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Stone lions at the gate to the Victoria, BC Chinatown

As with the restaurant trade, grocery stores and seafood markets serve a key function in Chinatown economies, and these stores sell Chinese ingredients to such restaurants. Such markets are wholesalers. Chinatown grocers and markets are often characterized by sidewalk vegetable and fruit stalls - a quintessential image of Chinatowns - and also sell a variety of grocery items imported from East Asia (chiefly Mainland China, Taiwan, Japan, and South Korea) and Southeast Asia (principally Vietnam, Thailand, and Malaysia). For example, most Chinatown markets stock items such as sacks of Thai jasmine rice, Chinese chrysanthemum and oolong teas, bottles of oyster sauce, rice vermicelli, Hong Kong soybean beverages, Malaysian snack items, Taiwanese rice crackers, and Japanese seaweed and Chinese specialties such as black duck eggs (often used in rice porridge), bok choy and water chestnuts. These markets may also sell fish (especially tilapia) and other seafood items, which are kept alive in aquariums, for Chinese and other Asian cuisine dishes. Until recently, these items generally could not be found outside of the Chinatown enclaves, although since the 1970s Asian supermarkets have proliferated in the suburbs of North America and Australia, competing strongly with the old Chinatown markets.

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Yaowarat Road, Chinatown in Bangkok

Chinatown in film, television, and the arts

Film

Broken Blossoms (1919) directed by D.W. Griffith starring Lillian Gish.

The Hatchet Man (1931), Los Angeles, Edward G. Robinson

Mr. Wong in Chinatown (1939), Boris Karloff

Mr. Wong in Phantom of Chinatown (1940), Boris Karloff

Confesion of a Opium Eater, (1962), Vincet Price, the horror film aboot opium smoking in Chinatown, San Franciso in 1902

Chinatown (1974), Los Angeles, Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway (despite the title, very little footage in Chinatown, which functions more as a metaphor, though the scenes that are filmed there are key scenes)

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978), San Francisco, Donald Sutherland, Brooke Adams, two key scenes are set in the City by the Bay’s Chinatown.

Blade Runner (1982), Los Angeles Chinatown of 2019, Harrison Ford, Sean Young

Chan Is Missing (1982) directed by Wayne Wang, set in San Francisco’s Chinatown.

Year of the Dragon (1985), Manhattan Chinatown, Mickey Rourke

Big Trouble in Little China (1986), San Francisco, Kurt Russell, Kim Cattrall

China Girl (1987), filmed in NYC Chinatown

Eat a Bowl of Tea (1989), set in the New York Chinatown of the 1940s

Bird on a Wire (1990), Chinatown, Victoria, British Columbia, Mel Gibson, Goldie Hawn (Note: Victoria’s Chinatown in this film is standing in for a fictional Chinatown in Racine, Wisconsin. Racine has no actual Chinatown.)

The Joy Luck Club (1992), based on the novel by Amy Tan (see below)

Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story (1993), San Francisco

Golden Gate (1994), San Francisco, Matt Dillon and Joan Chen

Jade (1995), San Francisco, with David Caruso, Linda Fiorentino

Jackie Chan’s First Strike (1996), Brisbane (Australia) Chinatown, Jackie Chan

The Game (1997), San Francisco, Michael Douglas and Sean Penn

Mr. Nice Guy (1997), Melbourne (Australia) Chinatown, Jackie Chan

Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), Pierce Brosnan, motorcycle chase scene supposedly set in Ho Chi Minh City’s Cholon district (Vietnam) but actually filmed in Bangkok’s Yaowarat (Thailand)

Lethal Weapon 4 (1998), Los Angeles

Rush Hour (1998), Los Angeles Chinatown, Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker

The Corruptor (1999), set in Manhattan Chinatown but filmed in Toronto, Canada Chinatown, Chow Yun-Fat and Mark Wahlberg

