Chinese diaspora in France
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The Chinese diaspora in France consists of people of
Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
ancestry who were born in or immigrated to
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
. The ethnic Chinese population in France is estimated to be about 600,000-700,000, making it the largest overseas Chinese community in Europe.


History


17th century

The first record of a Chinese man in France is
Shen Fo-tsung Michael Alphonsus Shen Fu-Tsung, SJ, also known as Michel Sin, Michel Chin-fo-tsoung, Shen Fo-tsung, or Shen Fuzong (, 1691),
in 1684, and soon after
Arcade Huang Arcadio Huang (, born in Xinghua, modern Putian, in Fujian, 15 November 1679, died on 1 October 1716 in Paris)Mungello, p.125 was a Chinese Christian convert, brought to Paris by the Missions étrangères. He took a pioneering role in the teach ...
, also known as
Huang Jialü Huang or Hwang may refer to: Location * Huang County, former county in Shandong, China, current Longkou City * Yellow River, or Huang River, in China * Huangshan, mountain range in Anhui, China * Huang (state), state in ancient China. * Hwang Riv ...
(1679-1716). He was brought back by
Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...
missionaries to the
Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ...
court of Louis XIV, the Sun King in the late 17th century, and oversaw a collection of manuscripts sent as a gift from the
Kangxi Emperor The Kangxi Emperor (4 May 1654– 20 December 1722), also known by his temple name Emperor Shengzu of Qing, born Xuanye, was the third emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the second Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning from 1661 to 1 ...
of
Qing China The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu people, Manchu-led Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin (1616–1636), La ...
.


Belle Époque

The opening of the Chinese port at
Wenzhou Wenzhou (pronounced ; Wenzhounese: Yuziou y33–11 tɕiɤu33–32 ), historically known as Wenchow is a prefecture-level city in southeastern Zhejiang province in the People's Republic of China. Wenzhou is located at the extreme south east o ...
in 1876 soon saw a small number of merchants from the region arriving in Paris, being the first wave of Chinese settlement in France. The 1911 census counted 283 Chinese in France. This tiny Chinese population during the
Belle Époque The Belle Époque or La Belle Époque (; French for "Beautiful Epoch") is a period of French and European history, usually considered to begin around 1871–1880 and to end with the outbreak of World War I in 1914. Occurring during the era ...
period mainly consisted of students, journalists, intellectuals, as well as merchants. Many students of Chinese ethnicity in France were not from China but rather
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 ...
, which was a French colony with a significant Chinese population. In 1902,
Li Shizeng Li Shizeng (; 29 May 1881 – 30 September 1973), born Li Yuying, was an educator, promoter of anarchist doctrines, political activist, and member of the Chinese Nationalist Party in early Republican China. After coming to Paris in 1902, Li to ...
and Zhang Jingjiang arrived in Paris as "embassy students" accompanying Ambassador to France Sun Baoqi. Li soon left this official position to study biology at in
Montargis Montargis () is a communes of France, commune in the Loiret Departments of France, department, Centre-Val de Loire, France. Montargis is the seventh most populous commune in the Loiret, after Orléans and its suburbs. It is near a large forest, ...
, a town 120 kilometres south of Paris. He founded the first factory which manufactured
beancurd Tofu (), also known as bean curd in English, is a food prepared by coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into solid white blocks of varying softness; it can be ''silken'', ''soft'', ''firm'', ''extra firm'' or ''super fir ...
for the French market. Zhang established a Paris gallery which sold Chinese art. Together with their friend
Wu Zhihui Wu Jingheng (), commonly known by his courtesy name Wu Zhihui (Woo Chih-hui, ; 1865–1953), also known as Wu Shi-Fee, was a Chinese linguist and philosopher who was the chairman of the 1912–13 Commission on the Unification of Pronunciatio ...
, they formed the French branch of the Chinese anarchist movement which drew inspiration from French anarchists. In 1909, the three arranged for 140 students to come from China to work in the beancurd factory in order to support their study of French language and culture. Over the next two decades, Li, Zhang, and Wu established a number of institutions of Sino-French friendship such as the
Diligent Work-Frugal Study Movement The Diligent Work-Frugal Study Movement, often referred to as the Work-Study Movement (; French: ''Mouvement Travail-Études''), was a series of work-study programs which brought Chinese students to France and Belgium to work in factories as a way ...
. Also arriving in Paris at this time was the art-dealer C.T. Loo, who married a French woman and maintained a business there until the 1950s.


