koreatowns

A Koreatown (), 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 only been in existence since the mid-1860s, as Korea had been a territorially stable polity for centuries; according to Jaeeun Kim, "The congruence of territory, polity, and population was taken for granted." Large-scale emigration from Korea was only mainly into the Russian Far East and Northeast China; these emigrants became the ancestors of the two million Koreans in China and several hundred thousand ethnic Koreans in Central Asia.

Koreatowns in the western countries such as the United States and Canada have only been in place much later with the Los Angeles Koreatown receiving official recognition in 2008. Also many Koreatowns are not officially sanctioned where the only evidence of such enclaves exist as clusters of Korean stores with Korean signage existing only on the storefronts. In the 1992 Los Angeles riots, many Korean businesses were targeted where the signage only served to point out targets for rioters. In Philadelphia's Koreatown, anti-Korean sentiment was so strong that official signage was often vandalized as residents protested the "official recognition" of such areas, making many Koreatowns across the western countries never having official statuses that many Chinatowns receive today. Many Koreatowns today exist in a suburban setting as opposed to the urban settings of Chinatown mainly because many ethnic Koreans, especially in the western countries, fear crime that is often associated with the city dwellings and the higher quality of schools as education is often a top priority, which is why the Philadelphia Koreatowns exist in suburban settings such as Cheltenham, Pennsylvania instead of its original location in the Olney section of Philadelphia.

Characteristics

The features described below are characteristic of many modern Koreatowns.

Korean signage

Many modern Koreatowns will exhibit the usage of the Korean language and Hangul on storefront signs sometimes on official highway signage. Officially sanctioned Koreatowns may also exhibit signs in the local language. In English, the word "Koreatown", "Little Korea" and "Korea Way" can sometimes be seen, as in the case with the Los Angeles Koreatown.

Korean restaurants

Many Koreatowns will have stores that serve Korean cuisine, usually serving as the major differentiator between other East Asian and Southeast Asian ethnic enclaves such as Chinatown and Little Saigons. The Korean national cuisine known today has evolved through centuries of social and political change. Originating from ancient agricultural and nomadic traditions in Southern Manchuria and the Korean Peninsula, Korean cuisine has evolved through a complex interaction of the natural environment and different cultural trends.

Korean cuisine is largely based upon rice, vegetables and meats. Traditional Korean meals are noted for the number of side dish'') that accompany steam-cooked short-grain rice. Kimchi is served often, sometimes at every meal. Commonly used ingredients include sesame oil, ''doenjang'' (fermented bean paste), soy sauce, salt, garlic, ginger, pepper flakes and ''gochujang'' (fermented red chili paste).

Locations

Korean demographics

Many Koreatowns are actual ethnic enclaves where nearly four-fifths of migrant Koreans live in just three countries: China, the United States and Mexico. Other countries with greater than 0.5% Korean minorities include Australia, Canada, Kazakhstan, New Zealand, and Uzbekistan. All these figures include both permanent migrants and sojourners. If one focuses on long-term residents, there were about 5.3 million Korean emigrants as of 2010.

Americas

Argentina

Buenos Aires's 'Barrio Coreano' is in the neighborhood of Flores, specifically in the south of this neighborhood. The primary artery of the district is Avenida Carabobo, which houses various Korean businesses and organizations, including restaurants, beauty salons, a Korean school (Instituto Coreano Argentino) and churches, among others.
In recent years, there has been a huge move from the Bajo Flores towards the Avellaneda Avenue, the reason being the increasing theft and insecurity around the slums close to Avenida Castanares. What some might call these days "The New Koreatown" has been increasing in size at a faster rate while the shops in Avenida Carabobo have been closing.
There are over 22,000 Koreans in Argentina, most of them in Buenos Aires, where the Asian population is around 2.5%.

Brazil

Brazil has several Korean enclaves but, recently a Koreatown was formed in Bom Retiro a densely populated area of Brazil's biggest city, São Paulo. It is also a Korean gastronomic center. There are traditional dishes such as bibimbap and samgyeopsal or a good cup of coffee at a cafe like the ones in Seoul. There are also Korean markets with hard-to-find Hansik ingredients such as gochujang, soybean sauce and sesame oil. Korean culture is also well preserved in there. Korean culture is mixed with that of Brazil in this neighborhood: Posters with Hangul written on them are alongside those in Portuguese, and most people are fluent in both Korean and Portuguese in the area.

