imported>Lawrencekhoo: /* Etymology */

2026-06-07T04:30:19Z

Etymology

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{{Short description|Han Chinese subgroup}}
{{more citations needed|date=August 2022}}
{{Infobox ethnic group
| group = Hoklo people {{hlist|Hokkien|Banlam|Minnan}}
| native_name = 福佬人
| native_name_lang = zh
| image = [[File:A'Chu and other stories (1920) (14597338250).jpg|215px]]
| caption = A Hokkien family in [[Southern Fujian]], 1910
| population = {{circa}} 60 million<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=U6Q2AQAAIAAJ&q=四千万+闽南人|title=闽南文化研究|year=2004|publisher=海峡文艺出版社 |isbn=978-7-80640-963-3}}</ref>
| region1 = China
| pop1 = Southern [[Fujian]] parts of [[Guangdong]] parts of [[Zhejiang]] [[Hong Kong]] [[Macau]]
| ref1 =
| region2 = Taiwan
| pop2 = 16–18 million ({{est.}})
| ref2 =
| region3 = Malaysia
| pop3 = Largest group of [[Malaysian Chinese]]{{quantify|date=March 2024}}
| ref3 =
| region4 = Singapore
| pop4 = Largest group of [[Chinese Singaporean]]s{{quantify|date=March 2024}}
| ref4 =
| region5 = Philippines
| pop5 = Largest group of [[Chinese Filipino]]s{{quantify|date=March 2024}}
| ref5 = <ref>{{cite book |editor-last1=Ng |editor-first1=Maria |editor-first2=Philip |editor-last2=Holden |title=Reading Chinese transnationalisms: society, literature, film |publisher=Hong Kong University Press |date=1 September 2006 |page=20 |isbn=978-962-209-796-4 }}</ref>
| region6 = Indonesia
| pop6 = Largest group of [[Chinese Indonesians]]{{quantify|date=March 2024}}
| ref6 = <ref>{{citation | editor-last = Lewis | editor-first = M. Paul | chapter = Indonesia | chapter-url = http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=ID | title = Ethnologue: Languages of the World | edition = 15th | publisher = [[SIL International]] | place = Dallas, T.X. | year = 2005 | isbn = 978-1-55671-159-6 | access-date = 26 January 2010 | postscript = . }}
</ref>
| region7 = Brunei
| pop7 = Largest group of [[Ethnic Chinese in Brunei|Bruneian Chinese]]{{quantify|date=March 2024}}
| ref7 =
| region8 = Myanmar
| pop8 = One of the four largest groups of [[Burmese Chinese]]{{quantify|date=March 2024}}
| ref8 = <ref name="ls">{{cite book | author=Mya Than | editor=Leo Suryadinata | year=1997 | title=Ethnic Chinese As Southeast Asians | publisher=Palgrave Macmillan US | isbn=0-312-17576-0 | url-access=registration | url = https://archive.org/details/ethnicchineseass0000unse }}</ref>
| region9 = United States
| pop9 = 70,000+
| ref9 = <ref>2005-2009 [[American Community Survey]]</ref>
| region10 = Vietnam
| pop10 = 45,000 ({{est.}})
| ref10 =
| languages = {{hlist|[[Hokkien]]|[[Standard Chinese]]|[[English language|English]]|[[Malay language|Malay]]|[[Filipino language|Filipino]]}}
| religions = {{hlist|[[Chinese folk religion]]|[[Taoism]]|[[Confucianism]]|[[Ancestor veneration in China|Ancestor veneration]]|[[Mahayana Buddhism]]|[[Christianity]]|[[Theravada Buddhism]]|[[Islam]]}}
| related =
| footnotes =
}}
{{Contains special characters|Hokkien}}

