There is an urban district in China, which has a symbolic meaning for the Chinese people. Other Chinese often call them “Far Eastern Jews” for their initiative, intelligence, and family orientation. People from this county live in all parts of China. You can find them on every continent, but they prefer to live in Romanesque Europe: countries like France, Italy, and Spain. Those quiet people from a small Chinese county are often the actual makers of the famous Italian clothes and shoes. How Chinese migrants from Wenzhou became a powerful diaspora in Europe?

Geography and mentality

Wenzhou County is located in the south of Zhejiang Province, next to the Yellow Sea coast. Wenzhou people come from the city itself, as well as the surrounding counties and villages. There are about 4 million inhabitants in total. Mountains and hills cover 70% of the territory. Until the 19th century, it was a huge obstacle to the development of agriculture and transport. Locals usually worked as fishermen, artisans, and traders. The soil quality in the county is bad, so locals were basically indifferent to agriculture. There was a saying that Wenzhou is rich not in the soil, but in human connections. If the choice is between poverty and migration, most Wenzhou people will choose the latter. The initiative, mobility, and willingness to take risks make them natural businessmen.

Although there are Christians, Buddhists, and non-believers among the Wenzhou people, they all share the desire to get rich. Many residents, especially the older generation, often have no education. In their opinion, long-term study is a waste of time and money. People build a real business only through experience and connections, but not book wisdom. Chinese people in general have a reputation for being active, cunning, and greedy businessmen. Among the Wenzhou people, these traits manifested themselves even more. So what helped the Wenzhou diaspora in China and Europe to become influential powerful?

“Devil dialect” of Wenzhou

The main feature of the Wenzhou people is their language. Wenzhou dialect belongs to the dialect of the group in the Chinese language. But in fact, Chinese people don’t understand it, even the residents of the same province, Zhejiang. It is very different in vocabulary and pronunciation from other Chinese dialects. Actually, only locals can understand it, and other Chinese call it the “devil dialect”. For me, it sounds a bit like Korean.

In the territory of the county itself, the Wenzhou dialect is also very different. Local dwellers boast that they can determine by ear the exact origin of Wenzhou county. They can find out whether the family comes from Wenzhou city, seaside Yueqing or remote mountain villages. It is known that the Americans used the Navajo language to classify their radio broadcasts from the Japanese. During the war, the Chinese used the Wenzhou dialect for the same purposes. His Chinese themselves do not understand what to say about the Japanese.

History of their rise

Wenzhounese struggle and survive

Wenzhou was a poor remote county until the construction of the commercial port in the middle of the 19th century. Then its trade increased dramatically, and some local merchants managed to engage in international trade. The pioneers in this were the residents of Qingtian County, who began to supply stone products to the Dutch Rotterdam. Business people from Qingtian County and became the first Wenzhou immigrants in Europe.

During Chairman Mao’s (1949-1976), Wenzhou fell into decay. Because the county was very close to Taiwan, the central government decided not to develop heavy industry there. In general, the movement of labor within China was very problematic for the local population. Anyway, poor and entrepreneurial Wenzhounese scattered across the country in search of work, from Beijing to Tibet. They traditionally preferred some kind of minor handicraft work, such as mending shoes, altering clothes, weaving ropes, and so forth. However, the situation changed after the opening of the country and the launch of economic reforms in the late 1970s. Private entrepreneurship began to actively develop in China again. For example, there was a demand for small plastic products, clothing, and so on. One of the branded products of Wenzhou manufacturers was leather shoes.

What made them special

And here it turned out that the Wenzhou people have a huge advantage. First, they had commercial experience. Secondly, they had information about supply and demand in different regions of the country. Thirdly, they had a close-knit diaspora, consisting of relatives and fellow countrymen with their own language, incomprehensible to the uninitiated. Tens of thousands of Wenzhou people began to travel across China to sell goods and collect orders for production. In order not to take risks, they preferred to deal only with other Wenzhou people. That’s how migrants from Wenzhou became a powerful domestic diaspora in China.

Producers made goods in Wenzhou county and then distributed them throughout the country through a network of Wenzhou business acquaintances. Though the profit per unit was small, the scale of trade was huge. With export, it was even easier, for the foreign market they began to rivet fakes of well-known brands. In the 1980s, Wenzhou products contributed to the then “Made in China” image: very bad, but cheap!

Wenzhoutowns appear through the country

Local authorities in Wenzhou actively supported their fellow countrymen in pursuit of material well-being. Gradually, many Wenzhou people became mature and rich. To feel comfortable, they began to settle together, and “Wenzhoutowns” appeared in many cities. For example, in Beijing, there is the Zhejiang Village district, where Wenzhou businessmen originally settled. The atmosphere there was about the same as in the Zhdanovichi in Minsk, only the bargaining was more noisy and wider. The PRC authorities reacted favorably to their activities. Such a capitalist zeal was in the spirit of the reform era. It could become an example of successful Chinese entrepreneurship.

