Indians in Kenya

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Indians in Kenya
Total population
100,000 (2015
Non-resident Indian and Person of Indian Origin and other Indo-Aryan peoples
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Indians in Kenya, often known as Kenyan Asians,

Bombay in British India. Indians in Kenya predominantly live in the major urban areas of Nairobi and Mombasa
, with a minority living in rural areas.

According to the World Economic Forum, the population of Indians in Kenya numbered around 100,000 in 2015.[2] In 2017, Indians were recognised by the Government of Kenya as the nation's 44th tribe.[3]

Terminology

In Kenya, the word Asian usually refers specifically to people of

South Asian ancestry.[4] Prior to the partition of India in 1947, those of South Asian ancestry were referred to as Indians; however after 1947 the term Asian also started being used.[5]

History

Early history

Calicut.[6] The Portuguese soon came to monopolise trade across the Indian Ocean and displace the existing Arab commercial dominance in the region. Although this affected India's commerce with East Africa, Indians were the accountants and bankers for the Portuguese as they had been for the Arabs.[7]

By the early part of the 19th century, small numbers of Indian merchants could be found settled across the trading posts of East Africa. Their interests were enhanced when Said bin Sultan the Sultan of Muscat and Oman, subjected to the emergence of British naval supremacy in the Indian Ocean and direct British political support for Indian merchants along the East African coast, adopted a series of favourable policies towards Indians in the region.[7]

In 1887 the

Bombay. The following year the Association was given a royal charter, becoming the Imperial British East Africa Company and moving its base to Mombasa. Although now based in Africa, the company had a strong Indian orientation, employing guards, police officers, clerks and accountants from Bombay.[8]

East Africa Protectorate

Significant Indian migration to modern-day Kenya began following the creation of the

Gujaratis, whilst the ranks of the British officered police and army mainly consisted of Punjabis.[8]

Between 1896 and 1901, some 32,000 indentured labourers were recruited from India to construct the

Tsavo maneaters.[10] Once the railway was completed, some of these labourers voluntarily settled in the Protectorate and brought families from India. The railway opened the interior to trade, and many soon began migrating away from the coastal cities. Over the following years, large numbers of Gujaratis and Punjabis migrated freely seeking to utilise new economic possibilities in the Protectorate. These migrants often came with family members or members of the same village or caste.[12]

Asian settlers were soon joined by European farmers, who from 1902 onward were given large tracts of land in the White Highlands. The cooler Highlands, seen as more suitable for European settlement were reserved by the government for the sole occupation of Europeans. Asian exclusion from these favourable lands caused friction between Asians and Europeans which would last for decades. Many Asians instead settled in the new town of Nairobi which from 1905 became the capital of the British protectorate, and where, unlike black Africans, Asians were permitted to reside legally.[13] One of the most significant early pioneers was A. M. Jeevanjee. In 1890 his company A.M. Jeevanjee of Karachi was awarded the contract to supply labour for the building of the Uganda railway, and he subsequently went on to establish himself as the pre-eminent Asian businessman in the new colony. He established Kenya's first newspaper now known as The Standard in 1901 and was the first non-white to be elected to the Legislative Council in 1910. Such was his success that in 1904 it was estimated that he owned half of Mombasa and the greater part of Nairobi.[14]

In 1900 the Mombasa Indian Association was established on the initiative of L.M Savle, and with the backing of wealthy businessmen

Ghadar Party established a branch in East Africa, and attracted support from a number of the Asian community.[16] The British authorities took a serious view of what they regarded as the Ghadar party's political terrorism and sentenced a number of members to death for either belonging to the party or possessing seditious material.[16]

Kenya Colony

By the early 1920s, there was a sizeable Asian population who demanded a greater role in the developing political life of what became Kenya Colony.[17][18] Racial hostilities gradually intensified in the 1920s; however, Indians, who enjoyed significantly greater economic strength than black Africans, had greater bargaining power with the colonial government. As early as 1920, they turned down the offer of two seats on the legislative council as this was not representative of the size of their community. Tensions with Europeans remained high until 1927 when Indians won the right to five seats on the council, compared to eleven reserved for the Europeans. Both parties prevented any African representation.[19]

After the

Second World War, Asians were found in all occupations in Nairobi and the townships: in business, the police force, bureaucracy, and the professions.[20] Their commercial skills contributed to the economic development and prosperity of Kenya and the rest of East Africa.[21]

The 1950s saw increased sentiment against the inequalities of colonial rule, and many Asians were at the forefront of the push for increased rights. These included:

Mau Mau links.[22]

