A Little Manila ( or ), also known as a Manilatown () or Filipinotown (), is a community with a large Filipino immigrant and descendant population. Little Manilas are enclaves of overseas Filipinos, a term for Filipinos living outside of the Philippines indefinitely or for a limited period. It can also include seamen and others who work outside the Philippines, but are neither permanent nor temporary residents of another country.
Characteristics
Filipino markets and Businesses
According to Rick Bonus, author of Locating Filipino Americans: Ethnicity and the Cultural Politics of Space, "...Filipinos only deal with Filipinos." The author meant that Filipino society is very "tightly bound" and tends to only purchase Filipino products only from known Filipino grocery stores, even though the same products may be available at more mainstream retailers.
Filipino restaurants
Many Filipinos who grow up in a Filipino enclave experience a yearning for Filipino food. For example, one author stated that "... my stomach was trained at an early age to love Filipino food. I ate tocino (sweet pork) and longanisa (sweet sausage) for breakfast, and had adobo, pancit, and beef caldereta for dinner... White kids... would make faces at my food and ask what I was eating."
Locations
Australia Sydney There are about 85,000 Filipino-Australians in the area controlled by Blacktown City Council. Philippine-born residents comprise 5.9% of the population in the City of Blacktown and are the largest directly born ethnic group in Blacktown. More than fifty percent of Filipino-Australians are based in New South Wales.
Filipino food shops exist around Blacktown railway station.
Melbourne "... in different areas of Metropolitan Melbourne, with the greatest number settling down in the western suburbs." Filipinos in Victoria, a website from Vicnet, a division of the State Library of Victoria.
Canada Manitoba Winnipeg Winnipeg is home to 56,400 Filipinos, making them the third largest Filipino community in Canada by total population, however the largest by percentage (8.7%). The Filipino community in Winnipeg is the largest visible minority group in Winnipeg ahead of the Chinese-Canadians and Indo-Canadians (but excluding aboriginal Canadians, who are not counted as a "visible minority" by Statistics Canada). Winnipeg is home to the more established Filipino community in Canada with mass migration beginning in the 1950s.
About 1 out of 10 Filipinos in Canada call Winnipeg home. There is also a Filipino community centre called The Philippine Canadian Centre of Manitoba (PCCM) providing social and service to the Filipino community and also holds events such as Folklorama. There are also Filipino newspapers such as The Pilipino Express News Magazine, The Filipino Journal, and Ang Peryodiko. There is also a radio station, CKJS, which broadcasts Filipino related news, music, lifestyle and much more.
Winnipeg's Filipino population is largely concentrated in the West End and North End areas of the city. The neighborhood around Sargent Avenue and Arlington Street is 45% Filipino,NHS Profile, 0029.00, Manitoba, 2011, Statistics Canada and the neighborhood around Sargent Avenue and Wall Street is 47% Filipino.NHS Profile, 0030.00, Manitoba, 2011, Statistics CanadaPetz, Sarah. Filipinos find a home in Winnipeg as family ties drive immigration in Manitoba, National Post, May 29, 2014.
There were reports of a proposal to establish a Filipino cultural district that is seeking community consultations.
Ontario Greater Toronto Area Toronto, in the province of Ontario, is home to the largest Filipino contingency in Canada with over 250,000 living in Toronto and its suburbs. Toronto's population is 5% Filipino and they are the fourth-largest visible minority group. Toronto is the premier destination for Filipino immigrants and tourists with about 9,000 coming every year.
Downtown Toronto Downtown Toronto is home to over 670,000 people of which 3% or over 20,000 are of Filipino origin. Most Filipinos living in Downtown Toronto live in the neighbourhoods of St. James Town, where Filipinos make the largest visible minority group accounting for 22% of the population, and Parkdale, particularly around Jameson Avenue.
Compared to other parts of Toronto, Downtown Toronto has a small number of Filipino businesses. In St. James Town and the surrounding neighbourhoods, there are a few businesses and offices scattered around the area. Some of these include a store (Philippine Variety Store), a take-out restaurant (Wow Philippines! Eat Bulaga!), and a dental office (Dr. Victoria Santiago and Associates). The community centre (The Filipino Centre, Toronto) has moved to the suburb of Scarborough.
North York North York, the northern inner suburb of Toronto, is home to over 620,000 people of which about 4% or over 25,000 are of Filipino origin. North York's Filipino community is concentrated primarily around Clanton Park and Flemingdon Park.
The main thoroughfare of Bathurst street is generally populated by Filipino residents. In Clanton Park, the intersection of Bathurst Street and Wilson Avenue is the site of a high concentration of Filipino businesses. Due to their active presence, the area is unofficially called "Little Manila." Street festivals occur during the summer season. The biggest Filipino street festival called Taste of Manila is held at this location.
Across the Overlea Bridge from Thorncliffe Park, Flemingdon Park is home to many Filipinos. Of the almost 25,000 residents of Flemingdon Park, about 2,500 are of Filipino descent. Like most high-rise communities in Toronto, Flemingdon Park witnessed the growth of their Filipino community during the 1970s and 80s.
