Asian Americans In Houston
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Houston has large populations of
immigrants Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, a ...
from
Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...
. In addition, the city has the largest
Vietnamese American Vietnamese Americans ( vi, Người Mỹ gốc Việt, lit=Viet-origin American people) are Americans of Vietnamese ancestry. They make up about half of all overseas Vietnamese and are the fourth-largest Asian American ethnic group after Chinese ...
population in Texas and third-largest in the United States as of 2004. Houston also has one of the largest Chinese American, Pakistani American, and
Filipino American Filipino Americans ( fil, Mga Pilipinong Amerikano) are Americans of Filipino ancestry. Filipinos and other Asian ethnicities in North America were first documented in the 16th century as slaves and prisoners on ships sailing to and from New ...
populations in the United States.


History

The 1877 Houston City Directory listed three ethnic Chinese who worked in laundries, and the
1880 United States Census The United States census of 1880 conducted by the Census Bureau during June 1880 was the tenth United States census.Treviño, Robert R. '' The Church in the Barrio: Mexican American Ethno-Catholicism in Houston''.
UNC Press Books The University of North Carolina Press (or UNC Press), founded in 1922, is a university press that is part of the University of North Carolina. It was the first university press founded in the Southern United States. It is a member of the Ass ...
, February 27, 2006
29
Retrieved from
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on November 22, 2011. , . In the era of
de jure In law and government, ''de jure'' ( ; , "by law") describes practices that are legally recognized, regardless of whether the practice exists in reality. In contrast, ("in fact") describes situations that exist in reality, even if not legally ...
racial segregation in the United States In the United States, racial segregation is the systematic separation of facilities and services such as housing, healthcare, education, employment, and transportation on racial grounds. The term is mainly used in reference to the legally or ...
, authorities in Texas classified people of Asian origins as "White". This allowed people of Asian ancestry to get superior educational opportunities. The Chinese were the only ethnic group with a significant settlement pattern in Houston until the 1970s. The lack of Asian immigration in Greater Houston was due to historical restrictions on Asian Americans. According to the 1980 U.S. census, 484 Chinese immigrants currently living in the area had lived there prior to 1950, of twelve Asian nationalities other than Chinese listed by the census for the Houston area, there were fewer than 100 immigrants who had settled before 1950. The
1965 Immigration Act The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, also known as the Hart–Celler Act and more recently as the 1965 Immigration Act, is a federal law passed by the 89th United States Congress and signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson. The la ...
, which had ended the restrictions, allowed an increase in Chinese Americans. The number increased to 121 by the start of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
. During the war, many Chinese from southern states migrated to take advantage of the economy and the population increased by more than twice its size.Rodriguez, Nestor, "Hispanic and Asian Immigration Waves in Houston," p
38
 Albert Gee, the head of the Houston Restaurant Association and an Asian American, helped African-American community leaders negotiate a voluntary desegregation during the
Civil Rights Movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the Unite ...
. In the 1970s large-scale Asian immigration to Houston began. In 1980 48,000 Asians lived in Greater Houston. The amount of Asian immigration increased in the 1980s.Rodriguez, Nestor, "Hispanic and Asian Immigration Waves in Houston," p
37
 Edward C. M. Chen and Debbie Harwell, authors of "Asian Americans: Expanding Our Horizons," wrote that prior U.S. Censuses lacked the ability to accurately track Asian American populations and that only the 1980 and subsequent ones accurately did so. In 1990 90,000 Asian immigrants lived in Harris County, and 48,000 Asians lived in Greater Houston. As of 1990 the largest two Asian immigrant groups to Houston were the Chinese and the Vietnamese, making up 46% of all Asian immigrants,Rodriguez, Nestor, "Hispanic and Asian Immigration Waves in Houston," p
41
 with 15,568 Vietnamese and 10,817 of Chinese from China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. The others were 7,044 Indians, 4,807 Filipinos, 3,249 Koreans, 2,419 Iranians, 2,411 Pakistanis, 1,950 Japanese and 1,146 Cambodians. In the 1990s the Asian immigration rates exceeded those of Hispanics. A U.S. Census survey conducted in 1997 stated that in Harris County and Fort Bend County, there were 202,685 Asians combined. In 1998 Betty Ann Bowser, a reporter for
PBS Newshour ''PBS NewsHour'' is an American evening television news program broadcast on over 350 PBS member stations. It airs seven nights a week, and is known for its in-depth coverage of issues and current events. Anchored by Judy Woodruff, the pro ...
, said that many Southeast Asians came to Houston because "its hot humid climate reminded them of home."Number Crunching
"
PBS Newshour ''PBS NewsHour'' is an American evening television news program broadcast on over 350 PBS member stations. It airs seven nights a week, and is known for its in-depth coverage of issues and current events. Anchored by Judy Woodruff, the pro ...
. August 25, 1998. Retrieved on March 17, 2012. Houston does have a similar climate to that of
Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
,
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
,
Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...
, and the
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
.Number Crunching
"
PBS Newshour ''PBS NewsHour'' is an American evening television news program broadcast on over 350 PBS member stations. It airs seven nights a week, and is known for its in-depth coverage of issues and current events. Anchored by Judy Woodruff, the pro ...
. August 25, 1998. Retrieved on March 17, 2012. According to a 2002 survey of 500 Asian Americans in Harris County overseen by Stephen Klineberg, a professor at
Rice University William Marsh Rice University (Rice University) is a private research university in Houston, Texas. It is on a 300-acre campus near the Houston Museum District and adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. Rice is ranked among the top universities ...
, Asian immigrants have substantially lower household income than Anglo residents and other immigrant groups, while they have higher levels of education.Snyder, Mike.
Survey provides insight into Chinese community
" ''
Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. , it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. With i ...
''. October 2, 2002. Retrieved on April 22, 2013. In 2007 Houston had 16,000 Asian American businesses. A 2006
U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
report stated that the annual revenues of those businesses totaled to $5.5 billion ($ in today's money).Moreno, Jenalia.
Houston's 'Chinatown' near Beltway 8 sparks banking boom
" ''
Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. , it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. With i ...
''. Sunday February 18, 2007. Retrieved on October 16, 2011. By 2010 the number of Asian-Americans in Greater Houston was over 417,000. In 2010 John B. Strait and Gang Gong, authors of the article "Ethnic Diversity in Houston, Texas: The Evolution of Residential Segregation in the Bayou City, 1990–2000," stated that Asians were "only modestly segregated from" non-Hispanic whites.Strait, John B ; Gong, Gang. "Ethnic Diversity in Houston, Texas: The Evolution of Residential Segregation in the Bayou City, 1990–2000." '' Population Review'', 2010, Vol.49(1). cited: p. 58.


