Österreichische Zeitschrift Für Soziologie, Dec 1, 2016
A locality characterised by a high concentration of economic activities of immigrants, predominan... more A locality characterised by a high concentration of economic activities of immigrants, predominantly immigrants from Vietnam, has emerged on the outskirts of Prague. This article explores whether or not this locality—in terms of its function, structure, mutual relations among entrepreneurs and physical morphology—resembles certain rather well-known spatial models of migrant business concentration as described in other developed immigration countries (e. g. ethnic enclave economies, commercial/business enclaves, ethnic markets/retail districts, commercial hubs and ethnic commercial belts). Despite having some features in common with the existing models of spatial concentration, the Sapa site has certain specific features, namely a primary and very strong function as a wholesale centre serving the Vietnamese ethnic economy, the absence of a residential function, weak ethnic features including goods for sale and its origin without the intervention of a local government. In all these aspects, Sapa and other to a certain extent similar post-socialist markets/bazaars in Central Eastern Europe are relatively unique among existing models.ZusammenfassungAm Rand von Prag ist ein Ort entstanden, der sich durch eine hohe Konzentration wirtschaftlicher Aktivitäten von Immigranten auszeichnet – vorwiegend Immigranten aus Vietnam. Im vorliegenden Artikel wird untersucht, ob dieser Ort hinsichtlich seiner Funktion, Struktur, der gegenseitigen Beziehungen zwischen den Unternehmern und seiner physischen Morphologie bekannten räumlichen Modellen der Geschäftskonzentration von Migranten ähnelt, wie sie in anderen Einwandererländern beschrieben werden (z. B. ethnische Enklaveökonomien, Handels- bzw. Business-Enklaven, ethnische Märkte/Einzelhandelsbezirke, Geschäftszentren und ethnische Gewerbegürtel). Trotz einiger Gemeinsamkeiten mit bestehenden Modellen räumlicher Konzentration hat das Sapa-Zentrum gewisse spezifische Eigenschaften, nämlich eine primäre und sehr starke Funktion als Großhandelszentrum, welches der vietnamesischen ethnischen Wirtschaft dient; das Fehlen einer anwohnerorientierten Funktion; eine geringe Bedeutung ethnischer Eigenschaften einschließlich der Verkaufswaren sowie das Entstehen ohne die Intervention einer lokalen Regierung. In all diesen Aspekten sind Sapa und ähnliche postsozialistische Märkte bzw. Basare in Mittel- und Osteuropa relativ einzigartig unter den bestehenden Modellen.
CONTEXT ............................................................................................ more CONTEXT .............................................................................................................................. 1 2. INTERNAL MIGRATION AND POPULATION CHANGE REVIEWED.......................... 2 3. METHODS USED AND DATA EMPLOYED....................................................................... 7 3.1. GEOGRAPHICAL SCALE AND GEOGRAPHICAL UNITS .................................................................. 7 3.2. VARIABLES............................................................................................................................ 7 3.2.1. Population and population change data ...................................................................... 7 3.2.2. Migration .................................................................................................................... 7 3.2.3. Births and deaths......................................................................................................... 9 3.2.4. Unemployment ............
We examine the relationship between the social practice of migrant remitting and the transnationa... more We examine the relationship between the social practice of migrant remitting and the transnational field connecting Moldova with Italy and Czechia. Using data from a harmonized migrant survey, we estimate ordinal regression models and distinguish two remitting practices. Family remitting is organized around a set of routinized activities and communications that support the survival needs of families, while civil remitting contributes to the long-term development of civil society. These practices are associated with ongoing engagements with the transnational field and differentiated by duration overseas and legal status. Our findings confirm the importance of studying the transnational context of remitting and suggest that migration-development policy should recognize remittances as long-term social practices rather than transactions.
Advances in geographical and environmental sciences, 2016
This article tries to thoroughly map Thai immigration into Czechia with an emphasis on the nature... more This article tries to thoroughly map Thai immigration into Czechia with an emphasis on the nature of the integration process. It analyzes what has not been studied yet, it uses an important comparative perspective, and, in practical terms, it sheds light on whether there is a spatial and social isolation/exclusion which Czechia should tackle. Four models representing different types of migration and integration of Thais in the Euro-Atlantic area are used as a frame of reference for specifying the main outcomes of the authors’ own questionnaire survey (159 Thai respondents, snowball sampling, conducted mainly in Prague, in 2012).
The authors contribute to filling a gap that exists in the knowledge of personal communications a... more The authors contribute to filling a gap that exists in the knowledge of personal communications and their interaction with social remittances. Moldovans in Prague, Czechia, and Turin, Italy, and communications with their families and peers in Moldova are studied using our own survey data (from 2017/2018 – N = 203 in Prague and N = 206 in Turin, factor analysis used). We argue that there is a close relationship between interpersonal communication topics (while themes linked to everyday activities dominate over serious broader structural and institutional domestic or “global issues”) and real social remittances. Particular communication topics have their typical bearers in relation to age, gender, and education. The geographical context matters. Prague attracted Moldovans who stay abroad for a shorter time and are less educated, less integrated, and more transnational than those in Turin. Hence, Prague Moldovans communicate more and also transfer more social remittances. However, the ...
