Punjabi diaspora

2021-08-27T01:43:06Z

68.68.165.8:

{{Short description|Ethnic Punjabis and their descendants living outside of the Punjab region located in Pakistan and India}}
{{Infobox ethnic group
|group = Punjabi Diaspora<br>{{Nastaliq|پنجابی}} / ਪੰਜਾਬੀ
|population = 2.5―10 million.<ref name=diaspora/>
|langs = [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]] and [[Punjabi dialects|its dialects]] • [[English language|English]] • [[Swahili language|Swahili]] • [[Malaysian language|Malaysian]] • [[Cantonese]] • [[Thai language|Thai]] • [[Indonesian language|Indonesian]] • [[Tamil language|Tamil]] • [[Tagalog language|Tagalog]] • and numerous more other languages
|rels=
[[Image:Khanda.svg|15px]] [[Sikhism]] • [[Image:Allah-green.svg|18px]] [[Islam]] • [[Image:Om.svg|15px]] [[Hinduism]] • [[Image:Christian cross.svg|10px]] [[Christianity]] • [[File : Jain Prateek Chihna.svg|26px]] [[Jainism]] • [[File: Dharma wheel.svg|25px]] [[Buddhism]] • [[non-religious]]
|related= [[Non-resident Indian and person of Indian origin|Indian Diaspora]], [[Sikh diaspora]], [[Pakistani diaspora]], [[South Asian Diaspora]]
}}

The '''Punjabi diaspora''' refers to the descendants of ethnic [[Punjabis]] who emigrated out of the [[Punjab region]] in the northern part of the [[Indian subcontinent]] to the rest of the world. Punjabis are one of the largest ethnic groups in both the [[Pakistani diaspora|Pakistani]] and [[Non-resident Indian and person of Indian origin|Indian diasporas]]. The Punjabi diaspora numbers around the world has been given between 2.5―10 million, mainly concentrated in Britain, Canada, United States, Western Europe, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Australia and New Zealand.<ref name=diaspora>{{Cite web|url=https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/17278/1/2006/567/567_shinder_s_thandi.htm|title=567 Shinder S. Thandi, Punjabi diaspora and homeland relations|website=eprints.soas.ac.uk}}</ref>

==Afghanistan==
{{Main|Punjabis in Afghanistan}}

==Bangladesh==
Many families from [[Punjab, Pakistan]] migrated to erstwhile [[East Pakistan]] (present-day Bangladesh) as it was one country at the time. Some of these families chose to remain in Bangladesh after its independence. One such example is the family of Bangladeshi-Punjabi cricketer [[Junaid Siddique]].

==Australia==
{{Further|Punjabi Australians}}
Punjabis migrated to [[Australia]] from other parts of the Punjabi diaspora, as well from the state of Punjab itself. The Majority were Sikh and Hindu Punjabis instead of Muslims being the minority.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=R9PXaUmk-sAC&pg=PA74 |title=Between Colonialism and Diaspora: Sikh Cultural Formations in an Imperial World |author=Tony Ballantyne|date=16 August 2006 |isbn=0822338246 }}</ref>

==Canada==
{{Further|South Asian Canadian|Indian Canadian|Pakistani Canadian|Punjabi Canadian}}
85% of [[Indo-Canadians]] in [[British Columbia]] are Punjabi Sikhs,<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6lXZfWr68FAC&pg=PA317 |title=Foreign policy annual |author=Mahendra Gaur |year=2007 |page=317|isbn=9788178353425 }}</ref> including former [[premier of British Columbia]], [[Ujjal Dosanjh]].

==Germany==
The Punjabi [[Sikhism in Germany|Sikh diaspora in Germany]] is around 15,000-21,000.

==Georgia==
In 2012 around 2000 farmers from Punjab, India migrated to [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]] to do farming .<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/from-taran-taran-to-tbilisi-in-search-of-a-farming-paradise/article4280302.ece|title=From Taran Taran to Tbilisi, in search of a farming paradise|first=Chander Suta|last=Dogra|newspaper=The Hindu|date=January 6, 2013|via=www.thehindu.com}}</ref> As of 2018 around 200 out of them are still living there in [[Tsnori]], a town in [[Kakheti]] region.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/archive/features/the-georgia-giants-563146|title=The Georgia Giants|first=Tribune News|last=Service|website=Tribuneindia News Service}}</ref>

==Hong Kong==
Among Hong Kong Indian adolescents, Punjabi is the third most common language other than [[Cantonese language|Cantonese]].<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vvCWT8XHK8QC&pg=PA231 |title=Language in Hong Kong at Century's End |author=Martha Carswell Pennington |publisher=Hong Kong University Press |year=1998 |page=219|isbn=9789622094185 }}</ref> The Punjabis were influential in the military, and in line with the British military thinking of the time (namely, the late 19th century and early 20th century) Punjabi Sikhs, Punjabi Hindus and Punjabi Muslims formed two separate regiments. The regiments were as follows:

