British Sri Lankans

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British Sri Lankans
Counties of the UK Sri Lankan.svg
Distribution by regional area.
Total population
Sri Lankan-born residents
67,938 (2001 census)
129,076 (2011 census)
Other population estimates
110,000 (2002 Berghof Research Center estimate)
170,000 (2007 Tamil Information Centre estimate)
People with Sri Lankan descent
400,000 (2023) [1]
Regions with significant populations
London, South East England, East of England, Midlands
Languages
Tamil, English, Sinhala
Religion
Theravada Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Roman Catholicism, Protestantism
Related ethnic groups
Sri Lankan

British Sri Lankans are an ethnic group referring to British people who can trace their ancestry to Sri Lanka. It can refer to a variety of ethnicities and races, including Sinhalese, Tamils, Moors/Muslims and Burghers.

Contents

History

Pre-Independent Ceylon

Since the times of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome, Sri Lanka historically had contact with Western Europe by being a stop on the highly profitable trade routes between the West and the East, whether through Arabic traders or directly through Western European traders. The term "serendipity" derives from "serendip," an old Persian name for Sri Lanka, which itself comes from the Arabic word "Sarandīb," adopted from the Sanskrit "Siṃhaladvīpa" meaning "Dwelling-Place-of-Lions Island." [2]

There may have contacts between Anglo-Saxon England and Sri Lanka as the rulers of East Anglia were part of an international culture stretching to the Baltic and far beyond. The objects discovered at Sutton Hoo included garnets, used in jewelry pieces, that may have come as far away as Sri Lanka and India. [3] It has been assumed[ by whom? ] that the garnets from Sri Lanka to England at that time would have been passed through several hands in its journey. However, it shouldn't be underestimated[ editorializing ] for the individuals who can make long-distance journeys at that time as medieval Europeans have heard of India (possibly Sri Lanka as well) as King Alfred dispatched envoys to St Thomas and St Bartholomew shrines in Southern India in 833 AD (it isn't known whether they succeeded). Genetic studies showed that at least one individual with non-European ancestry was buried from 7th Century Kent, in England. [4] [5]

The first Western Europeans to make substantial contact with Sri Lanka were the Portuguese, followed by the Dutch and then finally the British. Sri Lankans have since been migrating to Britain for several centuries, up from the time of British ruled Ceylon. [6]

Flag of British Ceylon. Many Sri Lankans have been migrating to Britain for several centuries, up from the time of British Rule. Flag of Ceylon (1875-1948).svg
Flag of British Ceylon. Many Sri Lankans have been migrating to Britain for several centuries, up from the time of British Rule.

There have been records of immigration from Ceylon to the UK during the 19th century. [7] There are however no definitive records of the first Ceylonese to come to the UK. There was some presence of the Ceylonese during the 1810s. One notably, Adam Sri Munni Ratna, a Buddhist monk from Ceylon travelled to England in 1818 with his cousin while accompanying Sir Alexander Johnston to join the Church. However, they did not settle permanently in England and then returned to Ceylon where they entered government service. [8] During the mid-late 19th century, many of the migrants from South Asia were the lascars who were sailors from British Colonies that worked on British ships and some of the sailors also come from the seafaring communities of Ceylon. [9]

There were Ceylonese people from wealthy or high backgrounds who lived, studied and visited the UK during the 19th and early 20th centuries. These include people such as SWRD Bandaranaike, [10] Sir John Kotelawala, Felix Reginald, [11] Ananda Coomaraswamy and many others. Muthu Coomaraswamy, a Ceylon Tamil, became the first Asian knight after being knighted by Queen Victoria of the Order of St Michael and St George in 1878.

