The
TamilTamil people , are an ethnic group native to Tamil Nadu, a state in India, and the north-eastern region of Sri Lanka. They speak Tamil , with a recorded history going back two millennia. Emigrant communities are found across the world...
diasporaA diaspora is any movement of a population sharing common ethnic identity. While refugees may or may not ultimately settle in a new geographic location, the term diaspora refers to a permanently displaced and relocated collective.Diasporic cultural development often assumes a different course from...
is a term used to denote people of
Tamil NaduTamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai . Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by Puducherry , Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh...
and
Sri LankaSri Lanka , officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka , is an island country in South Asia, located about off the southern coast of India...
origin who have settled in many parts of the rest of
IndiaIndia, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal...
or in other regions, particularly
Sri LankaSri Lanka , officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka , is an island country in South Asia, located about off the southern coast of India...
, Malaysia, Singapore, the
Middle EastThe Middle East is a region that spans southwestern Asia, southeastern Europe, and northeastern Africa. It has no clear boundaries, often used as a synonym to Near East, in opposition to Far East...
, Réunion,
South AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country located at the southern tip of Africa, with a coastline on the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. To the north lie Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe, to the east are Mozambique and Swaziland, while Lesotho is an independent country surrounded by South Africa.Modern...
,
MauritiusMauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation off the coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar. In addition to the island of Mauritius, the Republic includes the islands of Cargados Carajos, Rodrigues and the Agalega Islands...
,
SeychellesSeychelles , officially the Republic of Seychelles , is an archipelago nation of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean, some east of mainland Africa, northeast of the island of Madagascar...
, Fiji,
GuyanaGuyana officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana and previously known as British Guiana, is a state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean.Guyana was discovered in 1498 by the Europeans,Guyana's past is punctuated by battles fought and won,...
,
Trinidad and TobagoThe Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying northeast of the South American country of Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles. It shares maritime boundaries with other nations including Barbados to the northeast, Guyana to the...
, French
CaribbeanThe Caribbean is a region consisting of the Caribbean Sea, its islands , and the surrounding coasts...
islands,
HaitiHaiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Creole- and French-speaking Caribbean country. Along with the Dominican Republic, it occupies the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago...
,
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus Mountains , and the Black Sea to the southeast...
,
AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the continental mainland , the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans...
,
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and
CanadaCanada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
Many are descendants of emigrants who left thousands of years ago and mixed with countless other ethnicities, while others are recently removed from Tamil Nadu.
The
TamilTamil people , are an ethnic group native to Tamil Nadu, a state in India, and the north-eastern region of Sri Lanka. They speak Tamil , with a recorded history going back two millennia. Emigrant communities are found across the world...
diasporaA diaspora is any movement of a population sharing common ethnic identity. While refugees may or may not ultimately settle in a new geographic location, the term diaspora refers to a permanently displaced and relocated collective.Diasporic cultural development often assumes a different course from...
is a term used to denote people of
Tamil NaduTamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai . Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by Puducherry , Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh...
and
Sri LankaSri Lanka , officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka , is an island country in South Asia, located about off the southern coast of India...
origin who have settled in many parts of the rest of
IndiaIndia, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal...
or in other regions, particularly
Sri LankaSri Lanka , officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka , is an island country in South Asia, located about off the southern coast of India...
, Malaysia, Singapore, the
Middle EastThe Middle East is a region that spans southwestern Asia, southeastern Europe, and northeastern Africa. It has no clear boundaries, often used as a synonym to Near East, in opposition to Far East...
, Réunion,
South AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country located at the southern tip of Africa, with a coastline on the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. To the north lie Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe, to the east are Mozambique and Swaziland, while Lesotho is an independent country surrounded by South Africa.Modern...
,
MauritiusMauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation off the coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar. In addition to the island of Mauritius, the Republic includes the islands of Cargados Carajos, Rodrigues and the Agalega Islands...
,
SeychellesSeychelles , officially the Republic of Seychelles , is an archipelago nation of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean, some east of mainland Africa, northeast of the island of Madagascar...
, Fiji,
GuyanaGuyana officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana and previously known as British Guiana, is a state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean.Guyana was discovered in 1498 by the Europeans,Guyana's past is punctuated by battles fought and won,...
