5 Ethnic Enclaves To Visit Around The World

Ethnic enclaves are portions of a city or state that are predominately made up of one ethnic group. The residents of these enclaves often seem to live separately from the surrounding community. Yet, they are still a part of the surrounding societies.

# Largest Japantown in the World, Liberdade, Brazil

Liberdade is the name of a district in the subprefecture in São Paulo, Brazil. It is home to the largest Japanese community (more than 60.000 peoples) outside of Japan in the world and has been growing since the 1950s. Liberdade is São Paulo's own equivalent of Japantown in the USA. Significant populations of Chinese and Koreans also live in the district of Liberdade.

# Largest Chinatown in the World, San Francisco, USA

As the largest Chinatown outside Asia, it is arguably the most important center of Chinese culture outside of China. Established in the 1850s in the midst of the California Gold Rush, it now has an area of around 1.65 sq mi (4,3 sq km), with an estimated population of some 200,000 - many of whom are not listed in official statistics. Despite the shabby treatment from the U.S. government in the 19th century, the Chinese population continued to grow. There has been an upturn in the local economy, as Chinatown has become a massive tourist attraction.

# Little India, Singapore

Little India is, as the name promises, the center for the large Indian community in Singapore. While a rather sanitized version of the real thing, Little India retains its distinct identity without degenerating into a mere tourist attraction and is one of the most colorful and attractive places to visit in Singapore. Most of inhabitants originally came from southeastern Indian state of Tamil-Nadu & Ceylon. Most are Hindu but there are also many Indian Muslims.

# Little Havana, Miami, USA

Little Havana is a neighborhood of Miami, Florida, United States. Home to many Cuban immigrant residents, Little Havana is named after Havana, the capital and largest city in Cuba. A vibrant Hispanic culture permeates everything in Little Havana - colorful murals, monuments to heroes past and present, elderly men playing dominoes as they discuss politics, and cigar rollers deeply at work amidst Little Havana’s ever-present aroma of Cuban coffee. These scenes of daily Little Havana, Miami life play out amidst a backdrop of Little Havana’s pulsating music, vibrant storefronts, unique art galleries and quaint restaurants.

# Greektown, Toronto, Canada

Greektown, Toronto, also known as The Danforth, is a neighbourhood and Business Improvement Area (BIA) of the city of Toronto, in Ontario. It is located in east Toronto. The area was one of the major settlement areas of early Greek immigrants to Toronto. In the 1970s and 1980s this region was considered to be the largest Greektown in North America. The annual "Taste of the Danforth" is a large food festival held 3 days in early August. Since 1994, the city of Toronto has closed Danforth Avenue to vehicular traffic for the August weekend Taste of The Danforth food and music festival which in 2008 attracted over 1 million visitors. The 2009 festival takes place from August 7 through 9.