                          | |
 Korean-Colombian Cultural Foundation in Bogota, Colombia | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 200,000 (2023, est.) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Bogotá,Barranquilla,Cali,Cartagena,Medellín,Santa Marta,Neiva,Manizales,Cúcuta,Pereira | |
| Languages | |
| Colombian Spanish,Chinese,Japanese,Korean,Languages in India,Arabic,Vietnamese,Armenian,Turkish,Thai,Filipino,Malay. | |
| Religion | |
| Buddhism,Catholicism,Hinduism,Islam,Protestantism,Shintoism,Sikhism | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Asians,Arabs,Colombians,Arab Colombians |
Asian Colombians (Spanish:colombianos asiáticos;Latin American Spanish:[/kolombjanos//aˈsjatikos/]) areAsian immigrants inColombia and their descendants. The majority of Asian Colombians are ofChinese andJapanese descent,[1][2][3] with a smaller portion being ofKorean descent. There are also notableSouth Asian,Southeast Asian,Arab, andMiddle Eastern descending populations.[4][5]
A study by Latinobarómetro in 2023 estimated that 0.4% of Colombians are Asian, this would equate to around 200,000 of Colombia's population of approximately 50 million people.[6]
In 1854, many Chinese migrants arrived in Colombian territory for the construction of thePanama Canal Railway across theIsthmus of Panama, as the domestic labor force was insufficient.[7] Around 705 Chinese immigrants came to Panama fromGuandong province to work on the railway after demonstrating their skills working on the construction of the firstTranscontinental Railroad on thewest coast of the United States.[8][9] The Chinese migrants being brought into both projects were a desperate measure by the managers of the railway companies, who did not have enough workers among the native population for the construction and failed to import enoughIrish,German, and otherEuropean migrants to make up for the deficit.[7][10]
At the beginning of the 20th century,Indian Muslim migrants settled in the towns of theCauca River valley, some just temporarily and others permanently, to engage in the commercial activity demanded by the new working population of the nascentsugar industry. These immigrants brought a variety of products to rural areas, both grantingcredit and acceptingbarter.[5]
Toraji Irie, a renownedJapanese writer, states in his work on Japanese migration to other regions of the World that the first Japanese migrants who arrived in Colombia in 1903, the year Panama gainedindependence and Colombia lost control of theIsthmus of Panama, came as a result of the Colombian Government seeking help from Japan in hiring workers to guard land bordering Panama against U.S. incursions.[11]
In 1928, this was the smallest migratory group, being somewhat small compared to otherSouth American countries likeBrazil,Peru orVenezuela. Despite this, some Japanese families began settling inValle del Cauca,[12] where many became farmers.
Between 1970 and 1980, there was a small yet constant flow of Asian migration (mainly from China) into Colombian cities, primarilyBogotá,Barranquilla,Cali,Cartagena,Medellín,Santa Marta,Neiva,Manizales,Cúcuta andPereira, which continues to this day. Other very small groups of Asian migrants came fromIndia,[4]Indonesia,Pakistan and thePhilippines.
Between 1970 and 1980 there were more than 6,000 Chinese Immigrants in Colombia, as they continued to arrive and grow in population. Anti-Immigration policies in many other countries is a possible factor in continuedChinese immigration into Colombia. Emigration out of China into Colombia generally did not occur in the first three decades following the establishment of thePeople's Republic of China, as emigration was restricted. Due toXenophobia andSinophobia within the United States, a significant amount of Chinese people chose to immigrate into other countries, including Colombia.[13]
Most Arab Colombians are ofLebanese,Syrian andPalestinian origins,[14] largely emigrating from theOttoman Empire in the late 19th century.[15][16] Many of them settled in cities like Barranquilla and Maicao.[17] The total population of Colombians ofMiddle Eastern descent was put at 3.2 million by theNational Administrative Department of Statistics (DANE).[18][14]
As the Arab population in Colombia grows, so does itsMuslim community. From 2007 to 2023, Bogotá went from having 1 mosque to 6.[17]
Colombia has the third-largest Lebanese population abroad below onlyArgentina andBrazil, with an estimated population of between 1,200,000 and 2,500,000 people. Between 1880 and 1930, it is estimated 10,000 to 30,000 Lebanese migrants relocated to Colombia.
According to a 2025 article byRaúl Zibechi for The North American Congress on Latin America, there were 100,000 Palestinians in Colombia. Approximate estimations by theEmbassy of Palestine in Bogotá were between 100,000 and 120,000 people in 2019, this included first, second, third, and fourthgeneration Palestinian immigrants.
A large portion of Chinese emigration into Colombian in the 21st century has been composed of employees and business executives who have moved to Colombia following themultinational corporations they work for, some of which providing housing and accommodations for them directly. This has encouraged the development ofethnic enclaves in cities that welcome multinational corporations, such as Medellín, Barranquilla, and Cali. While many Chinese resident workers are ontemporary visas, the enclaves are established and composed of many permanent Chinese-Colombianresidents and citizens.[20] In 2014, it was estimated that there were 25,000 Chinese peolple living in Colombia.[21] As of 2018, the Chinese embassy totaled around 20,000 Chinese citizens living in Colombian cities.[22]
Due to Chinese immigration to Colombia, dishes such asarroz chino have become popular street food.[14]
According to theMinistry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, as of 2024, there were 1,315 Japanese nationals residing in Colombia and an estimated 3,100 "Japanese descendants".[23]
| By origin in Asia  |
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