The Girmitiya Diaspora

Origins, Evolution and Bonding of Ethnic Communities
1. Auflage 2026
ISBN: 978-1-041-12267-8
Verlag: Taylor & Francis Ltd

Buch, Englisch, 238 Seiten, Format (B × H): 156 mm x 234 mm, Gewicht: 1120 g

Reihe: South Asia Migrations

This book explores ethnogenesis, integration in host societies and bonding in the Indian diaspora of Girmitiyas – a population of over 1.3 million British-Indian indentured labourers recruited in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries
to work in plantation colonies across Asia, Africa and the Caribbean. Focusing on Girmitiya communities in Suriname, Guyana, Mauritius and Fiji, it examines both the similarities and divergences in their ethnic formation, integration into host societies, and diasporic bonding. Theoretically, it contributes to the underexplored but vital themes of ethnogenesis, integration and diaspora connections, highlighting variations within and across communities. It traces how ethnic identities emerged in different contexts and how these groups negotiated ties with both their adopted homelands and the wider Indian diaspora. Drawing on comparative insights, it provides a unique framework for analysing community evolution across geographic and cultural boundaries. Empirically, the book offers detailed historical accounts of the Girmitiyas in four societies, marking a significant departure from the largely single-country focus of existing literature. By presenting a comparative and transnational perspective, it moves beyond plantation narratives to situate Girmitiya communities within broader social, cultural and political histories. This volume represents a valuable contribution to the social sciences and humanities, particularly in the fields of ethnic studies, peasant studies,
diaspora studies, and the analysis of plural societies.

Zielgruppe

Postgraduate

Autoren/Hrsg.

Gowricharn, Ruben

Fachgebiete

• Sozialwissenschaften Soziologie | Soziale Arbeit Spezielle Soziologie Soziologie von Migranten und Minderheiten
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Geschichtliche Themen
• Sozialwissenschaften Ethnologie | Volkskunde Volkskunde Indigene Völker
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Weltgeschichte & Geschichte einzelner Länder und Gebietsräume Geschichte einzelner Länder Asiatische Geschichte
• Sozialwissenschaften Ethnologie | Volkskunde Volkskunde Minderheiten, Interkulturelle & Multikulturelle Fragen
• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Regierungspolitik Migrations- & Minderheitenpolitik

Inhaltsverzeichnis

List of Figures viii
List of Tables x
Glossary xi
A Note on Terminology xv
Preface xvii
1 Introduction: The Girmitiyas 1
1.1 Three Issues 3
1.2 Previous Studies 5
1.3 Methodological Notes 7
2 Ethnogenesis: A Conceptual Model 11
2.1 Introduction 11
2.2 The Ethnic Group: Basic Concepts 12
2.3 Latent Ethnicity 15
2.4 Practices and Institutions 18
2.5 Rural and Urban Ethnogenesis 20
2.6 Race and Ethnic Politics 23
2.7 Diaspora: Sameness and Diversity 25
2.8 The Conceptual Model 29
3 India: Emigration of Latent Ethnicity 33
3.1 Introduction 33
3.2 The Migration Culture 34
3.3 Agricultural Human Capital 41
3.4 The Recruitment and Emigration 44
3.5 Demographics of the Labourers 52
3.6 Settling in the Colony 57
3.7 Specificities 59

4 Suriname: Unity in Diversity 62
4.1 Introduction 63
4.2 The Immigrants 64
4.3 The Decline of the Plantations 67
4.4 Colonisation Policy 69
4.5 Ethnic Institutions 73
4.6 Group-wise Integration 79
4.7 Transnational Ethnogenesis 85
4.8 Specificities 88
5 Guyana: A Creolised Community 91
5.1 Introduction 92
5.2 Immigration 93
5.3 Hybrid Peasantisation 97
5.4 Political Polarisation 101
5.5 Creolised Ethnicity 104
5.6 Indo-Guyanese Politics 109
5.7 Diverse Transnationalism 116
5.8 Specificities 120
6 Mauritius: Ethnogenesis Amid Diversity 123
6.1 Introduction 124
6.2 The Indian Population 125
6.3 Workers and Plantations 128
6.4 Morcellement as Peasantisation 131
6.5 Diverse Ethnogenesis 137
6.6 Political Domination 142
6.7 Chota Bharat 147
6.8 Specificities 151
7 Fiji: Fragmented Communities 153
7.1 Introduction 154
7.2 Immigration 155
7.3 The Land Issue 158
7.4 Homesteads/Dispersion 162
7.5 Fragmented Ethnogenesis 165
7.6 Democracy Curtailed 172
7.7 Diaspora Bonding 177
7.8 Specificities 180

8 Girmitiya Communities in Diaspora 182
8.1 Introduction 182
8.2 Preconditions 183
8.3 Institutional Variations 186
8.4 Patterns of Integration 189
8.5 Diaspora Bonding 192
8.6 Conclusion 195
9 Same Yet Different 197
References 202
Index 214

Über Autor(innen)

Ruben Gowricharn is Professor Emeritus of Indian Diaspora Studies at the Vrije Universiteit of Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Currently he serves as a research fellow at the same university. He has published numerous scholarly articles in both Dutch and English. His recent books include three edited volumes on the Indian diaspora (all with Routledge): Multiple Homemaking: The Ethnic Condition in Indian Diaspora Societies (2021), De Goudsmid
(2022), Ongezien Ongehoord: Hindostanen in de Nederlandse koloniale geschiedenis (2023, co-authored with Jaswina Elahi, Walburg Pers) and The Girmitiya Peasants in Suriname: Agrarian and Economic Changes in a Plural
Society (2024). Gowricharn has also served as the managing director of a doctoral programme for adult migrant students in the Netherlands.