Henghua

H4E1N1G2H4U1A1

noun

a person who traces his/her ancestry to Putian or the surrounding region

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Scrabble 14

Meanings

proper noun

alternative Hinghwa · alternative Hinghua · alternative Hing Hua · alternative Heng Hua

  1. IndonesiaMalaysiaSingaporealternativeSoutheast AsiaAlternative form of Hinghwa.

    Between Foochow and Amoy they speak Henghua.

    1995, Sterling Seagrave, Lords of the Rim: The Invisible Empire of the Overseas Chinese, New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 113
    2 more examples

    In 1911 there was another influx of Chinese Methodists, when a missionary called Brest brought a large party of Henghuas.

    1960, Steven Runciman, The White Rajahs: A History of Sarawak from 1841 to 1946, Cambridge University Press, →OCLC, page 209

    The Kotak Association, mentioned above, is an example. Its membership was overwhelmingly Henghua (96%).

    1976, D. E. Brown, Principles of Social Structure: Southeast Asia, Duckworth Books, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 155
nounHenghua (plural Henghuas)

plural Henghuas · alternative Hinghwa · alternative Hinghua · alternative Hing Hua · alternative Heng Hua

  1. IndonesiaMalaysiaSingaporeSoutheast Asiaa person who traces his/her ancestry to Putian or the surrounding region
    1 more example

    Apparently, a Henghua immigrant named Yeow in Kuala Lumpur, Malaya, who had apprenticed himself to an agent for British cycles, learned the business thoroughly, left his employer, and established his own shop. Inevitably, his own (Henghua) employees hived off likewise so that within half a century the Henghua had established thousands of bicycle shops in Singapore, Malaya, and Indonesia. In Singapore, the Henghua were joined by Henghua-speaking Hokchia who later branched out into spare-parts, motorcycle, trishaw, and taxicab business.

    2009, Philip A. Kuhn, Chinese Among Others: Emigration in Modern Times, Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield, →ISBN, page 48
adjectiveHenghua (not comparable)

alternative Hinghwa · alternative Hinghua · alternative Hing Hua · alternative Heng Hua

  1. IndonesiaMalaysiaSingaporenot comparableSoutheast Asiaof or relating to Puxian Min of Min Chinese of the Sinitic family

    Originally from Henan, the Henghua people migrated to Putian, part of the Fujian province after the civil war before coming to Malaysia.

    2016 November 4, Samantha Khor, “The Origins Of The Hokkien, Cantonese, And Other Chinese Dialect Groups In Malaysia”, in SAYS.com, archived from the original on 07 Nov 2017
    2 more examples

    Road development greatly motivated the Henghua people to expand their control of the transport business, with which no other dialect group was believed to be familiar.

    1983 December, T'IEN Ju-K'ang, “The Chinese of Sarawak: Thirty Years of Change”, in Southeast Asian Studies, volume 21, number 3, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 30 Apr 2019, page 280

    "It seems Henghua people have all the while been very proud," Mr Lim said, noting that this pride might come from their long association with scholarly achievement.[...]"I think youngsters are getting interested in nostalgia, and heritage food," said Mr Ho, who remembers watching Henghua puppet shows outside the restaurant when it was still located in Sungei Road.

    2017 April 6, Toh Wen Li, “At a loss for words? Try Henghua”, in The Straits Times, archived from the original on 06 Apr 2017

    Synonyms: Xinghua

Synonyms & antonyms

adjectiveof or relating to Puxian Min of Min Chinese of the Sinitic family

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Also see

Origin

  1. Hokkien興化 /兴化
  2. EnglishHenghua

From Hokkien 興化 /兴化 (Heng-hòa). Doublet of Xinghua.

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Cite this entry
APA

Henghua. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Henghua

MLA

“Henghua.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Henghua. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Henghua,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Henghua.

Source: Henghua on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.