Tanka (ethnic group)
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 4,569,000 [1] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
 China |
Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian, Hainan, Zhejiang |
| Languages | |
| of Yue Chinese, Fuzhou dialect of Eastern Min Chinese (Fuzhou Tanka), other varieties of Chinese |
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| Religion | |
| Chinese folk religions (including Taoism, Confucianism, ancestral worship and others) and Mahayana Buddhism. | |
| Tanka people | |||||||||||||||
| Chinese | 1. 蜑家/疍家 2. 艇家 3. 水上人 4. 曲蹄 5. 蜑民 6. 曲蹄囝 |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Literal meaning | 1. Dàn (egg/vermin/..., used only as proper noun in Modern Chinese) families 2. boat households 3. people on water 4. crooked hoof, bowlegged 5. Dàn people 6. crooked hoof children; bowlegged children |
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| Transcriptions | |
|---|---|
| Standard Mandarin | |
| Hanyu Pinyin | 1. Dànjiā 2. Tǐngjiā 3. Shuǐshàngrén |
| Yue: Cantonese | |
| Jyutping | 1. daan6 gaa1 2. teng5 gaa1 3. seoi2 soeng6 jan4 4. kuk1 tai4 |
| Eastern Min | |
| Fuzhou BUC | 4. Kuóh-dà̤ 5. Dáng-mìng 6. Kuóh-dà̤-giāng |
The Tankas (simplified Chinese: 家; traditional Chinese: 家; pinyin: Dànjiā; Jyutping: daan6 gaa1) or boat people are an ethnic subgroup in Southern China who have traditionally lived on junks in coastal parts of Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian, Hainan, and Zhejiang, as well as Hong Kong, and Macau. Though many now live onshore, some from the older generations still live on their boats and pursue their traditional livelihood of fishing. Historically, the Tankas were considered to be outcasts. Since they were boat people who lived by the sea, they were sometimes referred to as "sea gypsies" by the Chinese and British. Tanka origins can be traced back to the native ethnic minorities of southern China who may have taken refuge on the sea and gradually assimilated into Han culture. However, Tanka have preserved many of their native traditions that are not found in Han Chinese culture.
A small number of Tankas also live in parts of Vietnam. There they are called Dan (Đàn) and are classified as a subgroup of the Ngái ethnicity.
The term Tanka is now considered derogatory and no longer in common use. These boat dwellers are now referred to in China as "on-water people" (Chinese: 水上人; pinyin: shuǐshàng rén; Jyutping: seoi2seong6 jan4), or "people of the southern sea" (Chinese: 南海人). No standardised English translation of this term exists. "Boat People" is a commonly used translation, although it may be confused with the similar term that applies to Vietnamese refugees in Hong Kong. The term "Boat Dwellers" was proposed by Dr. Lee Ho Yin of The University of Hong Kong in 1999, and it has been adopted by the Hong Kong Museum of History for its permanent exhibition.
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