Commonly found variants; note these may range from acceptable alternatives to
non-standard forms or incorrect spellings*.
* Singlish is a largely spoken creole, and as such descriptivism (recording forms that reflect actual pronunciation in spoken language, or as appearing in the linguistic corpus) is more pertinent than strict prescriptivism. Nevertheless, the use of more standard forms (or for words originating in languages with Latin script, such as Malay, accurate to the original spelling) is recommended and encouraged.
* Singlish is a largely spoken creole, and as such descriptivism (recording forms that reflect actual pronunciation in spoken language, or as appearing in the linguistic corpus) is more pertinent than strict prescriptivism. Nevertheless, the use of more standard forms (or for words originating in languages with Latin script, such as Malay, accurate to the original spelling) is recommended and encouraged.
also can:
ceki
cherki
→
Baba malay:
cherki
Detailed etymology
definitions
noun
- a Chinese card deck with three suits of cards (known by various names in various languages, e.g. "Coins", "Strings", and "Myriads") numbered from 1 to 9. It was and is used to play various popular card games in South-East Asia, with one of the most popular games known as 'cherki' itself.[1][2][3]
- a Peranakan card game played with one or more cherki card decks, often played as a gambling game with money staked, which used to be wildly popular among the Peranakan community in Singapore.[2][3] It is said to have originated in Melaka,[3] but is now popular elsewhere in the region such as in Sumatra, Java, and Bali in Indonesia (though it is close to dying out in Singapore).[1] It is possibly descended from traditional Chinese card games using the same Chinese card deck, such as ma diao pai or liu hu pai.
Many Peranakans enhoyed gambling. Some Babas could even lose their houses in a single sitting! Nyonyas shared their husbands' love for gambling. A card game called cherki was extremely popular among them.
— 2024, Rosemarie Somaiah and Zhuang Xinyan. Gateway to Singapore Culture: Celebrating Friendship, Peace & Harmony. ASIAPAC. ISBN: 9789811706363
With wealth came the leisurely lifestyle of the Babas. The nyonyas are infamous for their addiction to gambling games like cherki.
— 2009, Derek Thiam Soon Heng and Syed Muhd. Khairudin Aljunied. Reframing Singapore: Memory, Identity, Trans-regionalism. Amsterdam University Press. ISBN: 9789089640949. p.148