Between 1820 and 1957, more than one million documented migrants arrived in the United States from Asia. The migration rate was quite low until the 1850s, but then there was an influx of Chinese migrants to the US, and almost 300,000 people migrated to the US from China by 1884. This migration from China ended abruptly in the 1880s, as a result of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882. This act prohibited the immigration of Chinese laborers to the United States, and, despite the fact that it was only intended to last for ten years, it officially remained in effect until 1943, and in practice until 1965.
After this law came into effect, migration from Asia was quite low until the end of the nineteenth century. As the twentieth century began, migration from Asia to the US increased gradually, particularly from Japan and Turkey, although overall migration decreased again following the First World War and the Great Depression. In the lead up to the Second World War, migration to the US decreased greatly, particularly from Japan, who were one of America's enemies during the war. As the Chinese Civil War ended in the late 1940s, the US accepted a few thousand Chinese asylum seekers, and then migration from Asia grew to it's pre-Depression levels in the 1950s.
Number of documented migrants from Asia to the United States between 1870 and 1957, by region
Year
Turkey
China
Japan
Other Asian countries
1957
77
2,098
6,829
11,004
1956
48
1,386
5,967
9,926
1955
54
568
4,150
6,163
1954
33
254
3,846
5,837
1953
13
528
2,579
5,111
1952
12
263
3,814
5,239
1951
3
335
271
3,312
1950
13
1,280
100
2,386
1949
40
3,415
529
2,454
1948
16
7,203
423
3,097
1947
22
3,191
131
2,479
1946
16
252
14
1,351
1945
13
71
1
357
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Created with Highcharts 7.2.2YearNumber of migrantsTurkeyChinaJapanOther Asian countries1820182318261829183218351838184118441847185018531856185918621865186818711874187718801883188618891892189518981901190419071910191319161919192219251928193119341937194019431946194919521955
010,00020,00030,00040,00050,000
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US Census Bureau, & US Department of Commerce. (August 29, 2019). Number of documented migrants from Asia to the United States between 1870 and 1957, by region [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved May 07, 2025, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1044567/migration-from-asia-to-us-by-region-1820-1957/
US Census Bureau, und US Department of Commerce. "Number of documented migrants from Asia to the United States between 1870 and 1957, by region." Chart. August 29, 2019. Statista. Accessed May 07, 2025. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1044567/migration-from-asia-to-us-by-region-1820-1957/
US Census Bureau, US Department of Commerce. (2019). Number of documented migrants from Asia to the United States between 1870 and 1957, by region. Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: May 07, 2025. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1044567/migration-from-asia-to-us-by-region-1820-1957/
US Census Bureau, and US Department of Commerce. "Number of Documented Migrants from Asia to The United States between 1870 and 1957, by Region." Statista, Statista Inc., 29 Aug 2019, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1044567/migration-from-asia-to-us-by-region-1820-1957/
US Census Bureau & US Department of Commerce, Number of documented migrants from Asia to the United States between 1870 and 1957, by region Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1044567/migration-from-asia-to-us-by-region-1820-1957/ (last visited May 07, 2025)
Number of documented migrants from Asia to the United States between 1870 and 1957, by region [Graph], US Census Bureau, & US Department of Commerce, August 29, 2019. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1044567/migration-from-asia-to-us-by-region-1820-1957/
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