International ACADEMIC Network:
THE AFRICAN DIASPORA IN ASIA (TADIA)
CIRCULAR LETTER 25
Dear Diasporists,
The new information concerns the following topics :
(1) New members
(2) Announcement of two TADIA international events in India
(3) Announcement of the first TADIA publications
(4) New addresses of members
(5) Recent paper reference
(6) Addresses of Afro-Indian and Afro-Indonesian associations
(7) On-line articles
Best wishes
Jean-Pierre Angenot & Shihan de Silva Jayasuriya
TADIA Coordinators
1. 21 New members :
230. Audrey J. [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Linguist and film-maker,
Dean Humanities & Social Sciences
Seattle Central Community College
BE4128-1701 Broadway, Seattle, WA 98122-2413, USA
(206) 587-2926 231. Eric [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Folk Konkani musician of repute,
Kalaangaan Konkani Heritage Centre
& Mand Sobhann Cultural Organization,
Makale Shaktinagar, Mangalore 575016, Karnataka, India.
Phone: 00-91-824-2230489 (office); 2439236 (resid.)232. Janet Topp
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Ethnomusicologist
Curator, World & Traditional Music Section
British Library Sound Archive
96 Euston Road, London NW1 2DB, United Kingdom
Phone: 020 7412 7427, fax: 020 7412 7441 233. Antoine Tshitungu
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Historian
Universit de Lille, France
146 , Chauss?e de Louvain, 1210 Brussels, Belgium234. Francis Guntipilly
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Social worker,
Indian Social Institute (ISI), Bengston road 24, Bengston Town, Bangalore
North East -550046, Karnataka, India.
Phone (office): 3536960/189/360/364.235. Ravindranath
Shivabasayya HiremathEthnolinguist
Karnatak University, Department of Linguistics, Dharwad, India.
Main road, near Dyamavva Temple, Kelageri,
Dharwad 580008, Karnataka, India
Phone (home): 00-91-836-2771092.236. Etienne Rassendren [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Linguist,
St. Joseph College, Department of English,
Langford road, Bangalore-560027, Karnataka, India.237. Kiran Kamal
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Anthropologist and social worker,
Director of Jeevika Trust
1289, I.S.E.C. road, Nagarabhavi Post, Bangalore 560072, India
Phone (office): 00-91-918023210194; (home): 918023214214.238. Motes Kaitan
SiddiPresident, Siddi Sanskriti Kala Mandd, Hulipal, P.O. Kodse, Lalguli
village, Yellapur, Karwar district, State of Karnataka, India.239. Minguel
Anton SiddiConvenor, Siddi Sanskriti Kala Mandd, Hulipal, P.O. Kodse,
Lalguli village, Yellapur, Karwar district, State of Karnataka, India240. R.
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Political scientist,
UGC Research Associate at the Centre for Latin-American Studies, Government
of India, Taleigao, Goa, India241. Franoise de [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Art historian and Artistic Coordinator, AFRICALIA asbl- Coop?ration Fd?rale
au Dveloppement, 170 Bd Leopold II Laan, B-1080 Brussels, Belgium Tel : 32 2
412 58 80 Fax : 32 2 412 58 90242 Dilip [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Sociologist,
Goa University, Taleigao, India
Home: Vasudha Housing Colony, plot 2, house 201-A Bambolim complex,
Goa-403202, India Tel.: -832-2459135 / -2421595243 Farida K. Almubrik
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Social Worker,
Sidi Goma Al-Mubrik Charitable Trust
Plot No. 758, Dr. Siddi's Banglow, KK Avenue Road
Diamond Chowk, Bhavnagar 364 001, Gujarat, India244 Zahid Faiz KhokharZahid
Faiz Khokhar ([EMAIL PROTECTED])
Social Worker,
Sidi Goma Al-Mubrik Charitable Trust
Plot No. 758, Dr. Siddi's Banglow, KK Avenue Road
Diamond Chowk, Bhavnagar 364 001, Gujarat, India245. Matthew Scott
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Historian,
University of California at Los Angeles, USA246 Louis [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Anthropological philosopher,
Universit? de Lubumbashi, Campus de la Kasapa, B.P. 1825,
Lubumbashi, Katanga, Democratic Republic of Congo247 Emmanuel
BanywesizeAnthropological philosopher,
Universit de Lubumbashi, Campus de la Kasapa, B.P. 1825,
Lubumbashi, Katanga, Democratic Republic of Congo248. Jaap J.
Spajj.spa@@wanadoo.fr
Linguist,
Universit? de Limoges, France249. Ndiaye, [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Anthropologist from Senegal living in Belgium
Director of the ? Caf Culturel l’Horloge du Sud ?, Brussels 250. Kim Bok
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Historian,
Centre for International Area Studies, Seoul, South Korea
Present TADIA membership: 250 affiliated scholars from 169 institutions of
45 countries
TADIA international events in India: PRELIMINARY CALL
to be held in Panaji, State of Goa, 6th13th January 2006
PAN-African GOA Festival of Music, Dance and Song?:
6th10th January 2006 (= National Siddi Day!)
African and Afro-descendants musicians, dancers and singers from :
Mozambique, Cape Verde, Congo, Ethiopia, Senegal, Tanzania, Mauritius,
Brazil, Cuba, Jamaica, United States, Yemen, Sri Lanka (Ceylon Kaffirs),
Pakistan (Baloch Shidis), India (Gujarat Sidis and Karnataka Siddis).
Audio-video session (afternoons):
Amy Catlin-Jairazbhoy: From Africa to India (video)? + Sidi Sufi Music?
