Burnsville is a city with residents from all across the globe. Below, we celebrate the global cultures and traditions that shape our community. During the festival, from 3-6pm, visit the various cultural exhibits inside the Ames Center’s Art Gallery.
In addition to the country or cultural specific listings below, the University of Minnesota’s Immigration History Research Center is the oldest and largest interdisciplinary research center and archives devoted to preserving and understanding immigrant and refugees life in North America. Below are resources from the Center:
- Immigrant Stories: Helps recent immigrants and refugees create digital stories about a personal experience. Over 250 stories representing more than 50 different communities are part of the collection.
- Immigration Syllabus: Essential topics, readings, and multimedia that provide historical context to current debates over immigration reform, integration, and citizenship
Azerbaijan
- Azerbaijani Association of Minnesota: AAM strives to introduce Azerbaijani culture to Minnesota communities. AMM offers language, dance, and cooking classes.
Bulgaria
- Bulgarian School of Minnesota: Supports education of Bulgarian language, history, culture, folklore, and customs in the Twin Cities area.
- Virtually tour Bulgarian museums
- Book for adults: Light Love Rituals of Bulgaria by Ronesa Aveela
- Book for kids: Borko by Brian Jones
Cambodia
- National Khmer Legacy Museum (St. Paul)
- National Cambodian Heritage Museum and Killing Fields Memorial (Chicago)
- Minnesota Libraries Publishing Project’s Developing Intercultural Communication Competence: Meet Kim Sin and learn about the Cambodian-American Community
- Books for kids: Who Belongs Here? An American Story by Margy Burns Knight; A path of stars by Anne Sibley O’Brien; The Cambodian Dancer: Sophany’s Gift of Hope by Daryn Reicherter
China
- Chinese American Association of Minnesota: Provides cultural, educational, recreational, and other programs to promote the cultural heritage and enhance the quality of life of Chinese Americans in Minnesota.
- Minnesota Historical Society Library’s Chinese-Americans in Minnesota: Overview
- Minneapolis Institute of Arts article, An historian of Asian immigration explains how art enables understanding
- Minneapolis Institute of Art exhibit Shimmering Surfaces: Chinese Lacquer Motifs and Techniques (thru April 10, 2022)
- The National Museum of China has a lot of information on their website about food, culture, and an insight to current exhibitions
- Books for kids: All about China: Stories, Songs, Crafts, and Games for Kids by Allision Branscombe; Fortune Cookie Fortunes, by Grace Lin
Colombia
- Tour Bogota, Colombia with this street tour that shows the historic downtown
- Books for adults: One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez; Colombia: A Concise Contemporary History by Michael J. LaRosa
Czech/Slovack
- Czech and Slovak Cultural Center of Minnesota
- Czech and Slovak Sokol Minnesota
- National Czech and Slovak Museum and Library
- Books for kids: Charles’s Bridge, by Sandra Novacek; Nicky and Vera, by Peter Sis
Ethiopia
- Ethiopian Community in Minnesota
- Minnesota Historical Society’s MNopedia article, Oromos in Minnesota: The Making of Little Oromia. In this post, they talk about the Oromo people whose homeland is Ethiopia and their journey here to Minnesota. Along with this they discuss how worldwide people know the Twin Cities as Little Oromia.
- Saint John’s University’s Hill Museum & Manuscript Library article, Ethiopia, Europe, and Collegeville, featuring a Dr. Getatchew Haile
- Museum of Ethiopia virtual tour
- Books for kids: A Perfect Orange: A Tale from Ethiopia by Frank Araujo; Ethiopian Voices: Tsion’s Life, by Stacy Bellward and Erlend Berge; Chicken in the Kitchen, by Nnedi Okorafor and Mehrdoht Amini
Ghana
- Minneapolis’ House of Talents, an online store owned by Kate Herzog. sells handmade items such as baskets and bags made from Ghanian women living in the same village she grew up in.
