Publications such as this ‘Chrita Dulu-kala’, loosely translated as ‘stories from ancient times’, were written for popular reading at the turn of the 20th century right upto the 1950s. Written in serialised format, Chrita Dulu-kala featured famous Chinese folklore, legends and historical epics such as ‘Romance of the Three Kingdoms’, ‘Water Margin and ‘Journey to the West’ written in Baba Malay - a unique Malay creole with substantial Hokkien (Chinese dialect) influence. These books are not published any more. The author-translator of this publication was Chan Kim Boon, who was one of the more prolific and well-known authors of Chrita Dulu-kala. Chan was an example of a Baba who, although educated in an English-medium school, was well-versed in Chinese literary traditions through Chinese lessons held at home.While the general readership of Chrita Dulu-kala was generally thought to be male and educated, it is possible its contents reached a wider audience. Some older Peranakans today recall being told stories from these books by their elders.
