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Asian diasporas in France orFrench Asians^[1] consist of foreign residents and French citizensoriginating fromAsian countries living in France. French citizens of Asian descent primarily have ancestry from the formerFrench colonies of Indochina (Vietnam,Laos,Cambodia), as well asChina orTurkey.^[2] Other Asian ethnic groups found in France include otherWest Asians (such as theLebanese),South Asians,Japanese, andKoreans.^[3]

Chinese form the second largest Asian group in France after the Turks, with a population of roughly 600,000 as of 2017.^[4]

The first Chinese migrants to France consisted of traders in the leather and Chinese ceramics trade originating from theWenzhou region during the early 1900s.^[5] DuringWorld War I, a few thousand Chinese laborers were recruited by the French Empire to help with war efforts in Metropolitan France, doing tasks such as working at munitions depots or ports and repairing railways and roads. A small number remained in France after the war ended, settling largely in the Chinese quarter of Paris established earlier by the Wenzhounese merchants, forming the basis of the Chinese community in France.^[6] Chinese immigration to France continued as a trickle during the 1930s and 1940s, with some tradesmen and students arriving in the country, primarily to Paris.^[7] A much larger inflow of ethnic Chinese arrived in France after the end of theVietnam War and the heavy persecution ofethnic Chinese in Vietnam and Cambodia by the new communist government in 1975, along with a larger influx of immigrants from the Wenzhou region of China.^[8]

The13th arrondissement of Paris hosts Paris'Quartier Asiatique, the largest and most important community for the city's Asian population. While originally an ethnic Vietnamese quarter, Chinese have become the largest Asian and ethnic group in the neighborhood following the former community's assimilation into French society. TheBelleville neighborhood of Paris also hosts an important Chinese community, as does the historical Chinese quarter founded by Wenzhounese merchants in the3rd arrondissement of Paris.^[9]

About 300,000 people of Lebanese descent live in France. Most have left because of the Lebanese civil war, the wars ofHezbollah against Israel and internal crisis which has led to Lebanon nearing being considered a failed state.^{[10][11][12][13]}

The Turkish community in France forms the largest Asian community in the country, with an estimated population of 1 million as of 2010;^[14] the estimated number exceeding that as of 2020.^[15][16] The population is as high as 1.9 million according to some Turkish sources.^[17]

The population of ethnic Khmers in France is estimated to be about 80,000 as of 2020, making the community one of the largest in the Cambodian diaspora.^[18] The Cambodian population in France has had a presence in the country dating to well before theVietnam War and subsequentIndochina refugee crisis, unlike counterpart communities in North America and Australia.

Early Cambodian immigration to France began in the latter half of the 19th century, when Cambodia became aFrench protectorate. The first migrants largely consisted of students and workers belonging to the country's elite class.^[19] While most Cambodians arrived as refugees as a result of Indochina's heavy turmoil during the latter half of the 20th century, their large-scale arrival was later than other Indochinese immigrants. Although a few Cambodians were able to flee from theKhmer Rouge takeover in 1975 with French assistance, a much larger influx arrived in the 1980s following the regime collapse and end of theCambodian genocide.^[20]

The number of ethnic Laotians in France was estimated to be 200,000 as of 2017.^[21] The Laotian community in France is the most establishedoverseas Laotian community outside Southeast Asia, having had a presence in the country since the late 19th century, whenLaos became a French protectorate.^[22]

Under French rule, a number of Laotian students and workers arrived in France, with some resettling permanently.^[22] A much larger number of Laotians arrived in France following the end of theLaotian Civil War (a front of the greater Vietnam War) and the communist takeover of their homeland.^[23] The Laotian community is highly integrated into French society, with high average rates of educational and economic achievement, especially among the generations of French-born Lao.^{[24][unreliable source?]}

The Vietnamese form the most established Asian ethnic group in France, with a presence in the country dating back to the start ofFrench colonialism in Vietnam in the latter half of the 19th century. As of 2017, the population of the community was estimated to be about 400,000, the second largestoverseas Vietnamese population outside Asia.^[25]

During the colonial period, there was a significant representation of Vietnamese students in France, as well as professional and blue-collar workers, with a large number settling permanently. Following Vietnam's independence, a number of Vietnamese loyal to the colonial government also emigrated to France. However, the largest influx of Vietnamese people arrived in France as refugees after theFall of Saigon and end of the Vietnam War in 1975.^[26]

The Vietnamese community in France is the most successful among overseas Vietnamese communities, having a high level of both integration and success in academics and income. These achievements have led to French media and politicians regarding the French Vietnamese as amodel minority.^[27]

14% of Southeast Asian immigrants live in social housing, 3 to 4 times less than those from the Maghreb.^[28]

• Hahn, Carine (1999),Le Laos, Karthala,ISBN 9782865378586

• Anti-Asian racism in France

• Asian diaspora in France

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