劲在槟城 All In Penang: 海墘新路姓氏桥/ Clan Jetties of George Town

海墘新路姓氏桥
十九世纪未，大批华裔先辈漂洋过海下南洋，几经周折最终抵达槟岛，聚集于槟岛东北部海墘码头一带。随着移民人数增多，最初搭建于沿海的茅屋不断延伸向海面上，逐渐形成一排排密集的海上桥状茅屋区。桥身使用参差不齐木板铺成步道, 桥底部则使用一根根木桩架高支撐着。最长的木桥向海延盖大约500米之长，其中一座姓氏桥并没在海上搭建茅屋。时过境迁，当初搭建的茅屋，今天已更换为木屋，木桩取而代之的是水泥桩。

每座桥主要以同姓宗亲区分而聚居，这就是今天槟城特色的海墘新路姓氏桥。

原本海墘新路有九座姓氏桥，现在仅剩七座，另两座(姓郭桥和平安桥) 基于城市发展所逼已于2006年被拆除了。从海墘新路东北部开始按次序排列为姓王桥、姓林桥、姓周桥、姓陈桥、姓李桥、杂姓桥及姓杨桥。

2008年7月7日，乔治市正式列入联合国教科文组织世界文化遗产名录，而姓氏桥更是成为了重要的文化古迹之一，展现活生生的海上居民的生活特色。

姓氏桥每年的重头节目是农历年初八晚上全民祭拜天公活动，声势浩大，热闹非凡，数千桥民和民众聚集在海墘新路一起拜天公祈福，迎接年初九，即是福建人新年的第一天。

Clan Jetties of George Town
Clan Jetties of George Town abruptly becomes alive again after officially being listed as part of UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List on July 7, 2008.

Initially, there were 9 notable Clan Jetties along the Weld Quay, unfortunately 2 Clan Jetties (Koay Jetty and Peng Aun Jetty) were demolished in 2006 due to land reclamation for high-rise housing developments despite strong protests from historians and conservationists. The remaining 7 Clan Jetties are Ong Jetty, Lim Jetty, Chew Jetty, Tan Jetty, Lee Jetty, Mix Surname Jetty and Yeoh Jetty, in order of Weld Quay towards Tun Dr. Lim Chong Eu Highway.

In the late 19th century, a large number of Chinese immigrants mainly from from Southern Province of China traveled all the way by sea and settled down at seafront of Northeast Penang Island. They were actively involved in harbor activities, being coolies and boatmen transporting commodities and merchandise goods and cargo from large ships to seashore, making charcoal and trading firewood as well as being fishermen.

To accommodate an influx of Chinese immigrants, the hut houses initially built by the seaside had to be extended towards the sea, gradually forming rows of dense bridge-like stilt houses on the sea. These stilt huts were supported by wooden piles, and narrow walkways were paved with uneven wooden planks. The longest wooden bridge was about 500 meters towards the sea. One of the Clan Jetties did not build any stilt house on the sea. Over time, the original huts had been transformed to wooden houses, and the wooden piles were replaced with concrete piles.

Each clan jetty was established and inhabited by Chinese immigrants of same district with same surname, thus forming uniquely Clan Jetties that's still standing tall above the sea to this day.

The Clan Jetties major event of the year is "Bai Tian Gong" (in Mandarin) which literally means praying to the Heaven God on the eighth day of Chinese Lunar Calendar, widely celebrated by Hokkien community.