Also, the residents of Bom Retiro preserve Korean culture while making it more vigorous and active. Cultural festivals including K-pop concerts are held there frequently, and many museums or workshops allow visitors to experience traditional Korean culture. Quite a few Korean artists also live in this community. For instance, Hwang Young-ah uses Bom Retiro as a platform to exhibit her collections and cultivate her artistic talent. And the Hallyu Cultural Center was opened a few years ago to offer a variety of programs on Korean culture including classes in the Korean language, K-pop dance and traditional handicrafts.

The city of Fortaleza in Ceará state hosted many immigrants from South Korea in Brazil.

The Korean consulate in Brazil said that the municipal government in São Paulo has designated Bom Retiro as 'Koreatown' and could pass an ordinance that will see the city provide administrative and financial support to the new community.

Chile

The Korean population of Chile is mostly concentrated in Patronato in Santiago. Currently, approximately 3000 Koreans live in Chile.
The Korean community is well organized and united. Colonia Coreana organizes several events annually. Among these events are: soccer tournaments, Korean festivals, and the annual Mr. and Ms. Patronato.

Mexico

Mexico has a large Korean population that lives in and around Zona Rosa in Mexico City. According to the newspaper ''Reforma'', there are at least 1,000 Koreans living in Zona Rosa and about 3,000 total in Colonia Juárez, the larger official neighborhood of which Zona Rosa is a part. The area around Hamburgo, Praga, Florencia, and Biarritz streets converted into “Pequeño Seul,” or Little Seoul in the 1990s before receding since then.

Canada

=Toronto, Ontario

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Toronto officially designated the area on Bloor Street from Bathurst Street to Christie St. as Koreatown in 2004. 2/sup> According to the 2001 census Toronto had roughly 43,000 Koreans living in the city, 3/sup> and in 2011 the numbers have grown to 64,755. 4/sup> The Korean community in Toronto has developed Koreatown such that it offers a Korean grocery store, 5/sup>hairdressers, karaoke bars and a multitude of restaurants. 6/sup> The City of Toronto describes Koreatown as "primarily a business district offering a wide range of Korean restaurants, high-end-fashion Korean boutiques, herbalists, acupuncturist and many other unique services and shops which are filled with made-in-Korea merchandise." 2/sup> Koreatown Toronto is also known for its Spring Dano Festival, which is run on the 5th day of 5th month of the Korean Lunar Calendar. The festival is run in the Christie Pits area and has been run for the past 21 years with the exception of 2013 when it was cancelled. ^217] Today, although many Koreans work in the area, very few Koreans actually live there. An influx of Latin American Canadian, Latino immigrants is changing the demographics of the area today.

Koreatown North is the unofficial name for the area situated along Yonge Street from Sheppard Avenue in North York, an administrative area in northern Toronto, to Clark Avenue in neighboring Thornhill, Ontario. This area does not have official signage as they are mixed with establishments catering to Persians and Chinese clientele.

=Vancouver, British Columbia

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The highest concentration of Koreans is found near Lougheed Town Centre in Burnaby, British Columbia and in the adjacent city of Coquitlam. Along the North Road (from Delestre Ave (South) to Burquitlam Skytrain Station (North)), sizable supermarkets such as Hannam Supermarket and H Mart, hair shops, Korean restaurants, bars, law firms, accountants' offices, realty offices, child care, clinics and auto repair shops are to be found. For a few years, following the housing boom, the number of Korean Canadians has increased in Langley, Surrey, Port Coquitlam, Maple Ridge, Mission and Abbotsford, and more businesses are opening up shops and offices in east Metro Vancouver and Fraser Valley.

United States

The first large group of Korean immigrants settled in the United States between 1901 and 1905. Between those years 7,226 immigrants, including 6,048 men, 637 women, and 541 children, came on 65 trips. Most of the early immigrants of that period had some contract with American missionaries in Korea. For some Western-oriented Korean intellectuals, immigrating to the United States was considered useful, in part, to help them in the modernization of their homeland. Consequently, the recruiter for labourers for the Hawaiian Sugar Planters' Association (HSPA), David Deshler, had no trouble finding Koreans from a wide range of social classes willing to sail to Hawaii.Chang and Patterson 2003

San Francisco, Dinuba, and Riverside, California have a claim as the first Korean U.S. settlement.

=Atlanta, Georgia

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In 2010, Atlanta has a population of approximately 94,000 individuals of Korean descent. Atlanta's Koreatown is mostly centered around the corridor extending from Duluth, Georgia, westward along Buford Highway into northeast Atlanta and Suwanee, Georgia. KoreanBeacon named Atlanta #5 in its list of Top Korean-American cities, citing the Korean population in Gwinnett County, GA (which contains Duluth) doubling over the past decade, in addition to large stretches of Buford Highway being populated with retail and services with many signs in Korean. Atlanta also has four Korean-language television stations broadcast in the Atlanta area, in addition to a local daily Korean newspaper, the Atlanta ChoSun.

