A conference being held in Toronto this weekend has drawn people from around the world intent on exploring their common ancestry. They're members of the Hakka clan a Chinese ethnic minority group that can be traced back to ancient times.

Conference participant Jonathan Lowe's father was Hakka. His sisters have come to the conference from New York and England. "Part of this conference is to announce the Hakka culture arrival, to say we are here," he said.

The Hakka, or "guest people" in Chinese, were originally based in northern China. During the 15th and 16th centuries, facing persecution, they began to leave their ancestral homeland. The pattern continued up until the 19th century.

Said conference co-chair Keith Lowe, "We regard ourselves as the most widely dispersed ethnic group in the world."

Worldwide their numbers are anywhere between 30 million and 100 million. Some 35,000 live in Canada, including Governor General Adrienne Clarkson and her sister-in-law, Senator Vivienne Poy.

Poy says Hakka women were known for their physical and emotional strength. Unlike many women in China, they didn't bind their feet, giving them normal mobility.

Many people at the conference said it's important for every ethnic group to maintain its sense of identity. Said participant Amoy Lowe, "It's up to the parents, us as parents, to see we pass on something to our young people."