Asian Latin Americans or Latinasians are

Latin Americans Latin Americans ( es, Latinoamericanos; pt, Latino-americanos; ) are the citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their diasporas are multi-et ...

of Asian descent. Asian immigrants to Latin America have largely been from

East Asia East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, North Korea, South Korea ...

West Asia Western Asia, West Asia, or Southwest Asia, is the westernmost subregion of the larger geographical region of Asia, as defined by some academics, UN bodies and other institutions. It is almost entirely a part of the Middle East, and includes ...

. Historically, Asians in Latin America have a centuries-long history in the region, starting with

Filipinos Filipinos ( tl, Mga Pilipino) are the people who are citizens of or native to the Philippines. The majority of Filipinos today come from various Austronesian ethnolinguistic groups, all typically speaking either Filipino, English and/or other ...

in the 16th century. The peak of Asian immigration occurred in the 19th and 20th centuries. There are currently more than four million Asian Latin Americans, nearly 1% of

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived ...

's population. Chinese, Japanese and the Lebanese are the largest Asian ancestries; other major ethnic groups include

Syrians Syrians ( ar, سُورِيُّون, ''Sūriyyīn'') are an Eastern Mediterranean ethnic group indigenous to the Levant. They share common Levantine Semitic roots. The cultural and linguistic heritage of the Syrian people is a blend of both ind ...

, Indians,

Koreans Koreans ( South Korean: , , North Korean: , ; see names of Korea) are an East Asian ethnic group native to the Korean Peninsula. Koreans mainly live in the two Korean nation states: North Korea and South Korea (collectively and simply r ...

and

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

is home to the largest population of East Asian descent, estimated at 2.08 million. The country is also home is a large percentage of West Asian descendants. With as much as 5% of their population having some degree of Chinese ancestry, Peru has the highest ratio of any country for East Asian descent. Though the most recent official census, which relied on self-identification, gave a much lower percentage. There has been notable emigration from these communities in recent decades, so that there are now hundreds of thousands of people of Asian Latin American origin in both

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

History

The first Asian Latin Americans were

who made their way to Latin America (primarily to

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribb ...

and

Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...

and secondarily to

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the ...

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...

and

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

) in the 16th century, as slaves, crew members, and prisoners during the Spanish colonial rule of the Philippines through the Viceroyalty of

New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( es, Virreinato de Nueva España, ), or Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain during the Spanish colonization of the A ...

, with its capital in Mexico City. For two and a half centuries (between 1565 and 1815) many Filipinos and Chinese sailed on the Manila-Acapulco Galleons, assisting in the

Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...

's monopoly in trade. Some of these sailors never returned to the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

and many of their descendants can be found in small communities around

Baja California Baja California (; 'Lower California'), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California), is a state in Mexico. It is the northernmost and westernmost of the 32 federal entities of Mex ...

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Sonora), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into 72 municipalities; the ...

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

and others, thus making Filipinos the oldest Asian ethnic group in Latin America. While South Asians had been present in various forms in Latin America for centuries by the 1800s, it was in this century that the flow into the region spiked dramatically. This rapid influx of hundreds of thousands of mainly male South Asians was due to the need for indentured servants. This is largely tied to th
abolition of black slavery in the Caribbean colonies in 1834
Without the promise of free labor and a hostile working class on their hands, the Dutch colonial authorities had to find a solution – cheap Asian labor. Japanese immigrant family in Brazil 02

Many of these immigrant populations became such fixtures in their adopted countries that they acquired names of their own. For example, the Chinese men who labored in agricultural work became known as "

coolie A coolie (also spelled koelie, kuli, khuli, khulie, cooli, cooly, or quli) is a term for a low-wage labourer, typically of South Asian or East Asian descent. The word ''coolie'' was first popularized in the 16th century by European traders acros ...

s". While these imported Asian laborers were initially just replacement for agricultural slave labor, they gradually began to enter other sectors as the economy evolved. Before long, they had entered more urban work and the service sector. In certain areas, these populations assimilated into the minority populations, adding yet another definition to go on a

casta () is a term which means "lineage" in Spanish and Portuguese and has historically been used as a racial and social identifier. In the context of the Spanish Empire in the Americas it also refers to a now-discredited 20th-century theoretical f ...

. In some areas, these new populations caused conflict. In Northern Mexico, tensions became inevitable when the United States began to shut off Chinese immigration in the early 1880s. Many who were originally bound for the United States were re-routed to Mexico. The rapid increase in population and rise to middle/upper class standing generated strong resentment among existing residents. These tensions lead to riots. In the state of Sonora, the entire Chinese population was expelled in 1929. Today, the overwhelming majority of Asian Latin Americans are either of East Asian (namely Chinese, Japanese or Korean), or West Asian descent (mostly the Lebanese or

). Many of whom arrived during the second half of the 1800s and the first half of the 1900s. Japanese migration mostly came to a halt after World War II (with the exception of

Japanese settlement in the Dominican Republic Japanese Dominicans are Dominican citizens of Japanese origin. Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs estimates the Japanese descended population in the country at roughly 800. , there were also 873 Japanese nationals in the Dominican Republic. Th ...

), while Korean migration mostly came to an end by the 1980s and Chinese migration remains ongoing in a number of countries. Settlement of war refugees has been extremely minor: a few dozen ex-North Korean soldiers went to Argentina after the

Korean War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Korean War , partof = the Cold War and the Korean conflict , image = Korean War Montage 2.png , image_size = 300px , caption = Clockwise from top:{ ...

and some Hmong went to

French Guiana French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label= French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic coast of South America in the Guianas ...

after the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

Roles in labor

Asian Latin Americans served various roles during their time as low wage workers in Latin America. In the second half of the nineteenth century, nearly a quarter of a million Chinese migrants in Cuba worked primarily on sugar plantations. The Chinese "coolies" who migrated to Peru took up work on the Andean Railroad or the Guano Fields. Over time the Chinese progressed to acquiring work in urban centers as tradesmen, restaurateurs and in the service industry. By the second decade of the nineteenth century, approximately 25,000 Chinese migrants in Mexico found relative success with small businesses, government bureaucracy, and intellectual circles. In the 1830s, the British and Dutch colonial governments also imported South Asians to work as indentured servants to places such as Trinidad and Tobago, Suriname, Curaçao and British Guiana (later renamed Guayana). At the turn of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Japanese immigrants reached Brazil and Peru. Much like the Chinese, the Japanese often worked as indentured servants and low wage workers for planters. Japanese work contracts were notably more short term than those of the Chinese and the process was closely monitored by the Japanese government to dissuade abuse and foul play. In both cases, the influx of Asian migrant workers was to fill the void left in the Latin American work forces after the abolition of slavery. Employers of all kinds were desperate for a low cost replacement for their slaves so those who did not participate in any illegal slave operations turned to the Asian migrants.