World War I

Between 1915 and 1916, with the
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
conflict at its height between the
allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
and the Central Powers of Germany and Austro-Hungary, the British recruited more than 100,000 Chinese (
Chinese Labour Corps The Chinese Labour Corps (CLC; french: Corps de Travailleurs Chinois; ) was a force of workers recruited by the British government in the First World War to free troops for front line duty by performing support work and manual labour. The French ...
) and their French allies some 40,000, and shipped them to the French western front as desperately needed labour to relieve an acute manpower shortage. Picquart, a French China specialist, gives a description of the fate of the Chinese workers. They cleared mines, repaired roads and unloaded ships, with their contribution going unrecognized for decades. Mainly aged between 20 and 35 and hailing from the northern Chinese provinces of
Hebei Hebei or , (; alternately Hopeh) is a northern province of China. Hebei is China's sixth most populous province, with over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital city. The province is 96% Han Chinese, 3% Manchu, 0.8% Hui, an ...
,
Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, Postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an Eastern China, eastern coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China. It is o ...
and particularly
Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizati ...
, as well as Wenzhou, they served as labour in the rear echelons or helped build munitions depots, repair railways and roads, and unloaded ships at Allied ports. Some worked in armaments factories, others in naval shipyards, for a pittance of three to five francs a day. At the time they were seen just as cheap labour, not even allowed out of camp to fraternise locally, dismissed as mere coolies. When the war ended some were used for mine clearance, or to recover the bodies of soldiers and fill in miles of trenches. After the
Armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the La ...
, the Chinese, each identified only by an impersonal reference number, were shipped home. Only about 2,000 to 3,000 stayed on, forming the nucleus of the later Chinese community in Paris. Most who survived returned to China in 1918. However, some were trapped in France by the 30 June 1920 collapse of the ''
Banque industrielle de Chine The Banque Industrielle de Chine (BIC, "Industrial Bank of China"; zh, 中法實業銀行) was a French bank with its main activities in China and French Indochina. It was created in 1913, expanded rapidly, but collapsed in 1921, causing major ...
''. An estimated ten thousand died in the war effort, victims of either shelling, landmines, poor treatment or the worldwide Spanish flu epidemic of 1918. Their remains still lie in 30 French graveyards, the largest at
Noyelles-sur-Mer Noyelles-sur-Mer (, literally ''Noyelles on Sea'') is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography Noyelles-sur-Mer is situated on the coast, facing the English Channel, on the D11 and D40 junction, some ...
on the Somme, where some of the fiercest battles occurred. The cemetery contains 842 gravestones each engraved with
Chinese character Chinese characters () are logograms developed for the Written Chinese, writing of Chinese. In addition, they have been adapted to write other East Asian languages, and remain a key component of the Japanese writing system where they are k ...
s, guarded by two stone lions, gifts from China. After decades of neglect, the Chinese World War I labourers were ceremoniously recognized for their effort. An annual ceremony of tribute has taken place since 2002 at the cemetery at Noyelles-sur-Mer each April to coincide with the Chinese Festival of Qingming, attended by representatives of the French veterans' associations, the Chinese ambassador to France and members of Chinese associations in France. A 2004 documentary film, "Journey With no Return," (Voyage sans retour), was shown on French television.


