User:Johnkinslow/sandbox/Little Saigon, Orange County: Difference between revisions

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”’Little Saigon”’ is a predominantly [[Vietnamese Americans|Vietnamese American]] district in [[Orange County, California]]. The ”[[Associated Press]]” considers it “the cultural capital for the [[Vietnamese diaspora]]”.<ref name=”Hong 2025″>{{cite web |last1=Hong |first1=Jae C. |last2=Nguyễn |first2=Trân |date=2025-04-30 |title=PHOTO ESSAY: For the Vietnamese diaspora, Saigon’s fall 50 years ago evokes mixed emotions |url=https://apnews.com/article/vietnam-war-anniversary-little-saigon-orange-county-4975497acd870e87f123cf4fab6fd669 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250918131532/https://apnews.com/article/vietnam-war-anniversary-little-saigon-orange-county-4975497acd870e87f123cf4fab6fd669 |archive-date=September 18, 2025 |access-date=2025-12-16 |website=[[Associated Press]]}}</ref> The ”[[Los Angeles Times]]” opines the district stretches from Trask and McFadden avenues and Magnolia to Euclid. Approximately 75% of the population is of Vietnamese descent, with White, Latino, Chinese, and Cambodian resident minorities.<ref name=”Balassone 2005″>{{cite web |last=Balassone |first=Merrill |date=2005-10-23 |title=The heart of Little Saigon beats strong |url=https://www.latimes.com/local/orangecounty/la-re-guide23oct23-story.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251216081018/https://www.latimes.com/local/orangecounty/la-re-guide23oct23-story.html |archive-date=December 16, 2025 |access-date=2025-12-16 |website=[[Los Angeles Times]]}}</ref> It contains the largest concentration of Vietnamese outside of Vietnam.<ref>{{cite web |last=Do |first=Anh |date=2015-11-08 |title=Not your grandmother’s Little Saigon: Entrepreneurs expand enclave’s horizons |url=https://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-new-little-saigon-20151108-story.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251216074336/https://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-new-little-saigon-20151108-story.html |archive-date=December 16, 2025 |access-date=2025-12-16 |website=[[Los Angeles Times]]}}</ref><ref name=”Do 2008″>{{cite web |last=Do |first=Quyen |date=2008-05-10 |title=Singer Minh Tuyet dreams big in Little Saigon |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-vietmusic10-2008may10-story.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140514220722/http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-vietmusic10-2008may10-story.html |archive-date=2014-05-14 |access-date=2025-12-16 |website=[[Los Angeles Times]]}}</ref>

== Demographics ==

This suburban ethnic enclave is home to the largest concentration of overseas Vietnamese, nearly 200,000, or 10 percent of the Vietnamese American population.<ref name=”Nguyen 2015″>{{cite book |last=Nguyen |first=Phuong |url=https://oxfordre.com/americanhistory/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199329175.001.0001/acrefore-9780199329175-e-19 |title=Oxford Research Encyclopedia of American History |date=2015-07-02 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=978-0-19-932917-5 |chapter=Vietnamese Americans in Little Saigon, California |doi=10.1093/acrefore/9780199329175.013.19 |access-date=2025-12-17}}</ref>

Little Saigon is a predominantly Vietnamese American district in Orange County, California. The Associated Press considers it “the cultural capital for the Vietnamese diaspora“.^[1] The Los Angeles Times opines the district stretches from Trask and McFadden avenues and Magnolia to Euclid. Approximately 75% of the population is of Vietnamese descent, with White, Latino, Chinese, and Cambodian resident minorities.^[2] It contains the largest concentration of Vietnamese outside of Vietnam.^[3]^[4]

This suburban ethnic enclave is home to the largest concentration of overseas Vietnamese, nearly 200,000, or 10 percent of the Vietnamese American population.^[5]

Map

The borders for the Little Saigon Tourist Commercial District are defined as Westminster Blvd., Bolsa Ave., Magnolia St. and Euclid St.^[6]^[7] However, the Vietnamese population has grown and it is now often referred to encompass Westminster, Garden Grove, Fountain Valley, and Santa Ana.^[5]^[8] The Woods Center of California State University, Fullerton analyzed 2021 census data from the American Community Survey to determine a region where Vietnamese comprise 30% or more of the population. Based on this data, Little Saigon is comprised primarily of the cities of Westminster and Garden Grove with portions of the cities of Fountain Valley, Santa Ana, and Huntington Beach.^[9]

