Siddis of Karnataka
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The Siddis of Karnataka (
Etymology
There are various hypotheses on the origin of the name Siddi. One theory is that the word was a term of respect in North Africa, similar to the word sahib in modern India and Pakistan. A second theory is that the term Siddi is derived from the title borne by the captains of the Arab vessels that first brought Siddi settlers to India. These captains were known as Sayyid.[2] The term seems to have found currency following a description in a letter written by one William aboard the S.S. Nepal, a ship that sailed from England to South India and Ceylon. In the letter he describes the crew of the ship as "composed of seven English quarter masters and forty three lascar seamen, six English engineers, thirty-five men (Muslim) and fifteen Sidimen or negroes for coal shifters."[3]
Similarly, another term for Siddis, habshi (from Al-Habsh, the Arabic term for
History
While some Siddis were victims of the Portuguese slave trade, most were imported by the Sultans in the 15th-16th centuries as military mercenaries. Others were sailors on the trade routes to the east.[6]
In 2013, the New York Public Library held an artistic exhibition entitled Africans In India: From Slaves to Generals and Rulers, which retraced the lives and accomplishments of prominent Siddis from the past. Lasting until July, it included 100 reproductions of paintings and modern photographs.[6]
Religion
A plurality of the Siddis in Karnataka follow Hinduism. There is a significant number following Islam and Christianity.[7] The Haliyal taluk has populations of Muslims and Christians while the Hindu populations are concentrated in the ghat areas of Yellapur and Ankola.[3] Although Siddhis opt for different religions they intermarry across religions without any reservations.[8]
- Hiriyaru worship
The one factor which binds the Siddhis, irrespective of their religion is the Hiriyaru or ancestor worship. The dead are believed to be nearby, in the form of spirits. They are regarded as witnesses to be consulted by a family in all its concerns. On occasions like births, marriages and deaths, the ancestors are invoked. The home is organised around Hiriyaru, the spirits of departed parents. It signifies a remembrance of the parents, thanking them for their care over several years and also entreating them to keep a vigil over the family in future. It is obligatory for all relatives to attend the function, thus renewing kinship relations.[3]
Hiriyaru worship may be performed twice a year by the 'Kartha'(head) of the family. It normally is held during the
Language
Siddis mainly speak
Occupation
Almost all Siddis today subsist as agricultural and casual labourers, contractual or in some cases bonded, some also work as domestic help.
Art
The Siddis of Karnataka are known in recent years for their unique style of quilting called kawandi. Siddis go through a complicated process of quilting that makes their style distinct from surrounding groups. The process involves taking recycled fabric scraps and arranging them in stylistic geometric patterns, sometimes embedded with religious symbols. Quilts are usually made for family members by older women who can no longer work in the fields. The quilts are put to use as mattresses, crib covers, or covers for cold monsoon nights.[11] The non-profit organization Siddis Women Quilting Cooperative (SWQC) was created in 2004 in an effort to provide a source of income to the community and quilt makers. In 2011 an exhibition titled “Soulful Stitching: Patchwork Quilts by Africans (Siddis) in India” was shown in the Museum of the African Diaspora, helping these quilt makers and the community to gain recognition.[12]
Assimilation
A feature common to the Siddis of Karnataka, as also of those of Maharashtra and Goa, is that they exhibit a remarkable level of assimilation with local culture. This, in the absence of any form of force. Even the uniquely Siddi custom of Hiriyaru has adopted symbols from the local Hindu religion. Except for the racial characteristics of the tribe, there is little else that can set them apart from other native populations.[3] Almost all the siddis in present-day India are mixed indo-African There are very few pure siddi populations in Karnataka today, most of the pure Siddi population living in Gujarat. Many of them have lost their original African names and culture however they have retained some forms of African traditions in the form of dance and music.
Historical references
There are references to Siddhi palace guards in
The first notable act of this group seems to have been their looting of a British outpost during the Supa Uprising when they confiscated government funds, took many chaukidars (watchmen) captive and burnt several outposts. The leaders of the 'bundh' are said[by whom?] to have taken shelter in the Darshanigudda ranges and at times escaped into neighbouring Goa territory. There are also references to a formidable fight at Dandeli and one at a Somalinga temple. These activities continued for several months and the British eventually sentenced some of them. The Portuguese also deported more than 100 of these insurgents along with the Sawant brothers and their families to Timor in the East Indies. Gunaba Shenvi, Siddi Bastian, his brother Anna Saheb and the three Phadnis brothers were still at large and in July 1859, the British offered rewards of Rs. 1000 each for their arrest. Chintoba Phadnis and Siddi Bastian were eventually killed in an encounter at Jagabet.
Demographics
In India, Karnataka has the largest concentration of Siddis.[6] According to latest estimates there are around 3,700 Siddi families in the state with a total population of 18,000. Other Siddhi populations in the sub-continent include around 10,000 in Gujarat and 12,000 in Hyderabad. A few hundreds are also in Lucknow, Delhi and Calcutta. Fewer than 1,000 "Ceylon Kapris" live in Sri Lanka.[6]
Genetics
Recent advances in genetic analyses have helped shed some light on the ethnogenesis of the Siddi. Genetic genealogy, although a novel tool that uses the genes of modern populations to trace their ethnic and geographic origins, has also helped clarify the possible background of the modern Siddi.
