British Punjabis

Last updated
British Punjabis
Counties of the UK Punjabi.svg
Distribution by regional area
Total population
700,000 (2006) [1]
Regions with significant populations
Mainly England  · Smaller communities in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
Languages
English  · Punjabi  · Hindi  · Urdu  · Bagri  · Pothwari  · Pahari
Religion
Sikhism  · Hinduism  · Islam  · Christianity
Related ethnic groups
Punjabi diaspora  · British Indians  · British Pakistanis  · British Mirpuris

British Punjabis are citizens or residents of the United Kingdom whose heritage originates wholly or partly in the Punjab, a region in the Indian subcontinent, which is divided between India and Pakistan. Numbering 700,000 in 2006, Punjabis represent the largest ethnicity among British Asians. They are a major sub-group of the British-Indian and British Pakistani communities. [2]

Contents

History

The United Kingdom is home to the largest Punjabi diaspora after Canada. [2] Immigration from the Punjab region to the UK began during the colonial era, when Punjab was a province of British India. Punjabi migrants in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were mainly domestic servants, seamen working on British merchant ships and visiting civil servants or students seeking professional qualifications. [2] A notable early figure was Duleep Singh, former Maharajah of the Sikh Empire, who was exiled to Britain in 1853. [2] His daughter Sophia Duleep Singh became a prominent suffragette and a pioneer of women's rights in Britain. [3]

The first significant Punjabi migration began in the 1950s when labour shortages in the UK following the Second World War led the British administration to encourage recruitment from across the Commonwealth. [4] [5] The vast majority of these migrants were men from India and Pakistan, who after a period of acclimatisation began to settle permanently and invite their friends, wives and children to join them. [6] These migrants often found work in the manufacturing, textile and service sectors, including a significant number at Heathrow Airport. [7] The town of Southall in west London became an early hub for Punjabi migrants, and would become the country’s premier British Asian town, dubbed Little Punjab. [8]

In the 1970s, there was widespread migration of Punjabis from East Africa, many of whom had retained their British passports following the independence of Kenya and Uganda. East African Punjabis are known as twice migrants, and came to the UK amidst growing discrimination at home, symbolised by the Expulsion of Asians from Uganda in 1972. [9] Unlike earlier Punjabi migration to the UK, East African Punjabis migrated as families. Many were successful businessmen or professionals with savings and able to adjust quickly to life in Britain. [10]

Demographics

Distribution of Punjabi speakers by ward in London. .mw-parser-output .legend{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .legend-color{display:inline-block;min-width:1.25em;height:1.25em;line-height:1.25;margin:1px 0;text-align:center;border:1px solid black;background-color:transparent;color:black}.mw-parser-output .legend-text{} 0.0%-0.99% 1%-2.99% 3%-4.99% 5%-9.99% 10%-14.99% 15% and greater Punjabis in London.svg
Distribution of Punjabi speakers by ward in London.
  0.0%-0.99%
  1%-2.99%
  3%-4.99%
  5%-9.99%
  10%-14.99%
  15% and greater

In the 2011 UK Census, 273,000 people identified Punjabi as their first language. Of these, 271,000 were in England, 23,000 in Scotland, 1,600 in Wales and a smaller number in Northern Ireland. [11] [12] Thus, Punjabi is the third most commonly spoken language in the UK. [13] The Southall area of Greater London is home to a significant Punjabi population. [2] The total population of Punjabis in the UK is estimated to exceed 700,000. [1]

Immigrants from the Pakistani province of Punjab are mainly Punjabi Muslims, with smaller numbers of Christians. [14] The majority originate from the northern and central parts of Punjab, such as: Pothwar, Rawalpindi, Attock, Chakwal, Jhelum, Jhang, Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Gujrat, Chiniot, Sargodha, Toba Tek Singh and Lahore. [15] [16] Punjabis are estimated to comprise one-third of the British Pakistani population, making up the second largest sub-group after Mirpuri Kashmiris. [17] The tribes to which British Pakistani Punjabis belong include Jats, Gujjars, Awans, Arains, Rajputs and several others like Pathans of Punjab and Kashmiris of Punjab. [18]

The population of Indian Punjabis in the UK has been estimated at 466,563 in 2011, based on an earlier estimate that they constitute 45% of the British Indian community. Of these, majority are Sikhs while the rest are mainly Punjabi Hindus. [2] [15] The areas where they predominately originate from are Jalandhar, Amritsar, Ludhiana, Kapurthala, Bathinda, Hoshiarpur, Nawanshahr and Moga. The UK has the second largest Sikh diaspora outside India, after Canada. [2]