Post World War I

Of the 2,000 to 3,000 Chinese who remained in France after World War I, most became factory workers and settled around the
Île-de-France , timezone1 = CET , utc_offset1 = +01:00 , timezone1_DST = CEST , utc_offset1_DST = +02:00 , blank_name_sec1 = Gross regional product , blank_info_sec1 = Ranked 1st , bla ...
region, especially in
Boulogne-Billancourt Boulogne-Billancourt (; often colloquially called simply Boulogne, until 1924 Boulogne-sur-Seine, ) is a wealthy and prestigious Communes of France, commune in the Parisian area, located from its Kilometre zero, centre. It is a Subprefectures in ...
. The presence of the larger and more established Vietnamese community in France had an effect in helping the Chinese settle down and jointly form the first significant Asian presence in France. The first rooted Chinese community in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
was based first around the
Gare de Lyon The Gare de Lyon, officially Paris-Gare-de-Lyon, is one of the six large mainline railway stations in Paris, France. It handles about 148.1 million passengers annually according to the estimates of the SNCF in 2018, with SNCF railways and RER D ...
in the east of the capital, then near the Arts et Métiers metro station in the 3rd arrondissement. Since 1919, the number of Chinese in France was slightly bolstered by an influx of students from both
French Indochina French Indochina (previously spelled as French Indo-China),; vi, Đông Dương thuộc Pháp, , lit. 'East Ocean under French Control; km, ឥណ្ឌូចិនបារាំង, ; th, อินโดจีนฝรั่งเศส, ...
and China, (including
Zhou Enlai Zhou Enlai (; 5 March 1898 – 8 January 1976) was a Chinese statesman and military officer who served as the first Premier of the People's Republic of China, premier of the People's Republic of China from 1 October 1949 until his death on 8 J ...
, who would later become the
Premier of the People's Republic of China The premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China, commonly called the premier of China and sometimes also referred to as the prime minister, is the head of government of China and leader of the State Council. The premier is ...
and
Deng Xiaoping Deng Xiaoping (22 August 1904 – 19 February 1997) was a Chinese revolutionary leader, military commander and statesman who served as the paramount leader of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from December 1978 to November 1989. After CC ...
, later
de facto ''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...
leader of China), who would play a crucial leadership role in organising community institutions for the Chinese there. In the 1930s and 1940s, Chinese from
Wenzhou Wenzhou (pronounced ; Wenzhounese: Yuziou y33–11 tɕiɤu33–32 ), historically known as Wenchow is a prefecture-level city in southeastern Zhejiang province in the People's Republic of China. Wenzhou is located at the extreme south east o ...
settled in Paris (as well as in many other European cities such as Madrid, Frankfurt, Florence, Milan). They worked as
leather Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffalo, pigs and hogs, ...
workers near the Jewish neighborhood in the 3rd arrondissement and setting up sundries and mini-markets. Taking over the
wholesale Wholesaling or distributing is the sale of goods or merchandise to retailers; to industrial, commercial, institutional or other professional business users; or to other wholesalers (wholesale businesses) and related subordinated services. In ...
trade lost by the Jews during the
German occupation of France The Military Administration in France (german: Militärverwaltung in Frankreich; french: Occupation de la France par l'Allemagne) was an interim occupation authority established by Nazi Germany during World War II to administer the occupied zo ...
during
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 opposin ...
, the Chinese community continues to exist today.


Recent immigration


Vietnamese Chinese

After the
Fall of Saigon The Fall of Saigon, also known as the Liberation of Saigon by North Vietnamese or Liberation of the South by the Vietnamese government, and known as Black April by anti-communist overseas Vietnamese was the capture of Saigon, the capital of ...
in 1975, ethnic Chinese from Vietnam were heavily persecuted by the new communist government and faced expulsion from the newly reunified country. This led to a wave of emigration to France, as Vietnamese Chinese joined other ethnic Vietnamese refugees from
South Vietnam South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam ( vi, Việt Nam Cộng hòa), was a state in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975, the period when the southern portion of Vietnam was a member of the Western Bloc during part of th ...
and largely resettled in Paris and the surrounding
Île-de-France , timezone1 = CET , utc_offset1 = +01:00 , timezone1_DST = CEST , utc_offset1_DST = +02:00 , blank_name_sec1 = Gross regional product , blank_info_sec1 = Ranked 1st , bla ...
region. Ethnic Chinese from Laos and
Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand t ...
, the other two former French Indochina colonies, also arrived in France after this period of conflict for similar reasons. During the period, the high-rise neighbourhood in the southeast of Paris' 13th arrondissement, where the city's ''
Quartier Asiatique The Quartier asiatique (Asian Quarter), also called Triangle de Choisy or Petite Asie (Chinese: 巴黎唐人街, Vietnamese: ''Phố Tàu Paris'') is the largest commercial and cultural center for the Asian community of Paris. It is located in t ...
'' (Asian Quarter) is located, saw significant population growth. The area contains many Chinese inhabitants predominantly living in high-rise apartments, in addition to large Vietnamese and Laotian communities. Similar to the ethnic Vietnamese population, Chinese refugees from Vietnam who migrated to France on average had a higher level of affluence and are better integrated into the host nation than their peers who migrated to North America or Australia.