From the early 20th century, many people from Ceylon came to the UK as soldiers during WW1 when Ceylon sent 2,300 volunteers to the UK. [12] There were also other reasons for Ceylonese migration to the UK before Independence. The Ceylonese also served as servants for wealthy British people such as Sir Thomas Lipton. [13]

The UK censuses of 1891, 1901 and 1911 showed a number of people born in the colonies of India and Ceylon. The 1901 census showed that out of the 136,092 persons born in British Dependencies and Colonies, no fewer than 55,362 persons were born in India, Burma or Ceylon with contrasting figures of 50,929 in 1891. [14] The 1911 census however shown 66,331 or 41 per cent of people born in parts of the Empire with 62,974 from India and 3,557 from Ceylon. [15]

Dominion of Ceylon to Republic of Sri Lanka

Between the 1950s to the 1980s, the United Kingdom served as the major immigration destination for highly educated Sri Lankans, due to the relaxed immigration rules given to Sri Lankan citizens due to the politics surrounding post-Empire connections such as the Commonwealth of Nations.[ citation needed ]

This initial group of immigrants consisted of a very settled group of people who followed a migration model of a single journey with a settled home at the end of it. Many of these people who came are well-educated and very well off economically and have become established in British society.[ citation needed ]

During the 1960s, understaffing in the UK's National Health Service opened up the opportunity for many Sri Lankans to become doctors and consultants; others managed to secure other white-collar jobs.[ citation needed ]

Before 1983, when the civil war started, social spaces for a Sri Lankan elite existed, there were hardly any ethnic boundaries and all ethnicities attended Sri Lankan High Commission receptions and the frequent intra-school sports competitions organized by Sri Lankan schools alumnae. During that time the public perceived the Sri Lankan community as one of the most successful immigrant communities in the UK. Especially during the 1970s, political organization increased among both Tamils and Sinhalese. [16]

Civil War in Sri Lanka

The onset of the Sri Lankan Civil War in the 1980s and 1990s caused a large-scale exodus of Tamils to countries in the West. The Sri Lankan Tamils who emigrated to the UK often came on student visas (or family reunion visas for the family of said people) due to the well-educated in Sri Lanka being literate in English. This resulted in the first generation diaspora falling into highly professional jobs such as medicine and law after studying at British educational facilities. [17] [18]

In 1991, Sri Lankans were the sixth biggest Asian community, with over 39,000 residents of Britain having been born in Sri Lanka. [19]

The British-born Generation

The children of first generation immigrants are a third grouping that have predominantly come-of-age in the late 2000s and 2010s. These children often grew up without siblings due to the low birth rates in the community, with one child for two parents being the norm, [20] but they often faced better economic and cultural prospects than other similar refugee groups due to the strong education ethic imposed by Sri Lankan culture. [21]

This grouping has been widely praised as hard-working, with little problems relating to criminality and anti-social behaviour, and high levels of educational achievement. A number of reports and articles has praised the community as "middle class" and "progressive". [18]

Culture

As Sri Lankans are similar to other South Asian communities in the UK [22] it has often meant that Sri Lankans unknowingly assimilate into the local Asian cultures, particularly due to the small size of the Sri Lankan community, thanks to intermixing at shops and cultural centres such as temples. [23]

Tara, currently at the British Museum, shows evidence of the cultural interaction of Buddhism with Hinduism among Sri Lankas. She had been a Hindu mother goddess but was redesigned for a new role within Buddhism. British Museum Asia 45.jpg
Tara, currently at the British Museum, shows evidence of the cultural interaction of Buddhism with Hinduism among Sri Lankas. She had been a Hindu mother goddess but was redesigned for a new role within Buddhism.

Religion

Sri Lankans in the United Kingdom predominantly come from Tamil heritage, which has led to a situation where Hinduism is more statistically prevalent among the community than Buddhism.[ citation needed ]

Hinduism nevertheless continues to be a cultural rallying point for most Sri Lankan Tamils. A number of temples have been built throughout the UK in order to service the needs of Sri Lankan Tamils, including the Sivan Kovil and Murugan Kovil in West London, though these temples do not necessarily serve as community building organisations due to Hinduism's lack of requirement for temple visits. The community mainly follow the Saivite sect. [24]

The smaller Sinhalese community has also been well served by a large network of Buddhist temples, including a major Sinhalese one at Kingsbury in London called Vihara, and six other prominent Sinhalese temples that have been ethnically linked to the community. [25] "Though present London Buddhist Vihāra traces its birth to 1926, until the arrival of three Sri Lankan monks as residents in 1928, the premises in Ealing seems to have functioned as Headquarters of British Maha Bodhi Society."

