Founding an Ethnic Chinese Business Empire in Colonial Asia: The Strategic Alliances of Major Oei Tiong Ham, 1895–1905

Post, P.

doi:10.1353/ras.2019.0027

Cited by 3 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 14 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…182 Peter Post illustrates how Oei Tiong Ham sought to be the 'vanguard of modernity' and construct the world's largest Chinese conglomerate not restricted to any single nation, empire, ethnic or cultural identity. 183 Lim Peng Siang's entrepreneurial vision and his business empire could indeed be positioned alongside these different 'modernity projects' that sought not only to amalgamate 'traditional' and 'modern' business structures and dynamics to better compete with their Western rivals in the first half of the twentieth century, but also to create new societies through modern education, 184 a new public sphere, 185 and the promulgation of a new nationalism. Through these interrelated projects, Lim and his contemporaries in Southeast Asia and China, such as Aw Boon Haw, Oei Tiong Ham, and Liu Hongsheng, among others, were responding to the potential and promises of modern industrial capitalism, as seen in Europe, North America, and Japan.…”

Section: Lim Peng Siang and Modern Business In Singapore And Malayamentioning

confidence: 99%

Industrialisation and Chinese big business in colonial Singapore, Malaya, and China: The transnational enterprises of Lim Peng Siang (1904–41)

Goh¹,

We²

2023

J. Southeast Asian stud.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

While most studies of industrialisation and modernisation in Singapore have focused on the post-1960 period and the role of the new nation-state, multinational corporations, and government-linked companies, Lim Peng Siang's business career shows that these processes and engagements were already under way before the Second World War. This study seeks to foreground the dynamics of industrialisation and modernisation in the historiography of Chinese business in colonial Singapore, Malaya, and Southeast Asia through examining Lim's business career. It shows how the projects of industrialisation and modernisation that Lim and his contemporaries embodied extended beyond business and the economy, and were entangled in broader cultural, sociopolitical, and urban forces and developments in Singapore and other parts of colonial Southeast Asia, maritime Asia, and the world-at-large between the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. His experiences highlight the pitfalls of assuming a simple traditional–modern dichotomy, and any essentialistic and ethnic constructions of culture, and the discourses surrounding business strategy, behaviour, and thought.

show abstract

Section: Lim Peng Siang and Modern Business In Singapore And Malayamentioning

confidence: 99%

Industrialisation and Chinese big business in colonial Singapore, Malaya, and China: The transnational enterprises of Lim Peng Siang (1904–41)

Goh¹,

We²

2023

J. Southeast Asian stud.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Tidak diketahui besar keuntungan pasti Oei Tiong Ham pada tahun itu. Namun, akumulasi hasil keuntungan bersih Oei selama tahun 1890 hingga 1893 sebesar 18 juta gulden dari hasil sewa opium di Karesidenan Surabaya, Semarang, Yogyakarta, Surakarta, Bagelen, Madiun, dan Jepara (Onghokham, 1989;Post, 2019;van Roosmalen, 2020).…”

Section: B Proses Lelangunclassified

Dari Impor Hingga Ke Tangan Konsumen: Perdagangan Opium di Karesidenan Surabaya, 1870-1898

