Sampan Newspaper
Encyclopedia
Sampan is a newspaper
based in Chinatown in Boston, Massachusetts. It is New England
's only bilingual Chinese
and English
newspaper. The newspaper was founded in 1972 by volunteers of the Asian American Civic Association, then known as the Chinese American Civic Association; its slogan is "Boston's oldest bilingual Chinese-English newspaper since 1972". It is distributed throughout Greater Boston and covers news of Boston's Chinatown as well as the Greater Boston Asian American community.
A sampan
is a flat-bottomed wooden boat, still used today in parts of Southeast Asia
for fishing, transportation or even habitation. It is a metaphor, which symbolizes that this newspaper would bring news of the Chinese community, in both Chinese and English, around the city of Boston, providing a means to acquire information about the community to non-English speakers as well as non-Chinese speakers.
The Sampan Newspaper primarily reports on the news of Chinatown and Asian Americans of Greater Boston
. As a free, nonprofit newspaper, Sampan makes its profit almost entirely by advertisements.
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
based in Chinatown in Boston, Massachusetts. It is New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
's only bilingual Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
and English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
newspaper. The newspaper was founded in 1972 by volunteers of the Asian American Civic Association, then known as the Chinese American Civic Association; its slogan is "Boston's oldest bilingual Chinese-English newspaper since 1972". It is distributed throughout Greater Boston and covers news of Boston's Chinatown as well as the Greater Boston Asian American community.
A sampan
Sampan
A sampan is a relatively flat bottomed Chinese wooden boat from long. Some sampans include a small shelter on board, and may be used as a permanent habitation on inland waters. Sampans are generally used for transportation in coastal areas or rivers, and are often used as traditional fishing boats...
is a flat-bottomed wooden boat, still used today in parts of Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
for fishing, transportation or even habitation. It is a metaphor, which symbolizes that this newspaper would bring news of the Chinese community, in both Chinese and English, around the city of Boston, providing a means to acquire information about the community to non-English speakers as well as non-Chinese speakers.
The Sampan Newspaper primarily reports on the news of Chinatown and Asian Americans of Greater Boston
Greater Boston
Greater Boston is the area of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts surrounding the city of Boston. Due to ambiguity in usage, the size of the area referred to can be anywhere between that of the metropolitan statistical area of Boston and that of the city's combined statistical area which includes...
. As a free, nonprofit newspaper, Sampan makes its profit almost entirely by advertisements.