Filipinos make up the majority, or about 60%, of the congregation at St. John XXIII Parish. For many years, the Filipino Chaplaincy of the Archdiocese of Toronto was housed at the church. Mass was held every Sunday in Tagalog, Simbang Gabi masses were held every year and devotions to Sto. Nino and the Black Nazarene were held while the Filipino Chaplaincy was active at St. John XXIII Parish. The Filipino Chaplaincy left the parish in the August 2008 for Our Lady of Assumption Parish in the Bathurst Street area. The school adjacent to the parish, St. John XXIII Catholic School, is also attended by predominantly Filipino students.
Scarborough Scarborough, the eastern part of Toronto is home to about 600,000 people with about 7% or over 40,000 people are of Filipino origin. Filipino Canadians are the third largest Asian Canadian subgroup and fourth largest visible minority group in Scarborough.
Filipino establishments and offices dot the Scarborough landscape with almost every mall and plaza having at least one Filipino establishment. Some of the popular restaurants are Marcy Fine Foods, Remely's, Kapitbahay, Tagpuan(4 branches in Scarborough and 1 downtown), JJ Kapuso, Jesse Jr., Laguna, Palma’s, Coffee In, Edge barbecue and FV Foods. Home of Empanada, Nette’s, Manila Bakery and Baker's Best all specialize in Filipino sweets and breads. US-based, Filipino-owned grocery chain Seafood City has a branch here. Most of these establishments double as a store with imported Filipino products. Many remittance and door to door services have offices in Scarborough such as Mabini Express, PNB, Forex, UMAC Express Cargo, Gemini Express, and RemitX. The community centre (The Filipino Centre, Toronto) is now located at the southeast corner of Brimley and Sheppard Avenue. It was formerly located downtown.
Mississauga Mississauga, a city immediately west of Toronto and Canada's sixth-largest city, is home to over 700,000 people of which 4.6% or just over 30,000 are of Filipino origin. Filipino Canadians constitute the third largest Asian Canadian subgroup and fourth largest visible minority group. Tagalog is the 7th most spoken language in the city. The growth of Mississauga's Filipino community is mostly due to its proximity to Toronto.
Mississauga has many Filipino establishments and professional offices scattered throughout the city. Some of the popular establishments are Something Sweet 4 U (2 branches), Maharlika's, Halo Halo World Cafe. There are several stores that specialize in Filipino goods and many Asian supermarkets carry Filipino products. US-based, Filipino-owned grocery chain Seafood City has a branch here. There are many professional offices, mainly dental and law offices.
Mississauga plays host to many Filipino cultural events. Mississauga has two Filipino community centres, Kalayaan Community Centre and The Fiesta Filipina Centre for the Arts. Mississauga Valley Park hosts many community events including the Kalayaan Independence Day Picnic and the Philippine Colleges and Universities Alumni Associations Summerfest. At the city centre, Mississauga Celebration Square hosts the annual Philippine Festival.
Quebec Montreal Montreal, the largest city in Quebec, also hosts the largest Filipino community in the province of Quebec. The sixth largest Filipino community in Canada, Montreal is home to nearly 44,000 Filipinos. Filipinos in Montreal are concentrated in the Snowdon neighbourhood and around Decarie Expressway, both areas have many Filipino establishments and professional offices. The Filipino Association of Montreal and Suburbs is an advocacy group for Filipino Canadians active in and around the city of Montreal. It is the oldest such association in Quebec.Marlene Birao Schachter
Hong Kong
Indonesia
Italy
In Palermo, Italy, the predominantly Filipino quarter is called Little Tondo.Official GMA TV Network, iGMA.tv, retrieved on: 12 June 2007 Italy is home to 250,000 Filipinos.
Japan
In Takenotsuka, Adachi Ward, Tokyo, there is an unrecognised Little Manila that mainly comprises a selection of Filipino pubs.
Kuwait
There are roughly 241,000 (as of December 2020) Filipinos in Kuwait. Most are migrant workers, and approximately 60% of Filipinos in Kuwait are employed as domestic workers.
In 2011, Kuwait was the sixth-largest destination of Overseas Filipino Workers, with 65,000 hired or rehired in the nation in 2011, and accordingly Kuwait has been an important source of remittances back to the Philippines, with over $105 million USD being remitted in 2009. Nine Filipino banks have correspondent accounts with banks in Kuwait to allow for remittance transfers.
There is a Filipino Worker's Resource Center (FWRC) located in Jabriya, and it provides refuge for Filipino workers in Kuwait who have "[experienced] various forms of maltreatment from their employers such as fatigue, non-payment of salaries," as well as "lack of food [and] physical, verbal and sexual abuse". Through assistance from the FWRC, the Philippine Embassy in Kuwait, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration, and Overseas Workers' Welfare Administration, hundreds of Filipinos in Kuwait have been repatriated to the Philippines due to these issues.
Kuwait had the largest number of voters registered under the Overseas Absentee Voting Act eligible to vote in the 2013 Philippine general election.
Malaysia
Due to the close geographical location, Malaysia is home to one of the largest Filipino communities in the world which estimate to be around 245,000 and 637,000 individuals. The presence of the Filipinos in Malaysia has been continuous since antiquity. The Filipinos are mainly concentrated in the eastern shores in Sabah where the influence is evident, spurning ghettos in the state such as in Pulau Gaya. Another sizable community also resides in the Kuala Lumpur metropolitan region. The Filipinos in Malaysia are represented in all walks of life, beginning from the refugees from the south to professionals.
Saudi Arabia