Other new immigrants

Since the 1980s, immigration has increased steadily, with the main source countries being
mainland China "Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territories within Greater China. ...
, notably from
Wenzhou Wenzhou (pronounced ; Wenzhounese: Yuziou y33–11 tɕiɤu33–32 ), historically known as Wenchow is a prefecture-level city in southeastern Zhejiang province in the People's Republic of China. Wenzhou is located at the extreme south east o ...
, in addition to the countries of former
French Indochina French Indochina (previously spelled as French Indo-China),; vi, Đông Dương thuộc Pháp, , lit. 'East Ocean under French Control; km, ឥណ្ឌូចិនបារាំង, ; th, อินโดจีนฝรั่งเศส, ...
. More recently, Chinese immigration to France has shifted to migrants from the northeast of the mainland. In Paris, settlement is spread across both urban and suburban districts, notably the 13th arrondissement, and the Templetowns of
Lognes Lognes () is a community in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France from the center of Paris. The community of Lognes is part of the Val Maubuée sector, one of the four sector ...
, Torcy,
Noisy-le-Grand Noisy-le-Grand () is a commune in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. The commune of Noisy-le-Grand is part of the sector of Porte de Paris, one of the four sectors of the "new town" of Marne-la-Vallée. ...
.
Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...
and
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...
also have significant Chinese communities.


Cultural profile

The Chinese community in France can be categorized into three different groups based on migrant history and
varieties of Chinese Chinese, also known as Sinitic, is a branch of the Sino-Tibetan language family consisting of hundreds of local varieties, many of which are not mutually intelligible. Variation is particularly strong in the more mountainous southeast of main ...
spoken.


Wenzhounese

Ethnic Chinese with origins from
Wenzhou Wenzhou (pronounced ; Wenzhounese: Yuziou y33–11 tɕiɤu33–32 ), historically known as Wenchow is a prefecture-level city in southeastern Zhejiang province in the People's Republic of China. Wenzhou is located at the extreme south east o ...
and the surrounding southern
Zhejiang province Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Jiangs ...
form the largest and most established Chinese community in France, with a population of about 350,000 as of 2010. The earliest Chinese migrants to France arrived in the late 19th century and consisted of Wenzhounese merchants who produced
Chinese ceramics Chinese ceramics show a continuous development since pre-dynastic times and are one of the most significant forms of Chinese art and ceramics globally. The first pottery was made during the Palaeolithic era. Chinese ceramics range from construc ...
. During World War I, the vast majority of the 100,000 Chinese laborers recruited to work in France originated from the Wenzhou area, with a small number remaining in France after the conflict ended. During the 1970s and 1980s, a large wave of Chinese from Wenzhou arrived in France, with a number brought over by family members already present in France.


Chinese of French Indochina

Following the end of the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
in 1975, a large number of ethnic Chinese from the former French colonies in Southeast Asia (
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 ...
,
Laos Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist ...
, and
Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand t ...
) emigrated to France to escape the communist takeover of their countries and persecution by the new governments. The population of this community was about 150,000 as of 2010. Their origins from former French colonies resulted in a strong background of French language and culture upon their arrival and their level of assimilation into French society has been largely quick and successful, being the most integrated Chinese community in France. As in their former countries, ethnic Chinese from Indochina are heavily involved in commerce, especially among the generation of immigrants, and average income levels are above the national median. Teochew is the most frequently spoken Chinese variety among this community, with
Cantonese Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding are ...
also prevalent and used as a common commercial and community language due to its status as a historical ''lingua franca'' among Chinese in Indochina. Additionally, knowledge of
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 ...
is common among the generation of refugees, who largely originated from the former South Vietnam, while Lao and Khmer are conversant among the smaller number of refugees originating from Laos and Cambodia respectively.


Dongbei

Over the last decade, newer Chinese immigrants to France have largely originated from
Northeast China Northeast China or Northeastern China () is a geographical region of China, which is often referred to as "Manchuria" or "Inner Manchuria" by surrounding countries and the West. It usually corresponds specifically to the three provinces east of t ...
(''Dongbei''). Their population as of 2010 was about 15,000. Women largely outnumber men among this Chinese community and often leave China for France in hopes of establishing new lives, largely due to dissatisfaction with life in their homeland. Education levels among the Dongbei vary from secondary level to having degrees in higher education, a rate higher than Wenzhounese immigrants and a little under par with those of Chinese from Indochina. The community has only recently started to become established, with some members opening establishments and becoming economically independent. Nevertheless, the overwhelming majority of ethnic Chinese prostitutes in France have origins in Dongbei, and the group is still looked down upon by their other ethnic Chinese peers in France.
Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...
is the Chinese variety most commonly spoken among members of this community.


