Sociolinguists have long argued that one cannot talk about language, any language, adequately and accurately without making reference to its speakers. While the ultimate aim of this chapter is to present an up-to-date picture of the Chinese language in the British Isles, a very large part of it will be devoted to the Chinese people in Britain.

The Chinese are one of the largest and longest-established ethnic minorities in the UK. They are a socially and linguistically highly diverse population. There are many issues concerning the Chinese in Britain – their cultural heritage, their beliefs and values and their social organisation – which are of interest and importance to sociolinguists. They would, however, require book-length studies to do them justice. I can only discuss briefly those aspects which are of direct and primary relevance to the current sociolinguistic situation of the British Chinese communities. The discussion will concentrate in turn on the history and demography of the Chinese population in the UK, the linguistic background of the various groups of Chinese people, and the current language use patterns in the Chinese communities.

The British Chinese communities: history and demography

Although the Chinese have always had a geographically large homeland, mass external migration has long been a regular part of Chinese history. Until the early twentieth century, overseas Chinese settlements had mainly been in South-East Asia.