Benigna Zimba: CVD/CD-rom ?UNESCO ‘Slave Project’ Mozambique
Adams Bodomo: ?CD-rom Ghana songs
(B) ?International GOA Conference on the African Diaspora in Asia:
Its Past, its Present and its differences and similariTIes
with the Transatlantic Diaspora
11th to 13th January 2006
Coordinators:
Jean-Pierre Angenot, Goa University
Shihan de Silva Jayasuriya, University of London
Festival Organizing Committee:
Eric Ozario, Kalaangaan Konkani Heritage Centre & Mand Sobhann, Mangalore (President)
Lawrence Siddi, Siddi Coordination Committee, Yellapur
Motes Kaitan Siddi, Siddi Sanskriti Kala Mandd, Lalguli
Francis Guntipilly, Indian Social Institute, Bangalore
Kiran Kamal Prasad Jeevika Trust, Bangalore
Rustom Bharucha, Kolkata
Farida K. Almubrik, Sidi Goma Al-Mubrik Charitable Trust, Bhavnagar, Gujarat
Charles C?mara, University of Stockholm
Siddis leaders of Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Rajkot, Jamnagar and Jambur
Conference Organizing Committee:
Olivinho J. F. Gomes, Goa University (President)
V. Shivkumar, Goa University / CLAS
Dilip Loundo, Goa University
Madhavi Sardesai, Goa University
Geralda de Lima Angenot, Goa University
Alito Siqueira, Goa University [to be confirmed]
Pratima Kamat, Goa University [to be confirmed]
Eduardo Judas Barros, NEAA - Afro-Asian Studies Centre, Brazil
Teotnio R. de Souza, Universidade Lusfona de Humanidades e Tecnologias, Lisbon
Clifford J. Pereira, Royal Geographical Society, London
TADIA International Scientific Committee:
Pashington Obeng, Harvard University
Henry J. Drewal, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Amy Catlin Jairazbhoy, University of California at Los Angeles
Helene Basu, Freie Universitt Berlin
Joseph E. Harris, Howard University
Edward A. Alpers, University of California at Los Angeles
Alberto da Costa e Silva, Academia Brasileira de Letras
Kabengele Munanga, Universidade de Sao Paulo
Salikoko S. Mufwene, University of Chicago
Manolo Florentino, Universidade do Rio de Janeiro
Benigna Zimba, Universidade Eduardo Mondlane, Maputo
Barbara Kempf, Universidade Federal de Rond?nia
Adams Bodomo, University of Hong Kong
Ineke van Kessel, University of Leiden, African Studies Center
Aparajita Biswas, University of Mumbai,Center for African Studies
Behnaz Mirzai, York University
Niladri Sekhar Dash, Indian Statisical Institute, Kolkata
Esma Durugnl, Akdeniz University, Turkey
Sabir Badalkhan, Universit degli Studi di Napoli "l'Orientale"
Vijayalakshmi Teelock, University of Mauritius
Gwyn Campbell, McGill University, Canada
Ehud R. Toledano, Tel-Aviv University, Israel
Allen F. Roberts, University of California at Los Angeles
Nkonko M Kamwangamalu, Howard University, USA
Galia Sabar, Tel Aviv University
Ravindranath S. Hiremath, Karnatak University, Dharwad
Eva Sebestyen, Eotvos Lorand University, Budapest
Optional Post-Events visits to historical Siddhi sites:
From Saturday 14th of January 2006
Maharashtra tour:
Fort of Janjira, Malik Ambar’s tomb, Aurangabad and Ahmadnagar
?The fort of Janjira near Murud was constructed in 1571 by Siddi Burhankhan,
the Nizamshah's commissary. This is one of the vital seaforts in
Maharashtra, the only fort which remained invincible in its lifespan. Even
after repeated valorous efforts by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Chhatrapati
Sambhaji Maharaj, and the Peshwas of the Maratha kingdom to capture the
fort, it remained with the Siddis for centuries. The most distinguished of
the Siddi rulers of western India was the Siddhi Wazir Malik Ambar, who,
beginning as a slave under Queen Chand Bibi, the Queen Elizabeth of India,
rose to the top, becoming commander-in-chief of the armies of the Bombay
empire. When Queen Chand was slain by rebels in her palace in July, 1600,
Malik Ambar remained loyal to the ruling dynasty. By a brilliant coup he
captured Ahmadnagar, the principal fort, from the rebels, and proceeding to
the city of Aurangabad, which he himself had built, he proclaimed Mustaza
II, grandson of Nizan Shah, ruler with himself as regent. Seven years later,
however, Malik Ambar deposed the king and seized the throne. When in 1628
the English came to India their first contact was with Malik Ambar. He was
then master of the island of Janjira, which the English, like the Ethiopians
of three centuries before, wanted as a base for commerce with the interior.
With gifts, promises, and flattery they tried to gain a foothold on the
island, but Malik Ambar would not succumb to their blandishments. Malik
Ambar died, at the age of eighty. His tomb is near the Ellora caves. Gujarat
tour:
Gori Pir Hill, KHAMBAT and GIR FOREST SIDDI VILLAGES A sacred shrine of the
?Gujarati Sidis who are Sufi devotees of an African agate trader, their
?patron saint Gori Pir or Baba Gor who was also known as Sidi Mubarak Nobi.
?His tomb was first mentioned in a 15th century documentation in 1451 when a
?Moghul leader visited the sacred site. Khambat is the site where Gori Pir
?conducted his agate business. The Gir National Park is the sanctuary where
?live the last asiatic lions.
