Transnacional mobility in a border territory: Asian communities in Spain

Spain, an European Union country, has become a new location for Asian transnationalism, a new terri­tory to explore, an horizon to discover, a border to cross over. The Spanish economy is an attractive sector for Asian investment and business initiatives, that receives projects and initiatives already tested in other places, or new ones, particularly adapted to the local factors. The diasporas that have taken place, can be categorised, in general terms, into three typologies: the commercial diaspora, the elite and “bottom-up transnationalism”; three models of transnationalism which –in Spain– have demonstrated great adaptability and a high level of integration into the social and economic life of the welcoming country. However, at the same time, inevitable processes of economic competition have been unleashed and have sometimes given rise to violent outbreaks of racism and xenophobia. The Asian disembarkation of its diasporas in a boundary territory of Europe such as Spain, together with the accompanying economic and entrepreneurial dynamism, foster both the increase of wealth and the internationalisation of the national economy. Asian transnationalism –in the context of Spain– should be considered as multinodal and not exclusively bina­tional (origin and destination), as the links actively maintained by the actors-agents of transnationalism include different Asian immigrant communities scattered throughout the world, as well as the countrie of origin. Spain is just another location, one step more in the cross-over that Asian transnationalism involves; in short, a boundary territory that is still filled with opportunities to explore.

Key words: Spain, Asia, international trade, diaspora, entrepreneurs, border, globalisation, migrations

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