Throughout history, Indian workers have been sustaining the international workforce. Driven by various waves of migration, the Indian diaspora depicts a rich history of maintaining cultural traditions and adapting into their new homelands, creating individuals (such as myself) with unique identities and relationships to Indian culture and history. This article will provide an overview of the largest diasporas of Indian populations recorded, spanning across 1833-2024. 

What is a diaspora? 

According to the National Geographic Encyclopedia (2023), a diaspora refers to a population of individuals that live far away from their original land, but still follow cultural and regional traditions and lifestyles. Throughout history, most were the result of traumatic events, such as the African diaspora (with the slave trade) and the Syrian diaspora (conflict/war), however several types exist. As such, they are categorized by reason for emigration: isolation or removal from a region, imperial/colonial rule, trade, and labor. 

What is the Indian diaspora?

The Indian diaspora consists of three main periods of emigration throughout Indian history: the Old diaspora, the New diaspora, and the Modern/Gulf diaspora, taking place today.

The Old Diaspora: The Colonial Rule

As the first wave, the Old diaspora began during the early 19th century and continued until the partition of 1947. Due to Britain’s abolishment of slavery in 1833, following with other European nations such as France (1848), the Netherlands (1863), a need for labor in sugar cane and rubber fields in colonized countries arose, leading to the system of indentured laborers. These laborers were recruited through the Coolie* system, which involved an Indian migrant (paid by colonial generals) deceiving, coercing, or involuntarily taking Indians from poorer areas through monetary advances and the promise of returning to their home country; though, these advances would later turn into debts. As such, many laborers who joined often ended up in a new form of slave trade, where conditions were very poor, and the mortality rate of laborers under British, Dutch, and French rule was high. Entire families of Indians were displaced, with the most populated including Mauritius (my home country), Guyana, South Africa, and Trinidad and Tobago. However, many Indians, including those populating South India, were also sent to plantations in Sri Lanka, Malaysia, and Burma as well.

The following table by Singh (2022) illustrates the estimated number of indentured laborers and various colonies. However, the names of these colonies have since changed since the development of the first listings of these colonies due to independence from their respective empires.

*As a term coined by European traders to define Indian/Chinese indentured laborers, some populations consider this term a racial slur. 

From my personal experience, the indentured laborer system still largely impacts the lives and legacies of Mauritian people today. The Aapravasi Ghat, or the “Immigration Depot,” located in Mauritius, remains a protected World Heritage Site depicting the space where indentured laborers were kept until they could be sent to plantations for work. It is estimated that over 450,000 Indian indentured laborers temporarily lived on this site from 1830 to 1920, and many who never got the chance to return home to India as promised. While visiting the monument in early 2023, I realized how myself, and perhaps many others, knew very little about the history of indentured laborers. But, I do realize that it is with this history that the mixed culture of Mauritius developed, where we maintain our Indian heritage and practices, but express our cultural blend through music, language, and great food.

Images taken from the Aapravasi Ghat in Port-Louis, Mauritius. Taken from mauritiusattractions.com 

The New Diaspora: The Partition of 1947 and Immigration Post-war

With independence from the British Empire established in 1947, the previous colony had been dissolved into two self-governed countries: India and Pakistan. This resulted in a large migration to take place between both countries, of around 20 million people. This migration was marked by horrific violence between both nations, and tragically led to the death of over a million people alone.

Additionally, immigration to European countries increased before and after the partition. In the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Australia and Western Europe for work, but policies developed and changed post-World War II.

The Modern Diaspora: Immigration to the Persian Gulf or Western Countries

As the Cold War continued, immigration policies were developed by many other countries looking for fair and legal labor. In the Persian Gulf and Middle East, Indian and South Asian immigration had also expanded in the 1970s. At the time, these contracts were based on the policy that although Indian workers may have been born in the country, they are not permanent residents and do not hold primary resident statuses. 

The diaspora further continued in North American countries as well, in 1965 for the United States, and 1968 in Canada. Canada adopted the point-system method, placing more value on qualifications and contributions compared to ethnicity. This included also establishing legislation to protect multiculturalism. Although these changes caused immigration to increase, it was only in the 1990s that immigration grew exponentially due to the IT industry and rising economy, attracting foreign doctors, scientists and engineers for work (including my parents). Thus, other countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand also opened their borders to immigration, creating a large increase in multiculturalism through foreign workers worldwide.

Final thoughts

Reflecting on Mauritius independence day (March 12), it is evident that the Indian diaspora is a large phenomena of emigration spanning over many years, and involved the displacement of many people. As Singh (2022) states, India is considered to have had the world’s largest diaspora, accounting for over 17.9 million people living abroad. Whether a direct descendant of India or a product of the Old Diaspora (such as myself), there is no doubt that Indian workers have a long history in the international workforce, yet play such a key role in maintaining it.

Thank you so much for reading! 🙂 

Note: Although I am writing about these topics, I am not fully knowledgeable and do not have the experience to fully inform you about everything related to our history. This post is just the tip of the iceberg, and is meant to provide a summary for further reading.

Mauritian Independence Day, 2023. Taken from Dr. Krishna Athal’s article.

References:

Aapravasi Ghat (Visit & Tour) - Mauritius Attractions. (n.d.). Mauritiusattractions.com. https://mauritiusattractions.com/aapravasi-ghat-visit-tour-p-1312.html

Athal, K. (2023, March 11). A Note on Mauritius’s Independence and Republic Day 2023 - YUVA. YUVA - Driving Change as Leading NGO in Mauritius & India. https://yuva.info/mauritius/2023/03/a-note-on-mauritiuss-independence-and-republic-day-2023/

National Geographic. (2023, October 19). Diaspora. Education.nationalgeographic.org. https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/diaspora/

Naujoks, D. (2009, October 15). Emigration, Immigration, and Diaspora Relations in India. Migrationpolicy.org. https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/emigration-immigration-and-diaspora-relations-india

Rao, A. (2013, March 17). The Indian Diaspora - Past, Present and Future. The America Times. https://www.america-times.com/the-indian-diaspora-past-present-and-future/

Singh, R. (2022, March 7). Origin of World’s Largest Migrant Population, India Seeks to Leverage Immigration. Migrationpolicy.org. https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/india-migration-country-profile

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization [UNESCO]. (2006). World Heritage List: Aapravasi Ghat (Mauritius). https://whc.unesco.org/archive/advisory_body_evaluation/1227.pdf

 Van Dyk, L. (n.d.). Canadian Immigration Acts and Legislation | Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21. Pier21.Ca.

https://pier21.ca/research/immigration-history/canadian-immigration-acts-and-legislation?page=2