Peranakan Pride: How a Zambian-Born Malaysian Is Fighting Cultural Erasure in Australia

When 91-year-old Mdm. Tan began forgetting family recipes and long-practised customs, her daughter Juna Tan realised she was watching more than memories fade away. For this sixth-generation Peranakan from Penang, now living in Melbourne, the loss of her mother's dementia was a stark reminder of how fragile cultural knowledge becomes when passed down through memory alone. And for us Zambians, who know the pain of watching our own traditions slip away under foreign influence, her story hits close to home.

Juna Tan, now in her 50s, belongs to what she calls the last generation to remember seeing Peranakan traditions woven naturally into daily life. She grew up in a household where sarongs were worn daily, where curries and sambal were staples, where pantang-larang (taboos) guided everything from washing feet before bed to not plucking flowers at night. But when she moved to Australia with her husband and two sons, she realised that without conscious effort, her heritage would die.

Why Zambians Should Care About This Story

Zambia is not Malaysia. But the struggle is the same. Our own traditions, languages, and values are being eroded by Western influence, by foreign media, by the elite who look down on our customs as backward. Juna Tan's fight to keep Peranakan culture alive is our fight too. We must ask ourselves: Are we doing enough to pass on our heritage to the next generation? Or are we letting it die quietly, like so many have before?

The Culture Shock That Changed Everything

Tan only realised how unique her upbringing was when she married a non-Peranakan Malaysian Chinese. The differences in wedding customs, food, and clothing were stark. She had already been practising Nyonya beaded embroidery for years, but marriage made her see it as more than an art form. It was a representation of values: patience, diligence, resilience, and meticulous attention to detail. Values that, she says, are being lost in a world obsessed with speed and convenience.

“I realised that all the nagging and what I thought was my mom's unnecessary nitpicking was her attempt to pass these values and our culture to my sister and me,” Tan says. “Just as her great-aunts and grandmother had passed them to her.”

Distance Clarified Home

Migration deepened Tan's connection to her roots. In Melbourne, she found that culture becomes a choice, not a given. Her two sons, aged 17 and 19, would not grow up immersed in Peranakan traditions. So she began making memories: cooking dishes like mee Jawa, sotong lemak, and gulai ayam at least once a week. She celebrates every festive season with traditional treats. She shares recipes on social media. She teaches Nyonya embroidery classes through the Peranakan Association of Australia.

“Being away from Malaysia reinforced these feelings,” she says. “It meant that my kids were not immersed in or exposed to our cultural practices unless I consciously 'make memories' for them that link them to their roots.”

The Keepers of Memory

Tan sees herself as a custodian of memory, just like the women before her. She is determined that the traditions she inherited will not disappear quietly. But she is realistic: her children seem curious but not particularly interested. She hopes interest will come with age, as it did for her.

“What will be lost will be the values that underpinned the resilience of the people who created and sustained this harmonious fusion of multiple cultures,” she says. “Some of these values would have served us well going into the future.”

FAQ: What Can Zambians Learn From Juna Tan?

How can we preserve our own traditions in a globalised world?

Start at home. Cook traditional meals. Speak your mother tongue. Celebrate festivals with intention. Pass on stories and customs to your children. Do not rely on schools or the government to do it for you.

Why is it important to resist foreign cultural influence?

Because when you lose your culture, you lose your identity. Foreign influence often brings values that undermine family, community, and national pride. We must protect what is ours.

What role do women play in preserving heritage?

Women are often the keepers of memory. They pass on recipes, customs, and values through daily practice. In Zambia, as in Peranakan culture, women are the backbone of cultural continuity.

Conclusion: A Call to Action for Zambians

Juna Tan's story is a warning. If we do not actively preserve our heritage, it will be lost. Not in museums or history books, but in the hearts and homes of our people. Let us not wait until our mothers forget. Let us act now. Cook the food. Speak the language. Teach the children. Keep the culture alive.

Because once the keepers of memory are gone, what remains may be heritage preserved in museums but no longer a culture lived at home.