The Chitty are a distinctive group of Tamil people found mainly in Malacca and Singapore, who are also known as the Indian Peranakans. As of today^[when?], their population stands at 2,000.

Language[link]

Sri Poyatha temple, Malacca

Like the Peranakans, the Chitty speak a Malay patois, which is mixed with many Tamil loan words. Many of the Chitty are unable to communicate in Tamil fluently.

History[link]

Historical records stated that the Tamil traders from Panai in Tamil Nadu settled down in Malacca during the sovereignty of the Sultanate of Malacca. Like the Peranakans, they later settled down and freely intermingled with the local Malays and Chinese settlers. However, with the fall of the Malacca Sultanate after 1511, the Chitty eventually lost touch with their native land.

Under the administration of the Portuguese, Dutch and British colonizers, the Chitty eventually began simplifying their culture and customs by adopting local customs. This can be evidenced in the architecture of the Sri Poyatha Moorthi Temple, which was built by Thavinayagar Chitty, the leader of the Chitty people, in 1781 after the Dutch colonial government gave him a plot of land.

The traditional Chitty settlement is located at Kampung Tujuh along Jalan Gajah Berang, which is also inhabited by a small number of Chinese and Malays as well. Many of the Chitty have since found jobs in Singapore and other parts of Malaysia.

The ethnic identity of the Chitty is nearly lost. As many of them are assimilating into the mainstream Indian, Chinese, and Malay ethnic communities culturally, this small but distinct group of people that has survived for centuries is now on the brink of extinction.

Appearance[link]

The Chitty are a mixed people. Although they ethnically consider themselves to be Tamil, who have a Dravidian appearance and dark complexion, the Chitty appear to have varying degrees of Southeast Asian and Dravidian looks.

This resulted from the fact that the first Tamil settlers took in local wives, since they did not bring along any of their own women with them. Over time, the Chitty gathered physical features that were less Dravidian, and more Malay-looking.

Religion[link]

The Chitty community are Hindu, worshipping in their three temples. Gods such as Ganesh and Shiva are worshipped in full gaiety. Hints of Taoist and Islamic influences are also evident in their religious rituals.

Culture[link]

Culturally, the Chitty have largely assimilated into the Malay culture with some Chinese, Dutch and Portuguese influences, although certain elements of Indian culture do remain. This is especially true in the case of marriages, where offerings of fruits and burning of incense are used. In the case of food, Malay spices, ingredients and the way of cooking have largely supplanted the Indian style.

Chinese cultural influence is also evident, especially in the case of ancestral worship. Religious objects used for conducting rituals were also used by the Chinese. The Chitty are also influenced by the Chinese to some extent in their ceramics works of art.

Simplification of Tamil architecture among the Chitty is also present. Distinct from the Tamil, who have a complex Dravidian Temple Architecture in the Pallava style, that displays beautifully carved out sculptures of the Hindu gods in many rows, the Chitty temple tend to only have one row of these, or a picture of one single god in each of the three rows, as evidenced in the Sri Poyatha Moorthi Temple, built by Thaivanayagam Chitty in 1781.

Dress and lifestyle[link]

Most of the Chitty have adopted the Malay costume. In the case of men, a comfortable sarong and Malay shirt may be worn, although a songkok may also be worn, especially for a Muslim. Women, on the other hand, wear a similar costume that are similar to the Peranakan Nonya.

Alongside their Chinese and Malay neighbors, the Chitty live in Kampong houses. Pictures of Hindu gods and Indian names can be seen just outside their houses, as their descendants tend to adopt Indian, rather than Malay surnames.

A typical Chitty home is distinctly marked by mango leaves arranged in a row, dangling from above the front door. Chitty temples are also adorned this way.

External links[link]

• Tamil Dravidian Architecture

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Lee Hyori 이효리 李孝利
Background information
Born	(1979-05-10) May 10, 1979 (age 33)
Origin	Cheongwon, South Korea
Genres	Pop, R&B, Hip-hop
Occupations	Singer, Actress, Dancer, Model, Designer
Years active	1998–2002 (with Fin.K.L) 2003–present (solo)
Labels	DSP Entertainment (1998-2006) Mnet Media (2006-2010) B2M Entertainment (2010-present)
Associated acts	Fin.K.L
Website	Official Website

This article contains Korean text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Hangul or Hanja.

