About

Yang Quee Yee has been acknowledged as the expert in compiling Malay-Chinese dictionaries. His memoir provides a macro-historical perspective of British colonial rule in Malaya and Singapore. At the micro level, it serves as a personal biography. It is also a record of the achievements of Nanyang University (Nantah) students, together with others, in fostering cultural exchanges between the Chinese and the Malays across both sides of the Causeway.

Yang first wrote his memoir in Malay, Memoir Yang Quee Yee: Penyusun Kamus Anak Penoreh (Memoir of Yang Quee Yee: Rubber Tapper Boy to Lexicographer). This was published in 2005. 

The Chinese edition《杨贵谊回忆录：胶童与词典》was available just a year later. This English edition is based on the 2021 Chinese edition, updating Yang’s story till his passing in May 2024.