Koreans in China in the context of "Diasporic"

Play Trivia Questions online!

or

Skip to study material about Koreans in China in the context of "Diasporic"




⭐ Core Definition: Koreans in China

Koreans in China include both ethnic Koreans with Chinese citizenship and foreign residents living in China such as South Koreans (Chinese: 在华韩国人·韩裔), North Koreans (Chinese: 在华朝鲜人·朝鲜裔) and other Overseas Koreans. For this reason, ethnic Koreans with Chinese citizenship are termed Korean Chinese, Joseonjok, Chosŏnjok (Korean조선족; Hancha朝鮮族), and their official name in China is Chaoxianzu (朝鲜族; Cháoxiǎnzú; 'Joseon ethnic group'). Korean Chinese are the 13th largest ethnic minority group in China. They form a diasporic community with cultural ties to the Korean Peninsula across generations, including among individuals who have never visited Korea.

Most native Korean Chinese live in the Northeast China. Significant populations can also be found in Heilongjiang and Inner Mongolia, with a sizable expatriate community in Shanghai and Shandong across the Yellow Sea. According to the South Korean government, the combined population of Koreans with Chinese nationality, South Korean and North Korean expats in China is 2,109,727 in 2023.

↓ Menu

In this Dossier

Koreans in China in the context of Koreans

Koreans are an East Asian ethnic group native to the Korean Peninsula. The majority of Koreans live in the two Korean sovereign states of North and South Korea, which are collectively referred to as Korea. As of 2021, an estimated 7.3 million ethnic Koreans resided outside of Korea. Koreans are also an officially recognised ethnic minority in other several Continental and East Asian countries, including China, Japan, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Uzbekistan. Outside of Continental and East Asia, sizeable Korean communities have formed in Germany, the United Kingdom, France, the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

↑ Return to Menu

Koreans in China in the context of List of ethnic groups in China

The Han Chinese are the largest ethnic group in Mainland China. In 2010, 91.51% of the population were classified as Han Chinese (~1.2 billion). Besides the Han Chinese majority, 55 other ethnic (minority) groups are categorized in present-day China, numbering approximately 105 million people (8%), mostly concentrated in the bordering northwest, north, northeast, south and southwest but with some in central interior areas.

The major ethnic minorities in China are the Zhuang (19.6 million), Hui (11.4 million), Uyghurs (11 million), Miao (11 million), Manchus (10.4 million), Yi (9.8 million), Tujia (9.6 million), Tibetans (7 million), Mongols (6.3 million), Buyei (3.5 million), Dong (3.5 million), Yao (3.3 million), Bai (2 million), Koreans (1.7 million), Hani (1.7 million), Li (1.6 million), Kazakhs (1.5 million), and Dai (1.2 million). In addition, there are a number of unrecognized ethnic groups which together comprise over 730,000 people. Collectively, the ethnic groups of China are referred to as the Zhonghua minzu (Chinese: 中华民族; pinyin: Zhōnghuá mínzú; lit. 'Chinese ethnicity'). However, being part of the Zhonghua minzu (i.e. being part of one of the 56 ethnic groups) does not necessarily mean one must have Chinese nationality (Chinese: 中国国籍; pinyin: Zhōngguó guójí) or be loyal to the People's Republic of China.

↑ Return to Menu

Koreans in China in the context of Korean Americans

Korean Americans (Korean한국계 미국인) are Americans of full or partial Korean ethnic descent. While the broader term Overseas Korean in America (미주한인/재미교포/재미한인) may refer to all ethnic Koreans residing in the United States, the specific designation of Korean American implies the holding of American citizenship.

As of 2022, there are 1.5–1.8 million Americans of Korean descent, of whom roughly 1.04 million were born abroad, accounting for 8% of all Asian Americans and 0.5% of the total U.S. population. However, prominent scholars and Korean associations claim that the Korean American population exceeds 2.5–3 million, which would make it the largest community Overseas Koreans in the world, ahead of China's 2.1 million.

↑ Return to Menu

Koreans in China in the context of Korean Canadians

Korean Canadians (French: Coréo-Canadiens) are Canadian citizens of full or partial Korean ancestry. As of 2016, Korean Canadians are the 8th largest group of Asian Canadians.

Korean immigration to Canada began with seminary students in the 1940s and accelerated during the 1990s. According to the 2021 Canadian Census, there were 218,140 Korean Canadians in Canada. According to South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, there were 241,750 ethnic Koreans or people of Korean descent living in Canada as of 2019, making them the fourth-largest Korean diaspora population (behind Koreans in China, Koreans in the United States, and Koreans in Japan, and ahead of Koreans in Russia, Koreans in Uzbekistan and Koreans in Australia).

↑ Return to Menu