New Asian Destinations: A Comparative Study on Traditional Gateways and Emerging Immigrant Destinations

Kenneth Kuk, Cornell University

Most recent studies of new immigrant destinations in the United States have focused on a burgeoning Hispanic population. This paper shifts the focus to Asians, who also have dispersed geographically over the past decade or so. Specifically, this paper will: (1) identify new Asian enclaves and communities based on recently-released data from the 2005-2008 American Community Survey; (2) provide comparative socio-demographic profiles (e.g., racial composition, mix of native and foreign-born populations, etc.) of traditional Asian enclaves and new Asian destinations; and (3) compare patterns of cultural and economic incorporation (e.g. language, education, income, etc.) of native-born and immigrant Asians living in these areas. For our purposes, new Asian destinations are defined as places with small Asian populations in 1990, but that experienced disproportionately rapid Asian population growth since 1990. Our overriding objective is to evaluate competing models of spatial assimilation among America's Asian population.