Ethnic groups


Vietnamese

In 2010, Harris County had 80,000
Vietnamese Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia ** A citizen of Vietnam. See Demographics of Vietnam. * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Overse ...
(2% of county) and
Vietnamese Americans Vietnamese Americans ( vi, Người Mỹ gốc Việt, lit=Viet-origin American people) are Americans of Vietnamese ancestry. They make up about half of all overseas Vietnamese and are the fourth-largest Asian American ethnic group after Chinese ...
, making it the second largest Vietnamese American community in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
after that of
San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popu ...
.Harkinson, Josh. "Tale of Two Cities." ''
Houston Press The ''Houston Press'' is an online newspaper published in Houston, Texas, United States. It is headquartered in the Midtown area. It was also a weekly print newspaper until November 2017. The publication is supported entirely by advertising ...
''. Thursday December 15, 2005
2
Retrieved on March 17, 2012.


Chinese

According to the American Community Survey, as of 2013,
Greater Houston Greater Houston, designated by the United States Office of Management and Budget as Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land, is the fifth-most populous metropolitan statistical area in the United States, encompassing nine counties along the Gulf Co ...
(Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown metropolitan area) has 72,320 residents of Chinese origin.Collier, Kiah.
It's official: Air China to begin flights to Beijing
" ''
Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. , it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. With i ...
''. January 15, 2013. Retrieved on April 21, 2013.


