Overview

Diaspora transformed the urban terrain of colonial societies, creating polyglot worlds out of neighborhoods, workplaces, recreational clubs, and public spheres. It was within these spaces that communities reimagined and reshaped their public identities vis-à-vis emerging government policies and perceptions from other communities. Through a century of Macanese activities in British Hong Kong, The Macanese Diaspora in British Hong Kong: A Century of Transimperial Drifting explores how mixed-race diasporic communities survived within unequal, racialized, and biased systems beyond the colonizer-colonized dichotomy. Originating from Portuguese Macau yet living outside the control of the empire, the Macanese freely associated with more than one identity and pledged allegiance to multiple communal, political, and civic affiliations. They drew on colorful imaginations of the Portuguese and British empires in responding to a spectrum of changes encompassing Macau’s woes, Hong Kong’s injustice, Portugal’s political transitions, global developments in print culture, and the rise of new nationalisms during the inter-war period.

Full Product Details

Author:   Catherine S. Chan
Publisher:   Taylor & Francis Ltd
Imprint:   Routledge
Weight:   0.410kg
ISBN:  

9781041188407

ISBN 10:   1041188404
Pages:   224
Publication Date:   01 December 2025
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Manufactured on demand  
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Table of Contents

Acknowledgments,Prologue: Between Empires,Drifting empires, Contesting the 'Macanese' identity, Cosmopolitan and transnational arenas, A kaleidoscope of Macanese experiences, 1 Crossing Imperial Borders, The tightknit oligarchy, A clerk, a businessman and a newspaper editor, Channeling Macau's woes into Hong Kong developments, 2 Sandwiched in the Workplace, The roots of the Macanese as 'middle' people, D'Almada's plight,Grand-pre's poor performance, Port wine and new opportunities, 3 Horseracing, Theater and Camões, Strictly male, strictly rich, strictly colored,Abraço fraternal (fraternal embrace) and Camoes,A stage for middle-class Macanese men, 4 Macanese Publics Fight for the 'Hongkong Man',From Hong Kong to Lisbon to Shanghai,Globalizing colonial Hong Kong, The 'Hongkong man', 5 Uniting to Divide, Dividing to Unite, 'Kowloon Macanese' vs. 'Hong Kong Macanese', Nationalizing the 'Portuguese of the East', Contesting Macanese patriotism,Por Deus e pela Pátria: Portuguese nationalism in Hong Kong, Printing and disseminating diasporic nationalism, Epilogue: A Place in the Sun, Being Macanese in wartime Hong Kong,Rethinking identity as response, Towards a world without labels, Appendix: Summary of Featured Macanese Individuals, Index.

Reviews

This is a timely study of a significant ethnic and cultural group that has hitherto been largely overlooked in the history of what is described as 'British Hong Kong'. [...] Dr Chan's very broad and detailed range of research and her deft use of it in footnotes is very impressive.- Stuart Braga, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society Hong Kong Vol. 62 (2022)

Author Information

Catherine S. Chan is Research Assistant Professor of History at Lingnan University. She has published extensively on transimperial networks and the Macanese diaspora across East Asia. Chan also works on urban history, particularly on heritage issues and animal welfare in East and Southeast Asia.

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