Abstract: This article explores how affective friendship of migrant Filipino workers constructs transnationalism that overarches different host countries. Following a sequence of ‘mobility and sedentariness’ through ‘multi-sited ethnography’ methods, I discuss the affective friendship that emerges out of a specific sociocultural context in Korea, namely activities of the Catholic congregation. I also demonstrate that such friendship is accompanied by onward migration to Canada through the transfer of ties in a new social setting. Moving beyond the duality of home and abroad, this study reveals that migrants’ transnationalism exhibits cosmopolitanism through the reconfiguration of their compatriot friendship into globally spanning, multi-local ties. © 2014 Taylor & Francis.

Migrant Filipino workers Affective friendship cosmopolitanism South Korea Transnationalism Onward migration Canada

international migration socialism Canada mobility South Korea migrant worker ethics