*Punjab regiment: 25,000 soldiers (50% Muslim, 40% Hindu and 10% Sikh)
*Sikh Regiment: 10,000 soldiers (80% Sikh, 20% Hindu)

In 1939, Hong Kong's police force included 272 [[European ethnic groups|Europeans]], 774 [[Indian ethnic groups|Indians]] (mainly Punjabis) and 1140 [[Han Chinese|Chinese]].<ref name=CambridgeWorldMigration>{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/cambridgesurveyo00robi |url-access=registration |title=The Cambridge Survey of World Migration |author=Robin Cohen |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1995 |page=[https://archive.org/details/cambridgesurveyo00robi/page/70 70]|isbn=9780521444057 }}</ref> Punjabis dominated Hong Kong's police force until the 1950s.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7QEjPVyd9YMC&pg=PA275 |title=Encyclopedia of Diasporas: Immigrant and Refugee Cultures Around the World. Volume I: Overviews and Topics; Volume II: Diaspora Communities |author1=Carol R. Ember |author2=Melvin Ember |author3=Ian A. Skoggard |publisher=Springer |year=2004|isbn=9780306483219 }}</ref>

From the 2006 Government by-census results, it shows a population of roughly 20,444 Indians and roughly 11,111 Pakistanis residing at the former British territory.<ref>{{cite book |url=http://www.bycensus2006.gov.hk/en/data/data3/statistical_tables/index.htm#A1|title=Census and Statistics Department 2006 Population By-census: Section A, Table A105|author=Hong Kong SAR Government|publisher=Hong Kong SAR Government |year=2007}}</ref>

==Iran==
Around 60 Punjabi Sikh families resides in Iran.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/prime-minister-narendra-modi-to-visit-iran-gurdwara/articleshow/52364802.cms|title=Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit Iran Gurdwara|first=Dipanjan Roy|last=Chaudhury|date=20 May 2016|newspaper=The Economic Times}}</ref> Punjabi language is also taught at [[Kendriya Vidyalaya Tehran]], an Indian co-educational school in [[Baharestan (district)|Baharestan District]], [[Tehran]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://livingintehran.com/2017/12/07/international-kv-school-tehran/|title=International Schools in Tehran: Indian KV School|date=December 7, 2017}}</ref>

==Japan==
There are 71,000 Punjabis. In [[Japan]] 98% of the Punjabis are [[Sikh]] and 1.5% of the Punjabis are [[Christianity|Christian]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://joshuaproject.net/people_groups/14483/JA|title=Punjabi in Japan|first=Joshua|last=Project}}</ref>

==Kenya==
Most [[Indians in Kenya|Kenyan Asians]] are [[Gujaratis]], but the second largest group are [[Punjabis]].<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GHlkAAAAMAAJ |title=Language in Kenya |author=Wilfred Whiteley|year=1974 |isbn=978-0-19-436103-3 }}</ref> All three major religious groups (Sikh, Muslim and Hindu) are represented in the Punjabi population. The artisan [[Ramgharia]] caste used to be the largest group amongst the Sikhs.<ref name="Sanjek2014">{{cite book|author=Roger Sanjek|title=Mutuality: Anthropology's Changing Terms of Engagement|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lts3BQAAQBAJ&pg=PA81|date=11 November 2014|publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press|isbn=978-0-8122-9031-8|page=87}}</ref>

==Malaysia==
Although most [[Malaysian Indians]] are [[Tamil Malaysian|Tamils]], there were also many Punjabis that immigrated to [[Malaysia]]. They are known to be the third largest Indian ethnic group in Malaysia, after the Tamils and Malayalees. According to Amarjit Kaur as of 1993 there were 60, 000 Punjabis in Malaysia.<ref>{{cite book |title=Historical Dictionary of Malaysia |publisher=Scarecrow Press |author=Amarjit Kaur |year=1993 |isbn=9780810826298 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=G226AAAAIAAJ}}</ref> Robin Cohen estimates the number of Malaysian Sikhs as 30, 000 (as of 1995).<ref name=CambridgeWorldMigration/> Recent figures state that there are 130,000 Sikhs in Malaysia.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://apnaorg.com/articles/ishtiaq8/|title=Punjabis Without Punjabi|website=apnaorg.com}}</ref>

==New Zealand==
In New Zealand, Punjabis are one of the largest group of [[Indian New Zealander]]s.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://teara.govt.nz/en/indians/page-1|title=Indian communities|first=New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu|last=Taonga|website=teara.govt.nz}}</ref>

