The Hoa (Hua 華 in Mandarin Chinese, literally "Chinese") are a minority group living in Vietnam consisting of persons considered ethnic Chinese ("Overseas Chinese"). They are often referred to as Chinese Vietnamese, Vietnamese Chinese, Sino-Vietnamese, or ethnic Chinese in/from Vietnam by the general Vietnamese populace, Overseas Vietnamese and other ethnic Chinese. The Hoa constitute one group of the Chinese diaspora and contain one of the largest Overseas Chinese communities in Southeast Asia.
During the time that Vietnam was a Chinese colony, there was an attempt by Imperial China to assimilate the Vietnamese. During this time, the Hoa people played an important role in the development of Vietnamese culture and, despite the achievement of Vietnamese sovereignty, Vietnam to this day remains a part of the cultural Sinosphere.
From the late 19th century, the Hoa played a leading role in Vietnam's private business sector before the Fall of Saigon in 1975. They were a well-established middle class ethnic group and made up a high percentage of Vietnam's upper class. Despite their small numbers, the Hoa were disproportionately dominant in the Vietnamese economy having started an estimated 70 to 80 per cent of pre-fall of Saigon's privately owned and operated businesses. Many Hoa had their businesses and property confiscated by the Communists after 1975, and many fled the country as boat people due to persecution by the newly established Communist government.