Communal relations

Despite being of the same ethnic group, the Chinese community in France is divided between the linguistic and migrant groups mentioned above. Community organizations serve their target migrant group specifically rather than the Chinese population as a whole. While the Dongbei community has recently participated with Wenzhou community groups and many members have settled in Wenzhou Chinese areas, Chinese from Indochina still rarely interact with their peer groups from
mainland China "Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territories within Greater China. ...
. This division of the Chinese community in France is rooted in history, the level of assimilation among groups, and to a lesser extent, politics. While Chinese from Indochina arrived in France largely as Vietnam War refugees, Wenzhounese and Dongbei migrants came for economic purposes, with some having an intent to return to China after a few years. Although the Wenzhounese form the oldest Chinese group in France, they are the least assimilated, largely staying within their communities and interacting with the French populace chiefly through business and among the younger generation, education. Due to their origins from China, as well as language barriers, Dongbei migrants have favored associating with the Wenzhounese community rather than the Indochinese one. In contrast, the generation of immigrants among Chinese from former French Indochina integrated quickly, establishing itself into French society within a short period of time. Chinese from Indochina often share negative French views of mainland Chinese groups, being critical of their rather closed communities and poor French abilities among established immigrants. In fact, a vast majority of community members usually associate themselves with the
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 ...
, Laotian or
Cambodian Cambodian usually refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Cambodia ** Cambodian people (or Khmer people) ** Cambodian language (or Khmer language) ** For citizens and nationals of Cambodia, see Demographics of Cambodia ** Fo ...
populations in France (depending on their country of origin) instead.


Political views

Regarding politics, Chinese from Indochina are staunchly anti-communist, reflecting the community's mostly refugee origins. While they are critical of the communist parties in their origin countries, criticism is sometimes targeted at the
Chinese Communist Party The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victoriou ...
(CCP). Meanwhile, although many Wenzhounese and Dongbei emigrated from China for political purposes, the groups mostly remain indifferent to the CCP. A handful of members of the latter two groups are supportive of the CCP, usually government-sponsored students or businesspeople. A larger political disagreement between the two groups regards
illegal immigration Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of the immigration laws of that country or the continued residence without the legal right to live in that country. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upwar ...
. The majority of illegal Asian immigrants to France are from mainland China, specifically the Wenzhou region, with a smaller number from northern China. While Wenzhounese and Dongbei community groups favor granting residency to illegal Chinese immigrants already in France, Chinese from Indochina are strongly opposed to the idea and support the French government's deportation of illegal immigrants. Indochinese community leaders and French politicians have accused illegal mainland Chinese of
money laundering Money laundering is the process of concealing the origin of money, obtained from illicit activities such as drug trafficking, corruption, embezzlement or gambling, by converting it into a legitimate source. It is a crime in many jurisdictions ...
. Legal migrants have also been accused of
tax evasion Tax evasion is an illegal attempt to defeat the imposition of taxes by individuals, corporations, trusts, and others. Tax evasion often entails the deliberate misrepresentation of the taxpayer's affairs to the tax authorities to reduce the taxp ...
and supporting illegal Chinese migrants. A number of illegal Wenzhounese have fled France to neighboring countries such as
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
through the passport-free
Schengen Agreement The Schengen Agreement ( , ) is a treaty which led to the creation of Europe's Schengen Area, in which internal border checks have largely been abolished. It was signed on 14 June 1985, near the town of Schengen, Luxembourg, by five of the t ...
. The generally poor integration level of immigrants and cases of illegal immigration among the Wenzhounese and Dongbei have led the Chinese community from Indochina regarding the groups as "backward, country-folk", with refusal of cooperation with their community leaders. For example, a string of robberies on Chinese businesses and assaults on individuals belonging to the former two groups and a consequent march against the crimes in the Belleville neighborhood of Paris drew feelings of indifference among the latter Chinese community.


In popular culture

*
Marinette Dupain-Cheng Marinette Dupain-Cheng () is a fictional character and the female protagonist of the animated television series '' Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir'' created by Thomas Astruc. Depicted as a teenage student of Chinese and French descent, ...
, the female protagonist of the animated television series '' Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir'' and her mother, named Sabine Cheng, are a student of Chinese and French descent with the secret superhero identity of Ladybug and an emigrant from China who settled in France before marrying the former's father respectively. *Chen Liaoping from the Belgian comic series, Cedric is the love interest of the main character of the same namesake in the title along with her parents are emigrants from China who settled in France.