Andhra Pradesh tour:
HYDERABAD’S AC Guards district
The old quarter of Masab Tank, where live the families of the Nizam's
African Cavalry Guards formed by Real Siddhis, only demobilized in 1948?.
In order to plan the organization of the two interconnected events presented
above, mainly concerning practical issues as hotels, boardings and lodgings,
conference and cultural events halls, post-events tours organization, and so
on, we would like to have a previous idea of the number of active and
passive participants who would like to be involved. Therefore we would like
to receive e-mails from the persons interested, with the following
information : I am interested to take part of the events A, B ou A+B;
?In case of participation in event B, I would like to read a paper on the following
topic
or : I will not read any paper?. I will travel with of X number of people
(family / friends, etc.)?. I am interested in taking part in the post-events
tour?.
4. Announcement of 2005 TADIA publications :
(A) The African Diaspora in Asia I : Historical FACTS to be edited by
Shihan de Silva Jayasuriya & Jean-Pierre Angenot Cahiers des Anneaux de la
Mmoire - CAM -, Nantes, France PUBLISHED in FRENCH
01 Shihan de Silva Jayasuriya [University of London] & Jean-Pierre Angenot
[Goa University| "The African Diaspora in Asia: A thalassic network"
02. Edward E. Alpers [University of California at Los Angeles, USA] a
piece on the history of the African diaspora in the entire Indian
Ocean region
03. Gwyn Campbell [Universit? McGill, Montral, Canada] "The Afro-Asian
Diaspora: Myth or Reality?"
04. Ineke W M J van Kessel [Universiteit Leiden, Netherlands] "Des Africains
aux Indes n?erlandaises : des agents de police, des militaires, des
exils, et un prince"
05. Beatrice Nicolini [Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Milan,
Italy] "The Makran-Baluch-African network in Zanzibar and East-Africa
during the XIX century"
06. Robert O. Collins University of California at Santa Barbara
"The Asian slave trade".
07. Akiyo Aminaka [Tsuda College, Japan] "Some figures of "Black" in Nanban
Byoubu: On its potentiality as a visual historic material"
08. Ehud Toledano [Tel Aviv University, Israel] "The creolization of African
culture in the Ottoman Empire during the 19th century"
09. Behnaz A. Mirzai [York University, Toronto, Canada]
"The Trade in African Slaves in 19th Century Persia"
10. James C. Armstrong [Library of Congress, Jakarta, Indonesia]
"The movement of Malagasy slaves to Indonesia"
11. Shihan de Silva Jayasuriya [University of London]
The Afro-Sri Lankans: Links and Roots?
12. Benigna Zimba [Universidade Eduardo Mondlane, Maputo, Mozambique] "The
trade of female cloth during the 19th century: an aspect of
Mozambican culture"
13. Jeanette Pinto [The Heras Institute of Indian History and Culture,
Bombay, India] The African native in Indiaspora?
14. Ivan Vander biesen [Katholieke Universiteit, Leuven, Belgium]
Interp?ntrations culturelles et transition d’un syst?me conomique : La
diaspora de l’Afrique de l’Est et le Gujarat dans une perspective
historico-anthropologique?
15. Thomas Vernet [Universit Paris 1 Panth?on-Sorbonne, France]
a piece on the slave trade on the Swahili Coast
16. Ivo Carneiro de Sousa [Universidade do Porto, Portugal]
a piece on African colonization in Timor Leste
17. Fitzroy Andre Baptiste [University of the West Indies, St. Augustine,
Trinidad and Tobago] a piece on the African presence in India
18. Richard Pankhurst [Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia] & Leila Ingrams
[independent researcher, Tenterden, Kent, United Kingdom] a piece on
Afro-Yemeni historical facts
19. Teotnio R. de Souza [Universidade Lusfona de Humanidades e Tecnologias,
Lisboa, Portugal]
Os excravos negros em Goa e sua alforria?
20. Clifford J. Pereira [Royal Geographical Society, London, United Kingdom]
a piece on the returning Afro-Indians of the Freretown (Kenya)
settlement.