The religious breakdown of British Sri Lankans overall:

ReligionThe percentage of British Sri Lankans from the 2011
England and Wales Census. [26]
Om.svg Hinduism 50.0%
Gold Christian Cross no Red.svg Christianity 22.2%
Dharma Wheel.svg Buddhism 15.4%
Star and Crescent.svg Islam 6.7%
Other religion5.7%

Demographics

Historical population
YearPop.±%
19113,557 [27]     
19213,880 [28] +9.1%
1931*    
1941*    
19516,447    
1961*    
197117,045    
198126,172+53.5%
199139,387+50.5%
200167,938+72.5%
2011125,917+85.3%
A map showing the distribution of Sri Lankans in Greater London. Two-thirds of British Sri Lankans live 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%-1.49%
1.5%-2.99%
3%-4.99%
5%-6.99%
7%-9.99%
10% and greater Sri Lankans in London by Ward.svg
A map showing the distribution of Sri Lankans in Greater London. Two-thirds of British Sri Lankans live in London.
  0.0%-1.49%
  1.5%-2.99%
  3%-4.99%
  5%-6.99%
  7%-9.99%
  10% and greater

The population of England, Scotland and Wales born in what was then Ceylon recorded by the first post-war census of 1951 was 6,447 individuals. While the 1971 census grew to 17,045, this figure grew to 26,172 in 1981 and 39,387 in 1991. [29] The 2001 Census recorded 67,938 Sri Lankan-born UK residents. [30] The 2011 census recorded 125,917 Sri Lankan-born residents in England, 1,325 in Wales, [31] 1,711 in Scotland [32] and 123 in Northern Ireland. [33] The Tamil Information Centre had estimated that, as of 2007, 170,000 Sri Lankans were resident in the UK. [34]

The largest community of Sri Lanka born immigrants live in London, with an estimated population of around 50,000 in 2001 and 84,500 in 2011, with smaller populations in South East England, the East of England, West and East Midlands. [26] [35]

Tamils

The UK has always had a strong, albeit small, population of Sri Lankan Tamils deriving from colonial era immigration between Sri Lanka and the UK, but a surge in emigration from Sri Lanka took place after 1983, as the civil war caused living conditions deteriorate and placed many inhabitants in danger. It is now estimated that the current population of British Sri Lankan Tamils numbers around 100,000 to 200,000. [36]

The largest population of British Sri Lankan Tamils can be found in London, chiefly in Harrow (West London), and East Ham (East London), and Tooting (South London). [37] [ failed verification ] The community generally has far lower birth rates in comparison to other South Asian ethnic groups, with one child for two parents being the norm. [20]

Unlike immigrants to countries in Continental Europe, the majority of Sri Lankan Tamils that went to live in Anglo-Saxon countries achieved entry through non-refugee methods such as educational visas and family reunion visas, owing to the highly educated in Sri Lanka being literate in English as well as Tamil. This resulted in the first generation diaspora falling into highly professional jobs such as medicine and law after studying at British educational facilities. [17] [18]

The result was that the community was perceived as being similar to the rest of the Indian community (see:Ugandan Indian Refugees) with a more middle class image. [38] [21]

Sinhalese

The main and oldest organisation representing the Sinhalese community in the UK are the UK Sinhala association. [39] The newspaper Lanka Viththi was created in 1997 to provide a Sinhala newspaper for the Sinhalese community. [40] In 2006, a Sinhala TV channel called Kesara TV was set up in London to provide the Sinhala speaking people of the UK a TV channel in Sinhala. [41]