South Asians

As of the
2010 U.S. Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators serving ...
, if the Indian American and Pakistani American populations are combined, there are 50,045 of them in Harris County, together making up 17.9% of the Asians in Harris County and being the second largest Asian ethnic group in Harris County. The combined group was the largest Asian ethnic group in Fort Bend County, making up 31% of the Asians there, and the largest Asian ethnic group in Montgomery County.Klineberg and Wu, p. 12. South Asian populations became larger around the 1980s.Chen and Harwell, p. 5. In 1983 Allison Cook of the ''
Texas Monthly ''Texas Monthly'' (stylized as ''TexasMonthly'') is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Downtown Austin, Texas. ''Texas Monthly'' was founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy and has been published by Emmis Publishing, L.P. since 1998 and is ...
'' stated that "Some estimates put the number of Indians and Pakistanis in Houston as high as 25,000." In 1990 there were a combined 21,191 Indian and Pakistani descent people in Harris County, making up 19.3% of the county's Asians and at the time being the third largest Asian ethnic group. In 2000 there were 35,971 members of the combined group in Harris County, making up 18.6% of the county's Asians and now being the second largest Asian ethnic group in the county. From 2000 to 2010 the combined group in Harris County increased by 39%. In Fort Bend County in 2000 there were 13,000 people of Indian and Pakistani ancestry. Half a dozen Indian American and Pakistani American newspapers are offered in stores and restaurants. The publications include ''India Herald'' and the ''
Voice of Asia Voice of Asia (, ''Azııa Daýysy''; , ''Golos Azii'') is a music festival held annually in Almaty, Kazakhstan. Acts from all over Asia and other areas take part. The usual venue for the festival is the outdoor Medeo speed skating rink, situate ...
''. The city has Masala Radio, a South Asian radio station. Indian singers often make tour stops in Houston. The
Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...
6 movie theater on
Texas State Highway 6 State Highway 6 (SH 6) runs from the Red River, the Texas–Oklahoma state line, to northwest of Galveston, where it is known as the Old Galveston Highway. In Sugar Land and Missouri City, it is known as Alvin-Sugarland Road and runs per ...
plays
Indian films The Cinema of India consists of motion pictures produced in India, which had a large effect on world cinema since the late 20th century. Major centers of film production across the country include Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam, Ko ...
. The Houston area has
Indian dance Dance in India comprises numerous styles of dances, generally classified as classical or folk. As with other aspects of Indian culture, different forms of dances originated in different parts of India, developed according to the local tradi ...
schools, including the Abhinaya School of Performing Arts and the Shri Natraj School of Dance.Shilcut, Katharine. "Little India." ''
Houston Press The ''Houston Press'' is an online newspaper published in Houston, Texas, United States. It is headquartered in the Midtown area. It was also a weekly print newspaper until November 2017. The publication is supported entirely by advertising ...
''. Wednesday May 25, 2011
4
Retrieved on May 26, 2011. Of the
Zoroastrian Zoroastrianism is an Iranian religion and one of the world's oldest organized faiths, based on the teachings of the Iranian-speaking prophet Zoroaster. It has a dualistic cosmology of good and evil within the framework of a monotheistic ...
groups in Houston, As of 2000,
Parsi Parsis () or Parsees are an ethnoreligious group of the Indian subcontinent adhering to Zoroastrianism. They are descended from Persians who migrated to Medieval India during and after the Arab conquest of Iran (part of the early Muslim conq ...
were one of the two main Zoroastrian groups. As of that year the total number of Iranians of all religions in Houston is, on a 10 to 1 basis, larger than the total Parsi population.Rustomji, p
249
 As of 2000 the Zoroastrian Association of Houston (ZAH) is majority Parsi. Rustomji wrote that because of that and the historic tensions between the Parsi and Iranian groups, the Iranians in Houston did not become full members of the ZAH. Rustomji stated that Iranian Zoroastrians "attend religious functions sporadically and remain tentative about their ability to fully integrate, culturally and religiously, with Parsis."