,
Trinidad and TobagoThe Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying northeast of the South American country of Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles. It shares maritime boundaries with other nations including Barbados to the northeast, Guyana to the...
, French
CaribbeanThe Caribbean is a region consisting of the Caribbean Sea, its islands , and the surrounding coasts...
islands,
HaitiHaiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Creole- and French-speaking Caribbean country. Along with the Dominican Republic, it occupies the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago...
,
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus Mountains , and the Black Sea to the southeast...
,
AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the continental mainland , the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans...
,
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and
CanadaCanada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
Early migrations
Many are descendants of emigrants who left thousands of years ago and mixed with countless other ethnicities, while others are recently removed from Tamil Nadu. The diaspora's identity is rooted in an ancient heritage, a
rich languageTamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in India, Sri Lanka and Singapore. Tamil is also spoken by significant minorities in Malaysia, Mauritius and Réunion as well as emigrant communities around the world...
and
literatureTamil literature refers to the literature in the Tamil language. Tamil literature has a rich and long literary tradition spanning more than two thousand years. The oldest extant works show signs of maturity indicating an even longer period of evolution...
and a vibrant culture that many still retain. Many groups claim descent from medieval-era Tamil emigrants such as the
ChittyThe Chitty are a distinctive group of Tamil people found mainly in Malacca and Singapore , who are also known as the Indian Peranakans. As of today, their population stands at 2,000.-Language:...
s of Malaysia and the Colombo Chetty of Ceylon.
An early emigrant group that is not well documented is the
Tamil MuslimTamil Muslim refers to members of Tamil speaking multi-ethnic Islamic community found in South Asia and South East Asia. According to the official Indian census of 2001, there were at least 2 million Tamil Muslims in the southern province of Tamil Nadu...
s who emigrated in considerable numbers to the Sultanates of
MalaccaMalacca is the third smallest Malaysian state, after Perlis and Penang. It is located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, on the Straits of Malacca. It borders Negeri Sembilan to the north and the state of Johor to the south. The capital is Malacca Town...
(in present day
MalaysiaMalaysia is a country in Southeast Asia that consists of thirteen states and three Federal Territories, with a total landmass of . The capital city is Kuala Lumpur, while Putrajaya is the seat of the federal government. The population stands at over 28 million inhabitants...
) and were instrumental in spreading Islam amongst the indigenous Malays.
British and French indentured workers and others
Another stream of Tamils left during the British colonial period as indentured workers to the far flung corners of the
British EmpireThe British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom, that had originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height it was...
. Their descendants are found in Malaysia, Burma, Singapore, South Africa, Mauritius, Fiji, Guyana and Trinidad in large numbers.
Many also left to work in the possessions of the French Empire via its holdings in Pondicherry in
RéunionRéunion is an island located in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar, about south west of Mauritius, the nearest island.Administratively, Réunion is one of the overseas départements of France...
and the French Caribbean islands of
MartiniqueMartinique is an island in the eastern Caribbean Sea, with a land area of . It is an overseas department of France. To the northwest lies Dominica, to the south St Lucia, and to the southeast Barbados. As with the other overseas departments, Martinique is also one of the twenty-six regions of...
and
GuadeloupeGuadeloupe is an archipelago located in the eastern Caribbean Sea at , with a land area of 1,628 square kilometres . It is an overseas department of France. As with the other overseas departments, Guadeloupe is also one of the twenty-six regions of France and an integral part of the Republic...
. (See
MalabarsMalabars is a mistaken appellation originating from the colonial era that was used by Westerners to refer to all the people of South India . The term is based on the Malabar region of present state of Kerala in India.This term was applied by the Dutch to designate Tamils of Sri Lanka during the...
)
A small group was hired by the
DutchThe Netherlands is a country in Northwestern Europe, constituting the major portion of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east...
colonial government in Batavia or
IndonesiaThe Republic of Indonesia is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia comprises 17,508 islands. With an estimated population of around 237 million people, it is the world's fourth most populous country, with the world's largest population of Muslims.Indonesia is a republic, with an...
to work in
SumatraSumatra is an island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island entirely in Indonesia , and the sixth largest island in the world .-Etymology:Sumatra was known in ancient times by the Sanskrit...
