Vietnamese people in the Czech Republic

Infobox ethnic group
group=Vietnamese in the Czech Republic
population=55,991cite news|url=http://www.czso.cz/csu/cizinci.nsf/engkapitola/ciz_pocet_cizincu|title=Number of foreigners in the CR|work=Czech Statistics Office|publisher=|date=3 June, 2008|accessdate=2008-06-23] –80,000 [cite magazine|first=Miroslav|last=Nozina|url=http://www.think.cz/issue/44/5d.html|title=The Dragon and the Lion: Vietnamese Organized Crime in the Czech Republic|journal=Think Magazine|issue=44|date=2001|accessdate=2008-02-01]
0.5-0.8% of the Czech population
regions=Prague, Cheb
languages=Vietnamese, Czech
religions=Mahayana Buddhism [cite news|url=http://www.thanhniennews.com/overseas/?catid=12&newsid=35384|title=First Vietnamese pagoda opens in Czech Republic|date=26 January, 2008|accessdate=2008-02-01|work=Thanh Nien News|publisher=Vietnam National Youth Federation]
related-c=Vietnamese people

Vietnamese people in the Czech Republic, including Czech residents and/or citizens, form one of the largest immigrant communities in the country, numbering around 40,000 people.

According to the 2001 census, there were 17,462 ethnic Vietnamese in the Czech Republic. [cite web|url=http://ec.europa.eu/education/policies/lang/languages/langmin/euromosaic/cz5_en.html#8|title=Other languages in the Czech Republic|work=The Euromosaic Study|publisher=European Commission|date=27 October, 2006|accessdate=2008-02-01] The Vietnamese population has grown very rapidly since then, with the Czech Statistics Office estimating that there were 55,991 Vietnamese residing in the Czech Republic in 2008.

History

Vietnamese immigrants began settling in the Czech Republic during the Communist period, when they were invited as guest workers by the Czechoslovak government. Migration was encouraged by the Vietnamese authorities, with the intention that the migrants would return with skills and training.cite news|first=Coilin|last=O'Connor|url=http://www.radio.cz/en/article/91826|title=Is the Czech Republic's Vietnamese community finally starting to feel at home?|work=Czech Radio|date=29 May, 2007|accessdate=2008-02-01]

Following the collapse of communism in Czechoslovakia, many Vietnamese decided to remain in the country rather than return home. This first generation of immigrants has traditionally made a living as vendors in street markets or stalls. In recent years, however, a significant number have moved towards establishing their own businesses and integrating more broadly into society, similar to the experience of other overseas Vietnamese in Western countries. However, the small business sector remains the key economic domain of first-generation Vietnamese people in the Czech Republic. [cite magazine|url=http://www.provokator.org/magazine/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=495&Itemid=1|title=Still a Thorn in the Eye: The Vietnamese-Czech dialog|journal=Provakator Magazine|first=Martina|last=Čermáková|date=4 April, 2007|accessdate=2008-02-01]

Vietnamese immigration continued in the 1990s and 2000s, with Vietnam being one of the countries targeted by the Czech Republic's skilled migration programme.

Geography

The majority of Vietnamese live in Prague as well as in Karlovy Vary Region, particularly the city of Cheb.

tatus

In the Czech Republic, national minorities which number over 20,000 are afforded a number of rights, including government funding for the protection of their language and culture. In recent years, the Vietnamese community has sought recognition as a national minority, as its numbers exceed 20,000. In 2004, however, the Government Council for National Minorities ruled that Vietnamese do not constitute a "national minority", with this term applying only to indigenous minorities who have inhabited the Czech Republic for a long period of time.cite web|url=http://www.praha-mesto.cz/(thqmni55wvwoc2e2w0h2rk45)/default.aspx?id=67308&ido=6383&sh=-888388072|title=The City of Prague's National Minority Policy|publisher=Prague City Hall|date=2007|accessdate=2008-02-01]

In Prague, however, which has the largest community of Vietnamese, there is a Vietnamese representative on the city's National Minority Council, and Vietnamese are included in Prague's policy for national minorities.

Educational performance

Whereas first-generation Vietnamese immigrants are perceived mainly as street- and market vendors, second-generation Vietnamese in the Czech Republic have a reputation for high levels of educational attainment.

ee also

*Mongolians in the Czech Republic

Notes

External links

*cs icon [http://www.klubhanoi.cz/ Klub Hanoi] - association promoting Vietnamese-Czech relations
* [http://www.radio.cz/en/article/59525 A glimpse at Prague's secretive Vietnamese community]
* [http://www.praguepost.com/P03/2004/Art/0909/news1.php 2004 article on Prague's Vietnamese community]