 | |
 Guru Nanak Darbar Gurdwara in Dublin | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 2,173 | |
| Religions | |
| Sikhism | |
| Languages | |
| English • Irish • Punjabi |
Sikhs in the Republic of Ireland are a religious minority in Republic of Ireland. There are 2,173 Sikhs living in Ireland per the 2022 census of Ireland. [1]
Born in Limerick in 1841, Max Arthur Macauliffe was an Irish-Sikh convert and a scholar who devoted significant efforts in the late 1800s to translating Sikh scriptures and history into English, helping with the introduction of Sikhism to Europe and North America. [2] [3] [4]
Sikh migration to Ireland largely began in the 1950s and 1960s, with Sikhs arriving primarily for work in sectors like manufacturing, transport, and agriculture.[ citation needed ] During this period, the community expanded into urban areas such as Dublin and Cork. Due to immigration policies in the 1990s and the Celtic Tiger period, Ireland attracted more Sikhs primarily from Punjab into professional jobs within the IT and healthcare sector. [5]
Sikh immigration in the early 2000s increased as a result of the coming of international students, some of whom stayed and had children in Ireland. [6]
In 2019, over 2,000 people took part in the Nagar kirtan for Vaisakhi in the Sandymount area of Dublin. [7] In 2021, Ravinder Singh Oberoi became the first practicing Sikh of the Garda Síochána Reserves. [8]
Sikhs are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a 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'.
Ballsbridge is an affluent neighbourhood of the city of Dublin, the capital of Ireland. The area is largely situated north and west of a three-arch stone bridge across the River Dodder, on the south side of the city. The sign on the bridge still proclaims it as "Ball's Bridge", in recognition of the fact that the original bridge on that location was built and owned by the Ball family, a well-known Dublin merchant family in the 1500s and the 1600s. The current bridge was built in 1791.
The Guru Granth Sahib is the central holy religious scripture of Sikhism, regarded by Sikhs as the final, sovereign and eternal Guru following the lineage of the ten human gurus of the religion. The Adi Granth, its first rendition, was compiled by the fifth guru, Guru Arjan (1564–1606). Its compilation was completed on 29 August 1604 and first installed inside the Golden Temple in Amritsar on 1 September 1604. Baba Buddha was appointed the first Granthi of the Golden Temple. Shortly afterwards Guru Hargobind added Ramkali Ki Vaar. Later, Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh guru, added hymns of Guru Tegh Bahadur to the Adi Granth and affirmed the text as his successor. This second rendition became known as the Guru Granth Sahib and is also sometimes referred to as the Adi Granth.
Max Arthur MacAuliffe, originally known as Michael McAuliffe, was a senior British administrator, prolific scholar and author. MacAuliffe is renowned for his partial translation of Sikh scripture Guru Granth Sahib and history into English.
South Asian Canadians are Canadians who were either born in or can trace their ancestry to South Asia or the Indian subcontinent, which includes the nations of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives. The term also includes immigrants from South Asian communities in East and South Africa, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, Fiji, Mauritius, and the rest of the world.
Sikhism is the fourth-largest religious group in Canada, with nearly 800,000 adherents, or 2.1% of Canada's population, as of 2021. The largest Sikh populations in Canada are found in Ontario, followed by British Columbia and Alberta. As of the 2021 Census, more than half of Canada's Sikhs can be found in one of four cities: Brampton (163,260), Surrey (154,415), Calgary (49,465), and Edmonton (41,385).
British Sikhs number over 535,000 people and account for 0.8% 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 535,517, with 520,092 in England, 10,988 in Scotland, 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.
Sikhism is a minority religion in Belgium, but Sikhs have played a role in Belgian history; during World War I, many Sikhs fought in Belgium.
Asian Canadians are Canadians who were either born in or can trace their ancestry to the continent of Asia. Canadians with Asian ancestry comprise both the largest and fastest growing group in Canada, after European Canadians, forming approximately 20.2 percent of the Canadian population as of 2021, making up the majority of Canada’s visible minority population. Most Asian Canadians are concentrated in the urban areas of Southern Ontario, Southwestern British Columbia, Central Alberta, and other large Canadian cities.
Unlike the majority of Fiji's Indian population, who are descendants of Indian indentured labourers brought to Fiji between 1879 and 1916, most of the Sikhs came to Fiji as free immigrants. Most Sikhs established themselves as farmers. Sikhs also came to Fiji as policemen, teachers and preachers. In recent years large numbers of Sikhs have emigrated from Fiji, especially to the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand. Sikhs in Fiji are generally referred to as Punjabis. Total population of sikhs in Fiji is around 3600. Discourse on the experiences and histories of Fijian Sikhs tends to subsume them under discourse framed in terms of other South Asian groups.
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.
Sikhism in Scotland includes all aspects of Sikh life and Sikhism in Scotland. Sikhs have been present in Scotland for over a century, with the first documented Sikh, Maharaja Daleep Singh, arriving in Perthshire in 1855. The next wave of migration was in early-to-mid 1920s when prominent Sikhs of the Bhat/Bhatra community established themselves in Glasgow and Edinburgh. However, the bulk of Sikhs in Scotland come from families who immigrated during the late 20th century. In Scotland, Sikhs represented about 0.2% of the population (10,988) in the 2022 census.
Gurū Nānak, also known as Bābā Nānak, was the founder of Sikhism and is the first of the ten Sikh Gurus. His birth is celebrated as Guru Nanak Gurpurab on Katak Pooranmashi, i.e. October–November.
New Zealander Sikhs number over 40,000 people and account for 0.9% of New Zealand's population as of 2018, forming the country's fastest-growing and fifth-largest religious group.
Sikhism in Indonesia is a small religious minority in Indonesia. There are about 10,000 to 15,000 Sikhs in Indonesia.
The Gurdwara Guru Nanak Darbar is the gurdwara of Dublin, Ireland. It has two main halls, Divan Hall and Langar Hall. Divan Hall is the main hall where the holy Guru Granth Sahib is kept. It is located on the site of the old Oscar Cinema in Ballsbridge, Dublin 4 which the Irish Sikh community purchased in 1987.
The South Asian community in British Columbia was first established in 1897. The first immigrants originated from Punjab, British India, a northern region and state in modern-day India and Pakistan. Punjabis originally settled in rural British Columbia at the turn of the twentieth century, working in the forestry and agricultural industries.
Sikhism in Greater Vancouver is one of the main religions across the region, especially among the Indo-Canadian population. The Sikh community in Vancouver is the oldest, largest and most influential across Canada, having begun in the late 19th century.
Punjabi Canadians number approximately 950,000 and account for roughly 2.6% of Canada's population, as per the 2021 Canadian census. Their heritage originates wholly or partly from the Punjab region of India and Pakistan.
Sikhs in Portugal is a minority religion. The Sikh community in Portugal is a small but vastly growing one. According to the latest available data, there are estimated to be around 35,000 Sikhs living in the country. The Sikh population in Portugal has grown over the years, with many Sikhs migrating to the country for agricultural work, construction work or to start their own businesses.
A lot of Sikh students came from India to study in Dublin in the early 2000s, and some of them stayed and now have children in school, he says. The original families have brought up children, and grandchildren. The community has grown.
