Transient Migrants’ Attachment to the Place of Destination: A Case Study of African Migrants in Guangzhou China

Abstract

Rising global mobility for work, trade, and entrepreneurship has created a growing population of transient migrants, yet little is known about how they form attachments to host societies separated from their home countries. This paper addresses this gap by presenting findings from an ethnographic study conducted from 2012 to 2018 with 40 African migrants in Guangzhou, China. Using a multiscalar framework, it analyzes attachment at three spatial scales: urban enclave, suburban neighbourhoods and underground churches. Findings reveal that African migrants in Guangzhou experience disrupted residential attachments during spatial transitions and relocations from urban enclaves to suburban neighbourhoods, while reconstructed attachments emerge in sacred spaces within underground churches. State-led relocations from downtown enclaves to peripheral suburbs generate spatial fragmentation, isolation, and a sense of rootlessness. Although urban enclaves continue to sustain economic livelihoods, ethnic entrepreneurship, and cultural familiarity, their role as residential hubs has weakened due to policy constraints. Suburban neighbourhoods provide housing but offer limited social interaction with local residents, resulting in weak attachments to these residential spaces. In contrast, underground churches serve as the most positive sites of attachment, offering emotional support, social resources, and a sense of belonging that bridges migrants’ post-relocation experiences. This study contributes to place attachment literature by: (1) proposing a multi-scalar perspective that reflects the fluid and dynamic nature of transient migration; (2) demonstrating how authoritarian urban governance disrupts traditional immigrant community functions while religious spaces offer alternative forms of solidarity; and (3) revealing how attachments can persist in marginal, less visible urban spaces despite regulatory pressures.