(namely in
MedanMedan is the capital of the province of North Sumatra, Indonesia. Located in the northern part of the province along the coast, Medan is the third largest city in Indonesia. The city is bordered by Deli Serdang Regency to the east, south, and west, and the Strait of Malacca to the...
). Roughly about 40,000 (est.) descendants of these immigrants are still found in Medan.
Many independent Tamil merchant guilds such as the
NagaratharThe Nagarathars are a Chettiar community that originated in Kaveripoompattinam under the Chola kingdom of India. They are a prominent mercantile caste in Tamil Nadu, South India.-Business community:...
also left for these areas in an age old tradition of their ancestors who had traded in these areas for the last 2,000 years.
Britain also hired many Sri Lankan Tamils as clerical and other white collar workers, especially in Malaysia and Singapore. All these different streams have combined to create vibrant Tamil communities in these countries.
19th century dispersal of Tamils from India
In the 19th century,
TamilsTamil people , are an ethnic group native to Tamil Nadu, a state in India, and the north-eastern region of Sri Lanka. They speak Tamil , with a recorded history going back two millennia. Emigrant communities are found across the world...
from India and Sri Lanka migrated to
SingaporeSingapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island city-state located at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, lying north of the equator, south of the Malaysian state of Johor and north of Indonesia's Riau Islands. At , Singapore is a microstate and the smallest nation in Southeast...
and
MalaysiaMalaysia is a country in Southeast Asia that consists of thirteen states and three Federal Territories, with a total landmass of . The capital city is Kuala Lumpur, while Putrajaya is the seat of the federal government. The population stands at over 28 million inhabitants...
as army clerks and merchants.
Back flow from Tamil Eelam and Burma
During and after the devastating
WW2World War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
a large number of Tamils and Indians from Burma fled to India- to
ManipurManipur is a state in northeastern India, with the city of Imphal as its capital. Manipur is bounded by the Indian states of Nagaland to the north, Mizoram to the south and Assam to the west; it also borders Myanmar to the east. It covers an area of ....
, and Tamil Nadu. They established Burmese refugee colonies that still exist today and maintain an identity as Burmese returnees. In Sri Lanka the
SinhaleseThe Sinhalese are the main ethnic group of Sri Lanka, constituting 74% of the population. They speak Sinhala an Indo-Aryan language, and number approximately 14 million.-Origin:...
nationalist UNP party disfranchised all Indian origin Hill Country Tamils and returned 600,000 back to India under the Srimavo-Shastri Pact signed between India and Sri Lanka. Many were repatriated to the
NilgirisThe Nilgiri , often referred to as the Nilgiri Hills, are a range of mountains with at least 24 peaks above , in the westernmost part of Tamil Nadu at the junction of Karnataka and Kerala states in Southern India...
region's tea estates. They too maintain a distinct identity as Ceylon returnees in Tamil Nadu.
Black JulyBlack July is the commonly used name for the anti-Tamil attacks carried out by Sinhala mobs starting in Sri Lanka on July 23 1983. It is estimated that between 400-3000 Tamils were killed, tens of thousands of houses were destroyed, and a wave of Sri Lankan Tamils left for other countries...
and other
pogromA pogrom is a form of riot directed against a particular group, whether ethnic, religious, or other, and characterized by killings and destruction of their homes, businesses, and religious centers...
s has created another stream of Eelam and Hill country Tamil refugees in India who have languished for the last 20 years in refugee camps throughout Tamil Nadu while many others have integrated with the mainstream community or left India for other countries in the west.
There is also a movement of Native Eelam Tamils to India,some migrated to do white collared jobs during the British days,but there has been a much bigger diaspora today.
Post 1983 dispersal of Eelam Tamils
As noted there are two distinct groups. The Eelam Tamil diaspora is less than 100 years old and was well established in Malaysia, Singapore and England prior to the post 1983
Black JulyBlack July is the commonly used name for the anti-Tamil attacks carried out by Sinhala mobs starting in Sri Lanka on July 23 1983. It is estimated that between 400-3000 Tamils were killed, tens of thousands of houses were destroyed, and a wave of Sri Lankan Tamils left for other countries...
induced dispersal of refugees and asylum claimants in India, Europe and
CanadaCanada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Although relatively recent in origin, this subgroup had well established communities in these host countries prior to the 1983 pogroms.
