Peranakan,
Baba-Nyonya (娘惹) and
Straits Chinese (after the
Straits of Malacca) (土生華人) are terms used for the culture of the early
Chinese immigrants to
Malacca on the
Malay Peninsula, who intermarried with the Malay population, and later spread throughout the
British Straits Settlements to
Singapore and
Penang.
Their language, Baba Malay[?], is a dialect of the Malay language, which contains many Hokkien words. However, only members of the older generation still use it in daily life.
See also: Malaysian Chinese, Overseas Chinese
- Penang State Museum (http://penang.insights.com.my/museum/html/baba.htm)