Printed in an 1909 issue of a Chinese Business Newsletter, the first table here lists the officers in the First council members of the Myanmar General Chinese Trade Affairs Association, the predecessor of the Myanmar Chinese Chamber of Commerce. The President was Yeo Choo Sum, who, also from Hokkien Haicheng Xiayang, was of the same age as our grandfather. Our grandfather, listed as Yeo Teang Ann, in column 7 from the right in the same table, was an ordinary Council member then. The table also listed the official titles they obtained under the late Qing government. A photo of Yeo Choo Sum in another issue of the same Chinese Business Newsletter shows him to be a very handsome young man.
Arnold Wright had also written about Yeo Choo Sum in his book, <20th Century Impressions of Burma>. Choo Sum’s father, Yeo Kay, was a migrant from China in Penang in 1859. He went to Rangoon three years later to establish (with Xiayang Clan members), the business named Heng Moh that dealt with rice, silk and other merchandise. In 1888, Yeo Kay started to commute regularly between Rangoon and Xiayang for several years and eventually died in the hometown. Choo Sum, his fifth son, inherited his properties in Rangoon and took up residence in Rangoon.
It turned out that Choo Sum was in the same genealogy level in Xiayang Yeo Clan, as Soo Seng. Their other names as Cheow Shiong (昭上) and Cheow Kaw (昭固) share the same middle name (昭) in Chinese character, as the one dictated in the Generation Naming Scheme of Xiayang Yeo Clan. Choo Sum’s father Yeo Kay had had his middle name ‘Poon’ omitted in Arnold Wright’s writing. ‘Poon’ placed Yeo Kay in the same genealogy level as our Great-Grandfather Yeo Poon Miah.
Arnold Wright wrote that Choo Sum had two wives, the first being Khoo Him Neoh. Our grandmother was Khoo Tsui Neoh, and hence there is a possibility that they were sisters. From the family photo taken from <20th Century Impressions of Burma>, the lady in the centre does somewhat resemble our grandmother.
Choo Sum eventually also returned to Xiayang and became a head of the Yeo clan there. After Choo Sum stepped down, Soo Seng succeeded him to become the President of the Trade Affairs Association. Earlier, when Yeo Kay, or Yeo Poon Kay, was away from Rangoon, Great-grandfather Yeo Poon Miah, managed the operation of Heng Moh and continued to do so after Yeo Kay died. Our family photo album keeps a picture of Yeo Poon Miah’s very impressive grave in Xiayang. Unfortunately the grave had been destroyed. Similarly, only a broken-away part was left from the tombstone of Yeo (Poon) Kay. Fortunately though, the written words on it present a strong evidence of father-son-grandson relationship between Yeo Kay, and Choo Sum, his brother Choo Hoe* and their sons.
(*Arnold Wright’s mention in <20th Century Impressions of Burma>)
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Remaining part of Yeo Poon Kay’s tombstone, crafted with names of Yeo Choo Sum, his elder brother and their sons.
Again, according to Arnold Wright, Choo Sum had four sons, namely, Yeo Chan Hyoke, Yeo Chan Khoon, Yeo Chan Taing, and Yeo Chang Doung.
Matching their names on the tombstone, we have,
Yeo Chan H Yeok 楊章焴
Yeo Chan Khoon 楊章焜
Yeo Chan Taing 楊章等
Yeo Chang Doung has no match.
The different spelling of “Chan” or “Chang” in their second names was obviously a deviation from the more commonly spelt “Cheang”, representing 章, following the Generation Naming Scheme of Xiayang Yeo Clan. This lack of standard in spelling Chinese names in Roman characters was rather common in non-Chinese historical narrations. It has indeed created much confusion in attempts to reconcile identities of individuals from the same story presented in different languages.
2021.04.06
仰索