There was a strong demand for low-quality, but very cheap counterfeits of electronics, sporting goods, shoes, etc. It turned Wenzhou into a commercial and industrial complex. In the 1980s, there were already more than ten wholesale markets and few large international exhibitions. Since the 1990s, the city of Yiwu, located in the center of Zhejiang province, started to play a bigger role. Yiwu has become the main trading hub for small consumer goods. Yiwu was full of business opportunities, because of its large exhibitions, numerous shops, and business-friendly atmosphere. It turned the small village into a mecca for small merchants from all over the world. Until now, many of the products in Yiwu are of Wenzhou origin or have ties with the Wenzhounese capital.

Creation of powerful diaspora: Wenzhou – Europe

After the Xinhai Revolution of 1911, China was going through hard times. Those were the days of political instability, the disintegration of the country, and unemployment. It led to a surge in migration in search of work and a better life. For example, people from Shandong actively migrated to Manchuria. People from Guangdong and Fujian preferred South East Asia.

During the First World War, 140,000 Chinese worked under contract on the Western Front. The French and British hired them for their military needs. Chinese workers were very cheap, unpretentious, but high-quality labor for digging trenches, carrying heavy loads, and unloading wagons. After the war, most of the Chinese returned to their homeland. However, about 3 thousand workers, among whom were immigrants from Wenzhou, decided to try their luck in Europe. They tried to settle in France and Holland, but many of them faced problems with work, so part of the migrants went to Italy. In Italy, there was more work and a better climate for the Wenzhounese.

Since the 1980s, the Chinese people could freely emigrate to other countries. The opportunity to leave the country combined with the huge difference in living standards between China and Western countries. It led to a sharp surge in emigration. Some families settled in Europe one or two generations before. In the 1980s, they played a crucial role in helping their fellow Wenzhounese to immigrate. In some countries, for example, Italy, there was migrant-friendly legislation. It allowed illegal migrants after some time to turn to the Italian authorities, get amnesty and legalize their status. Chinese migrants from other European countries also moved there to obtain legal status. After receiving a residence permit, they took their relatives to their place.

How Wenzhou people sneaked into Europe

Wenzhounese came to Europe in different ways. For example, in the midst of Soviet perestroika, some Wenzhounese got on the train from China to Soviet Far East. They traveled through the USSR to the Black Sea, then crossed the Turkish border. After that Wenzhounese traveled by ferry from Turkey to Italy, where Italian Wenzhounese met them. However, most migrants reached Italy in the holds of ships through the Indian Ocean and the Suez Canal. There have been cases of Wenzhou immigrants crossing the Alps to reach Switzerland and France. Sometimes people see on the streets of Paris elderly Chinese who lack few fingers. It’s highly likely that in their youth they froze their hands while crossing the Alps from the Italian side.

Sometimes the adventurous Wenzhou people pretended to be … Japanese. Firstly while in China they learned dozens of Japanese phrases and dressed like Japanese tourists. Then they and flew to Paris via African countries with fake Japanese passports. In France, Wenzhou people got off the plane and waited for flights from Japan. After that, they mingled with groups of Japanese tourists. French customs officials favored the wealthy Japanese. They often, after a brief check of several passports, let the entire group through. After passing through customs, the disguised Wenzhou people disappeared into Paris.

Wenzhou diaspora in Europe becomes more powerful

In the new place, most of the immigrants got a job in the workshops. Relatives and friends of the cartels provided loans for business development. If things didn’t go well, then the debtor returned everything he had to the cartel. After that, he began to work for the cartel company like an ordinary worker. But if the business was getting better and it was possible to pay off all the debts. If so, a new successful company could join the cartel, and provide new jobs for fresh-off-the-boat Wenzhounese. It was an important step for migrants from Wenzhou to become a powerful diaspora in Europe.

Made in Italy by Chinese

Best of all, things went in France and Italy. 80% of the Wenzhou people settled in Paris, and in Italy, they chose the north: Lombardy, Tuscany, and Emilia-Romana. These regions have a high standard of living, as well as the main industrial enterprises of Italy. Since the 1980s, there was a rapid development of the fashion industry. It created a great demand for labor-intensive production. For example, high-quality footwear, handbags, and apparel components for world-famous brands like Gucci and Versace. Compared to other immigrants, the Wenzhou people already had experience in manufacturing in this area. So in Italy, they developed a fruitful symbiosis with local producers. Recently, they have been importing some of the goods directly from China to pack them beautifully in Italy. Of course, they have the label “Made in Italy”, and people from all over the world gladly buy them.

