Reflections | How my DNA test showed I’m less Chinese than I thought
Wee Kek Koon had always known he was ‘not quite Chinese’ in terms of genetics and ancestry but his recent DNA test results still floored him
Despite my affinity for the Chinese language, China’s history and some aspects of Chinese culture, I have always known that I am “not quite Chinese”, genetically speaking.
Since young, I was told that my family were Chinese Peranakan from my father’s side, the descendants of intermarriages between early Chinese immigrants to the Malay Archipelago and local women.
My great-grandmother – my father’s paternal grandmother – could not speak any Chinese languages, even though she had a Chinese name. She always wore the sarong-and-kebaya ensemble, which was the customary dress for women in that region at the time. She had a habit of chewing betel nut, which stained her lips and teeth a terrifying shade of red.
She was a typical Chinese Peranakan woman, and she might not be the only one in my family tree. But were my female ancestors Malay, or persons of mixed heritage, or were they simply “genetically Chinese” individuals who were thoroughly assimilated into the local culture?
My desire to know the answer to this and other questions prompted me to ask for an ancestry test kit from my friends for my birthday.