Österreichische Zeitschrift Für Soziologie, Dec 1, 2016
A locality characterised by a high concentration of economic activities of immigrants, predominan... more A locality characterised by a high concentration of economic activities of immigrants, predominantly immigrants from Vietnam, has emerged on the outskirts of Prague. This article explores whether or not this locality—in terms of its function, structure, mutual relations among entrepreneurs and physical morphology—resembles certain rather well-known spatial models of migrant business concentration as described in other developed immigration countries (e. g. ethnic enclave economies, commercial/business enclaves, ethnic markets/retail districts, commercial hubs and ethnic commercial belts). Despite having some features in common with the existing models of spatial concentration, the Sapa site has certain specific features, namely a primary and very strong function as a wholesale centre serving the Vietnamese ethnic economy, the absence of a residential function, weak ethnic features including goods for sale and its origin without the intervention of a local government. In all these aspects, Sapa and other to a certain extent similar post-socialist markets/bazaars in Central Eastern Europe are relatively unique among existing models.ZusammenfassungAm Rand von Prag ist ein Ort entstanden, der sich durch eine hohe Konzentration wirtschaftlicher Aktivitäten von Immigranten auszeichnet – vorwiegend Immigranten aus Vietnam. Im vorliegenden Artikel wird untersucht, ob dieser Ort hinsichtlich seiner Funktion, Struktur, der gegenseitigen Beziehungen zwischen den Unternehmern und seiner physischen Morphologie bekannten räumlichen Modellen der Geschäftskonzentration von Migranten ähnelt, wie sie in anderen Einwandererländern beschrieben werden (z. B. ethnische Enklaveökonomien, Handels- bzw. Business-Enklaven, ethnische Märkte/Einzelhandelsbezirke, Geschäftszentren und ethnische Gewerbegürtel). Trotz einiger Gemeinsamkeiten mit bestehenden Modellen räumlicher Konzentration hat das Sapa-Zentrum gewisse spezifische Eigenschaften, nämlich eine primäre und sehr starke Funktion als Großhandelszentrum, welches der vietnamesischen ethnischen Wirtschaft dient; das Fehlen einer anwohnerorientierten Funktion; eine geringe Bedeutung ethnischer Eigenschaften einschließlich der Verkaufswaren sowie das Entstehen ohne die Intervention einer lokalen Regierung. In all diesen Aspekten sind Sapa und ähnliche postsozialistische Märkte bzw. Basare in Mittel- und Osteuropa relativ einzigartig unter den bestehenden Modellen.
CONTEXT ............................................................................................ more CONTEXT .............................................................................................................................. 1 2. INTERNAL MIGRATION AND POPULATION CHANGE REVIEWED.......................... 2 3. METHODS USED AND DATA EMPLOYED....................................................................... 7 3.1. GEOGRAPHICAL SCALE AND GEOGRAPHICAL UNITS .................................................................. 7 3.2. VARIABLES............................................................................................................................ 7 3.2.1. Population and population change data ...................................................................... 7 3.2.2. Migration .................................................................................................................... 7 3.2.3. Births and deaths......................................................................................................... 9 3.2.4. Unemployment ............
We examine the relationship between the social practice of migrant remitting and the transnationa... more We examine the relationship between the social practice of migrant remitting and the transnational field connecting Moldova with Italy and Czechia. Using data from a harmonized migrant survey, we estimate ordinal regression models and distinguish two remitting practices. Family remitting is organized around a set of routinized activities and communications that support the survival needs of families, while civil remitting contributes to the long-term development of civil society. These practices are associated with ongoing engagements with the transnational field and differentiated by duration overseas and legal status. Our findings confirm the importance of studying the transnational context of remitting and suggest that migration-development policy should recognize remittances as long-term social practices rather than transactions.
Advances in geographical and environmental sciences, 2016
This article tries to thoroughly map Thai immigration into Czechia with an emphasis on the nature... more This article tries to thoroughly map Thai immigration into Czechia with an emphasis on the nature of the integration process. It analyzes what has not been studied yet, it uses an important comparative perspective, and, in practical terms, it sheds light on whether there is a spatial and social isolation/exclusion which Czechia should tackle. Four models representing different types of migration and integration of Thais in the Euro-Atlantic area are used as a frame of reference for specifying the main outcomes of the authors’ own questionnaire survey (159 Thai respondents, snowball sampling, conducted mainly in Prague, in 2012).
The authors contribute to filling a gap that exists in the knowledge of personal communications a... more The authors contribute to filling a gap that exists in the knowledge of personal communications and their interaction with social remittances. Moldovans in Prague, Czechia, and Turin, Italy, and communications with their families and peers in Moldova are studied using our own survey data (from 2017/2018 – N = 203 in Prague and N = 206 in Turin, factor analysis used). We argue that there is a close relationship between interpersonal communication topics (while themes linked to everyday activities dominate over serious broader structural and institutional domestic or “global issues”) and real social remittances. Particular communication topics have their typical bearers in relation to age, gender, and education. The geographical context matters. Prague attracted Moldovans who stay abroad for a shorter time and are less educated, less integrated, and more transnational than those in Turin. Hence, Prague Moldovans communicate more and also transfer more social remittances. However, the ...
Uploads