The role of ancestral halls and ancestral worship in Chinese clan associations in Thailand as forms of cultural integration in the age of globalization

Abstract

This dissertation focuses on studying the relationship between the ancestral hall and ancestral worship of Thai-Chinese clan associations in the context of contemporary Thai society, Thai local culture and the era of globalization. The research data mainly derives from the journals of the Thai-Chinese communities, news reports, on-site investigations and interviews.

This study indicates that the Thai-Chinese had been living in Thai society and they had established Chinese traditional cultural practices in Thailand and enriched the culture of Thailand. With the development of contemporary Thai society, Thai-Chinese community associations have been transformed into non-governmental organizations and have become part of the Thai NGO network. The income of Thai-Chinese clan associations mainly derived from the contributions of the members of their councils who relied on bureaucratic and community patronage system. The Lim Clansmen Association of Thailand is introduced as an example to analyze its management of human resources, finance and affairs in the typical Chinese clan association in Thailand from 1990s to the present. The architectures of ancestral hall and ancestral worship rites of the Xu Clan Association of Thailand are used as examples to illustrate how the Thai-Chinese ancestral halls and ancestral worship have mixed with local Thai Culture.

Finally, this dissertation proves that the ancestral halls and ancestral worship in clan associations in Thailand serve as an active platform for promoting communication between the Thai-Chinese in the age of globalization from three aspects—the relationship between Thai-Chinese and their ancestral homes after 1978, China’s influence on Thai and Thai-Chinese ancestor worship, and the contribution of Thai-Chinese clans to the world of Chinese clan associations.