Sitiawan

History

Folklore makes reference to Sitiawan of the past as Kampung Sungai Gajah Mati. It was a thriving settlement for Fuzhounese (Foochow) migrants. They were predominantly from the Gutian County in Fuzhou, China. According to the folklore, Kampung Sungai Gajah Mati (literally: "Dead Elephant River Village") was the place where two large elephants drowned after one of them, overladen with tin ore, got stuck in the mud of the Dinding River at low tide. Efforts to save the elephant were in vain and eventually, everyone gave up and left. However, the second elephant refused to budge and hung on to its friend, resulting in them drowning together in the rising tide. Thus the setia kawan (loyal friend) name was derived. In late 19th century, tin ores and rubber sheets were main commodities for commerce. They were often transported by elephants and then loaded onto steamships heading for Penang. During the 1870s, a smallpox outbreak struck the settlement and locals chose to rename the locality Setia Kawan — the "loyal friend"—to honor and appease the spirits of the dead elephants. This action is also in line with the Chinese beliefs of naming a place to enhance its feng-shui. Over time, the name is shortened and eventually became Sitiawan. In September 1903, the settlement experienced an influx of more than 360 Christian Fuzhou immigrants seeking refuge from violence during the Qing dynasty. The Chinese Christians were attacked by the Boxer rebels, also known as Yihetuan in Chinese (义和团), and the Qing dynasty government supported their cause, causing a violent conflict in Fujian in 1901 known as the Boxer Rebellion. The Chinese Christians were led by two Chinese pastors and settled down in what is today known as Kampung Koh. Most of these immigrants worked in rubber plantations…