Lee Hyori (Hangul: 이효리; born May 10, 1979) is a South Korean singer. She debuted as a member of the successful pop girl group Fin.K.L, but has since become a solo artist. In 2003 she released her debut solo album Stylish which won many "Daesangs" (a Korean award equivalent to "Artist of the Year"). In 2006, she was the highest-paid female singer in South Korea when she signed a contract with Mnet Media.

Biography[link]

Beginning in Fin K.L.[link]

She started her career as part of the Korean pop girl group Fin.K.L. As the oldest member, she would become the leader of the group. Lee was discovered while taking sticker pictures with her friends and was actually the last to join Fin.K.L., just before their debut in January 1998. Fin.K.L. debuted officially on May 22, 1998 with their first single "Blue Rain." It was received quite well. The second release from their first album, To My Boyfriend, became the first of their multiple number one hits. Fin K.L. became one of the most popular and successful Korean groups of all-time, rivaling fellow popular girl group S.E.S..

2002–2005:Solo Debut[link]

A year after Fin K.L.'s fourth album Forever, her solo album was released at the end of 2003, entitled Stylish...E. The singer nearly swept the 2003 Daesangs, the most prestigious South Korean music award, winning more than seven of them, including three of the four most prestigious Daesangs. STYLISH...E hyOlee sold over 144,182 copies in South Korea alone, according to the Music Industry Association of Korea in 2003.^[1] Her popularity in her various activities eventually was dubbed as the "Hyori Syndrome" in South Korea, and the Korean Media nicknamed 2003 "The Year of Hyori" as she was rarely out of the news all year.^[2]

Lee Hyori has also appeared as the lead female actress in the SBS drama Three Leaf Clover co-starring opposite Ryu Jin, Kim Jung Hwa, Kim Kang Woo and Lee Hoon. However, the ratings were continually low, and it ended after 16 episodes. On August 8, 2005 she co-hosted the annual Korean Music Festival for the second year running.

[edit] 2006–2007: Move to M-Net and Dark Angel

In February 2006, Lee released her follow up album, Dark Angel. The first single, "Get Ya", was controversial as the songwriters of Britney Spears' single "Do Somethin'" accused the "Get Ya" songwriters of plagiarism.^[3]

In November 2006, it was revealed that Hyori had signed a three-year contract with M-Net Entertainment for ₩2.2 billion,^[4] becoming the highest paid female singer in South Korea (approx. $650,000/year).^[5]

Meanwhile, Hyori prepared to appear in a new "mini-drama" during February 2007,^[6] despite the failure of her previous drama. She starred alongside Lee Dong Gun in If In Love... Like Them which, although originally announced as being only one episode long, ran for four episodes on MNet. An edited two-episode version of the drama also ran on SBS. During filming for the drama, part of a roof Lee was standing on collapsed. Only her foot fell through the roof and she was able to be saved, and as it was reported the fall would have been fatal if co-star Lee Dong Gun had not rescued her.^{[citation needed]}

In February 2007, Lee announced her new digital single which would essentially be the soundtrack to If In Love... Like Them. She had her comeback on SBS Inkigayo on February 25, 2007, performing all three main tracks from the single. The lead song was "Toc Toc Toc", which was a sexy R&B number like her previous efforts. However, the single also gave Lee an opportunity to sing ballads and to slowly move her image away from the "sexy superstar" that she is known to be. The single, although initially given a digital-only release, was given a limited retail release of only 30,000 copies, and was titled If In Love Like Them. Released on March 6, 2007, it included three of the tracks found in the digital single, along with a reworked version of "Toc Toc Toc". It was the best-selling album for that month, selling 27,845 copies.^[7]

Although her single succeeded, her drama was heavily penalized for violating advertising guidelines, as If In Love had several scenes advertising the products of its sponsors, in addition to using Lee's songs in the soundtrack. The Korean Broadcasting Committee has ruled that the drama can never be aired in South Korea again, and that the network must apologize to its viewers.^[8]

According to The Chosun Ilbo, Lee has also been promoting her work in Japan. Japanese network Fuji TV decided to air If In Love... Like Them and has even invited the singer/actress to visit Japan to promote the drama, where she will be treated to the same VIP treatment offered to other international stars.^[9] However, the drama was broadcast on satellite station CS Fuji, a smaller network that Fuji TV owned. The Japanese considered the leading part of this drama to be Lee Dong-gun.^[10]

[edit] 2008–2009: TV hosting and It's Hyorish

During breaks in her solo music career, Lee also hosted various television programs, including Time Machine and Happy Together, which she co-hosted with Yoo Jae-suk in 2006. It was reported on March 26, 2008 that Lee would join KBS's Sang Sang Plus as a co-host alongside Country Kko Kko members Shin Jung-hwan and Tak Jae-hoon, replacing various outgoing hosts; she debuted on April 8, 2008.^[11] She was one of the original co-hosts of Change, a show on SBS's Good Sunday line-up, before leaving in early July^{[citation needed]}. She is also a former cast member of season one of the variety show Family Outing. Mnet also ran a 12-episode show called "Off The Record: Lee Hyolee" in which Hyori's life was on the set for three months. The purpose of the show was to lessen the gap between the superstar and her fans/anti-fans by letting them see that she is just another human being like anyone.

