the black China hand

[Old China Hand] according to A Concise Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English [is a] term has been in use since approximately 1910 and is applied to “One who has spent many years in China in the commercial or civil service, or as a missionary.” The dictionary’s definition leaves out some important categories of people, particulary the waves of refugees from the conflicts of Europe and elsewhere who found temporary shelter in China, as well as people who served in the military of many nations. It must also be expanded to point out that implicit in the term is the notion of contact between Chinese and non-Chinese cultures. As various groups and individuals from all over the globe took up residence in China, they changed China for good or ill, and China unmistakably changed them. Because of the many nations and cultures from which Old China Hands were drawn, and because of the great variety of circumstances which led to their residence in China, the Old China Hand experience is also very varied and provides many unusual and valuable insights into the nature of China. An Old China Hand might have been an employee of the government of China, a business person, a missionary, in the maritime or military service, a refugee from Nazi Germany or Communist Russia, a civil administrator, a journalist, an adventurer or drifter, a person benign or wicked.

Another interesting website that I came across that is dedicated to “to the preservation of their [the China Hands] heritage and to assisting in the interpretation of their experience.” From my point of view this is a goal that is truly worthy.

 OLD CHINA HAND