=Aurora, Colorado

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Roughly two thousand Korean immigrants live in Aurora, and the stretch of Havana Street running from Mississippi Avenue to Iliff Avenue contains a very high number of Korean businesses. A motion to designate the surrounding area as an official Koreatown was at one time considered by the Aurora City Council.

=Baltimore, Maryland

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There is a small portion of lower Charles Village, referred to as the Station North Arts and Entertainment District, is sometimes referred to as Koreatown or Little Korea and is home to a number of Korean restaurants, but it has not been officially designated as a Koreatown. This developing Koreatown is bounded on the north by 24th Street, on the south by North Avenue, on the west by Maryland Avenue, and on the east by St. Paul Street. Meanwhile, suburban Ellicott City, Maryland and Catonsville, Maryland has also developed Koreatowns, along Route 40.

=Boston, Massachusetts

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Boston's Koreatown is in Allston Village and includes parts of Cambridge Street and Brighton, Harvard, and Commonwealth Avenues, with a growing Korean and Korean American residential and commercial presence.

=Chicago, Illinois

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Chicago's Albany Park neighborhood has been referred to as Chicago's "Koreatown" since the 1980s. The majority of Korean shops in Albany Park can be found along Lawrence Avenue (4800 North) between Kedzie (3200 West) and Pulaski (4000 West). This particular section of Lawrence Avenue has been officially designated by the city of Chicago as "Seoul Drive" because of the multitude of Korean-owned enterprises on the street. Although many of the Korean Americans in the neighborhood have been moving to the north suburbs in recent years, it still retains its Korean flavor. Every year there is a Korean festival, and the neighborhood is home to a Korean television station ( WOCH-CD Ch. 41) and radio station (1330 AM) as well as two Korean-language newspapers. There are still many Korean businesses interspersed among the newer Mexican bakeries and Middle Eastern grocery stores. Approximately 45% of the businesses on this particular stretch of Lawrence Avenue are owned by Korean-Americans.

=Columbus, Ohio

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Koreatown is in the vicinity of Bethel and Henderson Roads in Northwest Columbus. This area includes several Korean grocery stores, churches, and restaurants.

=Dallas, Texas

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Dallas has the largest Korean-American community in Texas and second (to Atlanta) in the southern United States. A sizable Koreatown can be found in Dallas. In 2023, The state of Texas officially designated the area as a Koreatown in legislation. This area in the Northwest part of the city, known as the Asian Trade District, is characterized by a large number of Korean-owned businesses serving the city's sizable Korean-American community, concentrated along a 1.5 mile strip of Royal Lane between Luna Rd and Harry Hines Blvd. Although Korean business is undoubtedly the most dominant in the area, there are isolated Chinese and Vietnamese businesses as well.

Another Koreatown can be found in Carrollton, Texas, which is part of the greater DFW area. This area is referred to as "New Koreatown" by locals, due to it growing from the arrival of Hmart to the city. Over the years, more and more restaurants and shops have opened around the Hmart.

Ellicott City, Maryland

Ellicott City is home to the officially-designated Koreatown in Maryland.

=Honolulu, Hawaii

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Korean businesses congregate on Keeaumoku Street, which earned the nickname "Koreamoku." As of 2016 it has been officially designated as a Koreatown. Roughly bounded by Kalakaua Ave (East), Kapiolani Blvd. (South), King St. (North) and Keeaumoku St. (West). With recent gentrification and condominiums pricing out Korean merchants in the Ke‘eaumoku district, a new Koreatown is emerging in downtown Honolulu.

=Houston, Texas

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Spring Branch in Houston is considered to have the largest Koreatown in the Houston area.

=Orange County, California

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Koreatown (also referred to as Little Seoul or the Korean Business District on nearby street signage) is on Garden Grove Boulevard between Beach Boulevard ( Route 39) and Brookhurst Street in Garden Grove, Orange County, California. The Korean population in Orange County more than doubled between 1990 and 2010.

=Los Angeles, California

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The Greater Los Angeles Area is home to the largest number of ethnic Koreans outside of the Korean Peninsula. Koreatown is an officially recognized district of the city and contains probably the heaviest concentration of Korean residents and businesses. However, when the term "Koreatown" is used it usually refers to a larger area that includes the adjacent neighborhoods of Wilshire Center, Harvard Heights and Pico Heights. Koreans began to move into the area in the late 1960s after changes in US immigration laws as part of the greater Civil Rights Movement (especially the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 which formally ended the Chinese Exclusion Act), establishing numerous businesses, although never outnumbering Latino residents. In the aftermath of the 1992 riots, Koreatown entered into a period of development, especially during the 1994 Asian Market Crisis as South Korean investors sought to invest in the then-profitable California real-estate market. More recently, L.A.'s Koreatown has been perceived to have experienced declining political power secondary to re-districting and an increased crime rate, prompting an exodus of Koreans from the area.