- Books for adults: Homegoing, by Yaa Gyasi; Transcendent Kingdom, by Yaa Gyasi
- Books for kids: A Child’s Day in a Ghanian City, by Catherine McNamara and Francis Provencal; The Leopard’s Drum: An Asante Tale from West Africa, by Jessica Souhami
Guatemala
- Guatemala City virtual city walking tour
- Antigua virtual city walking tour
- Books for kids: Abuela’s Weave, by Omar S. Castaneda; The Wheels on the Bus, by Melanie Williamson and the Amador Family
Hmong
- Hmong Museum is an organization in Minnesota dedicated to hosting events and programming at various community locations. They do not have a physical location at this time, however all of their exhibits and collections are accessible online.
- Hmong Cultural Center Museum (St. Paul) has a physical location and also a virtual library
- Minnesota Historical Society Library’s Hmong-Americans in Minnesota: Overview
- Minnesota Historical Society Hmong in Minnesota
- Books for kids: Ua Si, Ua Si, by Mykou Thao; The Most Beautiful Thing, by Kao Kalia Yang
India
- India Assocation of Minnesota
- The Indian Museum is the largest and oldest museum in India and has rare collections of antiques, armour, ornaments, and more. They have many online galleries available for free, at-home viewing.
- New Delhi virtual tour
- Books for adults: Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, death, and hope in a Mumbai undercity, by Katherine Boo; The Night Diary, by Veera Hiranandani
- Books for kids: Grandma and the Great Gourd: A Bengali Folktale, by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni; Finders Keepers? A Bus Trip in India, by Robert Arnett
Japan
- Japan America Society of Minnesota
- Minneapolis Institute of Arts Japanese and Koren Art collection
- Books for adults: Untangling My Chopsticks: A Culinary Sojourn in Kyoto, by Victoria Abbott Riccardi; A Tale for the Time Being: A Novel, by Ruth Ozeki
- Books for kids: All About Japan: Stories, Songs, Crafts, and More, by Williamarie Moore and Kazumi Wilds; I Live in Tokyo, by Mari Takabayashi
Mexico
- Mexican Consulate (St. Paul)
- Comunidades Organizando el Poder y la Accion Latina
- Minnesota Historical Society Library’s Mexican-Americans in Minnesota: Overview
- Minnesota Historical Society’s MNOpedia article, Minnesotanos: Latino Journeys in Minnesota
- Books for adults: Latino Minnesota, by Leigh Roethke; Dreams from Many Rivers: A Hispanic History of the United States Told in Poems, by Margarita Engle
- Books for kids: Rainbow Weaver, by Linda Elovitz Marshall; Dia De Los Muertos, by Hannah Eliot
- Movie: A 3 Minute Hug, a movie on Netflix capturing the joy and heartbreak of families at the U.S.-Mexico Border
Russia
- The Museum of Russian Art (Minneapolis)
- Russian Soul: Minneapolis non-profit dedicated to the study, preservation, and promotion of the Russian language, Russian folk culture, and art.
- Moscow virtul tour
- Books for kids: Living in…Russia, by Jesse Burton and Tom Woolley; Eloise in Moscow, by Kay Thompson
Scandinavia
- American Swedish Institute (Minneapolis)
- Norway House (Minneapolis)
- Scandinavian virtual tour
- Books for kids: Pippi Longstocking, by Astrid Lindgren; Goodnight, Alfie Atkins, by Gunilla Bergstrom; The Wonderful Adventures of Nils, by Selma Lagerlof
Somalia
- The Somali Museum of Minnesota
- Minnesota Historical Society Library’s Somali-Americans in Minnesota: Overview
- Books for adults: Call Me American, by Abdi Nor Iftin; A House In the Sky, by Amanda Lindhout
- Books for kids: I’m new here, by Anne Sibley O’Brien; The Proudest Blue: A Story of Hijab and Family, by Ibtihaj Muhammed
Thailand
- Thai Association of Minnesota
- Thailand virtual walking tour
- Books for adults: A history of Thailand, by Chris Baker; Bangkok Wakes to Rain: A Novel, by Pitchaya Sudbanthad
- Books for kids: Tua and the Elephant, by R.P. Harris; Aya and Bobby Discover Thailand, by Christina Kristoffersson Ameln