Indians in Singapore, 1819-1945: Diaspora in the Colonial Port-city

by Rajesh Rai

Indians in Singapore, 1819 -1945 is the first comprehensive study of the Indian diaspora in colonial Singapore. Drawing on administrative archives, intelligence reports, observer accounts, newspapers, oral testimonies, and community-based records, the book provides a meticulous historical account of the formation of the diaspora in the colonial port-city, and its socio-political, religious and cultural development from the advent of British colonial rule to the end of the Japanese occupation. Indians in Singapore examines how the conditions of living as a minority in a multi-ethnic port-city; changes in colonial ideologies, administration and economy; developments in information-communication technologies; and transnational religious and socio-political currents in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, shaped Indian identity formations. What emerges is a fascinating account of how these Indian emigrants, by virtue of their unique vantage point in a frontier settlement that
transformed into a metropolis of global significance, negotiated their position vis-a-vis the powers at hand and external processes in motion. In doing so, it reveals the distinct and complex nature of the historical journey of Indian migrants in the urban landscape of the colonial port-city - an aspect of diaspora studies that has received little attention in erstwhile scholarship.

Genres: Nonfiction, History

332 pages, Hardcover

First published June 26, 2014

Reviews

[Tipan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very informative and formal book!

[Vidhya Nair · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book reads like an extended essay on how different indian communities came to live in spore up the the Japanese occupation. The book sheds light on the context & circumstances of the migration & the way people lived at the time. There are clear distinctions between different indian communities & the difference in the profile of migrants to spore vs malaysia. Ie. Urban vs hinterland. Festivals & influences of the time are explored & there are good references for further specific study. This book is impt in spore's history of indian communities & serves as a document of the multiculturalism that indians contributed to spore society.

[Prasatt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Learnt much that I didn't know before. Extensive scholarship. However, the material could have been presented in a more engaging manner. Perhaps I'm spoilt by Adam Hochschild and Edmund Morris.