Meet Singapore's Royals: Just Like Us
2020-11-04
LRC
TXT
大字
小字
滚动
全页
1In the modern nation of Singapore, several average people working in offices or driving taxis claim to be of royal blood.
2They say they are descendants of a 19th century ruler who gave up the island to the British.
3But few members of Singapore's cities know about their true royal past.
4This is difficult for Tengku, or Prince Shawal.
5He is considered by some members of his family as the leader of "the house of Singapore'.
6"They still exist?" is the answer the 51-year-old says he often receives when he tells people he is one of the descendants of Sultan Hussein Shah.
7Hussein Shah signed treaties with Britain that led to colonial rule.
8Singapore became an independent city-state in 1965.
9Shawal is one of several Singaporeans who have the royal name Tengku.
10It means prince or princess in Malay.
11They claim links to the Sultan.
12Until about 20 years ago, possibly 14 of them still lived in their ancestral home, a crowded and damaged palace.
13They were removed from the home by the government, which turned it into a museum.
14At the time, the government said about 79 descendants were offered money as part of a colonial-period agreement to provide for the Sultan's family.
15Many of the others were living in other countries, it said.
16The descendants' names were not made public, making it difficult to know who really is royalty.
17The government told Reuters that all but one of the payments have been made.
18Shawal showed Reuters letters from the government that identified him as a descendant.
19He said he often visits the palace that was turned into a museum.
20He faces personal problems because of the coronavirus pandemic.
21But, Shawal said he tries to keep the Sultan's history alive by wearing traditional royal clothing and attending celebrations.
22Other descendants warn about the dangers of living in the past or are too busy with their normal lives.
23"We are not a dynasty. It is not important whether you are a descendant of the royal family or not," said Tengku Indra.
24Now 67, he lived in the palace as a child.
25Indra was described as the great-great-great-great grandson of Sultan Hussein in an article by the government organization Friends of the Museums Singapore last year.
26Indra's son is 40-year-old businessman Tengku Azan.
27He has a two-year-old daughter who would be one of the youngest descendants.
28He thinks future generations will not take much interest in the Sultan's history.
29"The past...remains uncherished," he said.
30For others who lived in the former palace, life in the outside world was difficult.
31Tengku Faizal said after he left the palace in 1999 he took a job as a cleaner in an apartment building.
32He was often called the prince who deals with the waste.
33He now drives a taxi, but said he is struggling to make enough money.
34To help out, his wife works a part-time job at McDonald's. "We are not smart, we are not rich," Faizal said, speaking in English.
35Of seven Singapore claimants Reuters talked to, Shawal was the most interested in celebrating his history.
36But even he had his own doubts about passing on the royal name.
37He did not give it to his daughter when she was born.
38I'm Susan Shand.
1In the modern nation of Singapore, several average people working in offices or driving taxis claim to be of royal blood. They say they are descendants of a 19th century ruler who gave up the island to the British. 2But few members of Singapore's cities know about their true royal past. This is difficult for Tengku, or Prince Shawal. He is considered by some members of his family as the leader of "the house of Singapore'. 3"They still exist?" is the answer the 51-year-old says he often receives when he tells people he is one of the descendants of Sultan Hussein Shah. Hussein Shah signed treaties with Britain that led to colonial rule. Singapore became an independent city-state in 1965. 4Shawal is one of several Singaporeans who have the royal name Tengku. It means prince or princess in Malay. They claim links to the Sultan. 5Until about 20 years ago, possibly 14 of them still lived in their ancestral home, a crowded and damaged palace. They were removed from the home by the government, which turned it into a museum. 6At the time, the government said about 79 descendants were offered money as part of a colonial-period agreement to provide for the Sultan's family. Many of the others were living in other countries, it said. 7The descendants' names were not made public, making it difficult to know who really is royalty. The government told Reuters that all but one of the payments have been made. 8'Not a dynasty' 9Shawal showed Reuters letters from the government that identified him as a descendant. He said he often visits the palace that was turned into a museum. 10He faces personal problems because of the coronavirus pandemic. But, Shawal said he tries to keep the Sultan's history alive by wearing traditional royal clothing and attending celebrations. 11Other descendants warn about the dangers of living in the past or are too busy with their normal lives. "We are not a dynasty. It is not important whether you are a descendant of the royal family or not," said Tengku Indra. Now 67, he lived in the palace as a child. 12Indra was described as the great-great-great-great grandson of Sultan Hussein in an article by the government organization Friends of the Museums Singapore last year. 13Indra's son is 40-year-old businessman Tengku Azan. He has a two-year-old daughter who would be one of the youngest descendants. 14He thinks future generations will not take much interest in the Sultan's history. "The past...remains uncherished," he said. 15For others who lived in the former palace, life in the outside world was difficult. Tengku Faizal said after he left the palace in 1999 he took a job as a cleaner in an apartment building. He was often called the prince who deals with the waste. 16He now drives a taxi, but said he is struggling to make enough money. To help out, his wife works a part-time job at McDonald's. "We are not smart, we are not rich," Faizal said, speaking in English. 17Of seven Singapore claimants Reuters talked to, Shawal was the most interested in celebrating his history. 18But even he had his own doubts about passing on the royal name. He did not give it to his daughter when she was born. 19I'm Susan Shand. 20The Associated Press reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for Learning English. Mario Ritter was the editor. 21_______________________________________________________________ 22Words in This Story 23descendant- n. someone who is related to a person or group of people who lived in the past 24palace- n.the official home of a king, queen, or royalty 25pandemic- n. the fast spread of an infectious disease over a very large geographical area 26dynasty- n. a family that rules over a country over a long period of time 27uncherished- adj. to remember or hold an idea, belief or thought in a deeply felt way 28apartment building.-n. a large building that has many apartments, or hom