stock here: She is often described as an American Born Chinese, even in the same article that states she was born in China, and moved at 2 years old to Virginia of all places.
Her name is a combination of her parent’s last names.
Weijia Jiang’s parents, Liya Wei and Huade “John” Jiang, immigrated to the United States from Xiamen, China, in the mid-1980s when Weijia was just two years old.
Life in China and the Move
In China, her father was focused on his academic career. The primary reason the family moved was for educational opportunity; her father was applying to graduate schools in the U.S. and successfully secured a scholarship to West Virginia University (WVU).
Initially, the plan wasn’t necessarily to stay forever, but her father reportedly fell in love with the landscape and beauty of West Virginia, leading the family to settle there permanently.
Life in West Virginia
After moving to the U.S., her parents’ professional lives shifted toward entrepreneurship and service:
- Restaurant Owners: For many years, they owned and operated the Chinatown Restaurant in Buckhannon, West Virginia.
- Community Presence: As one of the few Chinese families in their rural area, the restaurant served as a central part of their lives and Weijia’s upbringing, though she has often spoken about the challenges of being “the other” in a predominantly white community.
Her parents are now retired, but their transition from academic pursuits in China to running a small business in the U.S. is a central part of the story Jiang often shares regarding her family’s work ethic and the “American Dream.”
