The inscriptions on stone, wood, and metal found in Singapore’s Chinese temples reveal a complex range of transnational interactions that have evolved over time. Early inscriptions record the establishment within Singapore of separate dialect-based enclaves organized around temples, native place associations and surname group halls.

These institutions were centered on the worship of gods whose incense had been carried to Singapore. Multiple “division of incense” networks emanating from founding temples of local god cults based in the distinct dialect/culture regions of Southeast China can be traced in the first fifty years of Singapore history.

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