This study examines the cultural identity of Chinese orphans from the post-World War II era through documentary research and fieldwork, analyzing the formation of their identity and heritage practices within a distinctive historical context. Primary data were collected through in-depth interviews employing purposive sampling with seven key representative informants. Particular attention is given to the role of the Japan-China Friendship Association for NPO China Returnees in supporting returnees and sustaining cultural identity. The findings indicate that Northeast China, where most orphans were raised, profoundly shaped their identity through everyday cultural influences, including cuisine, daily practices, and festive traditions. Following repatriation to Japan, they faced significant challenges such as language barriers, employment difficulties, and social integration. In this context, branches of the association in Osaka and Tokyo became vital support networks, promoting cultural continuity through Chinese language education, traditional festival celebrations, cultural exchange gatherings, transmission of Chinese arts, preservation of culinary traditions, and commemorative activities. These initiatives create collective spaces for maintaining shared memory and identity. The study situates these practices within the frameworks of UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The analysis shows that community-based transmission of these practices aligns with ICH safeguarding principles and directly contributes to SDGs 11.4, 10, 16, and 4, underscoring the nexus between heritage preservation and sustainable development. The study argues that the cultural identity of postwar Chinese orphans should be recognized as a form of “World Intangible Cultural Heritage” embodied in a visible community of shared memory and identity, and that its sustainable preservation requires strengthened cross-sector collaboration among NPOs, academic institutions, local communities, and government bodies in Japan.
Somrak Chaisingkananont* Zijun Shen (Wed,) studied this question.