The '''Hoklo people''' ({{lang-zh|poj=Ho̍h-ló-lâng|c=福佬人}}) are a [[Han Chinese subgroup|Han Chinese sub-ethnic group]]<ref name="European perspectives on Taiwan">{{cite book|last1=Damm|first1=Jens|editor1-last=Damm|editor1-first=Jens|editor2-last=Lim|editor2-first=Paul|title=European perspectives on Taiwan|date=2012|publisher=Springer VS|location=Wiesbaden|isbn=978-3-531-94303-9|page=62|chapter=Multiculturalism in Taiwan and the Influence of Europe}}</ref> who speak [[Hokkien]],<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Xhr9DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA565 | title=The Handbook of Asian Englishes | isbn=978-1-118-79165-3 | last1=Bolton | first1=Kingsley | last2=Botha | first2=Werner | last3=Kirkpatrick | first3=Andy | date=14 September 2020 | publisher=John Wiley & Sons }}</ref> a [[Southern Min]] language,{{sfn|Ding|2016|p=1}} or trace their ancestry to [[Minnan region|southeastern Fujian]] in China,{{sfn|Ding|2016|p=3}} and known by various related terms such as '''Banlam people''' ({{zhi|c=閩南人|poj=Bân-lâm-lâng}}), '''Minnan people''', '''Fujianese people''' or more commonly in Southeast Asia as the '''Hokkien people''' ({{zhi|c=福建人|p=Hok-kiàn-lâng}}).{{efn|"Hokkien" is sometimes erroneously used to refer to all Fujianese people.}} The Hokkien people are found in significant numbers in [[China]], [[Taiwan]], [[Hong Kong]], [[Macau]], [[Singapore]], [[Malaysia]], [[Philippines]], [[Indonesia]], [[Brunei]], [[Myanmar]], [[Thailand]], [[Cambodia]], and the [[United States]]. The Hokkien people have a distinct culture and architecture, including Hokkien shrines and temples with tilted sharp eaves, high and slanted top roofs, and finely detailed decorative inlays of wood and porcelain. The Hokkien language, which includes [[Taiwanese Hokkien]], is the mainstream Southern Min, which is partially mutually intelligible to other Southern Min varieties such as [[Teochew Min|Teochew]], [[Zhongshan Min|Zhongshan]], [[Haklau Min|Haklau]], and [[Zhenan Min|Zhenan]].

== Etymology ==

In [[Minnan region|Southern Fujian]], the [[Hokkien]] speakers refer to themselves as Banlam people ({{lang-zh|c=閩南人|poj=Bân-lâm-lâng|labels=no}}) or generally speaking, Hokkien people ({{lang-zh|c=福建人|p=Hok-kiàn-lâng|labels=no}}). In [[Mandarin Chinese|Mandarin]], they also call themselves Minnan people ({{lang-zh|c=閩南人|poj=|labels=no|s=闽南人|p=Mǐnnán rén}}).

The term ''Hoklo'' is an [[exonym]] originating from [[Hakka Chinese|Hakka]] or [[Cantonese]] that some Hokkien and [[Chaoshan Min|Teochew]] speakers, particularly in Taiwan and China, borrowed from, since the term is not recognized by Hokkien speakers in [[Southeast Asia]].

In [[Taiwan]], the term ''"Hoklo"'' is usually used for the people. The term ''Holo''{{sfnp|Exec. Yuan|2014|pp=36,48}} ({{lang-zh|poj=Ho̍h-ló|labels=no|c=|s=|t=|p=}})<ref>{{R:nan:tdj|poj=hô-ló|hj=福佬|n=20379|v=2|p=829}}</ref> is also used to refer to [[Taiwanese Hokkien]] and those people who speak it.