Geographic distribution

Four and a half million Latin Americans (almost 1% of the total population of Latin America) are of Asian descent. The number may be millions higher, even more so if all who have partial ancestry are included. For example, Asian Peruvians are estimated at 5% of the population there, but one source places the number of all Peruvians with at least ''some'' Chinese ancestry at 5 million, which equates to 20% of the country's total population. Liberdade sao paulo

The Chinese are the most populous Asian Latin Americans. Significant populations of Chinese ancestry are found in

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest ...

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with ...

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the coun ...

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...

and

Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

(where they make up about 1% of the total population; or about 9,000 residents).

is home to 14,000 ethnic Chinese; the majority reside in

Managua ) , settlement_type = Capital city , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Nicar ...

and on the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean ...

coast. Smaller communities of Chinese, numbering just in the hundreds or thousands, are also found in

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ' ...

and various other Latin American countries. Many Latin American countries are home to barrios chinos (Chinatowns). Most who are of Japanese descent reside in Brazil, Peru, Argentina, Mexico, Bolivia, Colombia and Paraguay. Japanese Peruvians have a considerable economic position in Peru.Lama, Abraham. Asian Times. Home is where the heartbreak is. 1999. 6 September 2006.. Many past and present Peruvian Cabinet members are ethnic Asians, but most particularly Japanese Peruvians have made up large portions of Peru's cabinet members and former president

Alberto Fujimori Alberto Kenya Fujimori Inomoto ( or ; born 28 July 1938) is a Peruvian politician, professor and former engineer who was President of Peru from 28 July 1990 until 22 November 2000. Frequently described as a dictator, * * * * * * he remains a ...

is of Japanese ancestry who is currently the only Asian Latin American to have ever served as the head of any Latin American nation (or the second, if taking into account Arthur Chung).

is home to the largest Japanese community outside

, numbering about 1.7 million with ancestry alone. Brazil is also home to 10,000 Indians, 5,000 Vietnamese, 4,500 Afghans, 2,900 Indonesians and 1,000 Filipinos.

Korean people Koreans ( South Korean: , , North Korean: , ; see names of Korea) are an East Asian ethnic group native to the Korean Peninsula. Koreans mainly live in the two Korean nation states: North Korea and South Korea (collectively and simply refer ...

are the third largest group of Asian Latin Americans. The largest community of this group is in Brazil (specially in Southeast region) with a population of 51,550. The second largest is in Argentina, with a population of 23,603 and with active

Koreatown A Koreatown ( Korean: 코리아타운), also known as a Little Korea or Little Seoul, is a Korean-dominated ethnic enclave within a city or metropolitan area outside the Korean Peninsula. History Koreatowns as an East Asian ethnic enclave have ...

s in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

. More 10,000 in Guatemala, and Mexico, This last with active communities in

Monterrey Monterrey ( , ) is the capital and largest city of the northeastern state of Nuevo León, Mexico, and the third largest city in Mexico behind Guadalajara and Mexico City. Located at the foothills of the Sierra Madre Oriental, the city is ancho ...

Guadalajara Guadalajara ( , ) is a metropolis in western Mexico and the capital of the state of Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population of 1,385,629 people, making it the 7th largest city by population in Mexico, while the Guadalaj ...

, Yucatan and

. More than 1,000 in Chile, Paraguay, Venezuela, Honduras and Peru where Jung Heung-won, a Korean Peruvian, was elected mayor in City of Chanchamayo. He is the first Mayor of Korean origin in Peru and all of Latin America. There are small and important communities (less 1,000 peoples) in Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Panama, Dominican Republic, Uruguay, Puerto Rico and Haiti.

Emigrant communities

Japan

Japanese Brazilian immigrants to Japan numbered 250,000 in 2004, constituting Japan's second-largest immigrant population. Their experiences bear similarities to those of Japanese Peruvian immigrants, who are often relegated to low income jobs typically occupied by foreigners.

United States

Most Asian Latin Americans who have migrated to the

live in the largest cities, often in

Asian American Asian Americans are Americans of Asian ancestry (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of such immigrants). Although this term had historically been used for all the indigenous peopl ...

or Hispanic and Latino communities in the

Greater Los Angeles area Greater Los Angeles is the second-largest metropolitan region in the United States with a population of 18.5 million in 2021, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino ...

New York metropolitan area The New York metropolitan area, also commonly referred to as the Tri-State area, is the largest metropolitan area in the world by urban area, urban landmass, at , and one of the list of most populous metropolitan areas, most populous urban agg ...

Chicago metropolitan area The Chicago metropolitan area, also colloquially referred to as Chicagoland, is a metropolitan area in the Midwestern United States. Encompassing 10,286 sq mi (28,120 km2), the metropolitan area includes the city of Chicago, its suburbs and hin ...

San Francisco Bay area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area G ...

Greater Houston Greater Houston, designated by the Office of Management and Budget, United States Office of Management and Budget as Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land, is the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fifth-most populous metropolitan statistical ...

, the San Diego area, Imperial Valley,

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, Dallas–Fort Worth and

South Florida South Florida is the southernmost region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is one of Florida's three most commonly referred to directional regions; the other two are Central Florida and North Florida. South Florida is the southernmost part of ...

(mainly

Chinese Cubans Chinese Cubans ( es, chino-cubano) are Cubans of full or mixed Chinese ancestry who were born in or have immigrated to Cuba. They are part of the ethnic Chinese diaspora (or Overseas Chinese). History Chinese immigration to Cuba started in 1 ...

). They and their descendants are sometimes known as Asian Hispanics and Asian Latinos. In the 2000 US Census, 119,829 Hispanic or Latino

Americans Americans are the citizens and nationals of the United States of America.; ; Although direct citizens and nationals make up the majority of Americans, many dual citizens, expatriates, and permanent residents could also legally claim Ame ...

identified as being of Asian race alone. In 2006 the Census Bureau's

American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is a demographics survey program conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the decennial census, such as ancestry, citizenship, educati ...

estimated them at 154,694, while its Population Estimates, which are official, put them at 277,704.

Composition

Notable persons

Argentina * Juliana Awada, former First Lady of Argentina, Lebanese Argentine. * Carlos Balá, actor of Lebanese descent. *

Yamila Diaz-Rahi Yamila Díaz-Rahi (born March 9, 1976), also Yamila Diaz, is an Argentine model. She has appeared in the ''Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue'' a total of 11 times, and made the cover of the magazine first in 2002 and again in 2006. She also featur ...