By 1962, the Asian community had firmly established its dominance within the urban economy. Despite accounting for only 2 percent of the overall population, they constituted one-third of the population of Nairobi, where their businesses dominated the main street.[23] Prior to independence Asians owned nearly three-quarters of the private non-agricultural assets in the country.[24] The Gujarati community, in particular, thrived in a wide range of industries. Some of Kenya's largest most prominent companies to date are controlled by Gujaratis, including Comcraft Group Manu Chandaria (Manufacturing).[25]

Independence

Kenya achieved independence from Britain in 1963 and thereafter followed a period of volatility in African and Asian relations. Asians, along with Europeans, were given two years to acquire Kenyan citizenship and surrender their British passports. Out of approximately 180,000 Asians and 42,000 Europeans in Kenya at the time, fewer than 20,000 had submitted their applications by the deadline.[26] This, in turn, led to growing animosity and distrust from Africans. They considered those who failed to take up Kenyan citizenship as being disloyal.[27]

Those without Kenyan citizenship soon became subject to increasing discrimination by the ruling government, led by Jomo Kenyatta. Despite the entrepreneurial success of the community, in 1970, 70% of the economically active Asian population consisted of wage and salary earners, and 30% worked for the civil service. A policy of Africanisation meant many were sacked in favour of black Africans.[28] The Kenyan Immigration Act 1967 required Asians to acquire work permits, whilst a Trade Licensing Act passed in the same year limited the areas of the country in which non-Kenyans could engage in trade.[29] In the late 1960s and early 1970s, faced with a dim future in Africa, many Asians choose to utilise their British passports and settle in the United Kingdom. Consequently, the Asian population in Kenya declined from 179,000 in 1962 to 139,000 in 1969 and to 78,000 in 1979.[30] Asian migrants to the United Kingdom settled mainly in the English cities of London and Leicester.

Present day

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets members of the Indian community in Nairobi, 8 July 2016

Visiting Kenya in the 1970s, the

V.S. Naipaul referring to the inward focus of the Asian community, commented that "the Indian in East Africa brought India with him and kept it inviolate". The same was said about the Europeans.[31] Those who remained saw a gradual improvement in their legal status, however, the Asian community continued to be cautiously inward and self-reliant. Despite varying degrees of acculturation, most have retained their strong Indian ties and traditions, and are a close-knit, endogamous community.[32]

Following the

1982 Kenyan coup d'état attempt to remove President Moi, many Asian shops and businesses in Nairobi were attacked and pillaged.[33] Despite fears at the time within the community, it did not result in another exodus of Asians from the country.[34]

On 22 July 2017, the Uhuru Kenyatta government announced that the Asian community would be officially recognised as the 44th tribe in Kenya recognising the community's contribution to Kenya from the dawn of the nation.[35]

Demography and religion

Three Sikh brothers in Kenya in 1961

The 2019 Kenyan Census recorded 47,555 Kenyan citizens of Asian origin, while Asians without Kenyan citizenship numbered 42,972 individuals.[36]

Asian ethnic groups mostly originate from a few places in South Asia. The majority of Asians trace their ancestry to the regions of

Punjab.[37] There are also large numbers who originate from Maharashtra, Odisha, Goa, and Tamil Nadu.[38]
Languages spoken by Asians include
Konkani, Kutchi (as well as the creole language Kutchi-Swahili), Odia, Punjabi, Sindhi, and Tamil.[39]

The majority of Asians are

Hindu.[40]
The leading caste-based subgroups within Kenyan Hinduism include
Roman Catholics
.

Population census
YearPop.±% p.a.
1911 11,787—    
1921 25,253+7.92%
1931 43,623+5.62%
1948 97,687+4.86%
1962 176,613+4.32%
1969 139,037−3.36%
YearPop.±% p.a.
1979 78,600−5.54%
1989 89,185+1.27%
1999 89,310+0.01%
2009 81,791−0.88%
2019 90,527+1.02%
Post 1947 figures include those born in either India or Pakistan.
Source: [43][44]