21. Liliana Mosca [Universit degli Studi di Napoli "Federico II", Italy] a
piece on the South West Indian Ocean: XVIIc.-XXc
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(B) The African Diaspora in Asia II : The Contemporary Afro-Asian
Communities 1 to be edited by Jean-Pierre Angenot & Shihan de Silva
Jayasuriya Editora da Universidade Federal de Rond?nia - EDUFRO,
Porto Velho, Brazil PUBLISHED in ENGLISH
01. Shihan de Silva Jayasuriya [University of London, UK] & Jean-Pierre
Angenot [Goa University, India]. Preface
02. Behnaz A. Mirzai [York University, Toronto, Canada]
The Afro-Iranians : "Spirit Possession and Afro-Iranian Diaspora"
03. Helene Basu [Freie Universitaet Berlin, Germany]
The Afro-Indians of Gujarat 1
04. Amy Catlin-Jairazbhoy [University of California at Los Angeles, USA]
The Afro-Indians of Gujarat 2 an ethnomusicology topic
05. Charles Cmara [University of Stockholm, Sweden]
The Afro-Indians of Karnataka 1
06. Pashington Obeng [Harvard University, Boston, USA]
The Afro-Indians of Karnataka 2
07, Henry John Drewal [University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA]
The Afro-Indians of Karnataka 3
08. Ravindranath S. Hiremath {Karnatak University, Dharwad, India]
The Afro-Indians of Karnataka 4
09. Shihan de Silva Jayasuriya [University of London, United Kingdom]
The Afro-Sri Lankans
10. Ineke van Kessel [Universiteit Leiden, Netherlands]
The Afro-Indonesians of Java: ?Belanda Hitam: the Afro-Indonesian
communities on Java
11. Leonid Kulikov [University of Leiden, The Netherlands]
The Afro-Maldivians
12. Ivo Carneiro de Sousa [Universidade do Porto, Portugal]
The Afro-Timoreses
13. Ivo Carneiro de Sousa [Universidade do Porto, Portugal]
The Afro-Chineses of Macau
14. Adams B. Bodomo [University of Hong Kong, China]
The Afro-Chineses of Hong Kong : The Emergence of African Communities
in China:
The Case of Hong Kong's Chungking Mansions
15. Esma Durugonul [Akdeniz University, Turkey]
The Afro-Turks
16. Galia Sabar [Tel-Aviv University]
The Afro-Israelis
17. Beheroze Shroff [University of California, Irvine, USA]
The Afro-Indians of Maharashtra
18. Janet Topp-Fagion [The British Library, London]
The Afro-Yemenis: ?African Roots of Yemeni Music
19. Jean-Pierre Angenot & Geralda de L. Angenot [Goa University, India]
Afro-Asian bibliography
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(C) The African Diaspora in Asia III : The Contemporary Afro-Asian
Communities 2 to be edited by Jean-Pierre Angenot &Shihan de Silva
Jayasuriya yet under construction: call for contributors
01. The Afro-Pakistanis - call for contributor .To be announced later
02. The Afro-Iraqis - call for contributor .To be announced later
03. The Afro-Israelis - call for contributor .To be announced later
04. The Afro-Palestinians - call for contributor .To be announced later
05. The Afro-Indians of Andra Pradesh - call for contributor .To be announced later
06. The Afro-Indians of Kerala - call for contributor .To be announced later
07. The Afro-Indians of Uttar Pradesh - call for contributor .To be announced later
08. The Afro-Indians of West Bengal - call for contributor .To be announced later
09. The Afro-Indians of Tamil Nadu - call for contributor .To be announced later
10. The Afro-Filipinos - call for contributor .To be announced later
11. The Afro-Japaneses - call for contributor .To be announced later
12. The Afro-Omanis - call for contributors .To be announced later
13. The Afro-Bangladeshis - call for contributor .To be announced later
14. The Afro-Malays - call for contributor .To be announced later
15. The Afro-Vietnameses - call for contributor .To be announced later
16. The Afro-Maldivians - call for contributor .To be announced later
17. The Afro-Indonesians of Sumatra - call for contributor .To be announced later
18. The Afro-Afghans - call for contributor .To be announced later
19. The Afro-Yemenis - call for contributor .To be announced later
20. The Afro-Koreans - call for contributor .To be announced later
21. The Afro-Qataris - call for contributor .To be announced later
New addresses OF MEMBERS:
Fitzroy Andre Baptiste: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Alberto da Costa e Silva: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Manolo Garcia Florentino : [EMAIL PROTECTED]
d) Salikoko S. Mufwene: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Gwyn Campbell, Professor, Department of History, McGill University, 855
Sherbrooke St.W.,Montreal, P.Q. Canada H3A 2T7 . tel: (514) 398 6204; fax:
(514) 398 8365; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Does somebody know the e-mail and/or postal address of Fatima Abdoullah, an
Afro-Iraqui researcher from Basra, Iraq? Thank you very much for your help.
Nkonko M Kamwangamalu: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Howard University,
Department of English, 48 Locke Hall 2441, 6th Street, N.W., Washington,
D.C. 20059., U.S.A, phone: 202-806-6730 (Secretary), 202-806-7453 (Direct
line)
Galia Sabar, Chair, African Studies, Department of Middle Eastern and
African History, Tel Aviv University, Israel
5. RECENT PAPER:
LaToya Beck (University of California-Berkeley) ?Here there and everywhere:
The African Diaspora in the Indian Ocean, African Diaspora Summer Lecture
Series 2004 & Doctoral Student's Conference 2004, 7th of August
6. Afro-Indian and Afro-Indonesian associations addresses:
INDIAN SIDDIS LEADERS AND ORGANIZATIONS :
01 Lawrence Caetano Siddi, President
Siddi Development Society (SDS),
Yellapur, Uttar Kannad district 581 359
Karnataka
02 Motes Kaitan Siddi, President
Siddi Sanskriti Kala Mandd,
Hulipal, P.O. Kodse, Lalguli village,
Yellapur, Uttar Kannad district 581 359
Karnataka
03 Farida K. Almubrik Sidi & Zahid Faiz Khokhar
[EMAIL PROTECTED] & [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Sidi Goma Al-Mubrik Charitable Trust
Plot No. 758
