Chinese people in Chile

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Chinese people in Chile
Chinos en Chile
智利华人
Total population
13,528—17,021 by census 2017 [1]
20,000 with descendants [2]
Regions with significant populations
Northern Chile, Santiago, Chile
Languages
Chilean Spanish, Chinese
Related ethnic groups
Overseas Chinese

It is estimated that there are over 20,000 Chinese people in Chile. [3] Chinese immigrants come from both China and Taiwan.

Contents

Reasons for immigration

A high demand for manpower in the Southern South American region was present around the 1950s–1960s because of capitalism in the region. This demand for manpower also drew in a huge number of Chinese people coming to South America for work, which explains the huge increase of Chinese people 1950s–1960s. [4] This immigration was also present in the War of the Pacific with Chinese immigrating to both Peru and Chile to enlist into the war effort. After the war came to a close with a Chilean victor, people from Peru also settled in Chile. This was supportive due to the damages of the war done and they could work for construction of the infrastructure or just working inside factories. [5]

Migration history

Between 1,200 and 1,500 Chinese workers in Peru offered support to the Chilean side in the War of the Pacific (1879–1883) and thus went to Chile at the war's end. [6]

Today the Chinese people living in Chile work primarily in trade and restaurant jobs. Although in Santiago one can find many local Chinese businesses, including importers, supermarkets, mini markets, malls (shopping centers such as Santiago Centro and Estación Central), Chinatowns are not concentrated in one place, except in the neighborhood of Patronato, where most of the Asian (i.e. mostly Chinese, Korean and Taiwanese) immigrants, niche businesses and supermarkets in Santiago are located. [ citation needed ]

Notable people

See also

Related Research Articles

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Chile's 2017 census reported a population of 17,574,003 people. Its rate of population growth has been decreasing since 1990, due to a declining birth rate. By 2050 the population is expected to reach approximately 20.2 million people, at which point it is projected to either stagnate or begin declining. About 85% of the country's population lives in urban areas, with 40% living in Greater Santiago alone. The largest agglomerations according to the 2002 census are Greater Santiago with 5.6 million people, Greater Concepción with 861,000 and Greater Valparaíso with 824,000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tacna</span> Place in Peru

Tacna, officially known as San Pedro de Tacna, is a city in southern Peru and the regional capital of the Tacna Region. A very commercially active city, it is located only 35 km (22 mi) north of the border with Arica y Parinacota Region from Chile, inland from the Pacific Ocean and in the valley of the Caplina River. It is Peru's tenth most populous city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chinese Peruvians</span> Ethnic group

Chinese Peruvians, also known as tusán, are Peruvian citizens whose ancestors came from China.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roto</span> Term used to refer to the Chilean people

Roto, f. rota, is a term used to refer to Chilean people and in particular to the common Chilean. In Chile, from the start of the 20th century, it was applied with a negative classist connotation to poor city-dwellers. It is also used contemptuously in other Spanish-speaking countries, especially Bolivia and Peru, to refer to Chileans in a derogatory manner. Otherwise, despite its defects, the roto is also considered a figure of national identity and pride in Chile.

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<i>Chifa</i> Chinese Cantonese and Peruvian fusion culinary tradition

Chifa is a Chinese Peruvian culinary tradition based on Cantonese elements fused with traditional Peruvian ingredients and traditions. The term is also used to refer to restaurants that serve the chifa cuisine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barrio Chino (Lima)</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spanish immigration to Peru</span> Ethnic group

A Spanish Peruvian is a Peruvian citizen of Spanish descent. Among European Peruvians, the Spanish are the largest group of immigrants to settle in the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spanish Chileans</span> Ethnic group

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anti-Chilean sentiment</span> Racism and discrimination against Chile, its people, and culture

Anti-Chilean sentiment or chilenophobia refers to the historical and current resentment towards Chile, Chileans, or Chilean culture. Anti-Chilean sentiment is most prevalent among Chile's neighbors Argentina, Bolivia and Peru.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spanish diaspora</span> Emigrants from Spain and their descendants

The Spanish diaspora consists of Spanish people and their descendants who emigrated from Spain. In the Americas, the term may refer to those of Spanish nationality living there; "Hispanic" is usually a more appropriate term to describe the general Spanish-speaking populations of the Americas together with those in Spain. The diaspora is concentrated in places that were part of the Spanish Empire. Countries with sizeable populations are Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela, and, to a lesser extent, Brazil, Belize, Haiti, United States, Canada, the Philippines and the rest of Europe.

Illegal immigration in Chile is a phenomenon that largely began in the 1990s as a result of economic growth and political stability in Chile. Most immigrants are South American, with the largest wave being Peruvian, although there has also been a significant amount of migration from the Caribbean. Illegal immigration is primarily caused by a lack of security or economic opportunities in the country of origin.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Expulsion of Chileans from Bolivia and Peru in 1879</span>

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Racism in Chile encompasses any type of racial or ethnic discrimination by a group of inhabitants or organizations of that country against groups from other nations or the same nation. The origins of Chilean racism, and that of other Latin American nations, can be traced back to 16th century colonialism under the rule of the Spanish Empire. In the establishment of imperial rule, Native Americans experienced extermination, slavery and forced miscegenation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Quintín Quintana</span> Chinese Peruvian Chilean, merchant and police detective

Quintín Quintana Lauchen, born Liu Tang Sin Shin, Leotàn Sin-Shin, or Leo Shin, was a Chinese-Peruvian, later Chinese-Chilean, merchant and police detective. Born in China, he worked as a coolie in Peru and took a Spanish-language name. During the War of the Pacific, fought by Peru and Bolivia against Chile, Quintana joined the Chilean intelligence service and led a Chinese émigré collaboration effort against the Peruvian government.

References

  1. "Extranjeros en Chile superan el millón 110 mil y el 72% se concentra en dos regiones: Antofagasta y Metropolitana". El Mercurio. 9 April 2018. Retrieved 23 December 2019.
  2. Álvaro Peralta Sáinz (15 June 2018). "Resistiré: El lema de la comida china". La Tercera.
  3. "'Made In China': Inmigrantes chinos en Chile". Televisión Nacional de Chile. 26 March 2014. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 13 July 2015.
  4. "The Chinese Community in South America". Programa Asia Pacifico. BCN.CL. 11 November 2008. Retrieved 25 October 2019.
  5. "Chile - War of the Pacific, 1879-83". countrystudies.us. Country Studies. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  6. Chou 2004 , Ch. 3
  7. "Clásico 'cruzado': Católica venció a la 'U' y quedó como solitario líder". prensafutbol.com. 23 April 2016. Retrieved 23 April 2016.

Sources