It has been noted that the term differs from existing patterns of immigrant designation in American English.
[3] It has also been observed that, in practice, the term American-born Chinese includes hundreds of thousands of Americans of Chinese descent who were, technically speaking, not born in America, but rather, were brought over by their parents at a young age.
[4] However, this begins to shift in subsequent generations as families structures change through interracial marriage.
[5] The term was used in the 2006 graphic novel by Gene Luen Yang, entitled American Born Chinese.
[8] The term was used in the book Crazy Rich Asians, by Kevin Kwan, which has been adapted into a movie of the same name.