The current Sinhalese community in the UK has arrived over the past 70 years since the end of the colonial era in Ceylon. They represent at least 3 generations with each of them being the immigrants, their children, and grandchildren. [7]

Muslims

There are about 25,000+ Sri Lankan Muslims living in the United Kingdom. [42]

Notable British Sri Lankans

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Sri Lanka</span>

The history of Sri Lanka is unique because its relevance and richness extend beyond the areas of South Asia, Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean. The early human remains which were found on the island of Sri Lanka date back to about 38,000 years ago.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Demographics of Sri Lanka</span>

This is a demography of the population of Sri Lanka including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the population, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sinhalese people</span> Native ethnic group of Sri Lanka

The Sinhalese people, also known as the Sinhalese are an Indo-Aryan ethno-linguistic group native to the island of Sri Lanka. Historically, they were known as the Sinhala or the Lion People. They are the largest ethnic group in Sri Lanka, constituting about 75% of the Sri Lankan population and number more than 15.2 million.

Burgher people, also known simply as Burghers, are a small Eurasian ethnic group in Sri Lanka descended from Portuguese, Dutch, British and other Europeans who settled in Ceylon. The Portuguese and Dutch had held some of the maritime provinces of the island for centuries before the advent of the British Empire. With the establishment of Ceylon as a crown colony at the end of the 18th century, most of those who retained close ties with the Netherlands departed. However, a significant community of Burghers remained and largely adopted the English language. During British rule, they occupied a highly important place in Sri Lankan social and economic life.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka</span> Tamil people of Indian origin in Sri Lanka

Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka are Tamil people of Indian origin in Sri Lanka. They are also known as Malayaga Tamilar, Hill Country Tamils, Up-Country Tamils or simply Indian Tamils. They predominantly descend from workers sent from Southern India to Sri Lanka in the 19th and 20th centuries to work in coffee, tea and rubber plantations. Some also migrated on their own as merchants and as other service providers. These Tamil speakers mostly live in the central highlands, also known as the Malayakam or Hill Country, yet others are also found in major urban areas and in the Northern Province. Although they are all termed as Tamils today, some have Telugu and Malayalee origins as well as diverse South Indian caste origins. They are instrumental in the plantation sector economy of Sri Lanka. In general, socio-economically their standard of living is below that of the national average and they are described as one of the poorest and most neglected groups in Sri Lanka. In 1964 a large percentage were repatriated to India, but left a considerable number as stateless people. By the 1990s most of these had been given Sri Lankan citizenship. Most are Hindus with a minority of Christians and Muslims amongst them. There are also a small minority followers of Buddhism among them. Politically they are supportive of trade union-based political parties that have supported most of the ruling coalitions since the 1980s.

The Official Language Act , commonly referred to as the Sinhala Only Act, was an act passed in the Parliament of Ceylon in 1956. The act replaced English with Sinhala as the sole official language of Ceylon, with the exclusion of Tamil.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sri Lankan Australians</span>

Sri Lankan Australians are people of Sri Lankan heritage living in Australia; this includes Sri Lankans by birth and by ancestry. Sri Lankan Australians constitute one of the largest groups of Overseas Sri Lankan communities and are the largest diasporic Sri Lankan community in Oceania. Sri Lankan Australians consist of people with Sinhalese, Tamil, Moor, Burgher, Malay and Chinese origins among others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tamil diaspora</span> Descendants of Tamil immigrants in other countries

The Tamil diaspora refers to descendants of the Tamil speaking immigrants who emigrated from their native lands in the southern Indian subcontinent to other parts of the world. They are found primarily in Malaysia, Arab states of the Persian Gulf, South Africa, North America, Western Europe, and Singapore. It can be divided into two main diasporic clusters, due to geographical, historical and cultural reasons, as Indian Tamil diaspora and Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sri Lankan Tamils</span> South Asian ethnic group

Sri Lankan Tamils, also known as Ceylon Tamils or Eelam Tamils, are Tamils native to the South Asian island state of Sri Lanka. Today, they constitute a majority in the Northern Province, form the plurality in the Eastern Province and are in the minority throughout the rest of the country. 70% of Sri Lankan Tamils in Sri Lanka live in the Northern and Eastern provinces.