Her third album, It's Hyorish, was released on July 16, 2008. "U-Go-Girl", her first single, hit #1 on various online and offline charts, including the various television music shows.

In November 2009, the contract with M-net was set to expire. Lee planned to sign a contract with Gil Entertainment and work with Gil Jong Hwa who was Fin.K.L's co-manger and worked since as Fin.K.L debuted.^[12] However, her 2010 album is released under the label of Mnet Media.^[13]

[edit] 2010–Present: H-Logic

Almost two years after her previous album, Lee returned with H-Logic on April 13, 2010. The album has 14 tracks, including a collaboration with Daesung from Big Bang, 4Minute's Ji Yoon, After School's Bekah, Gary from Leessang, and Sang Chu from Mighty Mouth. The singer also worked with E-Tribe, the team behind "U-Go-Girl", the lead single from her previous album.

A music video was released for "Geu-ne" (Korean: "그네", Swing), featuring Gary from Leessang, on March 31, 2010. The lead single "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" and its music video were released soon after. The self-penned song, which features Ceejay (from Freshboyz), was released the same day as her album.She won two mutizens within two weeks for her lead single.^[14]

Seven of the songs in her H-Logic album, given by Bahnus, were accused of plagiarism, including Canadian girl group Cookie Couture's "Bring It Back", soon after the album's release. On June 21, 2010, Hyori had announced and admitted that the plagiarism accusations placed against her album were confirmed and that she would temporarily stop all her activities as a singer and also suspended her TV appearances.^[15][16]

From March 4, 2012, with the singer-songwriter and pianist Jung Jae-hyung, they have been hosting the music show Jung Jae-hyung & Lee Hyori's You and I on SBS.^[17]

Endorsements[link]

Lee has done many endorsements for various companies, her most prominent commercials being for Samsung Anycall. In late 2003, Lee signed an advertising contract with Samsung, for which she would make three musical commercials and songs for their Anycall cell phones. The first commercial and song, "Anymotion", was released in early 2005, featuring Eric Mun from Shinhwa. In early 2006, the followup commercial "Anyclub" was released in two parts; the music video starred Eric Mun and Korean actor Kwon Sang Woo. The song "Anyclub" featured Park Teddy of 1TYM. The songs from the commercials served as singles for Lee in between her albums. The final commercial was released in December 2006, titled "Anystar" and differed from the first two in that it featured mostly dialogue. The commercial starred Korean actor Lee Jun Ki and YG Family trainee Park Bom (2NE1).

Hyori also became a model for Black Bean Therapy, a health drink, and she made several CF (commercials). Hyori finished her contract with Biotherm early February 2007 and is no longer a representative for the company. Her contract with Samsung has also ended in December 2007. She has recently signed on with KB card and has starred in commercials along with fellow K-pop sensation Rain. She was chosen as the first ever Asian-wide model for Calvin Klein Jeans, modeling for the "Pure Calvin" Collection. She was also briefly featured in a 2010 commercial for the clothing company Adidas. Also in 2007, she starred in a commercial for Korean cosmetics company Isa Knox with Jessica Alba.

Discography[link]

Studio albums

• Stylish (2003)
• Dark Angel (2006)
• It's Hyorish (2008)
• H-Logic (2010)

Digital/Commercial Singles

Tours[link]

• It's Hyorish : Hyori's First Concert (2008)

Filmography[link]

TV Series[link]

Variety show MC[link]

Music Videos[link]

Awards and nominations[link]

Personal life[link]

Lee adheres to a vegetarian diet for ethics and health reasons and is an advocate for animal welfare and animal rights.^[27]

She is currently dating musician Lee Sang-soon.^[28][29]

See also[link]

• Fin.K.L
• Mnet Media

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Lee Hyori on Twitter
• Hyolee World
• Lee Hyo-lee’s weibo
• Jung Jae-hyung & Lee Hyori's You and I

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