First book on Chinese community in Seychelles launched |24 November 2022
A first book on the Chinese community in Seychelles entitled ‘Orient and Ocean’ has been published.
The writing of this book is the result of research undertaken by Wang Dongxia, director of the Confucius Institute, and Emeritus Professor Dennis Hardy of the James R. Mancham Peace and Diplomacy Research Institute at the University of Seychelles.
It fills a gap in telling the story, for the first time, of the Chinese community in Seychelles.
Through dialogue and interviews with old and new overseas Chinese, and looking
back at historical records, the authors recall the lives of individuals and families since the first arrivals in the nineteenth century.
Seychelles is renowned for its harmonious mix of ethnicities, religions and cultural traditions. As an important part of this, the presence of people of Chinese ancestry can be traced back to the nineteenth century.
Over the years, their cumulative total can be measured in thousands, although the present number is, of course, smaller.
The old Chinese (whose families have for long lived in Seychelles) mainly came from Shunde and Meizhou in Guangdong, while the new immigrants (many of whom have arrived with specific jobs and businesses in mind) are mostly from Shandong, Guangdong, Hubei and Fujian.
For a long time, the Chinese community in Seychelles has enjoyed a good reputation for the diligence, tenacity and good sense of its people. They have worked hard and kept improving themselves, yet they also quickly integrated into the local society. Many work in trade, construction, tourism and seafood processing industries.
Members of the community continue to hold important positions in government departments, making positive contributions to the economic and social development of Seychelles. It is a great story of which all involved should be proud.
Available from bookshops and online distributors, including Amazon.
Enquiries to: bluegeckobooks@ymail.com
ISBN: 978-0-9575685-5-6
Blue Gecko Books
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