117
expectations, non-Chinese women also menstruated they were usually eager to enquire about different practical techniques. My notebooks and diaries indicate that this was the topic raised much the most frequently by the fisherwomen I talked with, particularly on a first meeting. Questions about child bearing and rearing, and about kinship relationships in general were some way behind. Sex relations as such were never mentioned. It may be relevant to point out that on my first and longest stay in Kau Sai I was known to be unmarried, but I do not recall that there were differences on subsequent occasions after my marriage and the birth of my children.
65 Other aspects of this topic are discussed in the chapters on family relationships, and ritual below. [Not included in manuscript.]
66 Unless stated otherwise ages are given according to the traditional Chinese methods of reckoning which were in exclusive use in Kau Sai. In that system a new born baby is said to have one year of life. After birth an additional year-of-life (sui) is added at each Chinese New Year. Ages reckoned in this way are thus always one or two years in advance of western reckoning. A child aged ten by Chinese reckoning would be 8 or 9 by Western reckoning, a man of 60 would be 58 or 59, and so on.
67 See preceding note on age reckoning.
68 Interestingly enough, the number of girls staying on at school to the age of 15 or 16 has remained high. This may be connected with the move ashore, which probably allows young people of both sexes from the purse-seiners more free time. A few girls from other fishing centres (but none from Kau Sai) have successfully passed the examinations for Coxswains' & Engineers' Certificates.
Glossary of Chinese characters
boon-loi **
boon waan taipus
100
المباراة
البرار
boon wan ge jan APBA ch'eah fong chow shan foki kit fung shui
K
gaay siew yan IMA
ghaah cheung (chia chang) K gok tsai 181
ho gan-iu
f
Hung Shing Kung
kam shing teng kau tu
Kau Sai
4
ku tsai
laau
A
THE
唔乾淨
喺度
MST
WAT
m gon ching
mm gung doe
mm gung ping
naau 1561
p'a l'eng isai PABETE
p'a tsai
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