Indians

As of the 2010 census there were about 82,575 people in the Houston area of Indian origins. The 1980 U.S. Census stated that 6,610 persons originating from India were in the Houston area.Patel, Roshni, p. 30. Harris County had almost 36,000 Indian Americans as of the 2000 Census. The population had a $53,000 ($ in today's money) median yearly household income, $11,000 ($ in today's money) more than the county average. Almost 65% of the Indian Americans in Harris County had university and college degrees, compared to 18% of all of the Harris County population. Indian Americans in Fort Bend County, as of the same census, numbered at almost 13,000 and had a median annual income of $84,000 ($ in today's money). 62% of Indian Americans in Fort Bend County had university and college degrees, compared to 25% of all residents of Fort Bend County. An estimate from the 2009 American Community Survey stated that Harris County had 46,125 Indian Americans and that Fort Bend County had 25,104 Indian Americans. Katharine Shilcutt of the ''
Houston Press The ''Houston Press'' is an online newspaper published in Houston, Texas, United States. It is headquartered in the Midtown area. It was also a weekly print newspaper until November 2017. The publication is supported entirely by advertising ...
'' said that the high education and income levels of Indian Americans caused businesses in the Mahatma Gandhi District, an Indian American
ethnic enclave In sociology, an ethnic enclave is a geographic area with high ethnic concentration, characteristic cultural identity, and economic activity. The term is usually used to refer to either a residential area or a workspace with a high concentration ...
in Houston, to thrive.Shilcut, Katharine. "Little India." ''
Houston Press The ''Houston Press'' is an online newspaper published in Houston, Texas, United States. It is headquartered in the Midtown area. It was also a weekly print newspaper until November 2017. The publication is supported entirely by advertising ...
''. Wednesday, May 25, 2011
1
Retrieved on May 26, 2011. In 1999 the Houston area had about 500 Indian Catholics. There were no particular Indian Catholic churches.Vara, Richard. "Area Asian Catholics to come together in celebration." ''
Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. , it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. With i ...
''. August 21, 1999. Religion p. 1.
NewsBank NewsBank is a news database resource that provides archives of media publications as reference materials to libraries. History John Naisbitt, the author of the book ''Megatrends'', founded NewsBank.Andrews 1998, p. 17. The company was launched ...
Record: 3159522. Available from the ''
Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. , it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. With i ...
'
website's newspaper databases
accessible with a library card and PIN. As of 2007, the median income of Indians in Houston was $50,250.Patel, Purva.
Asian-American newspapers reach a flourishing market
" ''
Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. , it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. With i ...
''. September 30, 2007. Retrieved on May 25, 2014. As of 2012 the majority of the city's Sikhs originate from the portion of
Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...
in India.Houston Sikh community reacts to shooting
" ''
Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. , it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. With i ...
''. August 6, 2012. Retrieved on May 3, 2014. As of 2007, there were over 24 Indian-American-oriented publications. As of that year, most Indian-American newspapers in Houston are in English. Some smaller newspapers are in Indian languages such as
Hindi Hindi ( Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...
and
Gujarati Gujarati may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India * Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat * Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them * Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub ...
. The ''Indo-American News'', a newspaper owned by K.L. Sindwani, is distributed to fifty locations in
Southwest Houston Southwest Houston is a region in Houston, Texas, United States. The area is considered to be from Texas State Highway 6, south of Westpark Tollway to north of U.S. Route 90. Many Section 8 (housing) complexes are located in Southwest Houston. ...
and has a 5,000 copy-per-week print rate. As of 2007, each issue has 44 pages. Sindwani established it in 1982; at the time he was the only employee and each issue had eight pages. The Indian Culture Center, catering to South Asian groups, opened in 1973, and the Gujarati Samaj, catering to Gujarati people in particular, opened in 1979; the latter group has
Holi Holi (), also known as the Festival of Colours, the Festival of Spring, and the Festival of Love,The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) p. 874 "Holi /'həʊli:/ noun a Hindu spring festival ...". is an ancient Hindu religious festival ...
and Navatri events. An Indian Student Association is at the
University of Houston The University of Houston (UH) is a public research university in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1927, UH is a member of the University of Houston System and the university in Texas with over 47,000 students. Its campus, which is primarily in s ...
. The self-published novel ''An Indian in Cowboy Country'' was written by Indian immigrant Pradeep Anand, who works as an engineer and lives in
Sugar Land Sugar Land is the largest city in Fort Bend County, Texas, United States, located in the southwestern part of the metropolitan area. Located about southwest of downtown Houston, Sugar Land is a populous suburban municipality centered around ...
. In 2019 Indian Americans make up almost 50% of the Asian Americans in Fort Bend County. In 2021 the county had about 24 Indian Christian churches.


