Chinatown, Brisbane ( zh, 布里斯班唐人街) is a precinct in
Fortitude Valley,
Brisbane
Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...
, Australia. It is centred on Chinatown Mall, a
pedestrian street which occupies all of Duncan Street. The Mall runs parallel to
Brunswick Street Mall, and connects Wickham Street and
Ann Street. The precinct is the location of Chinese restaurants and shops, and is the venue for events including
Chinese New Year
Chinese New Year, or the Spring Festival (see also #Names, § Names), is a festival that celebrates the beginning of a New Year, new year on the traditional lunisolar calendar, lunisolar Chinese calendar. It is one of the most important holi ...
and
Valley Fiesta. Street signs in the area are written in both English and
Chinese. It is also home to many restaurants offering Chinese, Korean, Indonesian, Japanese, Thai and Vietnamese cuisines. Its pan-Asian nature is also emphasized through the hosting of many Asian festivals including the annual Indian festival,
Diwali
Diwali (), also called Deepavali (IAST: ''Dīpāvalī'') or Deepawali (IAST: ''Dīpāwalī''), is the Hindu festival of lights, with variations celebrated in other Indian religions such as Jainism and Sikhism. It symbolises the spiritual v ...
.
Chinatown's popularity with
Chinese Australians has declined in the past two decades, and
Sunnybank is instead seen as the hub of Chinese culture in Brisbane.
History
Chinatown Mall was officially opened by Lord Mayor
Sallyanne Atkinson on 29 January 1987, the first day of the Year of the
Rabbit
Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also includes the hares), which is in the order Lagomorpha (which also includes pikas). They are familiar throughout the world as a small herbivore, a prey animal, a domesticated ...
.
The Mall was designed by architects and engineers from
Guangzhou
Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...
, and was intended to reflect
Tang architecture.
In 1995 part of
Jackie Chan's First Strike (1996) was shot in the Mall.
The scene featured a car chase and an explosion. The Mall's pagoda was destroyed during filming and subsequently rebuilt.
Brisbane City Council began a renovation of Chinatown Mall in 2009. The project, which was designed by Urbis, cost $8,000,000. The Mall was supposed to be finished by September 2009 but was delayed, reopening on 14 February 2010.
Chinatown Mall was the original setting of the infamous
Democracy Manifest internet meme.
See also
*
Holy Triad Temple, heritage-listed temple at 32 Higgs Street, Albion, City of Brisbane, Queensland
*
Chinatowns in Australia
*
Tourism in Brisbane
References
External links
{{Coord, 27, 27, 31.14, S, 153, 2, 1.49, E, scale:391_type:landmark_region:AU, display=title
Asian-Australian culture in Queensland
Buildings and structures in Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...
Tourist attractions in Brisbane
1987 establishments in Australia
Fortitude Valley, Queensland