Before 1988, the region was named after Bolsa Ave. and was known as khu Bolsa (Bolsa area), chợ Bolsa (Bolsa market), or sometimes just Bolsa.^[10]^[11] The Los Angeles Times first used described the region as Little Saigon in 1984.^[10]^[11]

Refugee camps in Camp Pendleton in May 1975

After the fall of Saigon in 1975, 125,000 Vietnamese refugees were resettled in the United States, including 50,000 from Camp Pendleton.^[12] Secondary migration to Southern California after resettlement occurred largely due to warm climate, economic opportunity, and education.^[10] Later, various Vietnamese businesses were started such as Saigon Market in 1976 and Danh‘s Pharmacy and Hoa Bình Market in 1978.^[12]^[13]^[5] In its first issue, Người Việt called California the center of the Vietnamese community in exile.^[12]

In 1979, the Orderly Departure Program was established, allowing Vietnamese boat people to immigrate to the United States.^[13] While there had only been 30 shops in Little Saigon in 1979, by 1981, there had been a few hundred.^[12]

By the end of 1980, about 20,000 refugees were living in Orange County.^[14]

In 1984, the Vietnamese Chamber of Commerce in Orange County estimated there were approximately 650 Vietnamese businesses in Orange County^[11] compared to 350 in 1981.

By 1985, thousands of Vietnamese immigrants were settled in Garden Grove, Santa Ana, and Westminster.^[15]

The first 99 Ranch Market opened in Westminster in 1984.^[14]^[16]

In 1981,^[5] Frank Jao of Bridgecreek Developemnt would purchase land along Bolsa Avenue in Westminster, California, which later became Asian Garden Mall (Phước Lộc Thọ) in 1987.^[17]^: 58–59^[12] Jao claimed his firm has developed at least a third of Little Saigon.^[2]

February 9, 1988 resolution designating Little Saigon Tourist Commercial District

On February 10, 1988, the Westminster Redevelopment Agency approved a resolution that designated a 1.5-mile section of Bolsa Ave. as the “Little Saigon Tourist Commercial District”.^[10]^[18] Later, in June, California governor George Deukmejian revealed a freeway sign designating the area as “Little Saigon”.^[19]

In 2001, Lee’s Sandwiches, based in San Jose, later expanded to Westminster with its first franchisee.^[20]

Little Saigon hosts the world’s largest international Vietnamese film festival, Viet Film Fest.^[1]^[21]

Pho 79, which was opened in 1982 and named after the restaurant’s original location at 79 Võ Tánh Street in Saigon,^[17]^: 58-59 won the James Beard Foundation award in 2019.^[22]

Local Vietnamese-language newspapers include Nguoi Viet, Việt Báo, Viễn Đông, and Sàigòn Nhỏ.^[23]

Little Saigon has also emerged as the prominent center of the Vietnamese pop music industry with several recording studios, and with a recording industry many times larger than in Vietnam itself. The largest labels are Thúy Nga Productions and Asia Entertainment.^[4]

