Aw Boon Par was a Burmese Chinese

Burmese Chinese

The Burmese Chinese or Chinese Burmese are a group of overseas Chinese born or raised in Burma . Although the Chinese officially make up three percent of the population, the actual figure is believed to be much higher...

 entrepreneur and philanthropist best known for introducing Tiger Balm

Tiger Balm

Tiger Balm is the trade name for a heat rub manufactured and distributed by Haw Par Healthcare in Singapore.- History :It was originally developed in the 1870s by a herbalist, Aw Chu Kin, in Rangoon, Burma, who asked his sons Aw Boon Haw and Aw Boon Par on his deathbed to perfect the...

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He was the son of Hakka

Hakka people

The Hakka , sometimes Hakka Han, are Han Chinese who speak the Hakka language and have links to the provincial areas of Guangdong, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hunan and Fujian in China....

 herbalist

Herbalist

An herbalist is:#A person whose life is dedicated to the economic or medicinal uses of plants.#One skilled in the harvesting and collection of medicinal plants ....

 Aw Chu Kin

Aw Chu Kin

Aw Chu Kin was a Burmese Chinese herbalist. He is best known as the original inventor of Tiger Balm.Aw Chu Kin's father was a Chinese herbology practitioner in Xiamen and an Hakka Chinese with ancestry in Yongding County . Being of a poor background, Aw Chu Kin first immigrated to Singapore where...

. His father left the business to Boon Par and after Aw Chu Kin's death in 1908, he called his elder brother Aw Boon Haw

Aw Boon Haw

Aw Boon Haw, OBE was a Burmese Chinese entrepreneur and philanthropist best known for introducing Tiger Balm. He was the son of Hakka herbalist Aw Chu Kin, with his ancestral home in Yongding County, Fujian Province, China.-Biography:-Business:...

 to run his father's apothecary

Apothecary

Apothecary is a historical name for a medical professional who formulates and dispenses materia medica to physicians, surgeons and patients — a role now served by a pharmacist and some caregivers....

 Eng Aun Tong ("The Hall of Eternal Peace") together. Although Aw Boon Par wished to stay in Rangoon, his brother who had settled in Singapore

Singapore

Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...

 in 1926 convinced him to immigrate, move the family business and found the precursor of today's Haw Par Corporation

Haw Par Corporation

Haw Par Corporation Limited is involved in healthcare and leisure products. It is the company responsible for Tiger Balm ointment. Its brands include Tiger, Kwan Loong and it also owns and operates weekend and leisure time destinations such as oceanariums and bowling centers.The Haw Par Group...

. During the Japanese occupation of Singapore

Japanese Occupation of Singapore

The Japanese occupation of Singapore in World War II occurred between about 1942 and 1945 after the fall of Singapore on 15 February 1942. Military forces of the Empire of Japan occupied Singapore after defeating the combined Australian, British, Indian and Malayan garrison in the Battle of Singapore...

, Aw Boon Haw moved to Hong Kong

Hong Kong

Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...

to manage the business from there, while Aw Boon Par stayed in Singapore to run the factory. Eventually, Aw Boon Par closed the factory down, returned to Rangoon, and died there.