Celebrating National Heritage Months » Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month

Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month

AAPI Heritage in ABC
Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month, observed in May, commemorates the rich history and contributions of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. The month of May was chosen to mark the arrival of the first Japanese immigrants in 1843 and the completion of the transcontinental railroad in 1869. 
 
The term AAPI encompasses people from the entire Asian continent, 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).
 

Other terms have recently emerged to foster more inclusion of Pacific Islanders and South Asians (Indians): 

  • AANHPI - “Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander.” Includes Samoans, Tongan, Chamorro, Marshallese, Fijian, and other Polynesian, Micronesian, and Melanesian Pacific Islanders; and anyone of mixed-race AANHPI heritage.
  • APIDA - “Asian Pacific Islander Desi American.” The “Desi” term representing South Asian identifying people.