A Study On Canadian Chinese And Their Identity From The Perspective Of Transnational History(1858-1947)

The paper examines the history of Canadian Chinese from 1858 to 1947 from the perspective of transnational history.The author believes that Canadian Chinese use the channel of transnational Connections that have built to travel between China and Canada.It is the transnationality of Overseas Chinese that indirectly affects the history of the two countries.The identity of the Overseas Chinese has also continued to change and develop in the flow of back and forth.In the mid-19th century,people in the Pearl River Delta region came to Canada to pursue the dream.They used transportation and communication tools to maintain contact with their motherland.With their arrival,the phenomenon of Chinese exclusion of Canadians occurred.This has led to a decades-long seesaw battle between the local government led by British Columbia and the Central Government on the issue of legislative Chinese exclusion.Overseas Chinese actively seek help from China in order to deal with Chinese exclusion.In the atmosphere of Chinese exclusion,the overseas Chinese strived to resist in Canada and established an overseas Chinese community that blends Chinese and Western communities.On the one hand,they keep in touch with the motherland and on the other hand they also try to integrate into Canada.At the same time,they still maintain their focus on overseas Chinese hometown.The outbreak of World War Ⅱ made the overseas Chinese and the motherland closely dependent,but also improved the relationship between Chinese and Canadians,and eventually prompted the Canadian government to abolish "The Chinese Immigration Law" of 1923.Through the analysis of the paper,the author believes that the history of Canadian Chinese should be in the development of transnational history to be investigated.Only in this way can we pay attention to the influence and changes of marginal groups on the history of the country.The Canadian Chinese in Canada not only changed the society of overseas Chinese hometown and Chinese society,but also affected the relationship between the Canadian local government and the Central Government,and the national ethnic policies and so on.Overseas Chinese identity cannot be regarded as a simple division between "Chinese" and "Canadians".On the contrary,overseas Chinese identity is variable.It is constantly changing and developing according to the actual situation in the flow of transnational activities.