There are several spellings for the word ''Hoklo'' ({{lang-zh|poj=Ho̍h-ló / Hô-ló|labels=no|c=|s=|t=|p=}}), either phonetic or based on folk etymologies:
* {{lang-zh|c=河洛|l=[[Yellow River]] and [[Luo River (Henan)|Luo River]]|labels=no|s=|t=|poj=Hô-lo̍k}} {{endash}} a [[folk etymology]] emphasizing the people's purported long history originating from [[Henan|the area south]] of the [[Yellow River]].<ref>{{cite book |author=Gu Yanwu |author-link=Gu Yanwu |script-title=zh:《天下郡國利病書》:郭造卿《防閩山寇議》|publisher=上海書店|year=1985|quote=[[漳州|漳]][[Yao people (Asia)|猺人]]與[[贛州|虔]][[汀州|汀]][[潮州|潮]]循接壤處....常稱城邑人為河老，謂自河南遷來畏之，繇[[陳元光]]將卒始也|oclc=19398998}}</ref> First introduced by a Taiwanese linguist Wu Huai in 1957, and later popularized by the Taiwanese Ministry of Education for the pronunciation ''Hô-ló''.
* {{zhi|c=學佬|l=learned folk|poj=Ha̍k-láu}} {{endash}} an orthographic borrowing from Hakka, where this word, pronounced ''Ho̍k-ló'', is used to refer to Southern Min-speaking people (specifically the [[Teochew people]]). It was adopted by some Southern Min (particularly [[Haklau Min]]) speakers in Guangdong.
* {{lang-zh|c=福佬|l=[[Fujian]] folk|labels=no|s=|t=|poj=Hô-ló / Ho̍h-ló}}<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://thak.taigi.info/1932TaijitToaSutian2/chheh/?page=833 |title=臺日大辭典 |publisher=[[Government-General of Taiwan]] |year=1932 |editor-last=小川尚義 (OGAWA Naoyoshi) |editor-link=:ja:小川尚義 |location=[[Taihoku Prefecture|Taihoku]] |page=829 |language=[[Hokkien]] and [[Japanese language|Japanese]] |oclc=25747241}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://chhoe.taigi.info/TJTaigiPehoeSioSutianSekin/6956 |title=TJ台語白話小詞典 |publisher=亞細亞國際傳播社 |year=2009 |isbn=978-986-85418-1-8 |editor-last=張裕宏 (Tiuⁿ Jû-hông) |location=Tainan |page=189 |language=[[Hokkien]] and [[Mandarin Chinese|Mandarin]]}}</ref> {{endash}} a folk etymology emphasizing the people's native connection to Fujian.
* {{zhi|c=鶴老|l=crane folk|poj=Ho̍h-ló}} {{endash}} found in the 17th century ''Dictionario Hispanico Sinicum'' as the name for Hokkien-speaking people.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Dictionario Hispánico-Sinicum |publisher=[[Dominican Order|Dominican Order of Preachers]] |others=kept as ''Vocabulario Español-Chino con caracteres chinos'' (''TOMO 215'') in the [[University of Santo Tomas#Libraries and archives|University of Santo Tomás Archives]] |year=1626–1642 |isbn=978-986-6116-74-2 |location=Manila |language=[[Early Modern Spanish]], [[Philippine Hokkien|Early Manila Hokkien]] and [[Mandarin (late imperial lingua franca)|Classical Mandarin]]}}</ref>

In the Philippines, [[Chinese Filipino]]s, most of whom are of ethnic Hokkien descent, usually generally refer to themselves as Lannang ({{lang-zh|c=咱儂|poj=Lán-lâng / Lán-nâng / Nán-nâng|l=Our People|labels=no}}) or sometimes more specifically Hokkien people ({{lang-zh|c=福建儂|poj=Hok-kiàn-lâng|l=|labels=no}}).

In Malaysia and Singapore, Hokkien-speaking [[Malaysian Chinese|Chinese Malaysians]] and [[Chinese Singaporeans|Singaporeans]] generally refer to themselves as Tng Lang ({{lang-zh|c=唐儂|poj=Tn̂g-lâng|l=[[Tang dynasty|Tang]] People|labels=no}}), where those of Hokkien-speaking descent are more specifically known as Hokkien people ({{lang-zh|c=福建儂|poj=Hok-kiàn-lâng|l=|labels=no}}).