Culture

Punjabi culture strongly defines the identity of British Punjabis. The bhangra form of music was popularised by Punjabi immigrants in the UK during the 1970s. [19] England has long been associated with the Asian Underground scene which gave rise to Punjabi pop music, especially among the younger generations. [20] Punjabi cuisine is also highly popular in the country. [21] Chicken tikka masala has been called a "national dish" of Britain. [22]

Punjabis are known for their entrepreneurial activities. [23] Research by Teesside University shows that the British Punjabi community is one of the most highly educated and successful in the UK. [24] Notable businesspeople include Surinder Arora who ranks amongst the wealthiest Britons. [25] [26] Other Punjabis have achieved notability in the theatres of British politics, sports and entertainment. [27]

See also

Notes

    Related Research Articles

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Punjab</span> Geographical region in South Asia

    Punjab is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is specifically located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern-Pakistan and northwestern-India. Punjab's major cities are Lahore, Faisalabad, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Multan, Ludhiana, Amritsar, Sialkot, Chandigarh, Shimla, Jalandhar, Patiala, Gurugram, and Bahawalpur.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Sikhs</span> Ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism

    Sikhs are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, an Indian religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term Sikh has its origin in the Sanskrit word śiṣya, meaning 'seeker', 'disciple' or 'student'. According to Article I of Chapter 1 of the Sikh Rehat Maryada, the definition of Sikh is: Any human being who faithfully believes in

    1. One Immortal Being
    2. Ten Gurus, from Guru Nanak Sahib to Guru Gobind Singh Sahib
    3. The Guru Granth Sahib
    4. The utterances and teachings of the ten Gurus and
    5. The baptism bequeathed by the tenth Guru and who does not owe allegiance to any other religion, is a Sikh.

    The Punjabis, are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group associated with the Punjab region, comprising areas of eastern Pakistan and northwestern India. They generally speak Standard Punjabi or various Punjabi dialects on both sides.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Music of Punjab</span> Overview of music traditions in Punjab

    Music of Punjab reflects the traditions of the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, associated with Punjabi language. Punjab is currently divided into two parts: East Punjab, in India, and West Punjab, the most populous province of Pakistan. The Punjab has diverse styles of music, ranging from folk and Sufi to classical, notably the Patiala gharana. Contemporary Punjabi music has tended to include more modern hip-hop and R&B sounds. While this style of music is obviously most popular in Punjab, it has seen popularity across the subcontinent and areas with large Punjabi diaspora populations, such as Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

    Bhatia is a group of people and a caste found in Punjab, Sindh and Gujarat. Traditionally, they have been a trading and merchant community. The Bhatias primarily live in Northwestern India and Pakistan. The Bhatias, Lohanas and Khatris were similar communities and were known to intermarry. The Bhatias recruit Saraswat Brahmins as priests.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Mirpur, Azad Kashmir</span> City in Azad Kashmir, Pakistan

    Mirpur, officially known as New Mirpur City, is the capital of Mirpur district located in Azad Kashmir, Pakistan which has been subject of the larger Kashmir dispute between Pakistan and India since 1947. It is the second largest city of Azad Kashmir and the 74th largest city in Pakistan.

    The British Mirpuri community comprises people in the United Kingdom who originate from the Mirpur District and surrounding areas in Pakistan-administered Azad Jammu and Kashmir, thus being a part of the Mirpuri diaspora. While no accurate statistics are available, an estimated 60 to 70 per cent of British Pakistanis in England trace their origins to the administrative territory of Azad Kashmir in northeastern Pakistan, mainly from the Mirpur, Kotli and Bhimber districts.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Punjabi Hindus</span> Ethnic group of the Indian subcontinent

    Punjabi Hindus are adherents of Hinduism who identify ethnically, linguistically, culturally, and genealogically as Punjabis and are natives of the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent. Punjabi Hindus are the second-largest religious group of the Punjabi community, after the Punjabi Muslims. While Punjabi Hindus mostly inhabit the Indian state of Punjab, as well as Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, and Chandigarh today, many have ancestry across the greater Punjab region, which was partitioned between India and Pakistan in 1947.