Pakistanis

In 2007 the Pakistani-American Association of Greater Houston (PAGH) stated that about 60,000 people of Pakistani origin lived in
Greater Houston Greater Houston, designated by the United States Office of Management and Budget as Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land, is the fifth-most populous metropolitan statistical area in the United States, encompassing nine counties along the Gulf Co ...
and that many of them lived in
Southwest Houston Southwest Houston is a region in Houston, Texas, United States. The area is considered to be from Texas State Highway 6, south of Westpark Tollway to north of U.S. Route 90. Many Section 8 (housing) complexes are located in Southwest Houston. ...
.Patel, Purva.
Pakistani center touts retail concept as a novel idea
" ("Pakistani center pays its way Retail space included as old H-E-B remodeled") ''
Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. , it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. With i ...
''. January 16, 2007. Retrieved on May 2, 2014. As of 2000, over 70% of the Muslims in Houston are Indian or Pakistani.Badr, p
193


Bangladeshis

The Bangladesh Association, Houston (BAH, bn, বাংলাদেশ এসোসিয়েশন, হিউস্টন), Bangladesh Students Association at the University of Houston, and Bangladesh Society of Greater Houston are the Bangladeshi groups in the city. In 1971 the
Bangladeshi American Bangladeshi Americans ( bn, বাংলাদেশী মার্কিনী, Bangladeshī Markinī) are Americans of Bangladeshi descent. The majority of Bangladeshi Americans are Bengalis and form the largest group of Bengali Americans. Ban ...
community in
Greater Houston Greater Houston, designated by the United States Office of Management and Budget as Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land, is the fifth-most populous metropolitan statistical area in the United States, encompassing nine counties along the Gulf Co ...
consisted of about 10 university students; 1971 was the year when Bangladesh, previously
East Pakistan East Pakistan was a Pakistani province established in 1955 by the One Unit Policy, renaming the province as such from East Bengal, which, in modern times, is split between India and Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India and Myanmar, wi ...
, seceded from Pakistan. As of 2011 the Bangladeshi American population of Greater Houston includes over 10,000 people. The Bangladesh Association bought of land in southwestern
unincorporated Unincorporated may refer to: * Unincorporated area, land not governed by a local municipality * Unincorporated entity, a type of organization * Unincorporated territories of the United States, territories under U.S. jurisdiction, to which Congress ...
Harris County in 2001. By 2011 the association announced plans to develop the $2.5 million ($ in today's money) facility Bangladeshi American Center, which will include auditoriums, classrooms, a playground, and an outdoor sports complex. . The first donor conference was held at the Stafford Civic Center in Stafford.In 2012, Bangladeshi Students Association at the University of Houston was resurrected after a ten-year hiatus. This organization was first formed in the 70's soon after the independence of Bangladesh in 1971. UH BSA serves as the link between the 2nd generation of Bangladeshis and the older generation


Filipinos

As of the 2010 U.S. Census there were 22,575 ethnic Filipinos in Harris County, making up 8.1% of the county's Asian population, the third largest Asian American group in the Houston area. Relatively few persons of Filipino origin had come to Houston by 1960,Ordonez, p. 25. and around 1970 the entire State of Texas had about 50,000 people of Filipino origin. The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 allowed for more immigration from Asia, and Filipino immigration increased by the 1980s. Many ethnic Filipinos began working in the
Texas Medical Center The Texas Medical Center (TMC) is a medical district and neighborhood in south-central Houston, Texas, United States, immediately south of the Museum District and west of Texas State Highway 288. Over 60 medical institutions, largely concentrat ...
around that time as Filipino medical professionals gained employment in the U.S. due to their English proficiency.Ordonez, p. 27. In 1990 there were 10,502 ethnic Filipinos in Harris County, making up 9.6% of the county's Asian population. In 2000 this had increased to 15,576, making up 8.1% of the county's Asian population. The Filipino population increased by 45% from 2000 to 2010. In 1980 the Philippine Nurses Association of Metropolitan Houston was established.Ordonez, p. 28. In 1999 the Houston area had about 40,000 Filipino Catholics. There were no particular Filipino Catholic churches. Some Filipinos in the area are Protestants and attend Baptist and Methodist churches. A
Jollibee Jollibee is a Filipino chain of fast food restaurants owned by Jollibee Foods Corporation (JFC). As of December 2021, JFC had a total of about 1,500 Jollibee outlets worldwide, with restaurants in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, East Asia ...
is located near
NRG Park NRG Park, formerly Reliant Park and Astrodomain, is a complex in Houston, named after the energy company NRG Energy. It is located on Kirby Drive at the South Loop West Freeway (I-610). This complex of buildings encompasses of land and consists ...
, opening in 2013. It was placed proximity to the Texas Medical Center, where Filipino nurses work, and was the first location in the State of Texas. Next to it is a
Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...
Asian market and restaurant called Cherry Foodarama. The area is currently being developed into a
Little Manila A Little Manila ( fil, Munting Maynila or ), also known as a Manilatown ( fil, Bayang Maynila) or Filipinotown ( fil, Bayang Pilipino), is a community with a large Filipino immigrant and descendant population. Little Manilas are enclaves of Overs ...
and the area surrounding NRG Park has the highest percentage of Filipino Americans within Houston's city limits. Other areas in the Greater Houston area with significant Filipino populations are
Alief Alief is a working-class suburb in Southwest Harris County, Texas, Harris County, Texas, United States. Most of Alief is within the city limits of Houston, while a portion of the community is in Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated ...
, Brays Oaks,
Fort Bend County Fort Bend County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. The county was founded in 1837 and organized the next year. It is named for a blockhouse at a bend of the Brazos River. The community developed around the fort in early days. Th ...
, and
Pearland Pearland ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, within Brazoria County, with portions extending into Fort Bend and Harris counties. The city of Pearland is a principal city within the metropolitan statistical area. At the 2020 U.S. census, t ...
.


