Chinese people in Spain
Encyclopedia
Chinese people in Spain form the ninth-largest non-European Union
foreign community in Spain
. , official figures showed 145,425 Chinese citizens residing in Spain; however, this figure does not include people with origins in other Overseas Chinese
communities, nor Spanish citizens of Chinese origin or descent.
The first recorded arrivals of Chinese people to Spain, at least as visitors, date from the late 16th century. Bernardino de Escalante
in his Discurso de la navegacion... (one of the first European books on China, published in 1577) says that among his sources of information were "Chinese themselves, who came to Spain" ("los mesmos naturales Chinas que an venido à España"). Juan González de Mendoza
in his History of the great and mighty kingdom of China, wrote that in 1585 "three merchants of China" arrived in Mexico "and neuer staied till they came into Spaine and into other kingdomes further off."
The first large wave of Chinese immigrants came to Spain in the 1920s and 1930s, working as itinerant peddlers. After World War II, they branched out into the restaurant industry, and later into textiles and trade. However, the vast majority of Chinese residents in Spain started arriving in the country around the 1980s. According to Xu Songhua, president of the Association of Chinese in Spain (Asociación de Chinos en España), established in 1985, there are 13,000 Chinese-owned businesses in Spain, including 4,000 restaurants, 3,200 "dollar shops", 1,500 fruit shops, 600 wholesale warehouses, 80 Chinese groceries, 200 textile factories, and 120 photo processing shops. Nowadays, Madrid, Barcelona, and the Canary Islands are home to the largest Chinese communities of Spain. Their population is growing rapidly; their numbers are estimated to have multiplied tenfold in just 13 years. Unlike earlier waves of Chinese immigrants in other countries, over 80% of the Chinese in Spain come from Zhejiang
's Qingtian County
, with smaller numbers from Guangdong
and Fujian
. Others have come from Hong Kong
, Macau
, and Chinese communities of Southeast Asia
(especially Vietnam
and Philippines
), Latin America
, and Europe
.
The age structure of Chinese in Spain is skewed very young; 2003 figures showed only 1.8% aged 65 or older, as compared to 7% of the population of the People's Republic of China
and 17.5% of that of Spain, while over 17% were under the age of 15. As a result of the small proportion of elderly, combined with long working hours and the illegal status of some, Chinese are reported to use medical services at a far lower rate than other ethnic groups in Spain.
, although 3% were monolingual in Spanish. Even long-term residents often send their children back to China for primary and sometimes secondary education; upon their return to Spain, their Spanish language skills are practically non-existent. Only 15,000 have taken Spanish nationality. Crime is also reported to be a problem in the Chinese community, with Triads acting to facilitate people smuggling from China, as well as demanding protection money from Chinese business owners. However, the Triads have not established themselves as drug distributors due to competition from other groups.
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
foreign community in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. , official figures showed 145,425 Chinese citizens residing in Spain; however, this figure does not include people with origins in other Overseas Chinese
Overseas Chinese
Overseas Chinese are people of Chinese birth or descent who live outside the Greater China Area . People of partial Chinese ancestry living outside the Greater China Area may also consider themselves Overseas Chinese....
communities, nor Spanish citizens of Chinese origin or descent.
History
Bernardino de Escalante
Bernardino de Escalante was a Spanish soldier, priest, geographer and a prolific writer. He is best known as the author of the second book on China published in Europe, and the first one to obtain wide circulation outside of Portugal.The foremost scholar of the European literature about Asia,...
in his Discurso de la navegacion... (one of the first European books on China, published in 1577) says that among his sources of information were "Chinese themselves, who came to Spain" ("los mesmos naturales Chinas que an venido à España"). Juan González de Mendoza
Juan González de Mendoza
Juan González de Mendoza was the author of the first Western history of China to publish Chinese characters for Western delectation. Published by him in 1586, Historia de las cosas más notables, ritos y costumbres del gran reyno de la China is an account of observations several Spanish travelers...
in his History of the great and mighty kingdom of China, wrote that in 1585 "three merchants of China" arrived in Mexico "and neuer staied till they came into Spaine and into other kingdomes further off."
The first large wave of Chinese immigrants came to Spain in the 1920s and 1930s, working as itinerant peddlers. After World War II, they branched out into the restaurant industry, and later into textiles and trade. However, the vast majority of Chinese residents in Spain started arriving in the country around the 1980s. According to Xu Songhua, president of the Association of Chinese in Spain (Asociación de Chinos en España), established in 1985, there are 13,000 Chinese-owned businesses in Spain, including 4,000 restaurants, 3,200 "dollar shops", 1,500 fruit shops, 600 wholesale warehouses, 80 Chinese groceries, 200 textile factories, and 120 photo processing shops. Nowadays, Madrid, Barcelona, and the Canary Islands are home to the largest Chinese communities of Spain. Their population is growing rapidly; their numbers are estimated to have multiplied tenfold in just 13 years. Unlike earlier waves of Chinese immigrants in other countries, over 80% of the Chinese in Spain come from Zhejiang
Zhejiang
Zhejiang is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. The word Zhejiang was the old name of the Qiantang River, which passes through Hangzhou, the provincial capital...
's Qingtian County
Qingtian County
Qingtian County is a mountainous county in Zhejiang, China. It is under the administration of the city Lishui. The county capital is Hecheng, also known as Qingtian City.-See also:*Qingtian dialect...
, with smaller numbers from Guangdong
Guangdong
Guangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
and Fujian
Fujian
' , formerly romanised as Fukien or Huguing or Foukien, is a province on the southeast coast of mainland China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, and Guangdong to the south. Taiwan lies to the east, across the Taiwan Strait...
. Others have come from Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, Macau
Macau
Macau , also spelled Macao , is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China...
, and Chinese communities of Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
(especially Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
and Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
), Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
, and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
Demography
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
and 17.5% of that of Spain, while over 17% were under the age of 15. As a result of the small proportion of elderly, combined with long working hours and the illegal status of some, Chinese are reported to use medical services at a far lower rate than other ethnic groups in Spain.
Ethnic relations
Despite the long history of Chinese settlement in Spain, they are often viewed as a "closed and mysterious community". In Elche, protests over cheap imported merchandise from China undercutting local workers resulted in the burning of a Chinese-owned shoe warehouse. The Chinese have also been accused of making little effort to integrate into Spanish society; one 2002 survey of 267 Chinese immigrants showed that only 27% could read and write SpanishSpanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, although 3% were monolingual in Spanish. Even long-term residents often send their children back to China for primary and sometimes secondary education; upon their return to Spain, their Spanish language skills are practically non-existent. Only 15,000 have taken Spanish nationality. Crime is also reported to be a problem in the Chinese community, with Triads acting to facilitate people smuggling from China, as well as demanding protection money from Chinese business owners. However, the Triads have not established themselves as drug distributors due to competition from other groups.