Entrapment (1999), Sean Connery and Catherine Zeta Jones, a scene filmed in Chinatown of Malacca (Malaysia)

Now Chinatown (2000), independent film, Los Angeles Chinatown

Romeo Must Die (2000), San Francisco Chinatown but filmed in part in Vancouver, Canada, Jet Li and Aaliyah

Long Life, Happiness & Prosperity (2002), Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

The Sweetest Thing (2002), Cameron Diaz, Selma Blair and Christina Applegate, three scenes including a comical musical sequence are set in San Francisco’s Chinatown

Freaky Friday (2003), several key scenes are set in the Los Angeles Chinatown

The Departed (2006), Martin Scorsese’s Boston-set crime epic with Matt Damon, Leonardo DiCaprio and Jack Nicholson features one key scene in the city’s Chinatown neighborhood.

Year of the Fish (2007), a Chinese folk tale variant of Cinderella set entirely in modern-day Chinatown, New York.

High School High, (1996), Jon Lovitz, story set and filming in Chinatown, Los Angeles

Fast and furious (2001), scene of the race scene with motorcycle gang set in a fictional Chinatown of Los Angeles (complete with Confucianist statues and a Chinese paifang), but actually filmed in Little Saigon in suburban Orange County, California

Saving Face (2004), the main character, Wil is from Flushing Chinatown in New York; notable scenes in the beginning and end of the film are set there

Falling for Grace (2007), the main character, Grace Tang is from Manhattan Chinatown in New York; several scenes are set there

Television

Hawaii Five-O (1978) - episode titled “A Death in the Family”, Honolulu Chinatown

The Incredible Hulk (1981) - episode titled “East Winds”

Reading Rainbow (1980) - educational series, “Liang & the Magic Paintbrush” episode, Manhattan Chinatown

My Secret Identity (1989) - episode titled “The Eyes of the Shadow”

The Simpsons (1989-2006) - animated series. Characters visit the Manhattan Chinatown in the episode “The City of New York vs. Homer Simpson.” The first part of the episode titled “A Hunka Hunka Burns in Love” takes place in the fictitious Springfield Chinatown. Included are many exaggerated or ridiculous depictions of a dragon dance, fortune cookies, and an imagining of a “Tibettown.”

Kung Fu: The Legend Continues (1993-1997) - starring David Carradine and Chris Potter. Numerous episodes are set in the Chinatown of an unnamed major U.S. city as the protagonist lives in one. Filmed in Toronto.

Nash Bridges (1996-2001) - episode titled “Promised Land”, San Francisco’s Chinatown, that has title character Nash (Don Johnson) and his unit investigating a powerful crime lord (Michael Paul Chan).

The X-Files (1996) - episode titled “Hell Money”, portraying San Francisco’s Chinatown. Filmed in Vancouver.

Charmed (1998) - episode titled “Dead Man Dating”, San Francisco’s Chinatown

Law and Order: Special Victims Unit (1999-2006) - two episodes in Manhattan Chinatown. The episode “Debt” deals with the issue of immigrant smuggling, whereas “Inheritance” deals with a serial offender who targets members of the Chinese community.

Time Machine: Chinatown: Strangers in a Strange Land (2000) - documentary, The History Channel

Law and Order: Criminal Intent (2001) - cold open of the episode “Chinoiserie” features a heinous crime taking place in Manhattan Chinatown.

Martin Yan’s Chinatowns (2002-2004) - cooking show on Food Network Canada, shows multiple worldwide Chinatowns and their various Chinese cuisine

Sucker Free City (2004) filmed for cable television and directed by Spike Lee, set and filmed on-location in San Francisco’s Chinatown, a vignette dealing with a teenage Chinatown racketeer and selling of pirated gangsta rap CDs in Chinatown

Family Guy (2005) - In the episode “Breaking Out Is Hard to Do”, Lois is sentenced to three years in prison for stealing. Peter smuggles Lois out of prison and they hop into a laundry van which brings them to “Asiantown” where they seek refuge. “Asiantown” is a reference to and resembles a Chinatown.