, model of Lebanese descent. * Dumbfoundead, rapper Argentine-born Korean American Rapper. * Liu Song, table tennis player; Chinese Argentine. * Ignacio Huang, actor; Taiwanese Argentine. * Hoshitango Imachi, ex-sumo wrestler, Japanese Argentine. *

Mario Alberto Ishii Mario Alberto Ishii (born 22 June 1951) is an Argentine politician of the Justicialist Party, currently serving as ''intendente'' (mayor) of José C. Paz, a '' partido'' in the Greater Buenos Aires Greater Buenos Aires ( es, Gran Buenos Aire ...

, political and mayor of the region José C. Paz, Japanese Argentine. *, actress and model, Korean Argentine. * Chang Sung Kim, actor, Korean Argentine. * María Kodama, writer of Japanese descent. *, martial artist, Japanese Argentine. * "Señorita Lee"; model, actress and television host; Korean Argentine. *, martial artist, Japanese Argentine. *

Carlos Menem Carlos Saúl Menem (2 July 1930 – 14 February 2021) was an Argentine lawyer and politician who served as the President of Argentina from 1989 to 1999. Ideologically, he identified as a Peronist and supported economically liberal policies. He ...

, lawyer and politician, former president of Argentina, Syrian Argentine. * Eduardo Menem, politician and brother of Carlos Menem, Syrian Argentine. *

Jessica Michibata Jessica Michibata is a Japanese fashion model. Personal life Michibata was born in Fukui Prefecture, Japan, to a Japanese mother and an Argentine father of Spanish and Italian descent. Michibata was married to British Formula One driver Jenso ...

, fashion model; Japanese Argentine. * producer and TV director, Japanese Argentine. *

Leonardo Nam Leonardo Nam (born November 5, 1979) is an Australian actor. He made his breakthrough as Roy in '' The Perfect Score'' (2004), and gained further recognition for his roles as Morimoto in '' The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift'' (2006) and Bria ...

, actor; Korean Argentine. * Jae Park, Korean American singer-songwriter born in Argentina. *, painter, Japanese Argentine. * María Eugenia Suárez, actress and singer; Japanese Argentine. * Alicia Terada, politician, Japanese Argentine. * Chang Sung Kim, actor, Korean Argentine. *

Marco Marco may refer to: People * Marco (given name), people with the given name Marco * Marco (actor) (born 1977), South Korean model and actor * Georg Marco (1863–1923), Romanian chess player of German origin * Tomás Marco (born 1942), Spanish co ...

, actor; Korean Argentine. * Chantal Videla, actress, model and singer; Filipino Argentine Bolivia * Chi Hyun Chung, politician; Korean Bolivian *

Juan Pereda Juan Pereda Asbún (17 June 1931 – 25 November 2012) was a Bolivian military general who served as the ''de facto'' 52nd president of Bolivia in 1978. Although he ruled for only four months, his ascent to the presidency marked the ...

, politician; Palestinian Bolivian * Pedro Shimose, poet; Japanese Bolivian Brazil *

Erica Awano Erica or ERICA may refer to: * Erica (given name) * ''Erica'' (plant), a flowering plant genus * Erica (chatbot), a service of Bank of America * ''Erica'' (video game), a 2019 FMV video game * ''Erica'' (spider), a jumping spider genus * Eric ...

, manga artist; Japanese Brazilian * Suresh Biswas, adventurer; Indo-Brazilian * Ken Chang, singer; Chinese Brazilian * Sérgio Echigo, former footballer; Japanese Brazilian * Boris Fausto, historian, political scientist and writer; Turkish Brazilian * Alexandr Fier, chess grandmaster; Japanese Brazilian *

Ashok Gandotra Ashok Gandotra (born 24 November 1948) is a former Indian cricketer who played in two Test matches in 1969. Gandotra was born in Brazil where his father was posted in foreign services, while the family was from Delhi. He played domestically ...

, cricketer; Indo-Brazilian * Kaio Felipe Gonçalves, striker; Japanese Brazilian *

Luiz Gushiken Luiz Gushiken (8 May 1950 – 13 September 2013) was a Brazilian union leader and politician. He was formerly the head of the social communication office of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's administration, a position which carried a ministerial ran ...

, union leader and politician; Japanese Brazilian *

Sandro Hiroshi Sandro Hiroshi Parreão Oi (born 19 November 1979) is a Brazilian former professional footballer. He played domestically for Tocantinópolis, Rio Branco, São Paulo, Flamengo, Figueirense, Guarani, América RN, Santo André and Red Bull B ...

, footballer; Japanese Brazilian *

Hugo Hoyama Hugo Hoyama (born May 9, 1969) is a retired Brazilian table tennis player of Japanese origin who has won several medals in single, double and team events in the Latin American Table Tennis Championships. Along with Gustavo Tsuboi and Thiago M ...

, tennis player; Japanese Brazilian * Fabiane Hukuda, judoka; Japanese Brazilian * Kaisei Ichirō, sumo wrestler; Japanese Brazilian * Thereza Imanishi-Kari, professor; Japanese Brazilian *

Ryoki Inoue Ryoki Inoue (born José Carlos Ryoki de Alpoim Inoue; 22 July 1946) is a Brazilian writer of both Japanese and Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, tradi ...

, the world's most prolific writer; Japanese Brazilian *

Vânia Ishii Vânia Yukie Ishii (バニア・ユキエ・イシイ, born August 19, 1973, in São Paulo) is a female judoka from Brazil, daughter of Chiaki Ishii who won the bronze medal at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich. Vânia Yukie Ishii won t ...

, judoka; Japanese Brazilian *

Cláudio Kano Cláudio Mitsuhiro Kano (18 December 1965 – 1 July 1996) was a Japanese Brazilian table tennis player who helped popularize the sport in Brazil and "spearheaded Brazilian table tennis in the 1990s". Aged 17, he shared two gold medal, in me ...

, table tennis player; Japanese Brazilian * Nathalia Kaur, model and actress; Indian descent * Reishin Kawai, aikido practitioner and acupuncturist; Japanese Brazilian *

Pedro Ken Pedro Ken Morimoto Moreira (born 20 March 1987), known as Pedro Ken, is a Brazilian association football, footballer. He is of Japanese people, Japanese descent. Career Club Pedro Ken was born in Curitiba, Paraná (state), Paraná. In 2007, whe ...

