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      Indian indenture: History and historiography in a nutshell

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            Abstract

            The establishment of the academic study of Indentureship is a relatively recent development that has been led by descendants of indentured labourers from across the diaspora. This article highlights key moments in both the history and historiography of Indentureship. Looking first at the system established by the British on plantations across their colonies, it goes on to consider the variety of labourers' backgrounds and the process of social equalisation that was fostered by both voyage and plantation. Considering the injustices of the system, the author emphasises the ways in which labourers were able to disrupt the power of the plantocracy and analyses the particular perils the system held for women. The religious life of the labourers as well as the maintenance of the Panchayat and the importance of the Ramayana are also weighed. The historiography section of this article traces the attention paid to the system of indenture and the diaspora it created; from the initial attentions of missionaries and ‘benevolent’ organisations in the nineteenth century to the creation of a global network of scholars of Indentureship with roots in South Africa, Fiji, Mauritius, Guyana and Trinidad. It further emphasises key moments and publications during this period.

            Content

            Author and article information

            Contributors
            Journal
            10.2307/j50022885
            jofstudindentleg
            Journal of Indentureship and its Legacies
            Pluto Journals
            2634-1999
            2634-2006
            1 September 2021
            : 1
            : 1 ( doiID: 10.13169/jofstudindentleg.1.issue-1 )
            : 1-15
            Affiliations
            Brij Lal is professor emeritus, School of Culture, History and Language, ANU College of Asia and the Pacific
            Article
            jofstudindentleg.1.1.0001
            10.13169/jofstudindentleg.1.1.0001
            bd2986e8-df4b-47f2-b8a4-a1812a277cc6
            © 2021 Pluto Journals

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            History
            Custom metadata
            eng

            Literary studies,Arts,Social & Behavioral Sciences,History
            Jahaji Bhai,Kangani system,Girmi,Indian indenture,women under indenture,Islam in indenture, Panchayat ,Hinduism in indenture,infant mortality under indenture,caste in indenture,indenture abolition, Ramayana

            Notes

            1. I thank David Dabydeen for the invitation to write this paper and Doug Munro for reading an early draft of it.

            2. In the case of Trinidad and Fiji, for instance, the sugar industry is in the doldrums, with cane farms abandoned and milling infrastructure in decay.

            3. The literature is vast but see among many others, Carter 1994; Lal 1985; Pande 2020; Goundar et al. 2021.

            4. See Lal 2010. For a comprehensive list of studies of indentured women's experiences, by dozens of scholars, many women, see the Bibliography section of the Ameena Gafoor Institute website, ameenagafoorinstitute.org

            5. There are several centres for the study of Indian diaspora in India, dealing partially with the indenture experience. Among many scholars with serious commitment to the history of Indian migrants are Ashutosh Kumar of Banaras Hindu University and Amit Mishra of Ashoka University. Several early career researchers are working on literary and gender issues.

            6. An earlier such compilation was Macdonald 1998.

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