Dr. Siddi's Banglow, KK Avenue Road
Diamond Chowk, Bhavnagar 364 001
GUJARAT
04 Iqbalbhai K. Sidi, Sabbirbhai K. Sidi
& Aka Abdul Hamid Yakubbhai Sidi
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Sidi Goma Group
Ratanpur, P.O. Shemodra, Jagadia, Bharuch district 393115
GUJARAT
05 Rumanaben Bilalbhai Siddi
Sidi Goma Group
Tel: (079) 551-1639
Bavagor's Home, Opp. S.V. College
Patthar Kuva, Relief Road, Ahmedabad -1
GUJARAT
06 Mohammad ?Danny Bilalbhai Myava
[EMAIL PROTECTED] , tel: (079) 6822042
Sidi Goma Group
37/A Navrang Tenaments
Sarkhej Road, nr. Fatehwadi Bus stop
Ahmedabad 380055
GUJARAT
07 Badshah Bai
tel.: 310-6068 or mobile 328703
Variali Bazar, Dastipur, Khan Sab Ka Bata
Sidi Fariyu, Surat 395003
GUJARAT
08 Mujawari Asumaben Sidi & Raihanaben Siddi
tel.: -31110458, -5511639
Dongri Sidi Shrine
Carl Nal, Tandel street, Dongri, Mumbai
MAHARASHTRA
09 Abdullah Fateh Bin Mehboob (?Abbu Pehelwan)
Arabi Daf Party
tel.:3324540
AC Guards quarter (African Cavalry Guards),
at Masab Tank, Hyderabad
ANDHRA PRADESH
10 Hirbaiben Lobi Ibrahimbhai
International Award Winner for Creativity in Development
[Mahila Vikas Mandal (MVM), Jaywanti Village, Gir Forest]
Talala Taluka, Junagadh District, Jambur
Gujarat
11 Hajiani Hameidaben Abubhai Sidi
(0288) 663422
Navivas, Khadi Bandar ke samne, Jamnagar
Gujarat
12 Naliniben Upadhyay
(0281) 573537
Maruti, Brahma Samaj Road
Raiya Road, Rajkot 361 005
Gujarat
13 Siddi Coordination Committee, Yellapur, Karnataka 15 members:
Lawrence Caetano Siddi (Ankola) - PRESIDENT
Imam Siddi (Yellapur)
Krishna Siddi (Yellapur)
Diego Siddi (Haliyal)
Fatima Siddi (Mundgod)
John Siddi (Yellapur)
Jumma Subba Siddi (Ankola)
Laxmi Siddi (Yellapur)
Jumma Saab Siddi (Mundgod)
Appa Saab Siddi (Haliyal)
Sushila Siddi (Mundgod)
Francis Guntipilly (Bangalore)
Eric Ozario (Mangalore)
Pashington Obeng (Harvard)
Jean-Pierre Angenot (Goa)
AFRO-INDONESIAN LEADER AND ORGANIZATION : 1. Indo-Afrikaans Kontakt – IAK
[People of Afro-Indonesian descendent living in the Netherlands]
Secretariat: mrs. Joyce Klink [EMAIL PROTECTED]
7. On-line articles
(a) Susan Beckerleg (2002) ?Hidden history, secret present: the origin and
status of African Palestinian, paper on-line:
http://members.tripod.com/~yajaffar/african.html
(b) Mark Perry ?Perception of race in the Arab world 22 pp
http://inhouse.lau.edu.lb/bima/papers/Perry.pdf.
(c) Interrogating the African Diaspora Summer Seminar
http://www.fiu.edu/%7Einterad/index.htm
(d) S. M. Edwardes, C.V.O. (1912 / 2003) By-Ways of Bombay [Chapter XIII:
THE SIDIS OF BOMBAY], First published in Times of India, 1908. Republished
by the Project Gutenberg Ebooks
The Project Gutenberg Ebooks are for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost
and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away
or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with
this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.net
Chapter XIII: THE SIDIS OF BOMBAY.
AN AFRICAN REEL.
Among the most curious of the modern portions of Bombay City one may reckon
Madanpura, which lies off Ripon Road and is commonly known as the home of
the Julhais or Muhammadan weavers from Northern India. It is a rapidly
growing quarter, for new chals and new shops spring up every year and
quickly find a full complement of tenants from among the lower classes of
the population.
Amongst those who like the Julhais have moved northward from the older urban
area are the Sidis or Musulmans of African descent, who supply the steamship
companies with stokers, firemen and engine-room assistants, and the
dockyards and workshops with fitters and mechanics. A hardy race they are,
with their muscular frames, thick lips and crisp black hair--the very last
men you would wish to meet in a rough-and-tumble, and yet withal a jovial
people, well-disposed and hospitable to anyone whom they regard as a friend.
If they trust you fully they will give you ?carte blanche to witness one of
their periodical dances, in which both sexes participate and, which
commencing about 10-30 p.m., usually last until 3 or 4 o'clock the following
morning.
They are worth seeing once, if only for the sake of learning how the Sidis
amuse themselves when the spirit moves them. Imagine a bare white-washed
room, opening directly upon the street, the walls of which boast of no
ornament save a row of tom-toms, and the sides and window ledges of which
are lined with an expectant crowd of Sidis of varying age, from the small
boy of eight years to the elderly headman or patel, who is responsible for
the good behaviour of the community and is the general arbiter of their
internal disputes. This is the Sidi Jamatkhana or caste-hall: and long
before you reach the door threading your way through a crowd of squatting
hawkers, your ears are assailed by the most deafening noise, reminding you
forcibly of the coppersmith's bazaar with an accompaniment of rythmic
drumming. The cause is not far to seek.
In the centre of the room two Sidis are sitting, in cock-horse fashion,
astride what appear to be wooden imitations of a cannon and beating the
parchment-covered mouths of their pseudo-steeds with their hands; at their
feet a third Sidi is playing a kind of _reveille_ upon a flattened kerosine
oil-tin; and in the corner, with his back to the audience, an immense
African--an ebony Pan blowing frenzy through his wide lips--is forcing the
whole weight of his lungs into a narrow reed pipe.
The noise is phenomenal, overpowering, but is plainly attractive to Sidi
ears; for the room is rapidly filling, and more than one of the spectators
suddenly leaps from his seat and circles round the drummers, keeping time to
the rythm with queer movements of his body and feet and whirling a "lathi"
round his head in much the same fashion as the proverbial Irishman at
Donneybrook Fair.Meanwhile there is some movement toward in the half-light
of the inner room.
