ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the economic and cultural impacts of the new wave of Chinese migration from the People's Republic of China through the lens of Sydney's Chinatown, a long-time popular 'point of entry' for Chinese migrants. It seeks to capture the complex social, economic and cultural processes through which the new Chinese diaspora has helped transform Chinatown, shedding light on the changing meaning of 'Chineseness' in contemporary Australia. The chapter describes the conventional understanding of Chinatown as a space of the 'ethnic other', but situates it in a transnational perspective – seeing Chinatown as shaped by multiple interacting global and local forces. Historical Chinatowns are usually connected to the Chinese immigrant experience in the West. The food and drink industry has always constituted a significant part of Chinatown's economy. The arrival of the new Chinese diaspora has changed the social fabric of Chinatown. The gradual loss of a sense of community has been felt by the older generation of Chinese.
