Qiaoxiang
/tɕjɑʊ̯˧˥ɕjɑŋ˥/noun
A Chinese term for a hometown or region known for producing large numbers of overseas Chinese emigrants and their descendants.
Did you know?Qiaoxiang is especially associated with coastal Guangdong and Fujian, where ancestral villages, remittances, and overseas Chinese networks profoundly shaped local history.
Etymological Timeline
Old Chinese, 1st millennium BCE
Old Chinese
僑 (*[g]rew)
“To lodge or dwell away from one’s native place; a sojourner”
Old Chinese, 1st millennium BCE
Old Chinese
鄉 (*qʰaŋ)
“A native settlement, home district, or village”
Middle Chinese, 6th–10th centuries
Middle Chinese
僑 / 鄉
“A temporary resident or émigré; a home district or native place”
Modern Mandarin, 20th century
Mandarin Chinese
侨乡 (qiáoxiāng)
“A hometown or region associated with overseas Chinese”
Modern English, 20th–21st centuries
English
qiaoxiang
“A transliterated Chinese term used in writing about overseas Chinese communities and migration history”