==Persian Gulf states==
{{See also|Pakistanis in the Middle East}}
In the Gulf states, the largest group among Pakistani expatriates are the Punjabis.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GNJHlFTPBT0C&pg=PA194 |title=Democracy and Authoritarianism in South Asia: A Comparative and Historical Perspective |author=Ayesha Jalal |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1995}}</ref>

==Philippines==
The Philippines has over 50,000 Punjabi Indians as recently as the year 2016, not including illegal Punjabi Indian immigrants. This makes the Philippines having the 6th highest population of Punjabi Indians in the world.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-news-india/punjabi-community-money-lending-philippines-president-rodrigo-duterte-2806212/|title=Punjabi community involved in money lending in Philippines braces for 'crackdown' by new President|date=18 May 2016}}</ref>

==Singapore==
The third largest group among [[Indo-Singaporean]]s in 1980 were Punjabis (after [[Tamils]] - who form a majority of Indo-Singaporeans - and [[Malayalis]]), at 7.8% of the Indo-Singaporean population.<ref>{{cite book |title=Language Change Via Language Planning: Some Theoretical and Empirical Aspects with a Focus on Singapore |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zRXR1EVYIHkC&q=Punjabis+in+Singapore&pg=PA77 |page=77|isbn = 9783871189388|last1 = Altehenger-Smith|first1 = Sherida|year = 1990}}</ref>

==Thailand==
Most [[Indians in Thailand]] are Punjabis.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TeExjdWUmJYC&pg=PA915 |title=Indian Communities in Southeast Asia |author1=Kernial Singh Sandhu |author2=A. Mani |year=2006 |isbn=9789812304186 }}</ref>

==United Kingdom==
{{Main|British Punjabis}}
[[File:Southall station sign.jpg|right|thumb|British sign from [[Southall]] in [[English language|English]] and [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]]]]
In the United Kingdom, around two-thirds of direct migrants (excluding South Asians that immigrated from the Caribbean, Fiji and other regions) from South Asia were Punjabi. The remaining third is mostly [[Gujarati people|Gujarati]] and [[Bengali people|Bengali]].<ref>{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/deshpardeshsouth0000unse_m9c7 |url-access=registration |title=Desh Pardesh |authors=Roger Ballard, Marcus Banks |publisher=C. Hurst & Co. Publishers |year=1994 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/deshpardeshsouth0000unse_m9c7/page/19 19]–20}}</ref> They form a majority of both the South Asian British Sikh and Hindu communities.

Most "twice-migrants" were also [[Punjabi people|Punjabi]] or [[Gujarati people|Gujarati]].<ref>{{cite book |title=South Asian Folklore: An Encyclopedia : Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ienxrTPHzzwC&pg=PA158 |author1=Peter J. Claus |author2=Sarah Diamond |author3=Margaret Ann Mills |year = 2003|page=158|isbn = 9780415939195}}</ref>

[[United Kingdom]] is also known as the birth place of [[bhangra music]], a style of non traditional Punjabi music created by the Punjabi diaspora.

==United States==
[[File:Panjabi USC2000 PHS.svg|thumb|Punjabis in the US by State]]
{{main|Punjabi American}}
The earliest South Asian immigrants to the United States were Punjabis, who mostly immigrated to the [[West Coast of the United States|West Coast]], particularly [[California]].<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f0RmIjewCxkC&pg=PA127 |title=The New Ethnics: Asian Indians in the United States |authors= Parmatma Saran, Edwin Eames|year=2007 |isbn=9781575911113 }}</ref> Half of [[Pakistani Americans]] are Punjabis.<ref>http://www.everyculture.com/multi/Le-Pa/Pakistani-Americans.html - Under "Language"</ref> 85% of the early Indian immigrants to the US were Sikhs, although they were incorrectly branded by [[White Americans]] as "Hindus".<ref>{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/otherimmigrantsg0000reim |url-access=registration |title=Other Immigrants: The Global Origins of the American People |author=David M. Reimers
|publisher=NYU Press |year=2005 |page=[https://archive.org/details/otherimmigrantsg0000reim/page/61 61]}}</ref> 90% of Indians who settled in the [[Central Valley (California)|Central Valley]] of [[California]] were Punjabi Sikhs.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/accommodationwit0000gibs |url-access=registration |page=[https://archive.org/details/accommodationwit0000gibs/page/2 2] |title=Accommodation Without Assimilation |year=1988 |publisher=Cornell University Press |author=Margaret A. Gibson}}</ref>

==References==

{{reflist|2}}

{{Punjabi diaspora}}
{{Overseas Asians}}
{{overseas Pakistani}}
{{NRI-PIO}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Punjabi Diaspora}}
[[Category:Punjabi diaspora| ]]
[[Category:Punjab]]
[[Category:Pakistani diaspora]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in India]]
[[Category:Social groups of Pakistan]]

Bharatpedia - User contributions [en]

Punjabi diaspora