See also

References

  1. ^ Vick, Karl (15 March 2000). "A New View of Kenya's 'Asians'". Washington Post. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  2. ^ "15 facts about the Indian diaspora in Africa". World Economic Forum. 25 June 2015. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  3. ^ Verjee, Zain (4 August 2017). "Kenya's 44th tribe: Why I'm finally a first-class citizen of my country". CNN. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  4. ^ Vandenberg, Paul, The African-Asian Divide: Analyzing Institutions and Accumulation in Kenya, Routledge, 2013, page 227
  5. ^ Sahoo, Ajaya Kumar and Sheffer, Gabriel, Diaspora and Identity: Perspectives on South Asian Diaspora, Routledge, 2006, page 95
  6. ^ Herzig, Pascale, South Asians in Kenya: Gender, Generation and Changing Identities in Diaspora, LIT Verlag Münster, 2006, page 10
  7. ^ a b Herzig, Pascale, South Asians in Kenya: Gender, Generation and Changing Identities in Diaspora, LIT Verlag Münster, 2006, page 11
  8. ^ a b Herzig, Pascale, South Asians in Kenya: Gender, Generation and Changing Identities in Diaspora, LIT Verlag Münster, 2006, page 13
  9. ^ Sana Aiyar, Indians in Kenya, Harvard University Press, 6 Apr 2015, p.
  10. ^ a b "Kenya's Asian heritage on display". BBC News. 24 May 2000. Retrieved 2 September 2017.
  11. ^ Whitehouse, G. C. (March 1948). "The Building of the Kenya and Uganda Railway". The Uganda Journal. 12 (1). Kampala: The Uganda Society: 7.
  12. ^ Herzig, Pascale, South Asians in Kenya: Gender, Generation and Changing Identities in Diaspora, LIT Verlag Münster, 2006, page 15
  13. ^ Hake, Andrew. 1977. African Metropolis: Nairobi’s Self-Help City. London: Sussex University Press.
  14. ^ Patel, Zarina, Alibhai Mulla Jeevanjee, East African Publishers, 2002, Page 13
  15. ^ a b c Howard Schwartz, The Rise and Fall of Philanthropy in East Africa: The Asian Contribution, Routledge, 5 July 2017
  16. ^ a b Durrani, Shiraz, Never Be Silent: Publishing and Imperialism 1884-1963, Vita Books, 25 November 2016
  17. ISSN 0015-7120
    .
  18. OCLC 639696145
    .
  19. ^ "Apartheid Legislation 1850s-1970s | South African History Online". sahistory.org.za. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
  20. ^ J. Murray-Brown, Kenyatta (London, 1972), p. 83.
  21. ^ A history of the Asians in East Africa (Oxford, 1969), ch. 1.
  22. OCLC 1053884819
    .
  23. ISBN 0465045898
  24. ^ Leys, Colin, Underdevelopment in Kenya: The Political Economy of Neo-Colonialism, 1964-71, London, Heinemann, 1975, p.45
  25. ^ "Dr. Manu Chandaria – Creating Emerging Markets – Harvard Business School". hbs.edu. Retrieved 28 July 2021.
  26. ^ Donald Rothchild, Racial bargaining in independent Kenya (London, 1973), p. 188
  27. ^ Donald Rothchild, 'Citizenship and national integration: the non-African crisis in Kenya', in Studies in race and nations (Center on International Race Relations, University of Denver working papers), 1}3 (1969±70), p. 1
  28. ^ Dharam P. Ghai, 'An Economic Survey' in Dharam P. Ghai, ed, Portrait of a Minority: Asians in East Africa, Nairobi, 1965, p.94
  29. ^ Quest for equality (New Delhi, 1993), p. 99
  30. ISBN 9780521444057
    . muslim.
  31. ^ Naipaul, S. (1990).India: A million mutinies now London: William Heinemann Ltd
  32. ISBN 978-0-9802587-9-0
    .
  33. ^ Cowell, Alan (September 1982). "A fearful reminder lingers for Asians in Kenya". The New York Times.
  34. ^ Herzig, Pascale, South Asians in Kenya: Gender, Generation and Changing Identities in Diaspora, LIT Verlag Münster, 2006, page 26
  35. ^ "Kenya's-44th-tribe". The Nation. Kenya. 28 June 2020.
  36. ^ "2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census Volume IV: Distribution of Population by Socio-Economic Characteristics". Kenya National Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 24 March 2020.
  37. ^ Herzig, Pascale, South Asians in Kenya: Gender, Generation and Changing Identities in Diaspora, LIT Verlag Münster, 2006, page 1
  38. ^ "Fragrance of Gujarat with African culture". Daily Nation. Retrieved 27 May 2020.
  39. ^ "Tamil | People, Religion, & Language". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
  40. ^ "Chapter 7: Religious Affiliation, Beliefs and Practices". Pew Research Center’s Social & Demographic Trends Project. 19 June 2012. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
  41. ^ a b Kinanga, Dr Moywaywa Charles, 'The Origins and Settlement of Hindus in Nairobi, Kenya' International Journal of Arts and Commerce Vol. 4 No. 8 October 2015, Page 119
  42. ^ Oded, Arye, Islam and Politics in Kenya, Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2000, page 15
  43. ^ Herzig, Pascale, South Asians in Kenya: Gender, Generation and Changing Identities in Diaspora, LIT Verlag Münster, 2006, page 28
  44. ^ Adam, Michael, Indian Africa: Minorities of Indian-Pakistani Origin in Eastern Africa, Mkuki na Nyota Publishers, 2015, page 170

Bibliography

External links

Further reading

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