Chaoxianzu in Japan

Chaoxianzu in Japan (Japanese: 在日朝鮮族；ざいにちちょうせんぞく, Korean: 재일조선족) refers to a group of ethnic minorities among Chinese nationals residing in Japan, starting from the early 1990s, despite being defined as one of the ethnic minorities in China since 1949 under the People's Republic of China's (hereafter, China) ethnic identification efforts. They constitute about 10% of the Chinese population in Japan. Until the 1940-1950s, the term Chaoxianzu did not exist as the Korean Peninsula was a colony of Japan. Chaoxianzu in Japan are part of the Korean ethnic group holding Chinese nationality and residing in Japan, making up about 1/100th of the 80 million Koreans worldwide. The official languages used are Chinese Korean language (a dialect of Korean language) and Chinese.

As per the 2021 announcement by the Chinese government, the total population of Chaoxianzu is 1.7 million, roughly 1/50 of the total Korean ethnic population. Among them, about 700,000 individuals (42%) reside in South Korea with Chinese nationality. In Japan, they are included in the statistics of Chinese nationals residing in Japan, accounting for less than 6% of the total Chaoxianzu population, approximating 70,000 to 80,000 individuals.[1] In China's internal ethnic identification efforts, they are counted as one of the 56 ethnicities, officially referred to as "Chaoxianzu (朝鲜族)" and not "Chinese Chaoxianzu (中国朝鲜族).", this is also the same in Japan.[2]

Compared to the other 54 ethnic minorities in China besides the Han, the Chaoxianzu have a strong sense of national belonging to the mainland states of China. However, within Japan, while often treated as de facto Chinese, many Chaoxianzu also feel a sense of belonging towards South Korea, influenced by the Korean Wave and South Korea's status as an economically advanced country. Consequently, there are many instances in offline job-hunting events or talk applications where Chaoxianzu in Japan introduce themselves as (South) Koreans, although legally, without holding Korean nationality, such self-introduction is considered illegal misrepresentation or fraud under Japanese law. Hence, Chaoxianzu in Japan are introduced as Chinese, aligning with the Japanese government's principles and immigration laws for study and work, which is legal and correct.[3]

Overview

The criteria for being recognized as Chaoxianzu in Japan are holding Chinese nationality, having "Chaoxian (Joseon)" listed as the ethnicity on the household registration based on Chinese household registration law, and residing in Japan. For instance, those of Korean not holding nationality from China cannot legally be referred to as Chaoxianzu. In regions outside China like Japan, to clarify that Chaoxianzu hold Chinese nationality, they may be referred to as "Chaoxianzu (Chinese) / Joseonjok (Korean)" or "Korean Chinese" (Korean: 조선계 중국인). Furthermore, there is also a category known as Chaoqiao referring to Koreans who have acquired Chinese nationality.[4][5]

History of Chaoxianzu in Japan

The history of Chaoxianzu in Japan began in earnest from the early 1990s. The term Chaoxianzu, a term in Hanzi (Chinese characters), was explained with reference to the Qing dynasty era, during which the existence of the Joseon Kingdom and the Korean Empire were acknowledged, and Koreans within Chinese territory were referred to as Hanmin (韓民). Later, during the Republic of China era, with the establishment of the Kuomintang, Koreans living in China were referred to as Hanqiao (韩桥) since the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea was recognized. However, with the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949 after the retreat of the Republic of China and the Kuomintang to Taiwan, the term Hanqiao reverted to Korean. The transition to the current term "Chaoxianzu" occurred when the Chinese government decided to place all ethnic minorities within China under its control and manage them as ethnicities. In August 1948, the Chinese Communist Party committee of China's Liaoning region stipulated that all Koreans residing in Liaoning and other northeastern provinces holding household registration were Chinese people, and those temporarily residing without household registration were Korean (Joseon) expatriates, clarifying the distinction between Chaoxianzu and Korean (Joseon) expatriates.

From the first phase of ethnic identification efforts initiated in 1950, Koreans with Chinese nationality were grouped as Chaoxianzu.

Until the 1990s, Chaoxianzu in Japan had very little historical connection with Zainichi Koreans, and were virtually unrecognized within the Zainichi community. Both China and Japan normalized diplomatic relations in 1972 during the détente following the election of US President Richard Nixon. Consequently, the concept of "Chaoxianzu in Japan" did not exist before the 1980s.

References
  1. "[재일조선족] 이홍매 '일본에서 살기' 저자와의 대화[동영상]". EKW이코리아월드(동포세계신문) (in Korean). 2022-12-10. Retrieved 2023-10-16.
  2. "朝鲜族". www.gov.cn. Retrieved 2023-10-21.
  3. "中国では「朝鮮族」が韓国カルト布教の橋頭堡に 統一教会もガンガン進出（中央公論）". Yahoo!ニュース (in Japanese). Retrieved 2022-08-01.
  4. "在中北朝鮮人「朝僑」、韓国への出稼ぎが増加". デイリーNK. 2017-02-04. Retrieved 2017-12-30.
  5. "中国居住の北朝鮮住民、「国籍放棄」ブーム". 東亜日報. 2011-01-05. Retrieved 2017-12-30.
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