Sri Lankan Chetties also known as Colombo Chetties, are an ethnicity in the island of Sri Lanka. Before 2001, they were known as the Sri Lankan Tamil caste, but then after 2001, they were classified as a separate ethnic group in the 2001 census. They are now collectively referred to as the Colombo Chetties. They were said to have migrated from India under Portuguese rule and were given special rights and representation during colonial rule.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora</span>

The Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora refers to the global diaspora of Sri Lankan Tamil origin. It can be said to be a subset of the larger Sri Lankan and Tamil diaspora.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">S. J. V. Chelvanayakam</span> Sri Lankan politician (1898–1977)

Samuel James Veluppillai Chelvanayakam was a Ceylonese lawyer, politician and Member of Parliament. He was the founder and leader of the Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi (ITAK) and Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) and a political leader of the Ceylon Tamil community for more than two decades. Chelvanayakam has been described as a father figure to Ceylon's Tamils, to whom he was known as "Thanthai Chelva".

The origins of the Sri Lankan Civil War lie in the continuous political rancor between the majority Sinhalese and the minority Sri Lankan Tamils. According to Jonathan Spencer, a social anthropologist from the School of Social and Political Studies of the University of Edinburgh, the war is an outcome of how modern ethnic identities have been made and re-made since the colonial period, with the political struggle between minority Tamils and the Sinhalese-dominant government accompanied by rhetorical wars over archeological sites and place name etymologies, and the political use of the national past.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Ceylon</span> British Crown colony (1796–1948); now Sri Lanka

British Ceylon, officially British Settlements and Territories in the Island of Ceylon with its Dependencies from 1802 to 1833, then the Island of Ceylon and its Territories and Dependencies from 1833 to 1931 and finally the Island of Ceylon and its Dependencies from 1931 to 1948, was the British Crown colony of present-day Sri Lanka between 1796 and 4 February 1948. Initially, the area it covered did not include the Kingdom of Kandy, which was a protectorate, but from 1817 to 1948 the British possessions included the whole island of Ceylon, now the nation of Sri Lanka.

Social class in Sri Lanka is often described as casteless, though caste is still found on the island in both a symbolic and a practical sense. Caste is also used in an analogous sense to refer to the new social class divisions that have appeared in recent decades. The combination of ethnic nationalist movements that saw caste as an island-wide dividing tool, strong emphasis on providing access to education and healthcare regardless of background, and historic lack of discrimination among the colonial civil service played a factor in eradicating the caste system in most sectors of the island's society. Although the Buddhist culture actively fought against all forms of class discrimination, many Buddhist organizations used caste as a method to extract surplus from temple property.

The Sri Lankan diaspora are Sri Lankan emigrants and expatriates from Sri Lanka, and their descendants, that reside in a foreign country. They number a total estimated population of around 3 million.

The Dutch Burghers are an ethnic group in Sri Lanka, of mixed Dutch, Portuguese Burgher and Sri Lankan descent. However, they are a different community when compared with Portuguese Burghers. Originally an entirely Protestant community, many Burghers today remain Christian but belong to a variety of denominations. The Dutch Burghers of Sri Lanka speak English and the local languages Sinhala and Tamil.

Sri Lankan Malaysians are people of full or partial Sri Lankan descent who were born in or immigrated to Malaysia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sri Lanka–United Kingdom relations</span> Bilateral relations

Sri Lanka–United Kingdom relations, or British-Sri Lankan relations, are foreign relations between Sri Lanka and the United Kingdom.

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