Other

Flower Drum Song (1958), musical, San Francisco

The Joy Luck Club (1988), novel by Amy Tan

Lethal Enforcers (1992) - video game. The assignment “Chinatown Assault” takes place in Chicago’s Chinatown.

Driver: You Are The Wheelman (1999), video game, San Francisco Chinatown

Paper Shadows: A Chinatown Childhood (1999), memoir by Wayson Choy

Kill the Messenger (2006), novel by Tami Hoag

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, video game, contains an in-game city called San Fierro, modeled after San Francisco, complete with a Chinatown.

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Chinatown entry arch in Newcastle, UK

In Chinese, Chinatown is usually called, in Standard Mandarin, Tángrénji? (???): “Tang people streets”. Indeed, some Chinatowns are just a street, such as the relatively short Fisgard Street in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada or the sprawling 4-mile (6.4km) long new Chinatown of Bellaire Boulevard in Houston, Texas. In Cantonese, it is called Tong yan gai (Tang people street) and the modern Tong yan fau (???), which literally means Tang people town or more accurately, Chinese town. Hong ngin gai is used in the Taishan dialect, the once prevalent dialect spoken in North American Chinatowns. It is Tong ngin gai in Hakka, one of the widely spoken and diffused dialects among overseas Chinese. Tang and Tong refer to the Tang Dynasty, an era in Chinese history.
 

A more modern Chinese name is Huábù (??: Chinese City), used in the semi-official Chinese translations of some cities’ documents and signs. Bù, pronounced sometimes as fù, usually means seaport; but in this sense, it means city or town. The literal word-for-word translation of Chinatown is Zh?ngguó Chéng (???), occasionally used in Chinese writing.

In Francophone regions (such as France and Quebec), Chinatown is often referred to as le quartier Chinois (the Chinese Quarter; plural: les quartiers Chinois) and the Spanish-language term is usually el barrio chino (the Chinese neighborhood; plural: los barrios chinos), used in Spain and Latin America. (However, barrio chino or its Catalan cognate barri xines do not always refer to a Chinese neighborhood: these are also common terms for a disreputable district with drugs and prostitution, and often no connection to the Chinese.). The Vietnamese term for Chinatown is Khu ng??i Hoa, due to the prevalence of the Vietnamese language in Chinatowns of Paris, Los Angeles, Toronto, and Montréal as ethic Chinese from Vietnam have set up shop in them. Other countries also have idiosyncratic names for Chinatown in local languages and in Chinese; however, some local terms may not necessarily translate as Chinatown. For example, Singapore’s tourist-centric Chinatown is called in local Singaporean Mandarin Niúch?sh?i (???), which literally means “Ox-cart water” from the Malay ‘Kreta Ayer’ in reference to the water carts that used to ply the area. Some languages have adopted the English-language term, such as Dutch, German, and Bahasa Malaysia. In Malaysia, the term Chinatown is named under administrative reason. Instead, the name Chee Chong Kai?????is preferred and agreed upon by the locals. Chee in Hakka means tapioca, chong means factory and kai means street. This is originated from a factory that was set up by Yap Ah Loy, a rich Kapitan (a Chinese immigrant that has administrative and political power under the British rule) that made tapioca. Chee Chong Kai is also called jalan Petaling or “Petaling Street”.

Several alternate English names for Chinatown include China Town (generally used in British and Australian English), The Chinese District, Chinese Quarter and China Alley (an antiquated term used primarily in several rural towns in the western United States for a Chinese community; some of these are now historical sites). In the case of Lillooet, British Columbia, Canada, China Alley was a parallel commercial street adjacent to the town’s Main Street, enjoying a view over the river valley adjacent and also over the main residential part of Chinatown, which was largely of adobe construction. All traces of Chinatown and China Alley there have disappeared, despite a once large and prosperous community

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The Chinatown Mall in Brisbane, Australia

The articles Chinatowns in North America and Chinatowns in Australasia provide more detail while the List of Chinatowns has general locations.