In Indonesia, Hokkien-speaking [[Chinese Indonesians]] generally refer to themselves as Tionghoa ({{lang-zh|c=中華|poj=Tiong-hôa|l=Central Chinese|labels=no}}), where those of ethnic Hokkien descent are more specifically known as Hokkien people ({{lang-zh|c=福建儂|poj=Hok-kiàn-lâng|l=|labels=no}}).

== Genetics ==
In genomic studies, the Han Chinese populations in Fujian (i.e. the Hokkien people) cluster intermediately between the northern Sinitic populations and southern Tai-Kadai and Austronesian populations.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=He |first1=Guanglin |language=en |biorxiv=10.1101/2021.07.25.453681 |last2=Li |first2=Yingxiang |last3=Zou |first3=Xing |last4=Yeh |first4=Hui-Yuan |last5=Tang |first5=Renkuan |last6=Wang |first6=Peixin |last7=Bai |first7=Jingya |last8=Yang |first8=Xiaomin |last9=Wang |first9=Zheng |title=Northern gene flow into southeastern East Asians inferred from genome-wide array genotyping |journal=Journal of Systematics and Evolution |date=2023 |volume=61 |issue=1 |pages=179–197 |doi=10.1111/jse.12826 |bibcode=2023JSyEv..61..179H }}</ref> This reflects the history of demic diffusion out of the Central Plains region and admixure with Southern tribal minorities.

Other studies deduce a close relation and common paternal ancestry between individuals from the Taihang mountain region of Henan, Fujian Minnan and Chaoshan based on common Y-chromosome patterns and higher prevalence of esophageal cancer,<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Huang |first1=Haihua |last2=Su |first2=Min |last3=Li |first3=Xiaoyun |last4=Li |first4=Hui |last5=Tian |first5=Dongping |last6=Gao |first6=Yuxia |last7=Guo |first7=Yubai |date=2010-06-15 |title=Y-Chromosome Evidence for Common Ancestry of Three Chinese Populations with a High Risk of Esophageal Cancer |journal=PLOS ONE |language=en |volume=5 |issue=6 |article-number=e11118 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0011118 |doi-access=free |issn=1932-6203 |pmc=2886054 |pmid=20559544 |bibcode=2010PLoSO...511118H }}</ref> with Han Chinese males from the Taihang region of Henan being posited as the progenitor population for both Fujian Han (i.e. Hokkien people) and the Chaoshan Han (i.e. the Teochew people).

== Culture ==
{{Main|Hokkien culture}}

=== Architecture ===
{{main|Hoklo architecture}}
[[File:Khoo Kongsi (I).jpg|thumb|170x170px|Khoo Kongsi, the largest Hokkien clan house in Malaysia.]]
Hoklo architecture is, for the most part, similar to any other traditional Chinese architectural style, but is characterized by higher and more slanted rooftops, the prominent use of decorative wood inlays, the bolder use of bright colors, as well as the utilization of porcelain. The style has been especially well-preserved by diaspora communities in South-East Asia.
[[File:Malaka-Fujian-Hui-Guan-2215.jpg|thumb|170x170px|Fujian Assembly Hall in Malacca, Malaysia]]
Highly decorative and elaborately detailed wood inlays can be seen in the work of the Hokkien communities of Malaysia - for example, the Khoo Clan House in Penang, whereas the Fujian Assembly Hall in Malacca demonstrates the bold use of porcelain in ornamenting the pillars at its entrance. Both buildings are characteristic examples of the traditional Hoklo building and architectural styles brought over by Chinese immigrants to Malaysia.
The main halls of Hoklo public buildings are also a little different in that they are usually decorated with two dragons on the rooftop at the furthest left and right corners and with a miniature figure of a pagoda at the center of the rooftop. Examples of the use of dragons on the rooftop include the [[Kaiyuan Temple (Quanzhou)|Kaiyuan Temple]] in Fujian, the Khoo Clan House in Penang, Malaysia, the Fujian Assembly Hall in Hoi An, Vietnam. [[File:Fujian Assembly Hall, Hoi An 20190920.jpg|thumb|170x170px|Fujian Assembly Hall in Vietnam, Hoi An]][[File:Lukang Lung-shan Temple 2004.jpg|left|thumb|Hoklo architecture styled [[Lukang Longshan Temple]], with its distinguished swallowtail-roof.|170x170px]]

