MS Features: The Singaporean woman who lived to 110 years old
Not everyone goes through personal difficulties, lives through historical events, and comes out of them with enough kindness to touch the lives of generations of their family and community.
However, Chiang Ah Swang, a Singaporean woman who lived to the age of 110, is an outlier.
Despite being given away to an adoptive family, having her marriage arranged as a child, and experiencing the Japanese occupation, she lived a full life surrounded by family members and neighbours who loved her.
Mdm Chiang’s life story came to light after her great-granddaughter Cheryl Ong reached out to MS News on 31 July following her passing that morning.
“I had always hoped to share her story while she was still alive. I kept thinking there would always be another birthday to do so,” said Ms Ong, speaking about her beloved Ah Chor.
“After she passed away, I realised this was my last opportunity to honour her life and preserve her story.”
Adopted and brought to Singapore
Mdm Chiang was born in Tong’an, Fujian, China in 1916.
As if foreshadowing the challenging life she would face, her mother died when she was born.
Unable to raise both her and her sister due to poverty, Mdm Chiang’s father gave her to a wealthy woman named Tan Bian, who then passed the baby to her daughter-in-law, Hong Ye, to raise.
At around 1918, her adoptive family brought young Mdm Chiang to Singapore as a toddler.
However, they returned to China when she was about nine years old.
When she was 19 years old, Mdm Chiang made her way back to Singapore where she lived permanently since.
Image courtesy of Ms Ong.
Ms Ong said her Ah Chor often told stories about her childhood, especially about Long Shan Zhan, a hotel her adoptive family owned in China before they settled in Singapore.
Endearingly, Mdm Chiang would talk about the place so much that all her grandchildren and great-grandchildren can imitate the way she says “Long Shang Zhan” in a distinctive rhythm and tone.
Marriage was arranged as a child
Mdm Chiang had been arranged to marry her husband when she was just a child.
After Tan Bian took her in, another child was adopted into the family, and they decided the two would eventually marry.
“Because of this, Hong Ye, who had raised Ah Chor like a daughter, also became her mother-in-law,” Ms Ong shared.
Although they grew up together, Mdm Chiang and her husband never got along from the start.
Her family believes this was probably due to the arrangement they were forced into.
Ms Ong also shared that her great-grandfather had been abusive to her Ah Chor.
Nevertheless, Mdm Chiang had six children — three sons and three daughters — six grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren.
Image courtesy of Ms Ong.
Lived through the Japanese occupation of Singapore
When the Japanese occupation of Singapore happened, Mdm Chiang had to brave the unrest with two young children.
At the time, her daughter was only three years old while her son was still a baby.
“She often recounted hiding in drains and feeding her children peanuts to keep them quiet so they wouldn’t be discovered,” Ms Ong told MS News.
“She also told us that the family made their own underground shelter to hide in by digging into the soil and covering the top with leaves.”
Besides her fond childhood memories of her adoptive family’s hotel in China, memories of the war had seemingly been forged in her mind, as she would remember them even when her dementia had set in.
“There were occasionally moments where she would point into the distance and tell us there was a fire or that we needed to leave immediately,” said Ms Ong.
“At times, she would also say there were “so many people” or “so many children” around, almost as if she were reliving a chaotic scene.”
Remained resilient despite life’s challenges
Ms Ong also shared that her great-grandmother worked several jobs in her lifetime.
One of them was in a factory, where she unfortunately encountered an accident that injured her eyes and left her partially blind.
Despite this, the woman remained steadfast.
“She was afraid of losing her job, so she didn’t report the injury and continued working,” Ms Ong shared.
Mdm Chiang later spent 23 years working in a school canteen before retiring at the age of 68.
Image courtesy of Ms Ong.
Perhaps what helped Mdm Chiang endure life’s challenges was her ability to enjoy life’s simple routines.
Ms Ong shared that well into her 90s, her Ah Chor would have a glass of cognac mixed with hot water every evening after dinner.
“My aunt always jokes that perhaps the cognac was the secret to her strength and longevity,” said Ms Ong.
Mdm Chiang also loved playing Four Colour Cards, a traditional Chinese card game that’s becoming increasingly rare today, with her family and neighbours.
Great-grandmother welcomed people into her home
Despite going through many hardships, her family remembers Mdm Chiang as a family-oriented woman who was kind, outgoing, and welcomed neighbours into her home.
After the government redeveloped the Hong Lim area in 1969, she moved into a small two-room flat in Redhill and lived there from then on.
The flat witnessed the family grow. Ms Ong shared that at any point, around six or seven people had lived there.
It saw grandchildren grow and eventually move out.
Image courtesy of Ms Ong.
Neighbours also frequently dropped by Mdm Chiang’s home to chat, play cards or simply spend time together.
“Ah Chor herself was a big part of that kampung spirit,” shared Ms Ong.
“The house was constantly filled with neighbours, relatives and laughter, and there was always something going on.”
Image courtesy of Ms Ong.
Even as their family grew and moved into their own homes, they kept returning to Mdm Chiang’s Redhill flat for birthdays, family gatherings, and casual visits.
The flat wasn’t just where she lived — it became the place that connected several generations of our family, and Ah Chor was at the heart of it.
Singaporean woman who lived to 110 remembered for her joy and warmth
Looking back at Mdm Chiang’s life, Ms Ong realised that her Ah Chor had taught them more through her actions than words.
“Over 110 years, she experienced extraordinary change — from growing up in rural China, moving between China and Singapore, surviving the Japanese Occupation, and witnessing Singapore transform into the country we know today,” she said.
Against all odds, Mdm Chiang found joy in the things that mattered the most to her, including her family, friends, and neighbours.
During the past few days of speaking with her family members, Ms Ong discovered that everyone has their own memories and different versions they remember Ah Chor by.
Despite this, every story they shared of her is told with the warmth the woman had honed. She said:
To everyone else, she may have been someone who lived to 110. To us, she was simply Ah Chor.
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Featured image courtesy of Ms Ong.