, footballer; Japanese Brazilian *

Allam Khodair Allam Khodair (born May 15, 1981) is a Brazilian racing driver, currently driving in Stock Car Brasil. His mother is Japanese Brazilian and his father is Lebanese. Career Karting * 1999: Win the Brazilian karting championship; Win the Seletiva ...

, race car driver; Japanese Lebanese Brazilian * Felipe Kitadai, judoka; Japanese Brazilian *

Paulinho Kobayashi Paulo Ricardo Kobayashi (born 9 January 1970), known as Paulinho Kobayashi, is a Brazilian football manager and former player who played as a forward. He is the current head coach of Ferroviário. Kobayashi began his career with Associação De ...

, footballer; Japanese Brazilian * Luca Kumahara, table tennis player; Japanese Brazilian * Yanna Lavigne, actress and model; Japanese Brazilian *

Iara Lee Iara Lee (Ponta Grossa, Brazil, 1966) is a Brazilian film producer, director and activist of Korean descent who works mainly in the Middle East and Africa. Her recent projects include ''From Trash to Treasure: Turning Negatives into Positives'' ...

, producer, director and activist; Korean Brazilian * Gui Lin, table tennis player; Chinese Brazilian *

Lovefoxxx Luísa Hanae Matsushita (born February 25, 1984), known by her stage name Lovefoxxx, is the lead singer of the Brazilian indie band Cansei de Ser Sexy (CSS). Early life and career Lovefoxxx was born in Campinas, Brazil. She is of Portuguese, ...

, singer; Japanese Brazilian * Manabu Mabe, painter; Japanese Brazilian *

Lyoto Machida (born 30 May 1978), is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist and karateka, who currently competes in the Light heavyweight division. He formerly competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he was a former UFC Light ...

, mixed martial artist; Japanese Brazilian *

Mitsuyo Maeda ,Virgílio, pp. 22–25 a Brazilian naturalized as Otávio Maeda (),Virgílio, p. 9 was a Japanese ''judōka'' (judo practitioner) and prizefighter in no holds barred competitions, also being one of the first documented mixed martial artists of ...

, judo master and developer of Brazilian jiu-jitsu; Japanese Brazilian * Daniel Matsunaga, model, host, actor and footballer; Japanese Brazilian * Jo Matumoto, former pro baseball player; Japanese Brazilian * Froilano de Mello, microbiologist; Indo-Brazilian *

Paulo Miyashiro Paulo Henrique Miyashiro de Abreu (born June 7, 1976) is an athlete from Brazil. He competes in triathlon. Miyashiro competed at the second Olympic triathlon at the 2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυ� ...

, triathlete; Japanese Brazilian *

Carlos Morimoto Carlos Eduardo Morimoto is the author of Kurumin, a Linux distribution based on Knoppix. It was the most popular Linux distribution in Brazil. After almost ending the project, due to many complaints from users in his forums and technical problems, ...

, author; Japanese Brazilian * Andrews Nakahara, MMA fighter; Japanese Brazilian * Mariana Ohata, triathlete; Japanese Brazilian *

Ruy Ohtake Ruy Ohtake (27 January 1938 — 27 November 2021) was a Brazilian architect. He was the son of artist Tomie Ohtake. History Son of Japanese artist Tomie Ohtake, Ruy Ohtake was known for his unusual architectural designs. Examples of his proje ...

, architect; Japanese Brazilian *

Tomie Ohtake was a Japanese Brazilian visual artist. Her work includes paintings, prints and sculptures. She was one of the main representatives of informal abstractionism in Brazil. Biography Ohtake was born in 1913 in Kyoto. In 1936, when she was twent ...

, artist; Japanese Brazilian *

Oscar Oiwa Oscar Oiwa (in ja, 大岩オスカール) is a Brazilian-American visual artist. Biography Oscar Oiwa was born in São Paulo, Brazil, son of Japanese immigrants. He received his B.F.A. (1989) from the School of Architecture and Urba ...

, painter, visual artist and architect; Japanese Brazilian *

Leandro Okabe Leandro Okabe de Oliveira Bulhões, born on June 1, 1985, is a model of Japanese Brazilians, Japanese Brazilian descent. He began his modeling career in Asia, mostly in Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Hong Kong and was then discovered by an ...

, model; Japanese Brazilian *

Tetsuo Okamoto Tetsuo Okamoto (20 March 1932 – 1 October 2007) was a Japanese–Brazilian Olympic swimmer. Okamoto had asthma, and began to swim to treat it at 7 years old. However, it was only when he was 15 years old, and the coach Fausto Alonso arrived ...

, swimmer; Japanese Brazilian *

Poliana Okimoto Poliana Okimoto (born March 8, 1983) is a Brazilian long-distance swimmer. Career She was at the 2002 FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m) in Moscow, where she finished 18th in the 800-metre freestyle. She won the Travessia dos Fortes in ...

, long-distance swimmer and gold medalist; Japanese Brazilian * Pedro Okuda, baseball shortstop; Japanese Brazilian * Luís Onmura, judoka; Japanese Brazilian * Hiroo Onoda, former Japanese Army officer; Japanese Brazilian * Angela Park, golfer; Korean Brazilian *

Andrew Pi Andrew Pi (nicknamed Andy; ; born 1973) is a Chinese Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) practitioner and businessman. He is best known as a founder of Art of War Fighting Championship (AOW), the first professional mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion in Ch ...

, martial artist; Chinese Brazilian *

Rogério Romero Rogério Aoki Romero (born 22 November 1969 in Londrina, Paraná) is a former backstroke swimmer from Brazil, who competed at five consecutive Summer Olympics for his native country, starting in 1988. A resident of Belo Horizonte, he won the ...

, swimmer; Japanese Brazilian *

Lucas Salatta Lucas Vinícius Yokoo Salatta (born 27 April 1987 in São Paulo) is a Brazilian backstroke swimmer. At his 1998 state championship, Salatta set two age records in the 100m freestyle (1:04.50) and 100m butterfly (1:09.30) with only 11 years ol ...

, backstroke swimmer; Japanese Brazilian *

Silvio Santos Senor Abravanel, known professionally as Silvio Santos ( Portuguese: /ˈsiwvju ˈsɐ̃tus/) (born December 12, 1930), is a Brazilian entrepreneur, media tycoon and television host. He is the owner of holdings that include SBT, the second larges ...

, television host and entrepreneur; Turkish Brazilian *

Daniella Sarahyba Daniella Sarahyba Fernandes (born 8 July 1984) is a Brazilian model. She appeared in every edition of the ''Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue'' from 2005 to 2010. Early life Sarahyba was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; and her mother, Mara Lúc ...