>From time to time you catch a glimpse of the black sphinx-faces, immobile
and heavy-eyed, framed in scarves bearing a bold pattern of red monkeys and
blue palm-trees: and as the din increases the owners of those inscrutable
faces creep out and sink down upon a strip of china matting on the far side
of the room.
They are the wives and daughters of the community--some of them young and,
from the Sidi point of view, good to look upon, others emulating the
elephant in bulk, but all preternaturally solemn and immovable. Here and
there among the faces you miss the well-known type. The thick prominent lips
yield place to more delicate mouths, the shapeless nose to the slightly
aquiline, for there are half-breeds here, who take more after their Indian
fathers than their African mothers, and who serve as a living example of the
tricks that Nature can play in the intermingling of races. [Illustration:
Sidis of Bombay.] And now the piper in the corner sets up a wilder strain;
the drummers work till their muscles crack, now looking as if they were
undergoing torture, now turning half-round to have a joke with a fresh
arrival, until the tension reaches breaking-point and with a shout some ten
men dash forward and forming a ring round the musicians commence the wild
"Bomo" dance, even as their savage ancestors were wont to do in past ages
round the camp-fires of Africa. Watch them as they move round.
They are obviously inspired by the noise and are bent heart and soul upon
encouraging the laggards to join in, One of them, as he passes, shouts out
that he sails by the P. and O. "Dindigul" the next day and intends to make a
night of it; another is wearing the South African medal and says he earned
it as fireman-serang on a troopship from these shores; while a third, in
deference to the English guest, gives vent at intervals to a resonant "Hip,
hip, Hurrah," which almost drowns the unmelodious efforts of the "maestro"
with the kerosine-tin.
The "Bomo" dance is followed with scarce a pause by the "Lewa," a kind of
festal revel, in which the dancers move inwards and outwards as they circle
round; and this in turn yields place to the "Bondogaya" and two religious
figures, the "Damali" and "Chinughi," which are said when properly performed
to give men the power of divination. Long ere the "Lewa" draws to a close,
the women have joined in.
First two of the younger women move from the corner, one of them with eyes
half-closed and preserving a curious rigidity of body even while her feet
are rythmically tapping the floor: then two more join and so on, until the
circumference of the dancing-circle is expanded as far as the size of the
room will allow and not a single woman is left on the china matting.
Some of them are as completely under the spell of the music as the men, but
they exhibit little sign of pleasure or excitement on their faces; and were
it not for an occasional smile or the weird shriek they raise at intervals,
one might suppose them all to be in a state of hypnotism. Perchance they
are.
The most vivacious of them all is the old Patelni, who since the death of
Queen Sophie has been in almost complete control of the female portion of
the Sidi community. She has no place in the chain of dancing fanatics but
stands in the centre near the drummers, now breaking into a "pas seul" on
her own account, now urging a laggard with all the force of a powerful
vocabulary, beating time the while upon the shoulder of the nearest drummer.
So the revel progresses, sometimes dying down into a slow movement in which
only the hoarse breathing of the men, the tap-tap of female heels, is heard;
and anon breaking into a kind of gallop, punctuated with shouts of "Bravo"
"Hip, hip, Hurrah" and the queer dental shriek, which our friendly serang
tells us is the peculiar note of the African reveller.
But at length Nature asserts her sway; and after the dancing has lasted
almost without interruption for three hours, the Sidi Patel, Hassan, gives
permission for a brief recess, during which he introduces to the spectators
the son of the Sidi chief Makanda,--a fine specimen of manhood whose
six-foot stature belies the fact that he is still according to Sidi views a
minor incapable of looking after his own interests. At this juncture too an
itinerant coffee-seller limps into the room with his tin can and cups and is
straightway pounced upon by the breathless performers, who apparently find
coffee better dancing-powder than any other beverage.
"How much" you ask him "do you charge per cup?" "Saheb," comes the answer,
"for two rupees you can treat the whole gathering, men, women and children
to a cup apiece; for this coffee is of the best!" So we pay our footing in
kind and bid adieu to the dancers who are prepared to continue the revels
till the early hours of the morning. As we turn the corner into Ripon Road,
we catch a final glimpse of our bemedalled serang executing a fandango on
the door-step, and of the Sidi Patel with a cup of hot coffee in his hand
shouting in broken English, "Good-night, God Save the King!"
(e) SAVING GRACE, August, 2003 5
Junagadh (Gujarat):
The Siddis -- abandoned by fate and forgotten by society. What does an
uneducated woman belonging to this community do to better her lot? She leads
the rest.Hirbaiben belongs to the Siddi community living in Jaywanti village
in the Gir forest of Gujarat.
The Siddis are of Negroid origin and were brought to India about 400 years
ago by the Nawab of Junagadh as slaves. Backward in social, economic and
political development, the Siddis are now looking forward to a new dawn,
thanks to the untiring efforts of Hirbaiben.
An active member of the Mahila Vikas Mandal (MVM) Hirbaiben has motivated
more than 100 women from neighbouring villages to form several such groups.
She has sidelined the existence of moneylenders in the village by
encouraging the group members to make small monthly savings and extending
credit within the group.
Today, the group is also credit linked with a bank and enjoys a good
reputation with the credit agencies. A major achievement of Hirbaiben has
been the promotion of an income generating activity for the women of MVM
through the manufacture and sale of organic manure branded Panchtatva.