Y DNA
A
Thangaraj (2009) observed similar, mainly Bantu-linked paternal affinities amongst the Siddi.[15]
mtDNA
According to an
Autosomal DNA
Narang et al. (2011) examined the autosomal DNA of Siddis in India. According to the researchers, about 58% of the Siddis' ancestry is derived from Bantu peoples. The remainder is associated with local Indo-European-speaking North and Northwest Indian populations, due to recent admixture events.[16]
Similarly, Shah et al. (2011) observed that Siddis in Gujarat derive 66.90%-70.50% of their ancestry from Bantu forebears, while the Siddis in Karnataka possess 64.80%-74.40% such Southeast African ancestry. The remaining autosomal DNA components in the studied Siddi were mainly associated with local South Asian populations. According to the authors, gene flow between the Siddis' Bantu ancestors and local Indian populations was also largely unidirectional. They estimate this admixture episode's time of occurrence at within the past 200 years or eight generations.[1]
Social status and rehabilitation
Like Siddhi populations across the sub-continent, Siddhis in Karnataka also have remained isolated, and economically and socially neglected.
On 8 January 2003, the Union government brought the Siddis under the
Internationally too, awareness of sub-Saharan African diaspora in the east has been limited.[17] In 2006, however, 'The African Diaspora in Asia' (TADIA), a UNESCO backed initiative[17] has also increased interest in the rehabilitation of this tribe. Headed by Prof Angenot of Brazil, it has become the academic link between the Siddis of Karnataka, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh and other research scholars. It aims at involving academic research, promoting cultural exchanges and raising funds for education and employment generation programmes for the Siddis.
Trivia
- According to B. G. L. Swamy, a renowned botanist, seeds of a huge tree, the Adansonia digitata Linn., which is native to Africa, were probably brought by the Siddhis.[3]
- A popular Kannada film of the 70s, Bhootayyana Maga Ayyu, has a Siddi playing the role of Siddi Byra in the movie.
- It has been reported that Siddis from Karnataka believe that Barack Obama shares their genepool and that they wanted to gift a bottle of honey to him on his visit to India in 2010[18]
Notable people
- Shantaram Siddi, member of Karnataka Legislative Council (first man of African-origin to be a legislator in India)
See also
Notes
- ^ PMID 21741027.
- ISBN 978-0-8070-5011-8,
... since the captains of the African and Arab vessels bore the title Sidi (from Sayyid, or the lineage of Muhammad), the African settlers on the Indian mainland came to be called Siddis ...
- ^ a b c d e Sadiq Ali, Shanti. 1996. The African dispersal in the Deccan: from medieval to modern times. New Delhi: Orient Longman.
- ^ Vijay Prashad, Everybody Was Kung Fu Fighting: Afro-Asian Connections and the Myth of Cultural Purity, (Beacon Press: 2002), p.8
- ISBN 978-0-374-52797-6,
... Ethiopians were particularly favored; the term Habashi or Habshi— from the Arabic word for Ethiopian – came to be applied to other Africans as well, and referred not only to the freed but to their descendants ...
- ^ a b c d e Devika Sequeira. "Near forgotten, Siddis to meet". Deccan Herald. Archived from the original on 29 September 2007. Retrieved 19 July 2007.
- ^ "ST-14 SCHEDULED TRIBE POPULATION BY RELIGIOUS COMMUNITY". Archived from the original on 11 March 2022. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
- ^ "The Siddhi Community". K.L.Kamat. Kamat's Potpourri. Retrieved 20 July 2007.
- ISSN 1569-2094.
- ISBN 978-1-315-14838-0.
- S2CID 57560005.
- ^ "Museum of the African Diaspora Presents "Soulful Stitching: Patchwork Quilts by Africans (Siddis) in India"". artdaily.cc. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
- ^ "The Raja had surrounded his house with African bodyguards"
- PMID 21741027.
- ISBN 978-9380026213.
- PMID 21737057.
- ^ a b Beeranna Nayak Mogata. "Empowering the Siddi community". Deccan Herald. Archived from the original on 29 September 2007. Retrieved 19 July 2007.
- ^ Anil Budur Lulla, A Bottle of Honey for Our Brother Prez Archived 2010-10-31 at the Wayback Machine, Short Takes section, Open Magazine, 30 October 2010
References
- Sadiq Ali, Shanti. 1996. The African dispersal in the Deccan: from medieval to modern times. New Delhi: Orient Longman.
- An article in the Deccan Herald
- Empowering the Siddi community
External links
- Karnataka's Indian-African Tribe
- The Hindu : Fighting the formula
- A mention of Siddhi music in The Times of India
- Mention of Magsaysay Awardee K. V. Subbanna's work with Siddhis Archived 5 February 2012 at the Wayback Machine
- Catering to the tribals - Deccan Herald
- The Hindu - Music : Evening of mystical melodies