Mauritians

Last updated
Mauritians
Flag of Mauritius.svg
Total population
c.1.6 million
(Mauritian ancestry and citizenship worldwide)
Regions with significant populations
Flag of Mauritius.svg  Mauritius 1.3 million [1]
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom 43,000 (2020 estimate) [2] [3] [4]
Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia 24,329 [5]
Flag of France.svg  France 16,229 [6] [7] [8] [9] [6]
Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada 15,900 [10]
Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa 14,043 [11]
Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium 6,097 [12]
Languages
Religion

Mauritians (singular Mauritian; French : Mauricien; Creole: Morisien) are nationals or natives of the Republic of Mauritius and their descendants. Mauritius is a melting pot of multi-ethnic, multi-cultural and multi-religious peoples. Mauritian is made up of blended groups of people who come mainly from South Asian (notably Indian), African (Mozambique, Madagascar and Zanzibar), European (White/European Mauritians), and Chinese descent, as well as those of a mixed background from any combination of the aforementioned ethnic groups. Creol-Mauritian is the blending of the different cultures; this is why it is complex to define Creol-Mauritian.

Contents

History

Mauritian Creoles trace their origins to the plantation owners and slaves who were brought to work the sugar fields. When slavery was abolished on 1 February 1835, an attempt was made to secure a cheap source of adaptable labour for intensive sugar plantations in Mauritius. Indentured labour began with Indian, Chinese, Malay, African and Malagasy labourers, but ultimately, it was India which supplied the much needed labourers to Mauritius, mainly sugar cane workers. This period of intensive use of Indian labour took place during British rule, with many brutal episodes and a long struggle by the indentured for respect. The term applied to the indentured during this period, and which has since become a derogatory term for Mauritians of Asian descent, was coolie. The island soon became the key-point in the trade of indentured labourers, as thousands of Indians set forth from Calcutta or Karikal; not only did they modify the social, political and economic physiognomies of the island, but some also went farther, to the West Indies.

Indo-Mauritians are descended from Indian immigrants who arrived in the 19th century via the Aapravasi Ghat in order to work as indentured labourers after slavery was abolished in 1835. Included in the Indo-Mauritian community are Hindus (48.5% of the Mauritian population) and Muslims (17.2%) from the Indian subcontinent. The Franco-Mauritian elite controlled nearly all of the large sugar estates and was active in business and banking. As the Indian population became numerically dominant after independence from British rule and the voting franchise was extended, political and economic power shifted from the Franco-Mauritians and their Creole allies to the Indo-Mauritians.

The meeting of a mosaic of people from Europe, India, Africa and China began a process of hybridisation and intercultural frictions and dialogues, which poet Khal Torabully has termed "coolitude". [13] This social reality is a major reference for identity opened to otherness and is widely used in Mauritius where it represents a humanism of diversity.

Subsequent to a Constitutional amendment in 1982, there is no need for Mauritians to reveal their ethnic identities for the purpose of population census. Official statistics on ethnicity are not available. The 1972 census was the last one to measure ethnicity. [14] [15] Statistics Mauritius compiles data on religious affiliation every ten years during census. [16]

Demographics of Mauritius

Ethnic groups of Mauritius
Ethnic group [17] Percent of population
Indo-Mauritian
67%
Creoles
28%
Sino-Mauritian
3%
Franco-Mauritian
2%
Ethnic groups of Mauritius [17]
Ethnic group % of population
Indo-Mauritians 67%
Afro-Mauritians 28%
Sino-Mauritians 3%
Franco-Mauritians 2%

Mauritian diaspora

The Mauritian diaspora consists of Mauritian emigrants and their descendants in various countries around the world, mainly Great Britain (United Kingdom), Australia, New Zealand, Canada, France, Ireland and Belgium.

Given the island's importance for international shipping routes and limited opportunities locally, Mauritian Creole people settled internationally before some of these countries were founded as nations. For example, Mauritians settled on the continent of Australia before federation of the nation. [18] Their ancestors and more recent migrants are now known as Mauritian Australians. Aboriginal people from islands south of the continent likewise settled in Australia. [19]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mauritius</span> Island country in the Indian Ocean

Mauritius, officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean, about 2,000 kilometres off the southeastern coast of East Africa, east of Madagascar. It includes the main island, as well as Rodrigues, Agaléga, and St. Brandon. The islands of Mauritius and Rodrigues, along with nearby Réunion, are part of the Mascarene Islands. The main island of Mauritius, where the population is concentrated, hosts the capital and largest city, Port Louis. The country spans 2,040 square kilometres (790 sq mi) and has an exclusive economic zone covering 2,300,000 square kilometres.

