Qiaopi agencies in Southeast Asia collected the letters and remittances from the migrant workers and sent them to their corresponding partner in Swatow.
The Museum of Overseas Remittance Mail Relics, based in Swatow, has a collection of 120,000 Teochew Letters, consisting of both originals and copies.
Its contents reflect society at all levels, touching on international relations, national issues, and details of daily life important to families.
Together with the Qiaopi collection of Jiangmen, Meizhou and Fujian, the Teochew Letters were included into the Asia/Pacific Regional Memory of the World (MOW) Register on 16 May 2012.
Higher recognition is being sought through ongoing submission for inclusion in the prestigious UNESCO Memory of the World Register in 2013.