^ ^a ^b Hong, Jae C.; Nguyễn, Trân (2025-04-30). “PHOTO ESSAY: For the Vietnamese diaspora, Saigon’s fall 50 years ago evokes mixed emotions”. Associated Press. Archived from the original on September 18, 2025. Retrieved 2025-12-16.
^ ^a ^b Balassone, Merrill (2005-10-23). “The heart of Little Saigon beats strong”. Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on December 16, 2025. Retrieved 2025-12-16.
^ Do, Anh (2015-11-08). “Not your grandmother’s Little Saigon: Entrepreneurs expand enclave’s horizons”. Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on December 16, 2025. Retrieved 2025-12-16.
^ ^a ^b Do, Quyen (2008-05-10). “Singer Minh Tuyet dreams big in Little Saigon”. Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 2014-05-14. Retrieved 2025-12-16.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Nguyen, Phuong (2015-07-02). “Vietnamese Americans in Little Saigon, California”. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of American History. Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780199329175.013.19. ISBN 978-0-19-932917-5. Retrieved 2025-12-17.
^ McRea, Heather (2025-04-28). “Here’s a look at the history of Little Saigon”. Orange County Register. Retrieved 2025-12-18. [Little Saigon’s] borders are defined as Westminster Boulevard, Bolsa Avenue, Magnolia Street and Euclid Street.
^ Morino, Doug; Ablaza, Kendra (2013-06-17). “Little Saigon turns 25”. Orange County Register. Retrieved 2025-12-18.
^ Galicza, Natalia (2025-03-14). “Saigon has not fallen”. Deseret News. Retrieved 2025-12-17. Little Saigon spans the cities of Fountain Valley, Garden Grove, Santa Ana and Westminster
^ Puri; Popp, Aaron; Fleissig, Adrian (October 2024). “Little Saigon, Orange County: A Demographic and Economic Porfile” (PDF). Retrieved 2025-12-18.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d “Business and politics in Little Saigon, California”. Calisphere. 2025-12-17. Retrieved 2025-12-17.
^ ^a ^b ^c Day, Kathleen; Holley, David (1984-09-30). “Boom on Bolsa: Vietnamese Create Their Own Saigon”. Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2025-12-17.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Berg, Tom; Kopetman, Roxana; Haire, Chris (2015-05-01). “How they became us: Orange County changed forever in the 40 years since the fall of Saigon”. The Orange County Register. Archived from the original on October 19, 2025. Retrieved 2025-12-16.
^ ^a ^b “Timeline: 40 years of Vietnamese in Orange County”. The Orange County Register. 2015-04-30. Archived from the original on October 21, 2025. Retrieved 2025-12-16.
^ ^a ^b Do, Anh (2025-04-29). “Tony Lam was an original influencer in Little Saigon”. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2025-12-17.
^ “At Song Long Restaurant, New Vietnamese Americans First Tasted Home”. NBC News. 2016-04-11. Archived from the original on March 11, 2023. Retrieved 2025-12-16.
^ Wei, Clarissa (2023-07-07). “How second-generation owners of 99 Ranch are turning the Asian supermarket into a national powerhouse”. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2025-12-17. The first 99 Ranch was opened in 1984 in Westminster
^ ^a ^b Dang, Thuy Vo; Vo, Linda Trinh; Le, Tram (2015). Vietnamese in Orange County. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4671-3321-0. LCCN 2014952136.
^ Reyes, David (1988-02-10). “Westminster Approves Boost for Little Saigon”. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2025-12-18.
^ Paddock, Richard C. (1988-06-18). “Deukmejian Courts ‘Little Saigon’ Votes”. Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 2021-02-14. Retrieved 2025-12-16.
^ Constante, Agnes (2016-10-13). “Lee’s Sandwiches Co-Founder Remembered for Humility, Philanthropy After Losing Cancer Battle”. NBC News. Archived from the original on March 25, 2023. Retrieved 2025-12-16. Nearly two decades later, it shifted from being a family business to a growing franchise that expanded out of San Jose. Its second shop opened up in Westminster, California in 2001.
^ Le, Victoria (2025-10-09). “Annual Viet Film Fest returns to the Frida Cinema this weekend”. Orange County Register. Archived from the original on October 9, 2025. Retrieved 2025-12-16. The largest Vietnamese film festival in the diaspora, Viet Film Fest (…)
^ Valdespino, Anne (2019-01-30). “Pho 79 is the first Orange County restaurant to win a prestigious James Beard Foundation award”. The Orange County Register. Retrieved 2025-12-16.
^ Tran, My-Thuan (2009-09-08). “Where newspapers thrive: Orange County’s Little Saigon”. Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 2025-08-13. Retrieved 2025-12-16. [Viet Herald’s] new offices are squeezed between Viet Bao Daily News and Vien Dong Daily News. (…) All five Vietnamese-language papers are small — the largest, Nguoi Viet Daily News, (…) (The fifth paper is Saigon Nho.)

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