Letter writers

Letter writers wrote letters for the semi-literate and the illiterate for a fee. Letter writers were usually Chinese men commonly found in the old Chinatown area. Thus their letters were in calligraphic Chinese script and were used to communicate with family members in mainland China.

History
Letter writing proved to be a lucrative trade for the writer as there were thousands of illiterate immigrants waiting to write to their families at least once a month. Groups of literate Chinese immigrants began to help pen the thoughts and feelings of the coolies, Samsui women, amahs and other semi-literate and illiterate people. The letter writers also read out letters for the illiterate. This established a form of communication for the immigrants in Singapore for they could now write and receive letters through these learned men. A professional Chinese letter writer was usually exclusively male and older than 55 years. Female letterwriters were non-existent because it was considered indecorous and a waste of time to educate daughters in traditional Chinese families. Business was at its peak for the letter writers after the World War II, when people flocked to them to establish communication with their families in their homeland after years of isolation. The letter writers also made good money in the early 1960s when the Chinese economy was bad. Long queues of people would gather in front of the letter writer as they wanted to write to their loved ones back home and send food, clothing or money to them

Job scope
The letter writer possessed brushes, ink, paper, abacus, a small table and a chair or two to operate his business. He would be seated at his desk at 8:00 am and would remain there until around 8:00 pm. It was very important for a letter writer to be accurate while reading or writing letters. Apart from writing letters, people approached the letter writer to compose spring couplets, invitation cards, leases and marriage certificates. Marriage certificates were known as the "three generation cards" as the couple was required to write out both family names spanning three generations. The letter writer also wrote ancestral tablets for people, a necessary artefact in ancestral worship. In early Singapore, it was common practise that whenever an immigrant moved into his or her own residence, their ancestral tablets were displayed. The letter writer also had to be familiar with the foreign exchange rates of his time. The letter writer usually maintained an aloof and disinterested demeanour with his clients' matters even when asked to write suicide notes. As the letter writer's customers were evidently not wealthy, he would charge them a nominal sum. In the 1960s, the cost for a letter was a dollar.

Development
The number of letter writers dwindled sometime in the 1970s and 1980s as the demand for these composers declined, with many of their immigrant patrons having either passed away or become too old to maintain communication with their families. With increasing literacy, these immigrants could also easily compose their own letters or else they relied on their literate offspring. Technological developments like the telephone invariably put an end to the letter writing business. Existing letter writers, however continue to write ancestral tablets for many modern Chinese. Tourists now approach these letter writers to have their names translated and written in Chinese.



Author
Naidu Ratnala Thulaja



References 
Lo-Ang, S. G., & Huan, C. C. (Eds.). (1992). Vanishing trades of Singapore (pp. 34-37). Singapore: Oral History Department.
(Call no.: RSING 338.642095957 VAN)

The letterwriter. (1980). Goodwood Journal, 1st Qtr., 26-27.
(Call no.: RCLOS 052 GHCGJ)

Leong, W. K. (1997, May 13). He writes love letters, angry letters. The Straits Times, Life!, p. 12. 


Further Readings
The vanishing trades [CD-ROM]. (1997). Singapore: Daichi Media.
(Call no.: RAV 338.642095957 VAN)

National Heritage Board. (n.d.). Archives & Artefacts Online, Singapore. Retrieved Januarry 27, 2003, from www.a2o.com.sg


List of Images
Ong, C. S., & Tan, B. L. (Eds.). (1985). Five-foot-way traders (pp. 16, 18-20). Singapore: Archives and Oral History Department.
(Call no.: SING 779.9658870095957 FIV)



The information in this article is valid as at 2002 and correct as far as we are able to ascertain from our sources.  It is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. Please contact the Library for further reading materials on the topic.

Subject
Commerce and Industry>>Labour and Employment>>Vanishing Trades
Letter writing, Chinese--Singapore
Writing services--Singapore
Business, finance and industry>>Economics>>Labour economics



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