Salsabila

Widiadi²,

Leksana³

2022

Fajar Hist. J. Ilmu Sej. dan Pendidik.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Opium is a narcotic that the Javanese people widely consumed in the 19th century. The high level of consumption of opium by the public raises concerns because of its detrimental effects if consumed in excess. This made the government exercise control over opium by trading it, which also provided income for the Dutch East Indies government. One of the areas in the Dutch East Indies that had a high level of consumption of opium was the Residency of Surabaya. Therefore, this article analyzes how the opium trade took place in the Surabaya Residency from 1870 to 1898. During that period, the system used in the opium trade was the rental system (opium patch). In this study, the historical method consists of the stages of topic selection, heuristics, criticism, interpretation, and historiography. The results of this study indicate that the opium circulating in the Residency of Surabaya from 1870 to 1898 experienced ups and downs because it was affected by several conditions, such as the change in the distribution system to tenants and the economic crisis of the 1880s. Even so, the opium trade in the Surabaya Residency has become a lucrative business for those involved.Opium merupakan salah satu jenis narkotika yang banyak dikonsumsi masyarakat Jawa pada abad ke-19. Tingginya tingkat konsumsi opium oleh masyarakat menimbulkan kekhawatiran karena efeknya yang merugikan jika dikonsumsi secara berlebihan. Hal ini membuat pemerintah melakukan kontrol atas opium dengan memperdagangkannya, yang juga memberikan pemasukan bagi pemerintah Hindia Belanda. Salah satu daerah di Hindia Belanda yang memiliki tingkat konsumsi opium yang tinggi adalah Karesidenan Surabaya. Oleh karena itu, artikel ini menganalisis bagaimana perdagangan candu terjadi di Karesidenan Surabaya dari tahun 1870-1898. Pada masa itu, sistem yang digunakan dalam perdagangan candu adalah sistem sewa (patch candu). Dalam penelitian ini, metode sejarah terdiri dari tahapan pemilihan topik, heuristik, kritik, interpretasi, dan historiografi. Hasil penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa candu yang beredar di Karesidenan Surabaya dari tahun 1870 sampai 1898 mengalami pasang surut karena dipengaruhi oleh beberapa kondisi, seperti perubahan sistem distribusi ke penyewa dan krisis ekonomi tahun 1880-an. Meski begitu, perdagangan candu di Karesidenan Surabaya menjadi bisnis yang menggiurkan bagi mereka yang terlibat

show abstract

“…Apart from the Semarang farm, Oei Tiong Ham also obtained the opium farms of Surakarta, Yogyakarta, Bagelen and Surabaya, and in 1897 a controlling interest in the Madiun and Japara farms, which made him the undisputed opium king of Java in the late nineteenth century. 48 With the huge profits made from the opium trade he and his father expanded their sugar interests and started to extend mortgage loans to sugar factory owners who had fallen on hard times. Among his debtors were prominent Peranakan Chinese families from East Java and when they failed to repay their debts, he used his legal rights as creditor, with Van Heeckeren's advice, to obtain their holdings.…”

Section: Oei Tiong Ham's Collaboration With Van Heeckerenmentioning

confidence: 99%

Profitable partnerships: The Chinese business elite and Dutch lawyers in the making of Semarang

Post¹

2021

J. Southeast Asian stud.

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This article examines the collaboration between the law firm of C.W. Baron van Heeckeren from Semarang and the Oei Tiong Ham Concern (OTHC). From the 1880s this Dutch law firm became the centre of a close-knit group of Dutch lawyer-entrepreneurs who through interlocking business directorships developed important sectors of the Javanese economy and the city of Semarang. In doing so Van Heeckeren and his associates teamed up with the Chinese business elite of the port-city. In particular they worked with the foremost Overseas Chinese capitalist, Major Oei Tiong Ham, developing profitable partnerships. The Dutch lawyers acted not only as his legal advisors, but developed his sugar empire as directors-shareholders, held major stakes in his shipping business and coolie trade, and profited from his opium trade. They moreover helped Oei Tiong Ham to acquire real estate and enterprises formerly belonging to powerful Chinese opium farmers and collaborated with him in developing infrastructural and housing projects. This article provides new and revealing details about how the business world of colonial Java worked during the early phase of Dutch economic imperialism and how the Chinese business elite seized the opportunities provided by the Dutch colonial state to advance their business interests.

show abstract

Founding an Ethnic Chinese Business Empire in Colonial Asia: The Strategic Alliances of Major Oei Tiong Ham, 1895–1905

Cited by 3 publications

References 14 publications

Industrialisation and Chinese big business in colonial Singapore, Malaya, and China: The transnational enterprises of Lim Peng Siang (1904–41)

Industrialisation and Chinese big business in colonial Singapore, Malaya, and China: The transnational enterprises of Lim Peng Siang (1904–41)

Dari Impor Hingga Ke Tangan Konsumen: Perdagangan Opium di Karesidenan Surabaya, 1870-1898

Profitable partnerships: The Chinese business elite and Dutch lawyers in the making of Semarang

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About