It was only not at the first level of administrative subdivision during these years, and many of the responsibilities of the province were transferred to the monthon administration. See also my Wikipedia article on Monthon (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monthon).
Maybe someone can translate Hatai-today.com (http://www.hatyaitoday.com/history/history.html), it should contain more information than all of the english history texts - sadly my Thai is far from good enough to be able to read it.
The following pictures of Hat-Yai come to us courtesy of 'Rodfaithai of the Laemthong Hotel :-
http://www.geocities.com/rodfaithai/
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v489/rodfaithai/Hadyai%20Antique/Hadyai1cropM.jpg
The recently added Thai script tells us that Hat-Yai became a 'Chumchon' (a lower level local administrative unit than a 'Tambon') in 1928. The 'Tambon' ('a commune' of villages) was created in 1935; which was probably when this photo was taken. Hat-Yai was granted 'Tessabahn Muang' (Municipal) status in 1949 and 'Tessabahn Nakorn' (Metropolitan?) status in 1995.
This second picture appears to show Hat-Yai's famous 'Haw Nahligah' Clock Tower in the 1950s or 60s; before the addition of the Clock Tower Plaza. The office on the right is the still existing (although slightly modernised) TOT Telephone Center:-
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v489/rodfaithai/Hadyai%20Antique/HadyaiClockcropM.jpg
A short article on the history of Hat-Yai's Municipality is to be found in the following string:-
http://www.angkor.com/2bangkok/2bangkok/forum/showthread.php?p=9166
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