Flushing, Queens, New York (New York City)

In the 1970s and 1980s, Flushing was settled by an influx of Chinese immigrants from Taiwan - who have largely avoided Chinatown, Manhattan for the most part. The Chinese business district is located on Roosevelt Avenue. Today, the community is not exclusively Taiwanese/Chinese but also contains an adjacent Korean area.

Cabramatta, New South Wales, Australia (Sydney)

A new Chinese retail district was formed by Vietnamese Chinese refugees in the heavily working-class Sydney suburb of Cabramatta.

Richmond, British Columbia, Canada (Vancouver)

Hong Kong Chinese immigrants settled in the Vancouver area in the 1980s and 1990s. The shopping malls are located upon No. 3 Road (in an area called the Golden Village) in the fairly affluent suburb of Richmond, which have replaced the cultural influence of the poorer Chinatown in downtown Vancouver.

Markham, Ontario, Canada (Greater Toronto Area)

Many Chinese strip plazas are foundalong Highway 7 and Steeles (particularly around Steeles and Kennedy). The construction of Pacific Mall (North America’s biggest Chinese-theme mall) in 1997 has attracted visitors from Toronto and abroad.

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Liverpool Road in Ashfield, New South Wales, Australia

Factors influencing developments of newer quasi-Chinatowns

Country Reason

People’s Republic of China (”Mainlander”) Market reforms in Communist China allowing for migration, growing social stratification forcing poor to seek to their fortunes elsewhere (some as illegal immigrants), and elites such as relatives of leaders like Hu Jintao and Jiang Zemin settling in the West in order to obtain Western nationalities before returning to the mainland.

Taiwan (”Taiwanese”) Pro-Kuomintang Chinese perceive they did not belong in the island of Taiwan as the Taiwanese localization movement gathered full steam after Chiang Ching-kuo’s death, but could not expect return to the still-Communist mainland China either, so went to the West.

Hong Kong (”Hongkonger”) Fear by businessmen and opponents of Chinese Communists of implications of 1997 handover of Hong Kong from Britain to Communist China

Vietnam (Hoa) Persecution of Vietnamese-born ethnic Chinese by the Communist Vietnamese government; left Vietnam as impoverished boat people

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The Los Angeles suburb of Monterey Park, California has been described as a “suburban Chinatown”

Developments of newer Chinese retail from 1970s to present day

Newer arrivals of Chinese immigrants - from mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Southeast Asia - generally ignored the older Chinatowns that were established by the earlier mmigrants. Political instabilities and upheavals in East Asia during the 1970s and 1980s, caused an influx of new immigration. Additionally, investors and developers were taking advantage of major real estate opportunities. For example, developers have built up strip malls.

Later waves of immigrants from Hong Kong and Taiwan have arrived with comparative affluence and may have no need for the benevolent associations described above. These communities contain restaurants and stores but in sprawled out fashion (some in suburban form), rather than in cramped conditions. They are not called “Chinatowns” per se, but serve as quasi-Chinatowns. In place of the term “Chinatown”, some of these business districts have earned nicknames which correspond to the cities of the immigrants’ origins, such as “Little Taipei” (Monterey Park, California, United States), “Little Shanghai” (Ashfield, New South Wales, Australia), and “Little Hong Kong” (Richmond, British Columbia, Canada).
 

These new forms of Chinese retail are typically to be located in the cities of Australia, Canada, and the United States and serve as newer centers of Chinese activity. As a result, some cities that received significant amounts of recent Chinese - namely San Francisco, Los Angeles, Vancouver, Toronto, and Sydney - have one main Chinatown (often of historic value) and an an alternative center of retail and cultural activities in outlying communities.