, model; Lebanese descent * Akihiro Sato, model; Japanese Brazilian *

Sabrina Sato Sabrina Sato Rahal (born 4 February 1981) is a Brazilian television presenter. She was a contestant on '' Big Brother Brasil 3'' (2003) and a hostess on comedy program '' Pânico na TV'' from 2004 until 2013. Since 2014, she has her own show o ...

, model; Japanese and Lebanese descent * Luis Shinohara, former judoka; Japanese Brazilian * Lígia Silva, table tennis player; Japanese Brazilian * Marcos Sugiyama, volleyball player; Japanese Brazilian * Mahau Suguimati, track hurdler; Japanese Brazilian *

Jung Mo Sung Jung Mo Sung (born 1957) is a Roman Catholic lay theologian trained in theology, ethics, and education. He works within the paradigm of liberation theology and can be considered a "next generation" theologian-practitioner. He has served ...

, lay theologian; Korean Brazilian * Manabu Suzuki, racer; Japanese Brazilian *

Rafael Suzuki Rafael "Hideo" Suzuki (born August 13, 1987 in São Paulo, Brazil) is a Japanese born Brazilian racing driver. He has competed in several Formula Three series before the All-Japan Formula Three Championship, such as the South American, Asian a ...

, racer; Japanese Brazilian *

Rodrigo Tabata Rodrigo Barbosa Tabata (born 19 November 1980) or simply Rodrigo Tabata, is a professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Qatari club Al Sadd. Born in Brazil, he played for the Qatar national team. Club career Career in ...

, footballer; Japanese Brazilian * Marlon Teixeira, model; Japanese Brazilian * Alex Yuwan Tjong, badminton player; Indonesian Brazilian *

Geovanna Tominaga Geovanna de Oliveira Tominaga (born April 12, 1980) is a Brazilian actress and television host. Biography Tominaga is of Japanese, Italian and Amerindian descent. She started her career when she was 12 years old, working in a show of Angéli ...

, television host and actress; Japanese Brazilian *

Gustavo Tsuboi Gustavo Tsuboi (born 31 May 1985, São Paulo) is a table tennis player from Brazil, he won three medals in double and team events in the Pan American Games. Along with Hugo Hoyama and Thiago Monteiro, Tsuboi was part of the winning team at t ...

, table tennis player; Japanese Brazilian *

Felipe Wu Felipe Almeida Wu (born 11 June 1992 in São Paulo) is a Brazilian sport shooter. He won a silver medal in the Men's 10m air pistol event at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Career He won a silver medal in the boys' air pistol at t ...

, sport shooter; Chinese Brazilian *

Jenifer Widjaja Jenifer Widjaja (born 7 December 1986) is a former professional tennis player from Brazil. Biography Widjaja, a right-handed player, is originally from São Roque near the city of São Paulo and is of Indonesian descent. Coached by her father ...

, tennis player; Indonesian Brazilian * Stênio Yamamoto, sports shooter; Japanese Brazilian *

Mario Yamasaki Mario Yamasaki (born in São Paulo, Brazil on April 22, 1964) is a Brazilian mixed martial arts referee licensed in many states, most recognizable from his duties with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), as well as founder and chief instru ...

, MMA fighter; Japanese Brazilian * Carlos Yoshimura, baseball pitcher; Japanese Brazilian * Marcus Tulio Tanaka, football player; Japanese Brazilian Chile * Alfonso Leng, composer; Chinese Chilean * Carlos Ominami, economist and politician; Japanese Chilean * Rafael Tarud, politician, Palestinian Chilean Colombia *

Shakira Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll ( , ; born 2 February 1977), professionally known by the mononym Shakira, is a Colombian singer and songwriter. Born and raised in Barranquilla, she has been referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular ...

, of partial Lebanese descent * Farina, Colombian rapper and reggaeton singer of Peruvian and Lebanese descent. *Yokoi Kenji, speaker; Japanese Colombian. *, ex-soccer player and ex-military; Japanese Colombian. *, Colombian actress, partial Japanese descent. *, mathematical; Japanese Colombian. *, actress and model; Japanese Colombian. *Paublo Ng Choi, Chef, Chinese Colombian. * Laura González, Miss Colombia 2017; Lebanese descent. * Jordy Monroy, footballer, born in Colombia; Armenian origin *Sayaka Osorio, Karateka, Korean Colombian. * Nydia Quintero Turbay, former First Lady of Colombia, Lebanese descent. *

Manuel Teodoro Manuel Teodoro is an American journalist. He was born in 1960 in New Orleans. His father is a Filipino and his mother was born in Cartagena de Indias. Teodoro majored in journalism from the University of Miami and started his career in 1984 a ...

, American journalist of Colombian and Filipino descent. Costa Rica *

Franklin Chang-Diaz Franklin may refer to: People * Franklin (given name) * Franklin (surname) * Franklin (class), a member of a historical English social class Places Australia * Franklin, Tasmania, a township * Division of Franklin, federal electoral di ...

, former

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeedin ...

astronaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member aboard a spacecraft. Although generally r ...

; Chinese Spanish Costa Rican *

Cheng Siu Chung Cheng Siu Chung (; born 29 September 1972 in Hong Kong) is a Hong Kong football manager and former professional player. He is currently the head coach of Hong Kong Premier League club Southern. He served as a commentator for the 2010 FIFA Wo ...

, retired football player, coach; Chinese Costa Rican * Eduardo Li, president of the Costa Rican football federation; Chinese Costa Rican * Harry Shum Jr., actor; Chinese Costa Rican Cuba *

Fulgencio Batista Fulgencio Batista y Zaldívar (; ; born Rubén Zaldívar, January 16, 1901 – August 6, 1973) was a Cuban military officer and politician who served as the elected president of Cuba from 1940 to 1944 and as its U.S.-backed military dictator ...

, former President of Cuba; of partial Chinese heritage *

Yamil Chade Yamil Chade ( 1921 – 25 April 2009) was a Puerto Rican sports team owner and athlete manager. Biography Yamil Chade was born in Lebanon. He spent his teenage years in Cuba, but by his 20s he had moved to Puerto Rico, where some of his ancest ...

, boxing manager; Lebanese Cuban * Yat-Sen Chang, ballet dancer; Chinese Cuban *

Emilio Estefan Emilio Estefan Gómez (born March 4, 1953) is a Cuban-born American musician and producer. Estefan has won 19 Grammy Awards. He first came to prominence as a member of the Miami Sound Machine. He is the husband of singer Gloria Estefan, father ...