=== Language ===
The Hokkien dialect or topolect belongs to the Sinitic group of dialects or topolects known as Minnan. This language group further includes dialects such as Henghua, Teochew, and Hainanese.

The Hokkien people speak Hokkien, which is mutually intelligible to the Teochew language but to a small degree. Hokkien can be traced back to the Tang Dynasty, and it has roots from earlier periods such as the Northern and Southern Dynasties and also a little influence from other sinitic languages as well.[[File:Min dialect map.svg|left|thumb|Min dialect map]]Hokkien has one of the most diverse [[phoneme]] inventories among sinitic varieties, with more [[consonant]]s than [[Standard Chinese|Standard Mandarin]] or [[Cantonese|Standard Yue]]. [[Vowel]]s are more-or-less similar to that of Standard Mandarin. Hokkien varieties retain many pronunciations that are no longer found in other Sinitic varieties. These include the pronunciation of the {{IPA|/ʈ/}} initial as {{IPA|/t/}}, which is now {{IPA|/tʂ/}} (Pinyin 'zh') in Mandarin (e.g. 'bamboo' 竹 is ''tik'', but ''zhú'' in Mandarin), having disappeared before the 6th century in other Sinitic varieties.<ref>{{cite book|last=Kane|first=Daniel |title=The Chinese language: its history and current usage|publisher=Tuttle Publishing|year=2006|pages=100–102|isbn=978-0-8048-3853-5}}</ref> Hokkien has 5 to 7 tones, or 7 to 9 tones according to traditional sense, depending on the variety. The [[Amoy dialect]] for example, has 7-8 tones.

== Distribution ==
Speakers of proper Hokkien language live in the areas of Xiamen, Quanzhou and Zhangzhou in southern Fujian. Most Hokkien-speaking groups in southern Fujian refer to themselves by the area where they live, for example: Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, Xiamen or Longyan people. In eastern Guangdong and southern Zhejiang, [[Haklau Min]] and [[Zhenan Min]] speakers also identify themselves as Hoklo people.

== Diaspora ==
[[File:HK Hoklo DragonBoatDance.JPG|thumb|right|Hokkien women performing the Dragon Boat dance in traditional attire in [[Hong Kong]].]]

=== Taiwan ===
{{main|Hoklo Taiwanese}}
[[File:Map of Southern Min en.svg|thumb|left|upright|Southern Min-speaking areas in [[South China]] and Taiwan. Only the speakers of [[Quanzhou Zhangzhou|Quanzhou-Zhangzhou dialects]] (also known as Hokkien) are seen as Hoklos.]]
About 70% of the [[Taiwanese people]] descend from Hoklo immigrants who arrived to the island prior to the start of [[Taiwan under Japanese rule|Japanese rule]] in 1895. They could be categorized as originating from [[Xiamen]], [[Quanzhou]] and [[Zhangzhou]] based on their dialects and districts of origin.{{sfnp|Davidson|1903|p=591}}{{better source needed|reason=source is over 100 years old and close enough to the material to perhaps be considered primary|date=August 2022}} People from the former two areas ([[Quanzhou dialect|Quanzhou]]-speaking) were dominant in the north of the island and along the west coast, whereas people from the latter two areas ([[Zhangzhou dialect|Zhangzhou]]-speaking) were dominant in the south and perhaps the central plains as well.

