Recording the Historical Image of the Chinese Society with Figures: a Study of the Account Books of Chinese Communities and Chinese Schools in Southeast Asia before World War II                                         Zeng Ling

As a kind of important historical documents of Chinese communities in Southeast Asia, the account books of Chinese communities have high academic and historical value. On the one hand, the preserved account books of Yinghe Guildhall, Yingxin Primary School, and other communities, were the economic archives established by the communities they belonged to. To tease, sort, classify, and interpret these account books, can develop a new research field in On the other hand, the kind of figures in account books could record and reflect the historical images of the Chinese society on the sense of metrology and statistics, which can provide new materials and new perspective for reflecting and promoting the current historical studies of Chinese in Southeast Asia, including the fields of social structure of Chinese immigration groups, guildhall and school, and Chinese education. In the time and space context of colonial Singapore, it could be easily seen through a specific and detailed study of the financial revenues and expenditures of Yingxin Primary School, together with all kinds of the account books persevered by Chinese guildhalls, schools, and temples such as the Yinghe Guildhall, Yingxin Primary School, Fude Shrine, Tanjong Pagar Fude Temple during 1906 to 1953, and in combination of the constitutions, minutes of meetings, and other historical documents of Chinese immigrants that before the Second World War, the running of the school had the following three characteristics of socialization, institutionalization on financial operation, and diversified funding sources.