Asia-Pacific in the Making of the Americas: Toward a Global HistoryMain MenuThe Spanish PacificThe China Trade Era19th-Century US PacificTimelineby Andrea LedesmaGalleryCollection of all images, documents, and photos featured on this site.AcknowledgementsCaroline Franka1a5e7e9a2c3dba76ecb2896a93bf66ac8d1635e
Chinese Chuan
12016-06-29T12:09:30-07:00Danielle Galván Gomez4e0413889093594926bc7e802ee6b1ae4483d7c484013This image dates from 1596 and depicts a Chinese ship or Chuan. It is located in Linschoten's Itinerario, a hand-painted book that describes various trade routes and ethnic groups.plain2016-09-02T08:44:14-07:00John Carter Brown LibraryAndrea Ledesma3398f082e76a2c1c8a9101d91a66e1d764540d34
1media/Linschoten1596.jpg2016-04-26T10:30:46-07:00The Chinese of Manila and Formation of America’s First Chinatown29By Evelyn Hu-DeHart, Brown Universityimage_header2424522017-02-02T07:50:14-08:00This essay traces the origins of Chinese and Filipino populations along the transpacific trade route from 1564 to 1660. Navigating the Spanish empire, Spanish galleon fleets roamed the seas and invested in a thriving trade between Spanish Mexico and the newly acquired Spanish Philippines. Later, Chinese chuans (ships) interceded in this transcontinental trade, resulting in the cross pollination of Spanish empire, Chinese enterprise, and the cultures of Europe, Asia, and the Americas. Resulting in the start of Chinese Parián (or marketplace) in colonized Spanish areas, including the first Chinatown in Manila, this newfound relationship also threatened to upset the Spanish monopoly of these areas. Focusing on the political landscape and economic development of the Philippines, this paper explicates the rise of Spanish anxieties over Chinese ingenuity and trade using primary source documents from religious secular leader stationed in the area. Taxation and other Spanish imposed oppressive measures spurred Chinese revolt and protest. However, despite a history of discord and contestation, the history of the Chinese in New Spain nevertheless begets a legacy still evidenced today by modern Chinatowns and businesses.