Most members of this subgroup consider its togetherness not just as a function of the past but also as a growing togetherness consolidated by struggle and suffering, given purpose and direction by the aspirations for a future where they and their children and their children's children may live in equality and freedom in an emerging
Tamil EelamTamil Eelam is the name given by certain Tamil groups in Sri Lanka to the state which they aspire to create in the north and east of Sri Lanka...
.
20th century dispersal of Tamils from India
In the second half of the 20th century, Tamils from India migrated as skilled professionals to the
U.S.The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Canada (esp. are concentrated in the cities of
TorontoToronto is the most populous city in Canada and the provincial capital of Ontario. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. With over 2.5 million residents, it is the fifth most populous municipality in North America...
and
VancouverVancouver is a coastal city and major seaport located in the Lower Mainland of southwestern British Columbia, Canada. The city is bounded by English Bay, Burrard Inlet, the Fraser River, the city of Burnaby, and the University Endowment Lands. Vancouver is named after Captain George Vancouver, a...
),
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus Mountains , and the Black Sea to the southeast...
and South East Asia. A sizeable population has settled in the
Silicon ValleySilicon Valley is the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California, United States. The term originally referred to the region's large number of silicon chip innovators and manufacturers, but eventually came to refer to all the high-tech businesses in the area; it is now...
, where there are
TamilTamil people , are an ethnic group native to Tamil Nadu, a state in India, and the north-eastern region of Sri Lanka. They speak Tamil , with a recorded history going back two millennia. Emigrant communities are found across the world...
associations such as the Bay Area Tamil Manram.. However, the eastern state of
New JerseyNew Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered on the north by New York, and to the east by the Hudson River, Upper New York Bay, the Kill Van Kull, Newark Bay, the Arthur Kill, Raritan Bay, Sandy Hook Bay, Westchester County, New York City, Long Island, and...
houses the highest populations of
TamilTamil people , are an ethnic group native to Tamil Nadu, a state in India, and the north-eastern region of Sri Lanka. They speak Tamil , with a recorded history going back two millennia. Emigrant communities are found across the world...
among the American states and it has its own Tamil Sangam. The Tamil represent a large porportion of
Sri Lankan AmericanSri Lankan Americans are Americans of Sri Lankan descent. In 1975, Sri Lankan immigrants were classified for the first time as belonging to a category separate from "other Asian". In that year, 432 entered the United States. The number increased to 14,448 in the 1990s due to the Sri Lankan Civil...
s, the largest concentration of Tamil is thought to be in
Southern CaliforniaSouthern California, or SoCal, is defined as the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its population centers around three major metropolitan areas, each of which have over 3 million people; the Los Angeles Metropolitan Area with over 12 million inhabitants, the San Bernardino-Riverside...
such as
Los AngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the municipality of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123.445 inhabitants...
and San Diego.
See also
- Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora
The Sri Lankan Tamil Diaspora refers to the global diaspora of the people of Sri Lankan Tamil origin. It can be said to be a subset of the larger Tamil diaspora....
- Ceylonese diaspora
- Indians in Singapore
- List of prominent Sri Lankan Tamils
- Malabars
Malabars is a mistaken appellation originating from the colonial era that was used by Westerners to refer to all the people of South India . The term is based on the Malabar region of present state of Kerala in India.This term was applied by the Dutch to designate Tamils of Sri Lanka during the...
- Term used to describe Tamils in Reunion
- Indian South Africans
Indian South African is a term which refers to people from India living in South Africa. Most Indians in South Africa migrated from colonial India during late 19th-century through early 20th-century. Therefore, the term "Indian" is also used to refer to people who originally hailed from the...
- Tamil nationalism
Tamil nationalism in India is an aspiration by some Tamils to establish, at minimum, self determination. The ideology of Tamil Nationalism seeks to preserve and modernize Tamil language and culture, unite Tamils across boundaries, eradicate caste discrimination within Tamils, emancipate and empower...
- Tamil Réunionnais
External links