Pantun Baba Chan

Pisang mas di-atas peti, Ada dua biji bekembar; Cakap menulis kita mesti, Baru Hidop Bahasa Baba * * * * * A comb of golden bananas, Bear two ripening twins; As we strive to speak and write, Baba Malay will thrive anew. Pantun Baba Chan is a collection of 100 original pantun poems written in Baba Malay over a period of 15 years by Baba Chan Eng Thai, a prominent member of Singapore's vibrant Peranakan community. Chan's poetry celebrates the traditions of his community and a nostalgia for the old ways**x2014;ranging from favorite foods to rites of passage to commemorations of famous people. The book also includes a hilarious pantun "duel" between the author and G.T. Lye over WhatsApp. The pantun is an oral poetic form with a rich tradition dating back many centuries. Written in Baba Malay, a Creole tongue merging Malay with Hokkien Chinese, these poems express complex emotions in quatrains with an ABAB rhyming scheme. They were extremely popular in prewar Singapore but are now considered a dying art, although a revival is currently underway. Makan Sampay Mabok [a pantun on Life] Sedap enak makanan Embok.