The known and sometimes formally documented history of Mauritius begins with its possible discovery by Austronesians under the Austronesian expansion from pre-Han Taiwan, circa 1500 to 1000 BC, and then by Arabs,, followed by Portuguese and its appearance on European maps in the early 16th century. Mauritius was successively colonized by the Netherlands, France and Great Britain, and became independent on 12 March 1968.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indentured servitude</span> Consensual or punitive unpaid labor

Indentured servitude is a form of labor in which a person is contracted to work without salary for a specific number of years. The contract, called an "indenture", may be entered voluntarily for purported eventual compensation or debt repayment, or imposed involuntarily as a judicial punishment. The practice has been compared to the similar institution of slavery, although there are differences.

Mauritius is a multi-ethnic, multilingual and a plural society with a population composed mainly of four major ethnic and religious groups. It is often depicted as a "rainbow nation".

Indo-Caribbean people or Indian-Caribbean people are people in the Caribbean who trace their ancestry to the Indian subcontinent. They are descendants of the Jahaji indentured laborers from British India, who were brought by the British, Dutch, and French during the colonial era from the mid-19th century to the early 20th century. A minority of them are descendants from people who immigrated as entrepreneurs, businesspeople, merchants, engineers, doctors, religious leaders, students, and other professional occupations beginning in the mid-20th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ghat</span> Series of steps leading down to a body of water, particularly a holy river in South Asia

Ghat, a term used in the Indian subcontinent, refer to the series of steps leading down to a body of water or wharf, such as a bathing or cremation place along the banks of a river or pond, the Ghats in Varanasi, Dhobi Ghat or the Aapravasi Ghat.

Indo-Mauritians are Mauritians who trace their ethnic ancestry to the Republic of India or other parts of the Indian subcontinent in South Asia.

Mauritian Creoles are the people on the islands of Mauritius, Rodrigues, Agaléga and the Chagos Archipelago and in the wider overseas Mauritian diaspora who trace their roots to continental Africans who were brought to Mauritius under slavery from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century. The majority of these enslaved people came from the region in and around modern day Mozambique and Madagascar. Creole peoples can be found on other islands in the Mascarene Islands and these groups all share cultural and linguistic connections with one another stemming from the common heritage of their African ancestors. It can also refer to and include members of the islands' mixed race or Métis community who identify as creoles, especially if they are also Christian. In government records, creoles along with Franco-Mauritians form part of the broader group known as Population Générale.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aapravasi Ghat</span> Building complex in Port Louis, Mauritius

The Immigration Depot is a building complex located in Port Louis, Mauritius, the first British colony to receive indentured, or contracted, labour workforce from many countries. From 1849 to 1923, half a million Indian indentured labourers passed through the Immigration Depot, to be transported to plantations throughout the British Empire. The large-scale migration of the labourers left an indelible mark on the societies of many former British colonies, with Indians constituting a substantial proportion of their national populations. In Mauritius alone, 68 percent of the current total population is of Indian ancestry. The Immigration Depot has thus become an important reference point in the history and cultural identity of Mauritius.

The Indian indenture system was a system of indentured servitude, by which more than 1.6 million workers from British India were transported to labour in European colonies, as a substitute for slave labor, following the abolition of the trade in the early 19th century. The system expanded after the abolition of slavery in the British Empire in 1833, in the French colonies in 1848, and in the Dutch Empire in 1863. British Indian indentureship lasted till the 1920s. This resulted in the development of a large South Asian diaspora in the Caribbean, Natal, East Africa, Réunion, Mauritius, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Fiji, as well as the growth of Indo-Caribbean, Indo-African, Indo-Mauritian, Indo-Fijian, Indo-Sri Lankan, Indo-Malaysian, and Indo-Singaporean populations.

The island of Mauritius is home to many languages, and Mauritian literature exists in French, English, Creole and Indian languages. Major themes in Mauritian literature include exoticism, multiracialism and miscegenation, racial and social conflicts, indianocéanisme, and—more recently—post-modernism and post-structuralism currents, such as coolitude.

Girmitiyas, also known as Jahajis, were indentured labourers from British India transported to work on plantations in Fiji, South Africa, Eastern Africa, Malaysia, Singapore, and the Caribbean as part of the Indian indenture system.

