International Ethnic Networks and Intra-Ethnic Conflict: Koreans in China

Since the normalization of Sino-Korean diplomatic relations in 1992, many South Koreans have moved to China for business, education, and other purposes. In China they have encountered Korean-Chinese --ethnic Koreans who have lived in China for decades. Contrary to expectations that ethnic solidarity would lay the foundation for lasting cooperation between South Koreans and Korean-Chinese, “intra-ethnic conflict” has instead divided the Korean communities. The explanation for this surprising finding lies in cultural and economic differences which developed between Koreans in South Korea and in China during decades of separation and in a degree of ethnic trust blind to actual circumstances. By showing how ethnic identity underpins transnational flows of people and resources but also how those flows transform ethnic configurations, this book contributes to debates about the interaction of globalization and community.