Koreans

As of the 2010 U.S. Census there were 11,813 ethnic Koreans in Harris County, making up 4.2% of the county's Asian population. In 2015 Haejin E. Koh, author of "Korean Americans in Houston: Building Bridges across Cultures and Generations," wrote in regards to the census figure that "community leaders believe the number is twice as large."Koh, Haejin E., p. 17. In 1970 the official census figure for people of Korean origins in the entire state was 2,090. Bruce Glasrud, a historian, stated that the real figure may be higher as some previous Korean immigrants were counted as Japanese, as Korea was then under the
Empire of Japan The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was a historical nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of Japan, 1947 constitu ...
. As of 1983 there were about 10,000 ethnic Korean people in Houston.Cook, Allison. "The Grand Tour." ''
Texas Monthly ''Texas Monthly'' (stylized as ''TexasMonthly'') is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Downtown Austin, Texas. ''Texas Monthly'' was founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy and has been published by Emmis Publishing, L.P. since 1998 and is ...
''.
Emmis Communications Emmis Communications is an American media conglomerate based in Indianapolis, Indiana. Emmis, based on the Hebrew word for Truth (Emet) was founded by Jeff Smulyan in 1980. Emmis has owned many radio stations, including KPWR and WQHT, which h ...
, January 1983. Vol. 11, No. 1. ISSN 0148-7736. START: p
98
CITED: p
144
 In 1990 there were 6,571 ethnic Koreans, making up 6% of the county's Asian population. In 2000 this figure had increased to 8,764, making up 4.5% of the county's Asian population. The number of Koreans increased by 35% from 2000 to 2010. Houston's Korean American population is mostly concentrated in Spring Branch.


Japanese

As of the
2010 U.S. Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators serving ...
, there were 3,566 people of Japanese descent in Harris County, making up 1.3% of the Asians in the county. In 1990 there were 3,425 ethnic Japanese in the county, making up 3.1% of the county's Asians, and in 2000 there were 3,574 ethnic Japanese in the county, making up 1.9% of the county's Asians.


