Photograph of family of Ramasamy Suppiah at Suppiah Villa

This is a photograph of Ramasamy Suppiah's family outside their home, Suppiah Villa at Highland Road, off Upper Serangoon Road, Singapore, on 27 November 1940. Ramasamy Suppiah is seated on the extreme left in the back row. Children from the family are seated on the ground in front of the adults who are seated on benches.Ramasamy Suppiah was born in Malacca at the turn of the 20th century. In 1920, he and his Chitty Melaka (Peranakan Indian) wife, Kathai Ammal Chitty, moved to Singapore where he joined the police force, rising to the position of Detective Sergeant-Major.Peranakan Indians (also known as Chitty Melaka or Chetti Melaka) are descendants of South Indian traders (particularly Tamils) who settled in Malacca during the 15th to 16th centuries and married local women of Malay and Chinese descent. They trace their roots to Kampung Chitty, in Gajah Berang, Malacca, and there is a small community numbering approximately 5,000 in Singapore.

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