In the early twentieth century, thousands of women from the Samsui area of Guangdong, China migrated to Singapore during a period of economic and natural calamity, leaving their families behind. In their new country, many found work in the construction industry, with others working in households or factories where they were called hong tou jin, translated literally as “red-head-scarf,” after the headgear that protected them from the sun. In Singapore, the women have been celebrated as pioneering figures for their hard work and resilience, and in China for the sacrifices they made for their families. Remembering the Samsui Women looks at who these women really are and at how both countries have commemorated their experiences. It is an illuminating study of the connection between memory and nation, including the politics of what is remembered and what is forgotten.

Kelvin E.Y. Low's profile page

Kelvin E.Y. Low is an assistant professor of sociology at the National University of Singapore. He is the author of Scents and Scent-sibilities: Smell and Everyday Life Experiences (2009) and co-editor of Everyday Life in Asia: Social Perspectives on the Senses (2010).

This book is laudable research on how issues and discourses have been revolving around Samsui women … [it] is empirically rich and theoretically intriguing. It is worth recommending to those who are interested in gendered migration and social memory in national history.

Southeast Asian Studies

This book is a fascinating study of the Samsui women who migrated in the early twentieth century from Sanshui in China to what is today Singapore to work, among other occupations, as unskilled laborers in the construction industry … the wealth of materials consulted – from textbooks to films to oral histories – is impressive, making the book a salient resource for those interested in both Asian migrations and the politics of social memory-making.

International Migration Review