Cambodians

The first Cambodians arrived in Houston while fleeing the Cambodian genocide. A woman named Yani Rose Keo became a community leader and was involved in the affairs of Cambodians who settled in Houston. In 2000 Yani Keo stated that 80,000 people of Cambodian origins lived in Houston while Greater Houston had a total of 82,000 people of Cambodian origins. Many Cambodians in Houston operate doughnut shops; according to Samoeurn Phan, a Cambodian man quoted by food writer
Robb Walsh Robb Walsh is an American food writer, cookbook author, and restaurant owner who divides his time between Galway Bay, Ireland, and Galveston, Texas. He is a former commentator on National Public Radio's Weekend Edition, Sunday; former restaurant ...
in ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
', about 90% of the doughnut shops in Houston were owned by Cambodians in 2017. In 1985 Keo established a farm in an area called "Little Cambodia", in
Brazoria County Brazoria County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, the population of the county was 372,031. The county seat is Angleton. Brazoria County is included in the Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land metropolitan statis ...
, near Rosharon. Terrence McCoy of the ''
Houston Press The ''Houston Press'' is an online newspaper published in Houston, Texas, United States. It is headquartered in the Midtown area. It was also a weekly print newspaper until November 2017. The publication is supported entirely by advertising ...
'' stated that there were "perhaps" 90 families of Cambodian origin living there. - Published in the ''
Dallas Observer ''Dallas Observer'' is a free digital and print publication based in Dallas, Texas. The ''Observer'' publishes daily online coverage of local news, restaurants, music, and arts, as well as longform narrative journalism. A weekly print issue circ ...
'' as:
title=In a Hidden Texas Farming Village, the Making (and Selling) of a Cambodian Bumper Crop
and in ''
Westword ''Westword'' is a free digital and print media publication based in Denver, Colorado. ''Westword'' publishes daily online coverage of local news, restaurants, music and arts, as well as longform narrative journalism. A weekly print issue cir ...
'' as
For some Cambodians in Houston, water spinach provides a figurative and literal lifeline
 In the 2000s (decade) the farmers got into a dispute with the
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department The Texas Parks & Wildlife Department (TPWD) is a Texas state agency that oversees and protects wildlife and their habitats. In addition, the agency is responsible for managing the state's parks and historical areas. Its mission is to manage ...
(TPWD) over the farming of
water spinach ''Ipomoea aquatica'', widely known as water spinach, is a semi- aquatic, tropical plant grown as a vegetable for its tender shoots. ''I. aquatica'' is generally believed to have been first domesticated in Southeast Asia. It is widely cultivate ...
, which the TPWD classified as “Harmful or Potentially Harmful Exotic Fish, Shellfish and Aquatic Plants.” Ultimately the TPWD allowed the farming of water spinach. "Little Cambodia" sustained damage during Hurricane Ike in 2008, and in Hurricane Harvey in 2017.


Other ethnic groups

In addition Houston has populations of Asians from other countries in Southeast Asia and East Asia. This includes Burma (Myanmar), Indonesia, and Thailand. In 2010 there were 40,684 Asians from Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, and Thailand living in Harris County, making up 14.5% of the Asians there. In 1990 there were 12,114 Asians from other countries in Harris County, making up 11% of the county's Asian population. In 2000 the number had increased to 20,579, making up 10.7% of the county's Asian population. The other Asian population of Harris County increased by almost 100% from 2000 to 2010. As of 1983 the
Consulate-General of Indonesia, Houston The Consulate General of the Republic of Indonesia in Houston ( id, Konsulat Jendral Republik Indonesia di Houston) is Indonesia's diplomatic facility in Houston, Texas, United States. The building is located at 10900 Richmond Avenue in the Wes ...
estimated that 300 Indonesian persons were in Houston.Cook, Allison. "The Grand Tour." ''
Texas Monthly ''Texas Monthly'' (stylized as ''TexasMonthly'') is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Downtown Austin, Texas. ''Texas Monthly'' was founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy and has been published by Emmis Publishing, L.P. since 1998 and is ...
''.
Emmis Communications Emmis Communications is an American media conglomerate based in Indianapolis, Indiana. Emmis, based on the Hebrew word for Truth (Emet) was founded by Jeff Smulyan in 1980. Emmis has owned many radio stations, including KPWR and WQHT, which h ...
, January 1983. Vol. 11, No. 1. ISSN 0148-7736. Start: p
98
Cited: p
105
 As of 2004 Houston had the fifth largest
Indonesian Indonesian is anything of, from, or related to Indonesia, an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. It may refer to: * Indonesians, citizens of Indonesia ** Native Indonesians, diverse groups of local inhabitants of the archipelago ** Indonesian ...
population in the United States; this helps sustain the consulate. Over the three years leading to 2009, Houston took about 2,200 Burmese.Giglio, Mike. "The Burmese Come to Houston." ''
Houston Press The ''Houston Press'' is an online newspaper published in Houston, Texas, United States. It is headquartered in the Midtown area. It was also a weekly print newspaper until November 2017. The publication is supported entirely by advertising ...
''. September 1, 2009
1
Retrieved on December 19, 2009.


Geography

The Asian American population of
Greater Katy Greater Katy Area is the term often used to refer to a suburban region on the west side of the Greater Houston metropolitan area roughly corresponding to the boundaries of the Katy Independent School District. Many people and businesses in this ar ...
was about 40,000 in 2019, and from 2000 to 2010 that population increased 300%. There is a development called Katy Asia Town, which is large. It includes an
H Mart H Mart ( ko, H 마트 or ) is an American supermarket chain of Asian supermarkets operated by the Hanahreum Group, headquartered in Lyndhurst, Bergen County (버건군), New Jersey. The chain has 84 stores throughout the United States, operat ...
. By 2020 large numbers of Asian Americans settled suburbs in the Houston area, and Asian Americans were the racial group with the highest growth rates in multiple Houston area counties.


