Stories of One Malaccan Family

An Ancestral House. On Jalan Tan Cheng Lock, formerly Heeren Street, most of the houses were once occupied by Peranakan Chinese. By the 1980s with Malacca fast becoming a tourist destination, many residents began to move out of their houses that were located within the heritage quarters. For some families on Heeren Street, if they could afford the upkeep, their homes were kept solely as Ancestral Houses, with family members returning during specific occasions such as Chinese New Year or birth or death anniversaries of the deceased patriarch or matriarch to pay their respects. The practice of keeping ancestral tablets in a homestead is not unique to the Peranakan Chinese community, and is a shared practice in many Asian communities. It is a repository that helps families remember their roots, heritage and ancestry.