, musician; Lebanese Cuban *

Wifredo Lam Wifredo Óscar de la Concepción Lam y Castilla (; December 8, 1902 – September 11, 1982), better known as Wifredo Lam, was a Cuban artist who sought to portray and revive the enduring Afro-Cuban spirit and culture. Inspired by and in conta ...

, artist; Afro-Chinese-Cuban *

Alfredo Abon Lee Captain Alfredo Abón Lee (1927 – December 4, 2012) was a Cuban army officer of Chinese Cuban ancestry who was the commander of the garrison at Yaguajay Squadron and was sent to Las Villa, replacing Colonel Roger Rojas Lavernia, where he fou ...

, army officer; Chinese Cuban *

Jeronimo Lim Kim Jeronimo Lim Kim (1926–2006) was a Korean Cuban who was known for being a part of the Cuban Revolution. He was a law school classmate of Fidel Castro. Early life Jeronimo's father, Lim Cheon-taek (1903–1985), left Korea in hope of a better li ...

, Korean Cuban known for being a part of the

Cuban Revolution The Cuban Revolution ( es, Revolución Cubana) was carried out after the 1952 Cuban coup d'état which placed Fulgencio Batista as head of state and the failed mass strike in opposition that followed. After failing to contest Batista in co ...

Dominican Republic * Elías Wessin y Wessin, politician; Lebanese Dominican *

Wu Xue Wu Xue (born 22 March 1980) is a female Chinese-born table tennis player who now represents the Dominican Republic. She competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and als ...

, table tennis player; Chinese Dominican * Akari Endo, Japanese-Dominican actress * Lian "Jenifer" Qian, Chinese Dominican table tennis player Ecuador * Li Jian - midfielder; Chinese Ecuadorian * Jinsop, singer; Korean Ecuadorian * Alberto Dahik, politician; Lebanese Ecuadorian * Carlos Moncayo, co-founder and CEO of Asiam; Chinese Ecuadorian *

Jaime Nebot Jaime José Nebot Saadi (born October 22, 1946) is an Ecuadorian lawyer and politician. He formerly served as mayor of Guayaquil, which is Ecuador's largest city. He is affiliated with the Social Christian Party (PSC) and the . Nebot ran twice f ...

, lawyer and former mayor Guayaquil; Lebanese Ecuadorian * Julio Teodoro Salem, politician; Lebanese Ecuadorian El Salvador * Nayib Bukele, Politician and El Salvador's President of Palestine descent. * Takeshi Fujiwara, sprinter and athlete; Japanese Salvadorean *

Hiroyuki Ikeuchi is a Japanese actor. Ikeuchi's mother is Salvadoran and his father is Japanese. He is an avid martial artist, notably holding a black belt in judo, and is also a keen fisherman. Career Ikeuchi played a supporting role as General Miura in Wilso ...

, Japanese Actor of Salvadorean descent. Guatemala *

Myrna Mack Myrna Mack Chang (24 October 1949 – 11 September 1990) was a Guatemalan anthropologist. In 1990, she was assassinated by elements in the Guatemalan military due to her criticism of the Guatemala government's treatment of the indigenous May ...

, anthropologist; Chinese and Maya descent *

Helen Mack Chang Helen Beatriz Mack Chang (born 19 January 1952)
is a

Hajime waki, Musician; Japanese Honduran Mexico * Alberto Arai, architect, theorist and writer; Japanese Mexican * Eduardo Auyón, artist and cultural promoter; Chinese Mexican * Jesús Chong, boxer; Chinese Mexican * Miguel Ángel Osorio Chong, secretary of the interior of Mexico; Chinese Mexican * Axel Didriksson, writer and professor; Japanese Mexican * Jocelyn Enriquez, singer and songwriter, Filipino Mexican * Ana Gabriel, Mexican singer and composer; Chinese on her mother's side * Zhenli Ye Gon, businessman and alleged drug trafficker; Chinese Mexican *

Xóchitl Hamada is a Mexican semi-retired '' Luchadora'' or professional wrestler. She is the daughter of professional wrestler Gran Hamada, the sister of wrestler Ayako Hamada and the sister-in-law of Tiger Mask IV. Hamada was once married to Mexican wrestle ...

, pro wrestler; Japanese Mexican * Hiromi Hayakawa, singer; Japanese Mexican * Salma Hayek, actress and producer; Lebanese descent * Gilberto Hirata, state deputy; Japanese Mexican *

Tomoki Kameda Tomoki Kameda (born July 12, 1991) is a Japanese professional boxer. He is a former WBO bantamweight champion, having held the title from 2013 to 2014, and former WBC super bantamweight title challenger, having fought for the title in 2019. Pe ...

, undefeated Boxer; Japanese Mexican *

Su Muy Key Su Muy Key (November 4, 1929 – November 10, 1951) was a Mexican vedette, film actress and dancer of Chinese descent. She was one of the first Burlesque performers in México. She was nicknamed "''Muñequita China''" ("''Chinese Doll''"). Biogr ...

, actress and dancer; Chinese Mexican * Pandurang Sadashiv Khankhoje, revolutionary, scholar, agricultural scientist and historian; Indo-Mexican * Pablo Larios, goalkeeper; Japanese Mexican * Juan Manuel Ley, founder and chairman of Casa Ley; Chinese Mexican * Alejandro Gómez Maganda, politician and former governor of the state of

Guerrero Guerrero is one of the 32 states that comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 81 municipalities and its capital city is Chilpancingo and its largest city is Acapulcocopied from article, GuerreroAs of 2020, Guerrero the pop ...

; Filipino Mexican *

Eizi Matuda (1894–1978) was a Mexican botanist of Japanese origin. In scholarly works his name is generally romanised Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) scrip ...

, botanist; Japanese Mexican * Lyn May, actress, exotic dancer and acrobat; Chinese Mexican * Patricia Castañeda Miyamoto, swimmer; Japanese Mexican * Daiwon Moon, martial artist; Korean Mexican * Kenya Mori, actress; Japanese Mexican * Noé Murayama, actor; Japanese Mexican * Úrsula Murayama, actress; Japanese Mexican * Fumiko Nakashima, artist; Japanese Mexican *

Carlos Nakatani Carlos Nakatani (Mexico City 1934 – Mexico City February 2, 2004) was a painter, sculptor, cinematographer and writer, the son of a Japanese immigrant to Mexico, noted for his introduction of a snack simply called “Japanese peanuts” in Mexico ...