She has been actively supported by AKRSP (The Aga Khan Rural Support
Programme) an NGO in starting this project. The good quality of
?Panchtatva and its high market value is evident from its growing sales.
Starting with a profit of Rs. 11,300/- in 2000, their maiden year of
production, the group makes a clear profit of Rs. 85,000/- today.
A commendable achievement by any standard! Handicapped with illiteracy
herself, Hirbaiben realised the value of education and convinced the local
bureaucracy to start a Balwadi in the village. The next step was to persuade
the villagers to give away a part of the public land for this purpose. Today
children receive basic education at the Balwadi along with a meal!
The achievements of Hirbaiben have been recognised by the ?Women's World
Summit Foundation. She was among 32 laureates to receive ?the prize for
women's creativity in rural life 2000". She has donated the entire prize
money of $500 to the Balwadi run by MVM. Hirbaiben felt that the money could
be used for the development of children and thus put to better use. The
villagers address her as Sarpanch? though she lost the election. You can't
keep a leader down! Hirbaiben has proved to the Siddis that Self Help is the
only help. irbaiben -- Beacon of light for
----------------------
(f) A role model from a remote village
by Jayanti S. Ravi .Frontline. Volume 20 - Issue 02, January 18 - 31, 2003
India's National Magazine, from the publishers of THE HINDU
The story of Hirabaiben of the Siddi community in Gujarat offers the hope
that development initiatives can emerge from underprivileged sections of
society. I vividly remember the `soul searching' I indulged in with my
fellow scientists, sitting in the `state of the art' control room of the
particle accelerator (Pelletron) at the Nuclear Science Centre, New Delhi.
Having just made it into the civil services, one was at a crossroads,
wondering whether to continue with the interesting and stimulating career as
a scientist or to join the civil service. After long hours of deliberations
with family and friends, the fact that emerged as the clincher was that a
career in the civil services would offer an opportunity to intervene and
make a considerable difference to what existed, besides a variety of
experiences. This has indeed come true. Each posting has virtually been a
different avatar. Probably being an `incorrigible enthusiast', I continue to
have more positive experiences. Here is one of those learning experiences
from a rather unexpected corner. In the middle of nowhere is Jaywanti
village.
In the heart of the Gir forest, the only natural habitat of the Asiatic
lion, exists the Siddi community. The Siddis are primarily of African
Negroid origin and were brought to India as slaves by the Nawab of Junagadh,
400 years ago. They are predominantly an underprivileged lot - socially,
economically and politically. Literacy has been abysmally low in this
community. They are largely concentrated in the Jambur and Shirvan
settlements of Talala taluk in Junagadh district.
Apart from Gujarat, the Siddis are present, in negligible numbers, in parts
of Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Kerala, Karnataka and Diu. It is in such
`back of beyond' settings that I once ended up visiting a school, all bleary
eyed, tired, towards the end of a long day and a long road journey. But then
what I saw infused fresh energy into me. I was awestruck by the incredibly
clean school premises with well-maintained gardens and orchards.
Towards the end of the programme, after all the dignitaries had spoken,
Hirbaiben, an unlettered middle-aged Siddi woman boldly, strode up to the
podium and sought permission to speak. Despite being late in the day (night
actually!), there was something about her that left me entranced and with no
choice but to give her the nod to go ahead. Orphaned at a young age she was
brought up by her grandmother and was given three important lessons: not to
steal, not to get involved in vices, and to feed her children with
rightfully earned food.
Her speech was not in chaste Gujarati; nor was it sophisticated or peppered
with idioms. It was plain, direct and yet had a strong impact as she
passionately spoke about the Mahila Vikas Mandal (MVM), a women's
development group. She narrated how she motivated Siddi women in other
villages and organised more than 100 women from six villages to form several
such groups.
"Out here, ours is the only village where we are concerned about children's
education and their future," she said in simple Gujarati, forcefully waving
her hand. Realising that lack of education was a major problem for the
members of her community, she met and convinced officials, right up to the
district headquarters and had a balvadi started in her village.
She persuaded the people of her village to use a part of the public land for
this purpose, instead of using it for private housing. Today children of the
village receive basic education at this centre along with a meal! Siddis,
primarily because of their very low earnings, find it very difficult to have
any savings or to borrow money from moneylenders. Hirbaiben encouraged the
women's group members to save on a monthly basis.
Now, the groups extend credit to its members, are linked to a bank for their
credit needs and enjoy a good reputation with the credit agencies. A major
accomplishment of this determined woman has been to ensure income generation
for the members of the MVM, through the manufacture and sale of organic
manure branded Panchtatva. Starting with five women, this MVM sold 165 bags
(8,250 kg) in the year 2000 making a profit of Rs.11,300. This steadily rose
to 1,180 bags (59,000 kg), fetching a net profit of Rs.85,000 with 16 women
involved in the manufacturing activity. This goes to show that women from
such backward sections can prepare a high-quality product that could compete
in the open market.
AKRSP (Aga Khan Rural Support Programme), a non-governmental organisation
(NGO), has played a key role in this activity. It was gratifying to hear
that Hirbaiben was among 32 laureates selected to receive the `the prize for
women's creativity in rural life, 2002', instituted by the Women's World
Summit Foundation. "I felt that the prize money of $500 that I received
would be better used for the development of the children - I have donated
all this money to the balwadi run by MVM," said the courageous lady, with a
sparkle in her eyes.