Institutions

In 2010, the Houston Asian American Archives (HAAA), a part of the Chao Center for Asian Studies,
Rice University William Marsh Rice University (Rice University) is a private research university in Houston, Texas. It is on a 300-acre campus near the Houston Museum District and adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. Rice is ranked among the top universities ...
opened.


Commerce

By 2020 ethnic Asian bakeries opened in Houston, including those of Taiwanese and Vietnamese backgrounds.


Politics

Chen and Harwell wrote circa 2015 that the amount of Asian Americans could "swing an election" even though they were not "a large voting bloc", arguing that Lee P. Brown's efforts to make campaign material via telephone and in writing in Asian languages helped secure his victory in the 2001 city elections.Chen and Harwell, p. 6. The Houston 80-20 Asian American Political Action Committee, created in 1999, was set up to represent minorities of Asian origin and to support candidates perceived as supporting them; this PAC does not support any particular political party. Beverley Clark, of mixed Chinese and African-American origins, was elected to the
Houston City Council The Houston City Council is a city council for the city of Houston in the U.S. state of Texas. Currently, there are sixteen members, 11 elected from council districts and five at-large. The members of the Council are elected every four years, w ...
in 1989, being the first city council member of Asian origins.
Martha Wong Dr. Martha Jee Wong, born Martha Jee,(1939–)Gordon Quan Gordon Quan () is a Chinese-American immigration lawyer, and former Houston City Council member. He was the second Asian American ever elected to Houston City Council.Luo, Michael.Athlete increases profile for Asian-Americans" ''Associated Press'' ...
, elected in 1999. The first Muslim on the council, M. J. Khan, an ethnic Pakistani elected in 2003, was also classified as Asian. In 1987 Hannah Chow was elected as the No. 5 official of the Harris County Criminal Court of Law, making her the first elected official of the Harris County government of Asian origins.


References

*
Table of contents
** ** ** **
See profile
**
See profile
** * Klineberg, Stephen L. and Jie Wu.
DIVERSITY AND TRANSFORMATION AMONG ASIANS IN HOUSTON: Findings from the Kinder Institute’s Houston Area Asian Survey (1995, 2002, 2011)
("
Archive
.
Kinder Institute for Urban Research Kinder is the German word for "children"; it may also refer to: Businesses *Kinder, a trademark of Ferrero SpA, Ferrero, an Italian confectioner: **Kinder Surprise **Kinder Chocolate bars **Kinder Happy Hippo **Kinder Bueno **Kinder Joy *Kinder M ...
,
Rice University William Marsh Rice University (Rice University) is a private research university in Houston, Texas. It is on a 300-acre campus near the Houston Museum District and adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. Rice is ranked among the top universities ...
. February 2013. * Rodriguez, Nestor. "Hispanic and Asian Immigration Waves in Houston." in: Chafetz, Janet Salzman and Helen Rose Ebaugh (editors). ''Religion and the New Immigrants: Continuities and Adaptations in Immigrant Congregations''. AltaMira Press, October 18, 2000. , 9780759117129. ** Also available in: Ebaugh, Helen Rose Fuchs and Janet Saltzman Chafetz (editors). ''Religion and the New Immigrants: Continuities and Adaptations in Immigrant Congregations''. Rowman & Littlefield, January 1, 2000. 0742503909, 9780742503908.


Reference notes


Further reading

* {{cite news, last=Chao, first=Anne S., url=https://www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/outlook/article/Essay-Asian-Americans-quietly-made-Houston-16055976.php, title=Essay: Asian Americans quietly made Houston history. Now we must be heard., newspaper=
Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. , it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. With i ...
, date=2021-03-28 - Opinion section


External links


Asian Chamber of Commerce Houston

Asian-American Bar Association of Houston
(AABA) and th
Asian American Bar Foundation

Asian American Health Coalition of the Greater Houston Area

South Asian Bar Association (SABA) of Houston

OCA - Asian Pacific American Advocates of Houston
Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...
Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
Ethnic groups in Houston