South Paterson

South Paterson is a neighborhood in Paterson, New Jersey.

Location

It is bounded by NJ 19 on the west, the Clifton, New Jersey, border to the south, the Passaic River to the east and I-80 to the north. The vast majority of the neighborhood is of Middle Eastern descent. The neighborhood's Arab community has existed since the late 1800s when many Lebanese and Syrian immigrants moved in. Since then, immigrants from Lebanon and Syria have slowed down, although many second, third, and fourth-generation residents remain. Recently, Palestinian and Egyptian immigrants have settled in the neighborhood, adding to the mix of Arabs. In addition to the Arab community, a Turkish community has existed in the neighborhood since the 1950s made up primarily of Turks and Karachay Turk immigrants.

Little Arabia

"Little Arabia" is a part of South Paterson sometimes called "Little Istanbul". Little Arabia has a large number of Turks as well as Arabs such as Palestinians, Lebanese, Syrians and Jordanians, among others. The area is also part of Lakeview, which lies to the east of East Railroad Avenue. Little Arabia is bound on the south by Clifton, on the west by NJ 19 and on the north by I-80. There are many Arabic restaurants, grocery stores and stores in the area. Main Street has the largest concentration of these, but there are other Arab and non-Arab stores and restaurants throughout the area. The area is mostly residential with commercial zoning along main street. There are some industrial areas along the fringes of Little Arabia.

References

* [http://www.euroamericans.net/neighborhoods.htm Ethnic Neighborhoods]