Almost every Chinese who lives on Taiwan or along the coast of the mainland has heard of a friend or relative from their grandparent's time who set off for the Nan-yang area to start a new life.
不過，就整個中華民族歷史來說，中國人到南洋的紀錄，卻一點兒也不「新」，可以上推至漢代以前，甚至紀元前一千多年的周朝。