May is officially recognized as Asian Heritage Month in Canada. Asian Heritage Month offers us an opportunity to learn more about the history of Canadians of Asian heritage and to recognize the struggles and challenges faced by Canadians of Asian descent, including racism, discrimination, and xenophobia. It is also an opportunity to celebrate their diverse contributions to our soceity.
Over the last two centuries, immigrants have journeyed to Canada from East Asia, Southern Asia, Western, Central and Southeast Asia, bringing our society a rich cultural heritage representing many languages, ethnicities and religious traditions. Asian Canadian Cultures in Canada Include:
- East Asia: China, Japan, Korea, Mongolia, Taiwan
- South East Asia: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, East Timor, Vietnam
- South Asia: Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka
- Western Asia: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Cyprus, Georgia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, State of Palestine, Syria, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Yemen
- Central Asia: Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan
We invite you to explore the following resources to learn more about the history and contributions of Canadians of Asian Heritage.
History of Canadians of Asian Heritage
Learn more about the history of Canadians of Asian heritage and the struggles they faced to settle in Canada
Model Minority Myth
The Model Minority refers to a select group of Asian Canadians whose educational achievements, work productivity, and low criminality are validated as ‘proof’ that racism can be overcome through determination and sacrifice. By being illustrated as law-abiding and peace-loving immigrants, they are regarded as stories of success among other racially marginalized groups. But their acceptance into society has always been conditional; the body politics of being regarded as Canadian is inherently discriminatory and avoids any responsibility to address how racism is experienced differently, unfairly conflating anti-Asian racism to anti-Black or anti-Indigenous racism. Learn more.
Asia-Canada timeline
Read a chronological record of over 200 years of history since the first Chinese settlers helped build a trading post in Nootka Sound. The timeline touches on the settlement history of various Asian groups, the discrimination that many suffered in our early history, accomplishments, firsts, biographies,
Why is heritage important?
Read an interview with Caroline Locher-Lo, PhD, on the importance of heritage
The Virtual Museum of Asian Canadian Cultural Heritage
The virtual museum exhibits the achievements and contributions of Asian Canadians to Canada. Browse the collections by region, theme or field.
Filipino-Canadian visual artist Bert Monterona
Enjoy the spectacular art work of Filipino-Canadian visual artist Bert Monterona