As a result of all this turmoil, people began to emigrate to Taiwan and Southeast Asia after Chia Ching's rule in the Ming Dynasty. The war between China and Japan and the occupying of the mainland by the communists caused even greater waves of emigration as the Kinmenese made their way to Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, North Borneo, the Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand.
因此從明朝嘉靖之後，就有人開始移居台灣及南洋。此後，中日戰爭和中國大陸赤化，更造成兩次較大的遷出，金門人蹤遂遍及新加坡、馬來西亞、印尼、北婆羅洲、菲律賓、越南、泰國… …，金門亦成為著名的「僑鄉」。