=== Hong Kong ===
In Hong Kong, Hoklo people are among the four groups of indigenous inhabitants. In order to preserve their culture, the Hoklo along with the [[Punti]], [[Hakka]] and [[Tanka people]] have special rights under Hong Kong law.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-02-16 |title=HK's indigenous people, and other tribes that helped create our diverse "world city" |url=https://www.scmp.com/yp/discover/lifestyle/features/article/3073367/hks-indigenous-people-and-other-tribes-helped-create |access-date=2024-06-03 |website=Young Post}}</ref> {{main|Hong Kong people of Fujianese descent}}

=== Southeast Asia ===
The Hoklo or Hokkien-lang (as they are known in Southeast Asia) are the largest ethnic group among Chinese communities in Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, and the southern part of Thailand. These communities contain the highest concentrations of Hokkien-lang in the region. The various Hokkien language are still widely spoken in these countries today. It has also been considered as a heritage language in Timor-Leste where it was once the main spoken language within the Chinese community. Currently the daily use of Hokkien is slowly decreasing in favor of Mandarin Chinese, English, and other local languages.

The Hokkien-lang also make up the largest ethnic group among [[Chinese Indonesians]].

In the Philippines, the Hoklo or Hokkien-lang call themselves Lannang and form the majority of the [[Han Chinese|Sinitic]] people in the country known as [[Chinese Filipino]]s. The native Hokkien language is still spoken there.

=== United States ===
{{Main|Hoklo Americans}}

Hokkein people in the United States represents a distinct sub-ethinic group that originates from Southeastern [[Fujian|Fujian]] as a smaller subset of the overall Chinese American Population compared to [[Cantonese language|Cantonese]] or later [[Mandarin Chinese|Mandarin]] speaking Immigrants. Whilst majority of the Hokkein Diaspora stayed primarily in [[Southeast Asia|South-East Asia]]. Their Heritage mostly originates from the Hoklo People who migrated after the 1960s.
.

== Notable Hoklo people ==
{{Main list|List of Hokkien people}}

== See also ==
* [[Hokkien honorifics]]
* [[Demographics of Taiwan]]
* [[Taiwanese people]]
* [[Teochew people]]
* [[Cantonese people]]

== Notes ==
{{notelist}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Bibliography ==
{{refbegin}}
*{{Cite book|author1-link=Melissa J. Brown |last=Brown |first=Melissa J. |year=2004 |title=Is Taiwan Chinese?: The Impact of Culture, Power and Migration on Changing Identities|place=Berkeley|publisher=University of California Press |isbn=0-520-23182-1 }}
*{{cite book |last=Davidson |first=James W. |author-link=James W. Davidson |title=The Island of Formosa, Past and Present |url=https://archive.org/details/islandofformosap00daviuoft |year=1903 |publisher=Macmillan |location=London and New York |ol=6931635M |oclc=1887893 }}
*{{citation|last=Ding|first=Picus Sizhi|year=2016|title=Southern Min (Hokkien) as a Migrating Language: A Comparative Study of Language Shift and Maintenance Across National Borders|publisher=Springer}}
*{{cite book |year=2014 |title=The Republic of China Yearbook 2014 |publisher=Executive Yuan, R.O.C. |url=http://www.ey.gov.tw/Upload/UserFiles/YB%202014%20all%20100dpi.pdf |access-date=2016-06-11 |isbn=978-986-04-2302-0 |ref={{harvid|Exec. Yuan|2014}} }}
{{refend}}

{{Fujian}}
{{Han subgroups}}
{{Hong Kongers}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoklo People}}
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Fujian]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Taiwan]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Hong Kong]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Malaysia]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Indonesia]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Singapore]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Thailand]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Cambodia]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Brunei]]
[[Category:Hokkien people| ]]
[[Category:Subgroups of the Han Chinese]]

Hoklo people - Revision history

imported>Lawrencekhoo: /* Etymology */