    Ravidassia or the Ravidas Panth is a religion based on the teachings of Guru Ravidas. It was considered a sect within Sikhism until 2009. However, some Ravidassias continue to maintain Sikh religious practices, including the reverence of the Guru Granth Sahib as their focal religious text, wearing Sikh articles of faith (5Ks), and appending Singh or Kaur to their names.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Sikhism in the United Kingdom</span> Religious community

    British Sikhs number over 520,000 people and account for 0.85% of the British population as of 2021, forming the United Kingdom's fourth-largest religious group. According to the 2021 United Kingdom census, British Sikhs numbered 524,529, with 520,092 in England, 4,048 in Wales, and 389 in Northern Ireland. The largest Sikh populations in the United Kingdom are in the West Midlands and Greater London.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Sikh diaspora</span> Sikh migration from historical homeland

    The Sikh diaspora is the modern Sikh migration from the traditional area of the Punjab region of South Asia. Sikhism is a religion native to this region. The Sikh diaspora is largely a subset of the Punjabi diaspora.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Sikhism in Italy</span> Religious minority in Italy

    Italian Sikhs are a growing religious minority in Italy, which has the second biggest Sikh population in Europe after the United Kingdom (525,000) and sixth largest number of Sikhs in the world. It is estimated that there are 220,000 Sikhs in Italy, constituting 0.33% of Italy's population.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Indo-Canadians</span> Community of Canadians of Indian descent or with Indian citizenship

    Indo-Canadians or Indian Canadians, are Canadians who have ancestry from India. The term East Indian is sometimes used to avoid confusion with the Indigenous peoples of Canada. Categorically, Indo-Canadians comprise a subgroup of South Asian Canadians which is a further subgroup of Asian Canadians. According to Statistics Canada, Indians are one of the fastest growing communities in Canada and one of the largest non-European ethnic groups.

    British Indians form the largest ethno-national group in London with a population of around 656,272 or 7.5% of the population. The majority are concentrated in West London, though populations can be found throughout London.

    The Punjabi diaspora refers to the descendants of ethnic Punjabis who emigrated out of the Punjab region in the northern part of the South Asia to the rest of the world. Punjabis are one of the largest ethnic groups in both the Pakistani and Indian diasporas. The Punjabi diaspora numbers around the world has been given between 2.5 and 10 million, mainly concentrated in Britain, Canada, United States, Western Europe, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Australia and New Zealand.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Punjabi Americans</span> Americans of Punjabi descent

    Punjabi Americans, are Americans whose ancestry originates wholly or partly from the Punjab region of India and Pakistan. There are over 300,000 Punjabi Americans, many of whom were Sikhs from British Punjab who first settled in California's Central Valley to do agricultural work.

    The Kashmiri diaspora refers to Kashmiris who have migrated out of the Kashmir into other areas and countries, and their descendants.

    The Mirpuri diaspora constitutes individuals with an origin in the Mirpur District of Azad Kashmir, Pakistan, now living outside that district. Migration from Mirpur started occurring in the 1920s, when many Mirpuris left for Bombay to work on merchant ships. During the partition of British India in 1947, many Mirpuri Hindus and Mirpuri Sikhs were forced to flee to cities in the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir. The construction of the Mangla Dam by the Pakistani Government in the 1960s caused many of Mirpuri Muslims to migrate to the United Kingdom to work as labourers.

    Punjabi nationalism is an ideology which emphasizes that the Punjabis are one nation and promotes the cultural unity of Punjabis around the world. The demands of the Punjabi nationalist movement are linguistic, cultural, economic and political rights.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Punjabi Christians</span> Ethnic Punjabis who are adherents of Christianity

    Punjabi Christians are adherents of Christianity who identify ethnically, linguistically, culturally, and genealogically as Punjabis. They are mainly found in the Pakistani province of Punjab, forming the largest religious minority. They are one of the four main ethnoreligious communities of the Punjab region with the others being Muslims, Sikhs and Hindus. Punjabi Christians are traditionally divided into various castes, and are largely descendants of Hindus who converted to Christianity during the British Raj in colonial India.