, artist; Japanese Mexican * Isidoro Montes de Oca, revolutionary general; Filipino Mexican * Ramón Fabié, revolutionary soldier; Filipino Mexican * , revolutionary soldier; Filipino Mexican * Francisco Mongoy, revolutionary soldier; Filipino Mexican *

Kiyoto Ota is a Japanese-Mexican sculptor. Life Kiyoto Ota studied at * the School of Democratic Art of the Japanese Artistic Association in Tokyo (1967–1969) * the Escuela Nacional de Pintura, Escultura y Grabado "La Esmeralda" of the INBA (1972–1 ...

, sculptor; Japanese Mexican *

Sanjaya Rajaram Dr. Sanjaya Rajaram (1943–2021) was an Indian-born Mexican scientist and winner of the 2014 World Food Prize. He was awarded this prize for his scientific research in developing 480 wheat varieties that have been released in 51 countries. T ...

agronomist An agriculturist, agriculturalist, agrologist, or agronomist (abbreviated as agr.), is a professional in the science, practice, and management of agriculture and agribusiness. It is a regulated profession in Canada, India, the Philippines, the ...

; Indo-Mexican * M.N. Roy, nationalist revolutionary, radical activist and political theorist; Indo-Mexican * Catarina de San Juan, the China Poblana; Indo-Mexican * Sugi Sito, pro wrestler; Chinese Mexican * Romeo Villalva Tabuena, painter and printmaker; Filipino Mexican * Nancy Taira, actress; Japanese Mexican * Huang Yiguang, politician and aviator; Chinese Mexican Nicaragua * Arlen Siu, martyr of the 1979 Sandinista revolution; Chinese Nicaraguan *

Zach King Zachary King (born February 4, 1990) is an American internet personality based in Los Angeles. He is most known for his "magic vines," which are six-second videos digitally edited to look as if he is doing magic. He calls his videos "digital s ...

, American internet personality, filmmaker, and illusionist; Chinese Nicaraguan Paraguay *

Mario Abdo Benítez Mario Abdo Benítez (; born 10 November 1971) is a Paraguayan politician who has served as the president of Paraguay since 2018. He was previously a senator and President of the Senate. Early life and education Abdo Benítez was born in Asun ...

, President of Paraguay; Lebanese descent. * Mitsuhide Tsuchida, footballer, Japanese Paraguayan. Panama * Jorge Cham, web comic creator of

Piled Higher and Deeper ''Piled Higher and Deeper'' (also known as ''PhD Comics''), is a newspaper and webcomic strip written and drawn by Jorge Cham that follows the lives of several grad students. First published in 1997 when Cham was a grad student himself at Stanfo ...

, Chinese Panamanian. * Bruce Chen, pitcher for the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central division. Since , they have ...

, Chinese Panamanian. *

Roberto Chen Roberto Leandro Chen Rodríguez (born 24 May 1994) is a Panamanian professional footballer who plays as a central defender for Salvadoran club FAS. He is also capable of playing on the right side and is good with the ball at his feet. Club ca ...

, Panamanian footballer of Chinese descent *

Marelissa Him Marelissa Him Betancourt (born 2 July 1988, in Ciudad de Panamá, Panamá) is a Panamanian model and beauty pageant contestant, winner of the Miss Earth Panamá 2011 title. Early life Marelissa Him Betancourt was born on July 2, 1988 in Panama c ...

, model, part Chinese on her father's side *

Shey Ling Him Gordon Shey Ling Him Gordon is a Panamanian beauty pageant contestant and model. She was the official representative of Panamá at the Miss World 2007 Miss World 2007, the 57th edition of the Miss World pageant, was held on 1 December 2007 at th ...

, Panama's delegate to the

Miss World 2007 Miss World 2007, the 57th edition of the Miss World pageant, was held on 1 December 2007 at the Crown of Beauty Theatre in Sanya, China. It was hosted by Fernando Allende and Angela Chow. Zhang Zilin of China won the crown and succeeded ...

competition, Chinese Panamanian. *

Sigrid Nunez Sigrid Nunez is an American writer, best known for her novels. Her seventh novel, '' The Friend'', won the 2018 National Book Award for Fiction. She is on the faculty of the MFA Creative Writing Program at Hunter College (CUNY). Biography Sigri ...

, American writer (Chinese-Panamanian father, German mother) * Mehr Eliezer - Winner of Señorita Panamá 2019, Indian Panamanian. Peru *

Ernesto Arakaki Ernesto Seikō Arakaki Arakaki (born June 13, 1979, in Lima) is a Peruvian retired football defender. Club career He had played for the Second Division team Deportivo AELU since he was twelve years old. In 1998, he was bought by the First D ...

, footballer; Japanese Peruvian *

José Antonio Chang José Antonio Chang Escobedo (born 19 May 1958) is a Peruvian politician of Chinese descent who was the Prime Minister of Peru from 2010 to 2011, appointed by President Alan García. He was also Minister of Education until he resigned both cabi ...

, former Prime Minister of Peru; Chinese Peruvian *

, President of Peru from 1990 to 2000; Japanese Peruvian * Keiko Fujimori, Congresswoman; Japanese Peruvian *

Kenji Fujimori Kenji Gerardo Fujimori Higuchi (born 19 May 1980) is a Peruvian businessman, Fujimorist politician and a former congressman representing Lima from 2011 until he was suspended from congressional duty in June 2018 in aftermath of the ''Kenjivide ...

, Congressman; Japanese-Peruvian * Susana Higuchi, politician and engineer; Japanese Peruvian *

Jorge Hirano Jorge Hirano Matsumoto (born 16 August 1956 in Huaral) is a former Japanese Peruvian football player. Club career Hirano didn't have the looks of a prolific goal scorer nonetheless of a forward but he compensated his slight figure with extraordi ...

, international football player; Japanese Peruvian *

Fernando Iwasaki Fernando Iwasaki Cauti (born 1961, in Lima) is a Peruvian writer and historian. Born into a family with multiple roots (Japan, Ecuador and Italy). While in Peru, he taught at the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú and the Universidad del ...

, writer and historian; Japanese Peruvian * Haruki Kanashiro, goalkeeper; Japanese Peruvian *

Elena Keldibekova Elena Keldibekova (born 23 June 1974 in Almaty, Kazakhstan, USSR) is a Kazakhstani-Peruvian retired volleyball player who played as setter for the Peru national team. Personal life Keldibekova was born in Kazakhstan to a family of Russian orig ...

, volleyball player; Kazakh Peruvian *

Humberto Lay Pastor Humberto Lay Sun (Chinese: 黎孙 ''Lí Sūn''; born 25 September 1934) is a Peruvian evangelical minister of the Iglesia Biblica Emmanuel, an architect, and a politician belonging to the National Restoration Party. He is of Chinese desce ...

