Chinatowns and Other Asian-American Enclaves: Little India

Little Indias

New York City

According to the 2010 U.S. Census, there are 526,133 Americans of Indian ancestry living in New York, making it the U.S. city with the greatest concentration of Indians. Manhattan's East 28th and 29th Streets around Lexington Avenue are home to many Indian restaurants and stores. Large numbers of Indians also live in other neighborhoods especially in Queens. In 1970 the Hindu Temple Society of North America established what is now a large Hindu temple and community center in Flushing, Queens. There is also a concentration of Indian businesses and residents in Jackson Heights, Queens. The diverse nature of the neighborhood, however, has not led to the creation of a distinct Little India.

Los Angeles

The second-largest concentration of Indians in the United States is in Los Angeles with an Indian American population of 119,901. The large number of Indians employed in high technology has also led to a sizable concentration in Silicon Valley.

New Jersey

The New Jersey suburbs of New York are the area with the largest concentration of Indians in the United States. There are at least ten Hindu and three Jain temples in central New Jersey.

Edison has a large concentration of Indians, and an Indian commercial district has sprung up in Jersey City, where Indian stores and restaurants line Newark Avenue between Kennedy Boulevard and Tonnelle Avenue. In nearby Journal Square, a Middle Eastern Muslim neighborhood flourishes, proving, as do Japanese and Korean neighborhoods near each other, that people from the same part of the world tend to feel comfortable together even when they have differences back home.