John (Mak) Shying
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Sai Ying (Mak) Shying (abt. 1796)

Sai Ying (John) "世鹏, John Pong Shying, Mak Sai Pang, Mai Shi Ying, Mark Opong" Shying formerly Mak aka 麥, Sheying
Born about in Canton, Chinamap [uncertain]
Son of [father unknown] and [mother unknown]
[sibling(s) unknown]
Husband of — married 3 Feb 1823 (to 27 Mar 1836) in St John's Church of England, Parramatta, New South Wales, Australiamap
Husband of — married 10 Oct 1842 (to before 29 Jan 1845) in St John's Church of England, Parramatta, New South Wales, Australiamap
Descendants descendants
Died [date unknown] [location unknown]
Profile last modified | Created 9 Jun 2018
This page has been accessed 1,375 times.


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.

Contents

Biography

Notables Project
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:





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DNA Connections
It may be possible to confirm family relationships. Paternal line Y-chromosome DNA test-takers: It is likely that these autosomal DNA test-takers will share some percentage of DNA with John: Have you taken a test? If so, login to add it. If not, see our friends at Ancestry DNA.


Comments: 4

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Sheen and Shying families have had DNA test requested by Winsome Doyle (my Shying relative, my mother's maiden name being Shying from John -> John George Shying) and they are unrelated.
posted by Greg Lesnie
Thanks Greg

That is really great to know.

If you are happy to do so, it would be great to add your relatives who have had DNA tests added to WikiTree and the DNA test details included (perhaps after upload to GEDMatch) so that connections and genetic relationships can be openly accessed?

posted by Peter Jones
The specific migration category, Category:Migrants from Guangdong to New South Wales, has been created. Please place the profile in this new category and remove from "Migrants from China to Australia" which does not follow the approved structure and will be deleted. Thank you!
Hi Peter,

Although I’m probably not closely related to John Mak Shying’s family, I’m interested in the family’s connection to China and the possibility that they may also be connected to John Sheen (who died in 1880). How interesting it would be the find the ancestral village in China and to solve the mystery of whether Shying and Sheen are the same person. Do you know if any family members DNA test to explore where that leads? The Ancestry.com test is the way to go because it has the largest database. In addition, the results can also be matched to other tests via GEDmatch etc. Any Shying or Sheen males could also do a YDNA test. This is probably essential for locating the origin of the male line. I’m interested in your thoughts. Kind regards - Leon

posted by Leon Lyell

Rejected matches › John (Shin) Sheen (abt.1788-1880)

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