Sai Ying (Mak) Shying (abt. 1796)

Born about 1796 in Canton, China [uncertain]

Husband of Sarah Jane (Thompson) Shying — married 3 Feb 1823 (to 27 Mar 1836) in St John's Church of England, Parramatta, New South Wales, Australia

Husband of Bridget (Unknown) Shying — married 10 Oct 1842 (to before 29 Jan 1845) in St John's Church of England, Parramatta, New South Wales, Australia

Descendants

Problems/Questions Profile managers: Peter Jones [send private message], Leon Lyell [send private message], and Pattie Smith [send private message]

Refer to the Research Notes section below in respect of the conventions adopted in determining the Proper First Name and Last Name at Birth for the subject of this profile.

Please do not make any name changes without offering additional sources and clearly articulating the reason/s why they need to be different.

Additions to Other Nicknames must be supported with primary source citations. That is, Ancestry, etc. are not primary sources and are not considered to be reliable.

Biography

John (Mak) Shying is Notable.

Mak Sai Ying is the first documented Chinese-born settler to come to Australia.

Mak Sai Ying, Mr Mak, also known as John Shying, arrived in Port Jackson aboard the ship Laurel in February 1818 — decades before the gold rush that saw many more Chinese people travel to Australia. The ship's arrival was recorded in the diary of Governor Lachlan Macquarie:^[1] He was apparently born around 1796 in the Chinese city of Canton (now known as Guangdong).

After arriving in Australia, he worked as a carpenter for the famous English settler John Blaxland, who he met aboard the Laurel. Blaxland reportedly paid Mr Mak the same wage that he gave his European employees.

He later worked for the pastoralist Elizabeth Macarthur, the wife of Australia's wool industry pioneer John (McArthur) Macarthur.

After that, Mr Mak became a successful entrepreneur in his own right, owning the Peacock Inn in Parramatta^[2] and several other shops. Blaxland once wrote a reference for Mr Mak describing him as, "an honest, respectable character".

In 1823, under the name John Shying, Mr Mak married Sarah Jane Thompson.^[3] They had four sons, but he reportedly returned to China shortly after the birth of their fourth child in 1831. Nobody knows why he chose to return, but he may have had family obligations back in China.

He returned to Australia five years later, soon after the death of his wife.

John married again in 1842, widow Bridget Gillorley,^[4] but his second wife died soon after.

Research Notes

Proper Name

Mr Mak’s correct birth name transcribed into Latin characters was understood to have been Mak Sai Ying. However, looking at his signature on his 1831 Power of Attorney, a professional interpreter suggests that his name was probably 麥世鹏, or Mak Sai Pang.

How it was translated by English speakers in Australia in 19th century should be understood. His name would have comprised:

1. a surname (姓, xìng) which came first and probably monosyllabic
2. followed by a personal name (名, míng) which was either mono- or disyllabic

His family name therefore appears to have been 麥 (Mak) and his given name 世鹏 ('Sai Pang' or ‘Sai Ying’). Given the English convention that the family name comes last his given name seems to have evolved into the family name ‘Shying’. This type of change appears to have been commonplace in that era.

Death & Resting Place

The creator of this profile has been contacted in relation to the possibility that John being John (Shin) Sheen (abt.1788-1880). This possibility is suggested by the relevant Wikipedia Profile although this appears to be unsourced and also not discussed in detail.

John (Shin) Sheen (abt.1788-1880) is buried at Rookwood although there are minor differences in details of date of death and year of birth.

It is evident from the memorial that this John married Margaret McGovern in 1846. This seems possible given that we know that the wives of the subject of this profile had passed in 1836 and 1842/43.

The variance in year of birth, spelling of names, plus DNA evidence of descendants of both individuals confirms that they are different people.

Sources

1. ↑ Macquarie University: The Lachlan & Elizabeth Macquarie Archive, Friday 27 February 1818
2. ↑ [Local Intelligence. (1844, March 16). Parramatta Chronicle and Cumberland General Advertiser (NSW : 1843 - 1845), p. 2. Retrieved May 10, 2023, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article228248702
3. ↑ NSW BDM marriage 1148/1823 V18231148 147B to Sarah Jane Thompson
4. ↑ NSW BDM marriage 369/1842 V1842369 26C on 10 October 1842 in St John’s Church of England, Parramatta, to widow Bridget Gillorley

• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com : accessed 21 November 2020), memorial page for John 麥世英 Shying (1796–unknown), Find a Grave Memorial no. 215233007, ; Maintained by Leon J. Lyell (contributor 49176137) Burial Details Unknown Find A Grave: Memorial #215233007

See also:

• Wikipedia Profile: John Shying
• Neera Sahni, City of Parramatta, Parramatta Heritage Centre, Mak Sai Ying Aka John Shying, 2017
• Jason Fang, ABC News, 200 years of Chinese-Australians: First settler's descendants reconnect with their roots, 10 June 2018
• Dr Tim Soutphommasane, Australian Human Rights Commission, The Chinese presence in Australia , Speech to Western Sydney University conference on ‘Community Sentiment and Chinese Australian Experiences’, Western Sydney University, Parramatta, 1 March 2018
• Kim Tao, Australian National Maritime Museum, Two centuries of Chinese migration, 14 February 2018
• Australian Royalty website: John Pong Shying