You May have noticed in e-newsletters and social media posts that events are put on this month – May – in honor of AAPI Heritage Month. But do you know what it is and how this designation came about? Be sure to check out our Events Page listing of AAPI events in the area.
What is AAPI, APIA, or APA?
When we think of AAPI (Asian American Pacific Islander), APIA (Asian Pacific Islander American), or APA (Asian Pacific American), we usually think of the 51 countries and territories in Asia, the most populous continent in the world. But AAPI, APIA, or APA covers much more.
According to the U.S. government webpage about the Asian/Pacific Heritage Month, the term Asian/Pacific encompasses all of the Asian continent AND the Pacific islands of Melanesia (New Guinea, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Fiji, and the Solomon Islands), Micronesia (Marianas, Guam, Wake Island, Palau, Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Nauru and the Federated States of Micronesia) and Polynesia (New Zealand, Hawaiian Islands, Rotuma, Midway Islands, Samoa, American Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, Cook Islands, French Polynesia, and Easter Island). So we also have the acronym of AANHPI, which stands for Asian American Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander.
Each of the Asian and Pacific Islander countries has a distinct language and dialect, culture, customs, and food. This is what we are celebrating – our uniqueness, our differences, and our commonality.
So why May?
The month of May was chosen to commemorate the immigration of the first Japanese to the United States on May 7, 1843, and to mark the anniversary of the completion of the transcontinental railroad on May 10, 1869. The majority of the workers who laid the tracks were Chinese immigrants.
How did the Asian/Pacific Heritage Month come about?
Like most commemorative months, Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month originated with Congress. In 1977, Representative Frank Horton of New York introduced a resolution to proclaim the first ten days in May as Pacific/Asian American Heritage Week. In the next 15 years, several resolutions were passed. And finally, in 1992, Congress passed Public Law 102-450 to designate May as Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month.
Where can I find out more about the Asian/Pacific Heritage Month?
Read more in the digital and physical holdings available in the Library of Congress at this Web portal, which is a collaborative project of the Library of Congress and the National Archives and Records Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. The contents of this site highlight only a small portion of the physical and digital holdings of the participating partners.