=Newport News, Virginia

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A Korean Enclave exists on the north end of Newport News, Virginia. It is centered around Denbigh Blvd and Warwick Blvd, following mostly along Warwick Blvd. Originally the area was established as an enclave when Korean War veterans stationed at the nearby Fort Eustis brought home wives from Korea. The area has been affectionately called "little Seoul" because of this. There are numerous shops catering the Korean population of the entire Hampton Roads area. The shops range from hair salons, to grocers, and even a bakery. There are also significant numbers of Taiwanese, Philippine, Vietnamese and other Asian ethnicities in the area.

=New York metropolitan area

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As of the 2010 United States Census, the self-identified Korean American population in the metropolitan New York Combined Statistical Area was 218,764, the second largest population of ethnic Koreans outside Korea.

According to the 2011 American Community Survey, there were approximately 100,000 Korean Americans in New York City, with two-thirds living in borough of Queens. In particular, Fresh Meadows is home to the most Korean immigrants of any neighbourhood in the city. In Bergen County, where several towns are home to significant Korean populations, the survey counted 63,247 Korean Americans or 6.9% of the total population. The Korean population in borough of Manhattan has nearly doubled to approximately 20,000 since the 2000 Census.

As of 2014, there were 180 franchisees of Korean coffeehouse chain Caffe Bene in the metro area. Korean Air and Asiana Airlines provide non-stop flights from Seoul to JFK Airport.

Manhattan

In Midtown Manhattan, Koreatown is bordered by 31st and 33rd Streets, Fifth Avenue, and the Avenue of the Americas, close to the Empire State Building and Macy's at Herald Square. The heart of the district is the block of 32nd Street between Fifth Avenue and Broadway, officially nicknamed "Korea Way", which features stores on multiple stories, with small, independently run establishments reaching up to the third or fourth floors, including restaurants, exuding an ambience of Seoul. The New York City Korean Chamber of Commerce estimates there to be more than 100 small businesses on the block. It is home to numerous restaurants that serve both traditional and/or regional Korean cuisine and Korean fusion fare (including Korean Chinese cuisine), several bakeries, grocery stores, supermarkets, bookstores, consumer electronics outlets, video rental shops, tchotchke and stationery shops, hair and nail salons, ''noraebang'' bars, nightclubs, as well as cell phone service providers, internet cafés, doctors' offices, banks, and hotels. Approximately twelve 24/7 restaurants conduct business on Korea Way. According to the 2000 Census, a slightly larger area including Koreatown was 46 percent Asian. Koreatown is expanding eastward toward Madison Avenue in Midtown Manhattan.

Long Island

The Long Island Koreatown is one of the largest and fastest growing ethnic enclaves outside Korea. The core of this Koreatown originated in the Flushing neighborhood borough of Queens. It has continued to expand rapidly eastward through the neighborhoods of Murray Hill, Bayside, Douglaston and Little Neck, and into adjacent suburban Nassau County, Long Island. In the 1980s, a continuous stream of Korean immigrants many of whom began as workers in the medical field or Korean international students moved to New York City to find or initiate professional or entrepreneurial positions. They established a foothold on Union Street in Flushing between 35th and 41st Avenues, featuring restaurants and karaoke (''noraebang'') bars, grocery markets, education centers and bookstores, banking institutions, offices, electronics vendors, apparel boutiques and other commercial enterprises. As the community grew more affluent and rose in socioeconomic status, Koreans moved eastward along Northern Boulevard, buying homes in more affluent and less crowded Queens neighborhoods and Nassau County, bringing their businesses with them. The eastward pressure was created in part by the inability to move westward due to the formidable presence of the enormous Flushing Chinatown () centered on Main Street. The expansion led to the creation of an American ''Meokjagolmok'' or ''Restaurant Street'', around the Murray Hill station of Long Island Rail Road station which is reminiscent of Seoul. According to ''The New York Times'', a " Kimchi Belt" stretches along Northern Boulevard and the Long Island Rail Road tracks, from Flushing into Nassau County; while according to a Korean food chef, "Queens is the closest you can come to authentic Korean food". The Long Island Koreatown features numerous restaurants that serve both traditional and/or regional Korean cuisine. Korean Chinese cuisine is also available in the Long Island Koreatown.

Bergen County

Koreans began moving to Eastern Bergen County, New Jersey