London's original Chinatown was located in the Limehouse area of the East End, particularly around Limehouse Causeway and Pennyfields, starting in the late 18th to late 19th centuries. It was established by Chinese sailors and workers near the docks but largely declined after WWII due to slum clearance and bombing.
Liverpool Chinatown was the first to be established in Europe. In the late 1860s many Chinese migrants first arrived in Liverpool as a result of employment of Chinese seamen by the Blue Funnel Shipping Line, creating strong links between the cities, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Liverpool.
Which London district was once famous for its Chinatown?
Before Chinese restaurants, businesses and communities laid down roots in the West End, London's first Chinatown could be found on the other side of the city. A Chinese restaurant in Limehouse Chinatown.
Chinese people have lived and worked in London since the eighteenth century; the earliest settlers being associated with the East India Company. Immigration became more significant from the 1880s onwards after China's defeat in the 'Opium Wars'.
The name "SoHo" derives from the area being "South of Houston Street", and was coined in 1962 by Chester Rapkin, an urban planner and author of The South Houston Industrial Area study, also known as the "Rapkin Report". The name also recalls Soho, an area in London's West End.
The Flushing Chinatown has surpassed the original Manhattan Chinatown in size. As of 2023, illegal Chinese immigration to New York, and especially to Queens and its Flushing Chinatown, has accelerated.
Friends, a semi-spoiler alert: nothing good happens in Chinatown. From casual racism to intimate violence, plot and themes center on people doing bad things to each other. Be aware, should you choose to watch, that viewing this story will involve some rough going.
There are Chinatowns located all over the UK, many of which will be located in or near close cities such as London or Manchester. There are 8 major Chinatowns in the UK and many more situated throughout the world in Africa, Australia, Europe, North America and South East Asia.
Limehouse was named after the limekilns of 'oasts' which burned chalk from Kent to make builder's lime. By the 14th Century it was called 'le Lymhostes'. By 1553 it was called 'Lymehurst'. The Thames River Police were founded in 1798 to protect valuable cargo on board the West India Company's ships.
Binondo, Manila's Chinatown, is the oldest of its kind in the world. More than 400 years since it was established, the district still continues to thrive. Derived from the Filipino word binundok (“mountainous”), Binondo was established in 1594 as a permanent settlement for Chinese-Catholic immigrants.
The biggest Chinatown in the UK is in London, located in the West End near Leicester Square, known for its dense cluster of restaurants, shops, and cultural venues, especially vibrant during Chinese New Year celebrations. While London's is the largest and most famous, Manchester has the second-largest, and Liverpool has Europe's oldest Chinatown, marked by a large ceremonial gate.
There are more than 50 Chinatowns spread across the United States. On the surface, they are vibrant cities within a city like in New York, San Francisco, Chicago and Boston, bustling with tourists and natives. Chinatowns weren't always the tourist hubs we know them to be today.
The name "Soho" first appears around 1636. The name is derived from a former hunting cry. James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth, used "soho" as a rallying call for his men at the Battle of Sedgemoor on 6 July 1685, half a century after the name was first used for this area of London.
The biggest immigrant population in London, by country of birth, is from India, followed by large communities from Romania, Poland, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, reflecting both historical Commonwealth ties and recent EU migration patterns, with India consistently leading as the largest single non-UK birthplace, notes the Trust for London.
Hong Kong was under British rule from 1841 to 1997, except for a brief period of Japanese occupation during the Second World War from 1941 to 1945. It was a Crown colony of the United Kingdom from 1841 to 1981, and a dependent territory from 1981 to 1997.
