Chinese Brazilians

Chinese Brazilians
Sino-brasileiro

Total population
250,000
Regions with significant populations
São Paulo City, Belo Horizonte, Curitiba and Rio de Janeiro
Languages
Portuguese, Cantonese, Mandarin and Macanese Patois
Related ethnic groups
Asian Brazilians, Asian Americans, Macanese people

Chinese Brazilians (Portuguese: Sino-brasileiro or Chinês-brasileiro; Chinese: 巴西华人 or 巴西华裔) are people of Chinese ancestry who were born in or have immigrated to Brazil. The Chinese Brazilian population was estimated to be approximately 250,000.

It is known that there were Chinese in Brazil as far back as the late 18th century. Rugendas painted a depiction of Chinese Tea planters in Rio de Janeiro during the period of the Portuguese Royal family in Brazil. In 1814 John VI of Portugal brought 300 Chinese from Macau to work in the Botanical Garden of Rio de Janeiro.

São Paulo has the largest Chinese Brazilian population, in particular on the district of Liberdade. Besides being an area famous for its strong Japanese presence, a significant number of Taiwanese immigrants have settled in Liberdade, and many Chinese immigrants have come to Liberdade following the Communist revolution in 1949. Many Cantonese from Hong Kong and Portuguese-speaking Macau, including some Macanese of mixed Chinese and Portuguese descent, have also settled in Brazil. These Macau immigrants can usually speak and understand Portuguese (its Creole, Macanese or Patuá, is also spoken), allowing them to adjust more easily to life in Brazil. Today, the majority of Chinese Brazilians only speak Portuguese, although some may be bilingual, speaking Portuguese and Chinese.

Notable people

• Lawrence Lin Murata, technology entrepreneur
• Ken Chang, a Brazilian actor of Chinese descent, popular TV series star in Taiwan and China.
• Chu Ming Silveira, architect
• Chen Kong Fang, artist;
• Sou Kit Gom, artist-painter;
• Anderson Lau, actor;
• Paula Huang, researcher at University of São Paulo;
• Gui Lin, Olympic Athlete in Table Tennis;
• Mel Huang, well known eater of biscuits;
• Lawrence Pih, business man - President of Moinho Pacifico, the largest flour mill in South America, Early supporter of President Lula da Silva
• Margie Kong, famous chef known nationally for beef recipe;
• Anthony Wong, infectologist-pediatrician.
• William Boss Woo, politician.

External links

• A Presença Chinesa no Brasil - Pesquisa Bibliográfica. Fundação João Nabuco/João Nabuco Foundation of Brazil together with the International Institute of Macau present: "The Chinese Presence in Brazil - A Bibliographic Research".
• Padrões de Linguagem nos Imigrantes Chineses - Diglossia. This is a scholarly article written in Portuguese, the title meaning "Diglossie - Patterns of Language of Chinese Immigrants [in Brazil].