One day, an Italian bag maker approached a newly arrived family of Chinese migrants to make bag handles for him. The Chinese offered a very low price, the Italian immediately agreed. They worked together for several years, and the Chinese family became noticeably rich. A few years later, the Italian asked if such wealthy people still make handles for bags by hand. The Chinese man answered with a laugh that they changed the role to a managerial one. After six months since the first order, they delegated their work to other Chinese families. Currently, they concentrate on receiving new orders from Italian companies. Now their family has a whole network of Wenzhou workshops, and their business cooperates with many Italian brands. With more migrants coming, the Wenzhou diaspora was getting more powerful in Europe.

New generation of Wenzhou diaspora

The Wenzhou diaspora firmly took root in the Romanesque countries. For example, more than 200 thousand Wenzhou people live in Paris alone. According to some reports, they control 70% of the Parisian textile market. Most Wenzhou people in Europe prefer to retain their Chinese citizenship. It is because it makes it easier to do business with China. They continue to use the Wenzhou dialect, but the younger generation mostly speaks Standard Chinese. For the integration of the second and third-generation Chinese into European society, various organizations operate, for example, the Italian “Associna”. According to the polls, the more educated and wealthy people from the local diaspora consider themselves more Europeans than Chinese. The flip side of the business cult among Wenzhou people has become a disregard for education. Despite some recent changes, Wenzhou people still mostly engage in small shops, restaurants, and shoe factories business.

Since the 2010s, another migration wave of the Chinese has been in full swing. But modern Chinese migrants are not those illegal immigrants who went to Europe to make money. They are mostly students and nouveau riches who prefer to go to England, Italy, and France to spend money. Nowadays wealthy Chinese come from all regions of the Middle Kingdom. Wenzhou diaspora in Europe is still powerful. But the share of Wenzhou capital in Chinese economic presence here capital here is gradually decreasing.

Wenzhounese in present and future

What do Wenzhou people think of themselves

According to the Chinese woman L., “when the interlocutors find out that I am from Wenzhou, they immediately liven up. Oh, you are from a wealthy family, you’re all businessmen there, everyone has their own business ”. This is not far from the truth, because most of her friends after school immediately go into the family business. “There is a saying, wherever people live, there will be Wenzhou people among them,” continues L. “Emigration to other countries is prestigious. Many successful fellow countrymen love to visit Wenzhou and watch the local authorities blow the dust off them. Because of the isolated position of Wenzhou, we have developed a special culture”, – argues L.

“Our parents teach us from childhood to work harder and better than anyone else. For example, my parents have no days off at all. Other Chinese people think that we are very close-knit and even arrogant. They do not like to let strangers into our circle. This is somewhat true, for example, Wenzhou parents want their children to look for a mate among their fellow countrymen. It helped migrants from Wenzhou to become a powerful diaspora in Europe. But there are some downsides to their traditional mentality. According to L., in the local traditional culture, girls are most irritated by gender inequality. She says it’s because “sons have rights, and daughters have only responsibilities”.

Re-thinking diaspora future

Wenzhou has become a quiet, prosperous city with little ambition. There are many Chinese from other provinces living in the district. They often do not understand the local mentality and speak Wenzhou poorly. There are many rich people in modern China, and the Wenzhou people are not in majority. However, there are disproportionately many of them among the top management of large companies. In the Internet age, commercial information is much easier to find. Platforms like Ali Express allow the buyer to buy directly from the manufacturer. It devalues ​​the influence of the diaspora and the importance of large exhibitions.

About 30% of Wenzhou residents live outside their small homeland. The local government is trying to keep in touch with influential expatriates. For example, the local government has organized the “Wenzhounese World Conference”. In January 2020, the coronavirus epidemic began in China. Representatives of the diaspora immediately started to send cargoes with masks, tests, and sanitizers to Wenzhou. In February 2020 the city was in second place after Wuhan in terms of the number of infected people. But very soon, after a month and a half, the city fully recovered.

Wenzhou model

In the 1980s and 2000s, immigrants from Wenzhou County earned a reputation as active and successful businessmen. There was a new expression in the Chinese language, “Wenzhou model” (温州精神). So how Chinese migrants from Wenzhou became a powerful diaspora in Europe?

• Orientation to foreign markets and high mobility. The world around us is a source of money; those who stay at home will remain poor.
• The importance of specialization and sales. You need to find a niche, offer a low price and make money from volume.
• Family and roots are above all. You can build and maintain a business only with those you know well.

In recent years, the role of China in the world economy, politics, and science have become more and more noticeable. China is a whole world that consists of people from different regions, cultures, diasporas, religions. It’s important to understand how it works and who it consists of. We need to know what the Chinese think about and how they perceive the world.