    References

    1. 1 2 McDonnell, John (5 December 2006). "Punjabi Community". House of Commons. Retrieved 3 August 2016. We now estimate the Punjabi community at about 700,000, with Punjabi established as the second language certainly in London and possibly within the United Kingdom.
    2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Chanda, Rupa; Ghosh, Sriparna (2013). "The Punjabi Diaspora in the UK: An Overview of Characteristics and Contributions to India" (PDF). CARIM INDIA – Developing a knowledge base for policymaking on India-EU migration. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 3 August 2016.
    3. ↑ "Princess Sophia Duleep Singh – Timeline". History Heroes organization.
    4. ↑ Pirkko Pitkänen, Ahmet İçduygu, Deniz Sert (2012), Migration and Transformation:: Multi-Level Analysis of Migrant Transnationalism, Springer Science & Business Media, page 22
    5. ↑ Thaker, Aruna; Barton, Arlene (2012). Multicultural Handbook of Food, Nutrition and Dietetics. John Wiley & Sons. p. 30. ISBN   9781405173582.
    6. ↑ Thandi, S.S. (2015) ‘Punjabi Migration, Settlement and Experience in the UK’, in Rajan, S.I., Varghese, V.J., and Kumar Nanda, A. (eds.) Migration, Mobility and Multiple Affiliations: Punjabis in a Transnational World. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 105–130.
    7. ↑ Striking Women.org. "Post 1947 migration to the UK" . Retrieved 28 October 2018.
    8. ↑ The Guardian (4 April 2018). "Southall became Little Punjab" . Retrieved 28 October 2018.
    9. ↑ Bizeck J.Phiri. "Asians: East Africa" . Retrieved 20 February 2011.
    10. ↑ Siobhan Laird (2008), Anti-Oppressive Social Work: A Guide for Developing Cultural Competence, SAGE, page 52
    11. ↑ Rogers, Simon (31 January 2013). "Census 2011: the language data visualised". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 August 2016.
    12. ↑ "Scotland's Census 2011 - National Records of Scotland: Language used at home other than English (detailed) - All people aged 3 and over" (PDF). Scotland Census. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 February 2020. Retrieved 5 August 2016.
    13. ↑ "2011 Census: Quick Statistics". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 17 May 2014.
    14. ↑ "2011 census data – religion". The Guardian. 16 May 2013. Retrieved 29 August 2013.
    15. 1 2 Heath, Anthony F.; Fisher, Stephen D.; Rosenblatt, Gemma; Sanders, David; Sobolewska, Maria (2013). The Political Integration of Ethnic Minorities in Britain. OUP Oxford. p. 23. ISBN   9780199656639.
    16. ↑ Gilliat-Ray, Sophie (2010). Muslims in Britain. Cambridge University Press. p. 45. ISBN   9780521536882.
    17. ↑ Roger Ballard; Marcus Banks (1994). Desh Pardesh: the South Asian presence in Britain. C. Hurst & Co. Publishers. pp. 18, 20, 21.
    18. ↑ Monika Böck; Aparna Rao (2000). Culture, Creation, and Procreation: Concepts of Kinship in South Asian Practice. Berghahn Books. pp. 81–157. ISBN   1-57181-912-6. ... Kalesh kinship is indeed orchestrated through a rigorous system of patrilineal descent defined by lineage endogamy
    19. ↑ Fisher, Michael Herbert (2007). A South-Asian History of Britain: Four Centuries of Peoples from the Indian Sub-continent. Greenwood World Publishing. ISBN   9781846450082.
    20. ↑ "History of Desi Music". BBC Asian Network. Retrieved 3 August 2016.
    21. ↑ Panjabi, Camellia (1995). The Great Curries of India . Simon and Schuster. p.  10. ISBN   9780684803838.
    22. ↑ "Robin Cook's chicken tikka masala speech: Extracts from a speech by the foreign secretary to the Social Market Foundation in London". Guardian. 19 April 2001.
    23. ↑ Jones, Marian; Dimitratos, Pavlos (2014). Emerging Paradigms in International Entrepreneurship. Edward Elgar Publishing. p. 90. ISBN   9781845420635.
    24. ↑ Steve Taylor. "Punjabi Communities in the North East". Teesside University. Archived from the original on 2011-09-27. Retrieved 2 November 2010.
    25. ↑ Midgley, Dominic (21 July 2014). "Anwar Pervez: The Billionaire cash and carry King". Express. Retrieved 13 July 2015.
    26. ↑ Teather, David (18 August 2007). "The Mr Nice Guy of the hotels world". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 August 2016.
    27. ↑ Hazelwood, Rajbir Purewal (15 May 2013). "A Diasporic Politics of Belonging: Punjabis in Postwar Britain". Washington University. doi:10.7936/K7DJ5CKJ . Retrieved 3 August 2016.
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