, architect and cleric; Chinese Peruvian * Iván Miranda, tennis player; Chinese Peruvian *

Aldo Miyashiro Aldo Marcos Miyashiro Ribeiro (Lima, Peru, February 9, 1976) is a Peruvian actor, screenwriter, playwright, film director and presenter. Known mainly for his roles as Caradura in the Misterio series and Tony Blades in the series La gran sangre, ...

, artist; Japanese Peruvian * Augusto Miyashiro, engineer and politician; Japanese Peruvian * Kaoru Morioka, futsal player; Japanese Peruvian * Sum Nung, Wing Chun grandmaster; Chinese Peruvian * José Pereda, retired footballer; Japanese Peruvian *

Víctor Polay Víctor Alfredo Polay Campos (born 6 April 1951) is one of the founders of the Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement, a Peruvian Marxist–Leninist terrorist organization that fought in the internal conflict in Peru. He is currently imprisoned ...

, one of the founders of the

Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement The Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement ( es, Movimiento Revolucionario Túpac Amaru, abbreviated MRTA) was a Peruvian Marxist-Leninist guerrilla group which started in the early 1980s. Their self-declared goal was to demonstrate to leftist g ...

; Chinese Peruvian * Venancio Shinki, painter; Japanese Peruvian * Hector Takayama, former footballer; Japanese Peruvian * Eduardo Tokeshi, artist; Japanese Peruvian * Tilsa Tsuchiya, artist; Japanese Peruvian *

Edwin Vásquez Edwin Gonzalo Vásquez Cam (28 July 1922 – 9 March 1993) was an Olympic sport shooter from Peru. He won a gold medal in the 50 m pistol event at the 1948 Summer Olympics, his country's only Olympic gold medalist so far. Vásquez also won the ...

, Olympic shooter; Chinese Peruvian * José Watanabe, poet; Japanese Peruvian * Víctor Joy Way, former Prime Minister of Peru; Chinese Peruvian * Alan Wong, chef; Chinese Peruvian * Erasmo Wong, businessman, owner of various retail chains; Chinese Peruvian * Patty Wong, model; Chinese Peruvian * Ricardo Wong, politician; Chinese Peruvian *

Rafael Yamashiro Rafael Gustavo Yamashiro Oré (born 25 June 1963) is a Peruvian politician and a former Congressman representing Ica for the period 2006-2011 and belongs to the Christian People's Party. Yamashiro lost his seat in the 2011 elections when he r ...

, politician; Japanese Peruvian * César Ychikawa, vocalist; Japanese Peruvian * David Soria Yoshinari, footballer; Japanese Peruvian *

Jaime Yoshiyama Clemente Jaime Yoshiyama Tanaka (born 23 July 1944) is a Peruvian Fujimorist politician of Japanese descent. He was the President of the Democratic Constitutional Congress from December 1992 to July 1995. He was also the Minister of the Presi ...

, politician; Japanese Peruvian *

Carlos Yushimito Carlos Yushimito del Valle (born 1977 in Lima, Peru) is a Peruvian writer of Japanese descent. Biography Carlos Yushimito del Valle studied Latin American Literature at the National University of San Marcos where he graduated in 2002. Two years ...

, writer; Japanese Peruvian * Pedro Zulen, philosopher; Chinese Peruvian Puerto Rico * Aravind Enrique Adyanthaya, writer, performer and theater director; Indo-Puerto Rican *

Eduardo Bhatia Eduardo Bhatia Gautier (born May 16, 1964) is a Puerto Rican attorney and politician. Bhatia is a former 15th President of the Senate of Puerto Rico and executive director of the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration. Early life and educa ...

, politician and senator; Indo-Puerto Rican * Lakshmi Singh, newscaster on NPR * Ruth D. Thorne, author; Indo-Puerto Rican *

Bruno Mars Peter Gene Hernandez (born October 8, 1985), known professionally as Bruno Mars, is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is known for his stage performances, retro showmanship, and for performing in a wide range of musical ...

, singer, songwriter, record producer, musician and dancer; Filipino and Puerto Rican Uruguay * Alberto Abdala, Former Vice-president of Uruguay; Lebanese Uruguayan * Barbara Mori, Uruguyan-born Mexican actress; Japanese and Lebanese descent Venezuela * Fred Armisen, American actor, has Venezuelan roots on his mother and Japanese father's side part; Japanese Venezuelan * Alex Cabrera Suzuki,

Venezuelan Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

first baseman and right-handed batter who played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...

and

Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning ''Professional Baseball''. Outside Japan, it is often just referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league can be traced back to the formation ...

; Japanese Venezuelan * Hana Kobayashi, singer; Japanese Venezuelan * Kamala Lopez, American actress, director, and political activist (born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

but raised in Venezuela); Indian Venezuelan * Naomi Soazo, Venezuelan judoka; Japanese Venezuelan *

Henry Zakka Henry Zakka (born July 29, 1956, Caracas, Venezuela) is a Venezuelan actor and director who began acting in the 1980s and 1990s in RCTV Radio Caracas Televisión (RCTV) was a Venezuelan free-to-air television network headquartered in the Cara ...

, Venezuelan actor; Japanese Venezuelan *

Tarek William Saab Tarek William Saab Halabi (, ar, طارق وليام صعب حلبي; born 10 September 1962) is a Venezuelan politician, lawyer and poet. He is a leader of the Fifth Republic Movement (MVR) party founded by Hugo Chávez, President of Venezuela ...

, Prosecutor General of Venezuela and former ombudsman; Lebanese Venezuelan * Tareck El Aissami, former Vice President of Venezuela; Lebanese Venezuelan * Elías Jaua, Minister of Education, former Foreign Minister and Vice President of Venezuela; Lebanese Venezuelan *

Mariam Habach Mariam Habach Santucci (born 26 January 1996) is a Venezuelan model and beauty pageant titleholder who won Miss Venezuela 2015. She also won Señorita Centro Occidental 2016, she also represented Venezuela at Miss Universe 2016. Personal life ...

, Miss Venezuela 2015; Syrian descent

References

External links

{{Overseas Asians Ethnic groups in Latin America Ethnic groups in Central America Ethnic groups in the Caribbean Ethnic groups in North America Ethnic groups in South America Immigration to North America Immigration to South America

History

Roles in labor

Geographic distribution

Emigrant communities

Japan

United States

Composition

Notable persons

See also

Ethnic groups

Asian Latin American enclaves

References

Further reading

External links