Bhojpuri Boys is one of the most popular Bhojpuri musical group in Mauritius. They sang in Bhojpuri language, one of the ancestral languages of Mauritians of Indian origin. The band issued its first album Langaro in 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indo-Fijians</span> Fijian citizens of Indian descent

Indo-Fijians, also known as Indian Fijians, are Fijian citizens of South Asian descent, and include people who trace their ancestry to various regions of the Indian subcontinent. Although Indo-Fijians constituted a majority of Fiji's population from 1956 through the late 1980s, discrimination and the resulting brain drain resulted in them numbering 313,798 (37.6%) out of a total of 827,900 people living in Fiji as of 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Mauritius</span> British colony in Africa from 1810 to 1968

Mauritius was a Crown colony off the southeast coast of Africa. Formerly part of the French colonial empire, British rule in Mauritius was established de facto with the Invasion of Isle de France in November 1810, and de jure by the subsequent Treaty of Paris. British rule ended on 12 March 1968, when Mauritius became independent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">India–Mauritius relations</span> Bilateral relations

India–Mauritius are the historical, political, economic, military, social and cultural connections between the Republic of India and the Republic of Mauritius. Connections between India and Mauritius date back to 1730, diplomatic relations were established in 1948, before Mauritius became independent state. The cultural affinities and long historical ties between the two nations have contributed to strong and cordial relations between the two nations. More than 68% of the Mauritian population are of Indian origin, most commonly known as Indo-Mauritians. India and Mauritius co-operate in combating piracy, which has emerged as a major threat in the Indian Ocean region and Mauritius supports India's stance against terrorism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tamil Mauritians</span> Ethnic group

Tamil Mauritians are the descendants of Tamil people who migrated, from the South Indian regions corresponding to the modern state of Tamil Nadu, to the island of Mauritius.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mauritian diaspora in France</span> Ethnic group

Mauritian diaspora in France are French people with Mauritian descent, or who were born in Mauritius. Although for its economic stability Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom and Ireland are the biggest recipients of Mauritian immigration, Mauritius is part of the Commonwealth of Nations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Religion in Mauritius</span>

Mauritius is a religiously diverse nation, with Hinduism being the most widely professed faith. According to the 2022 census conducted by Statistics Mauritius, 47.87% of the Mauritian population follows Hinduism, followed by Christianity (32.29%), out of which 24.94% are Catholic, Islam (18.24%) out of which 1.21% are Bangladeshi nationals and other religions (0.86%). 0.63% reported themselves as non-religious and 0.11% did not answer.

The Truth and Justice Commission of Mauritius was an independent truth commission established in 2009, which explored the impact of slavery and indentured servitude in Mauritius. The Commission was tasked to investigate the dispossession of land, and “determine appropriate measures to be extended to descendants of slaves and indentured laborers.” It was “unique in that it [dealt] with socio-economic class abuses" and explored the possibility of reparations. The inclusion of reparations, whether for individuals or communities, was a controversial decision within the country which aimed to correct inequality. The Commission attempted to cover more than 370 years, the longest period of time that a truth commission has ever covered.

References

  1. Ministry of Finance & Economic Development (January–June 2012). "Population and vital statistics Republic of Mauritius" (PDF). Government of Mauritius. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 November 2012. Retrieved 8 April 2013.
  2. "Table 1.3: Overseas-born population in the United Kingdom by country of birth and sex, January 2020 to December 2020". Office for National Statistics. 17 September 2021. Retrieved 31 March 2022. Figure given is the central estimate. See the source for 95% confidence intervals.
  3. Erwin Dopf. "UN UK". un.org. Retrieved 12 March 2020.
  4. Erwin Dopf. "Migration Observatory UK". migrationobservatory.ox.ac.uk. Retrieved 12 March 2020.
  5. https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/mca/files/2016-cis-mauritius.PDF> >
  6. 1 2 Erwin Dopf. "Présentation de Maurice". diplomatie.gouv.fr. Retrieved 8 April 2021.
  7. http://www.amasydney.net/ [ bare URL ]
  8. "The Mauritius-born Community: Historical Background". Australian Government, Department of Immigration and Border Protection (2011 census). 19 November 2013. Archived from the original on 13 February 2014. Retrieved 23 January 2014.
  9. Erwin Dopf. "Presentation of Mauritius". diplomatie.gouv.fr. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  10. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigration_to_Canada />>
  11. "United Nations Population Division | Department of Economic and Social Affairs" />>>
  12. "Wachtregister asiel 2012-2021". npdata.be. Retrieved 12 April 2023.
  13. Khal Torabully, Coolitude: An Anthology of the Indian Labour Diaspora (with Marina Carter, Anthem Press, London, 2002) ISBN   1-84331-003-1
  14. La Redaction (5 June 2008). "A critical appraisal of the Best Loser System". L'Express (Mauritius) . Retrieved 11 November 2017.
  15. M. Rafic Soormally (10 September 2012). "Debate on Best Loser System". Le Défi Media Group. Archived from the original on 21 January 2015. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
  16. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-05-14. Retrieved 2015-04-26.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  17. 1 2 "The World FactBook - Mauritius", The World Factbook , CIA , retrieved July 12, 2018PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  18. Museums Victoria (2017). "Mauritius. Immigration history from Mauritius to Victoria". origins.museumsvictoria.com.au. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
  19. Maggie Walter (2006). "Tasmanian aboriginal diaspora. In: The companion to Tasmanian History". utas.edu.au. Retrieved 2 July 2021.