The article Chinatown patterns in North America describes these developments. Effects on the old Chinatowns are mentioned in Social problems in Chinatown.

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Like Chinese worldwide, the people in Calgary, Alberta’s Chinatown perform dragon dances for good luck

Dragon and lion dances are performed in Chinatown every Chinese New Year, particularly to scare off evil spirits and bring good fortune to the community. They are also performed to celebrate a grand opening of a new Chinatown business, such as a restaurant or bank.

Ironically, many lion and dragon dances are considered more preserved in true form in Chinatowns than in China itself. This discrepancy is attributed to the fact that traditional Chinese customs, including lion and dragon dances, were unable to flourish during the political and social instabilities of Imperial China under rule of the Qing Dynasty and were almost eliminated completely under the communist order of the People’s Republic of China under Chairman Mao Zedong. However, due to the migration of Chinese all over the world (particularly Southeast Asia), the dances were continually practiced by overseas Chinese and performed in Chinatowns.

Ceremonial wreaths and leafy green plants with red-coloured ribbons strewn across are also usually placed in front of new Chinatown businesses by well-wishers (particularly family members, wholesalers, community organizations, and so on), to assure future success.

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Yokohama Chinatown’s Goodwill Gate

Most Chinatowns present Chinese New Year (also known as Lunar New Year) festivities with dragon and lion dances accompanied by the rhythm of clashing of cymbals, clanging on a gong, clapping of hardwood clappers, by pounding of drums, and by loud Chinese firecrackers, set off especially in front of ethnic Chinese storefronts, where the “lion” character attempts to reach for a lettuce or catch an orange. The lion typically contains two performers and performances may involves several stunts. In return, storekeepers usually donate some money to the performers, some of whom belong to local martial arts affiliations.

In addition, some streets of Chinatowns are closed off for parades, Chinese acrobatics and martial arts demonstrations, street festivals, and carnival rides - this is dependent on the promoters or organizers of the events. Other festivals may also be held in a parking lot/car park, local park, or school grounds within Chinatown.

Some Chinatowns hold an annual “Miss Chinatown” beauty pageant, such as “Miss Chinatown San Francisco,” “Miss Chinatown Hawaii,” “Miss Chinatown Houston” or “Miss Chinatown Atlanta.”

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Benevolent associations have been associated with the Kuomintang. The flag of the Republic of China is still flown by most benevolent associations in San Francisco Chinatown, including these on Waverly Street

A major component of many Chinatowns is the family benevolent association, which provides some degree of aid to immigrants. These associations generally provide social support, religious services, death benefits (members’ names in Chinese are generally enshrined on tablets and posted on walls), meals, and recreational activities for ethnic Chinese, especially for older Chinese migrants. Membership in these associations can be based on members sharing a common Chinese surname or belonging to a common clan, spoken Chinese dialect, specific village, region or country of origin, and so on. Many have their own facilities.

Some examples include San Francisco’s prominent Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association (?????), aka Chinese Six Companies, and Los Angeles’ Southern California Teochew Association. The Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association is among the largest umbrella groups of benevolent associations in the North America, which branches in several Chinatowns. Politically, the CCBA has traditionally been aligned with the Kuomintang and the Republic of China.

The London Chinatown Chinese Association is active in Chinatown, London. Paris has an institution in the Association des Résidents en France d’origine indochinoise and it servicing overseas Chinese immigrants in Paris who were born in the former French Indochina.

Traditionally, Chinatown-based associations have also been aligned on ethnic Chinese business interests, such as restaurant, grocery, and laundry (antiquated) associations in Chinatowns in North America. In Chicago’s Chinatown, the On Leong Merchants Association was active.

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Petaling Street, Chinatown in Malaysia

Besides restaurants, the Chinatowns of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and Singapore are noted for their street vendors selling local-style Chinese food from carts and stalls.

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