No wonder she has become a role model and inspiration for members of her
community. People address her as sarpanch even though she lost the elections
to that post. Vivekananda has said, "No one ever succeeded in keeping
society in good humour and at the same time did great work. One must work as
the dictate comes from within, and then if it is right and good, society is
bound to veer around, perhaps centuries after one is dead and gone."
If one were to look around, there are many underprivileged and backward
groups struggling at the fringe of development. And there are NGOs of all
shades dotting the landscape. Support by dedicated NGOs in the form of
spotting extraordinary people, building their capabilities and taking them
on exposure visits, provide the necessary inputs to such strong visionaries
and motivators like Hirbaiben from within the community, to be the spark
that would light up the development flame and transform the quality of life.
----------------------
(e) Tribes older than Onge found
TIMES NEWS NETWORK [ THURSDAY, JANUARY 23, 2003 02:02:39 AM ]
HYDERABAD: In what could be termed 'opening the book of origin of the human
race', the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) says it has
discovered two tribal groups in coastal Gujarat and Kerala which have
similarities with the Onge and Jarawa tribes of the Andaman & Nicobar
Islands, but are more primitive. Refusing to disclose the names of these two
tribes, CCMB director Lalji Singh said though these tribes resemble the Onge
and Jarawas in appearance, at the DNA level they are much older than them.
"The tribes from Gujarat and Kerala appear to be early descendants of
African tribes," he said. Addressing a press meet on Wednesday, Singh said
that CCMB, in association with Anthropological Survey of India, Nagpur,
Regional Medical Research Centre, Port Blair, genetics department in
Stanford University and biology department in University of Oslo took up a
project - 'The DNA - A tell-tale of the vanishing human populations: Who are
they? Where they came from? Do they hold the key to the mystery of our own
origins?' The tribes in Gurajat and Kerala show close affinities to the
Andaman & Nicobar tribes both in their mtDNA - gene inherited from the
mother, and Y-DNA - gene inherited from the father. "The DNA analysis of the
primitive tribes of India can throw light on the mystery of human origin,"
he said. The possible route of these tribes migrated from Africa through
India could be Gujarat , Kerala and Andaman & Nicobar Islands, though this
is only a probability, Lalji Singh added. The CCMB has also proven by DNA
analysis that the 'Siddis' bear a close resemblance to primitive tribes of
Africa. The blood samples of 13 Siddis from the city were analysed and both
their mtDNA - DNA inherited from the mother - and Y-DNA - inherited from
father - showed genetic relationships to African populations. "The DNA of
Andaman & Nicobar tribals was compared to various other DNA, but the closest
we can get to African tribes here at home in Hyderabad are the Siddis,"
another CCMB scientist K Thangaraj said.
---------------------------
(e) Siddis' Olympian venture fails
by Harit Mehta
Times News Network [Wednesday, August 11, 2004 11:15:23 PM ]
GANDHINAGAR/RAJKOT: When the last athlete from African Siddi community left
the Sports Authority of India's Gandhinagar centre for a lucrative job last
week, an experiment that hardly ever bore any results came to an end. In
1988, SAI, Gandhinagar introduced Special Area Games project to train
potential athletes from the Siddi community of Gujarat -- mainly found in
parts of Saurashtra, more specifically in and around the Gir forest.
The Siddis were brought in from East Africa by the erstwhile Nawabs of
Junagadh as their security guards and have stayed on in the region,
maintaining their district culture and identity. Sixteen years later, not
many Siddis have been able to come even close to making an impact at the
international scene, let alone winning medals. On a number of occasions
earlier, SAI has asked Siddi athletes to leave on non-performance grounds.
The Siddis are believed to be naturally skilled sportspersons mainly in
athletics with an excellent physique in spite of poor living conditions.
There are a number of tales about the origin of the tribe. However, whatever
be their origins, the Siddis are a distinctly Negroid-looking community
known for the incredible stamina of its people. Since athletes belonging to
Negroid race perform well at the international scene, SAI felt that they
could have similar results with the Siddis as they have the same genetic
structure. However, things didn't quite work out as expected for SAI. Says a
senior official of SAI, Gandhinagar, "We thought because of the Negroid race
they would make good athletes. We had four Siddi athletes in 1997-98. But
their performance was disappointing. Similar was the case with the one in
1999-2000 and in the following years. At present there is no Siddi athlete
in our campus." Jayesh Sheth, a city-based genetic expert believes that if
trained properly Siddis definitely can make very good athletes because of
their genetic structure. "However, only good genetic structure won't work. A
proper environment is equally important," he says. "Yet another reason for
the programme's failure," says another official, "is because of the job
offers by big companies and government agencies like railways. Once they
take up a job, things are out of our hands." One of the key officials behind
grooming the Siddi athletes said "even the promising scheme failed mainly
due to lack of willpower among them to maintain their performance and also
the lure of good jobs and better economic conditions". The SAI, Gandhinagar
has trained about 200 athletes since its launch and not a single one has
secured a podium place beyond the national level. "As of now the Siddi
project is in abeyance. We are planning to revive it with improvements and
with psychological training for the athletes to maintain their dedication
and focus on better prospects through games". However, Ahmed Vali Makwana, a
leader from Siddi community is not willing to buy the argument that the poor
results have anything to do with the willpower or lure of job. "The biggest
problem is that very few people are willing to go to faraway places for
training.We are of the opinion that if a small centre is started somewhere
in near their homes, a large number of youngsters would join the programme,"
he says. Makwana says only a handful of youths from the community have
benefited from the project as far as getting lucrative jobs is concerned.
(Inputs from Himanshu Kaushik in Rajkot)
-----------------------------------------------
Goa, 7th of September 2004
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