Notable people

*
Dai Sijie Dai Sijie (born 1954) is a Chinese French author and filmmaker. Early life Dai was born in Putian, Fujian, in 1954. His parents, Professor Dai Baoming and Professor Hu Xiaosu, were professors of medical sciences at West China University. ...
*
Bérénice Marlohe Bérénice Lim Marlohe (born 19 May 1979) is a French actress. She played anti-heroine Bond girl Sévérine in the twenty-third ''James Bond'' film ''Skyfall''. Her television credits include ''Père et Maire'', ''Femmes de loi'', and ''Equip ...
*
Gao Xingjian Gao Xingjian (高行健 in Chinese - born January 4, 1940) is a Chinese émigré and later French naturalized novelist, playwright, critic, painter, photographer, film director, and translator who in 2000 was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature " ...
*
Jean Pasqualini Jean Pasqualini (; 1926 – 9 October 1997) was a French and Chinese journalist who wrote a memoir of his experiences as a political prisoner in the Laogai labor camp system. Born in Beijing, Jean Pasqualini was the son of a Chinese mother a ...
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Mikaël Silvestre Mikaël Samy Silvestre (born 9 August 1977) is a French former professional footballer who played as a defender. Silvestre began his career at Rennes in 1996, before moving to Italian club Inter Milan in 1998. He joined Manchester United in 19 ...
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Mylène Jampanoï Mylène Jampanoï (born Lena Jam-Panoï; 12 July 1980) is a French actress, model, and visual artist. Her first leading role was in the drama film '' The Chinese Botanist's Daughters'' (2006). She subsequently garnered international attention f ...
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Anne Cheng Anne Cheng (; born 11 July 1955) is a French Sinologist who teaches at the Collège de France and specializes in Chinese history and the history of Chinese philosophy. Pablo Ariel Blitstein, the author of "A new debate about alterity," descr ...
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François Cheng François Cheng (; born 30 August 1929) is a Chinese-born French academician, writer, poet, and calligrapher. He is the author of essays, novels, collections of poetry and books on art written in the French language, and the translator of some o ...
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Zao Wou-Ki Zao Wou-Ki (; 1 February 1920 – 9 April 2013) was a Chinese-French painter. He was a member of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Zao Wou-Ki graduated from the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou, where he studied under Fang Ganmin and Wu ...
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Frédéric Chau Frédéric Chau (born 6 June 1977) is a Vietnam-born French actor of Chinese-Cambodian descent. Life and career Frédéric Chau was born in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, to parents of the Chinese minority in Cambodia. In 1977, while his mother ...
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Yan Pei-Ming Yan Pei-Ming (Simplified Chinese: 严培明; pinyin: Yán Péimíng), born 1 December 1960, is a Chinese painter. Since 1981 he has been living in Dijon, France. His most famous paintings are "epic-sized" portraits of Mao Zedong worked out in blac ...
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Yiqing Yin Yiqing Yin (; born 1985) is a Chinese-born, Paris-based Haute Couture designer and an official member of the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture. Early life Yin was born in Beijing in 1985, and moved to France with her family at the age ...


See also

*
Overseas Chinese Overseas Chinese () refers to people of Chinese birth or ethnicity who reside outside Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan. As of 2011, there were over 40.3 million overseas Chinese. Terminology () or ''Hoan-kheh'' () in Hokkien, refe ...
*
Chinese community in Paris As of 1990, the majority of Asians living in the Paris area were Overseas Chinese, ethnic Chinese originating from several countries.Guillon, p187 The largest group includes ethnic Chinese from Indochina, and a smaller group originates from Zhej ...


Notes


References


Further reading

* * * * Liu, G Ames. "France" in L. Pan Ed. (2006) ''Encyclopaedia of the Chinese Overseas'', Singapore: Chinese Heritage Centre (revised edition).
Subject Area - Chinese in France
(Total: 38) Chinese Overseas Collection, CUHK Library Collection. * Carine Pina-Guerassimoff. ''Gender and Migration Networks: New Approaches to Research on Chinese Migration to France and Europe''. Journal of Chinese Overseas. May 2006, Third Issue. *


External links



Ma Shumin
Chinese Workers in France
Article published in ''Échanges et Mouvement'' #121, summer 2007 {{Overseas Chinese Asian diaspora in France
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
Ethnic groups in France China–France relations Immigration to France by country of origin