The Migration of Indians to Eastern Africa: a Case Study of the Ismaili Community, 1866-1966
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University of Central Florida STARS Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019 2019 The Migration of Indians to Eastern Africa: A Case Study of the Ismaili Community, 1866-1966 Azizeddin Tejpar University of Central Florida Part of the African History Commons Find similar works at: https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd University of Central Florida Libraries http://library.ucf.edu This Masters Thesis (Open Access) is brought to you for free and open access by STARS. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019 by an authorized administrator of STARS. For more information, please contact [email protected]. STARS Citation Tejpar, Azizeddin, "The Migration of Indians to Eastern Africa: A Case Study of the Ismaili Community, 1866-1966" (2019). Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019. 6324. https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd/6324 THE MIGRATION OF INDIANS TO EASTERN AFRICA: A CASE STUDY OF THE ISMAILI COMMUNITY, 1866-1966 by AZIZEDDIN TEJPAR B.A. Binghamton University 1971 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in the Department of History in the College of Arts and Humanities at the University of Central Florida Orlando, Florida Spring Term 2019 Major Professor: Yovanna Pineda © 2019 Azizeddin Tejpar ii ABSTRACT Much of the Ismaili settlement in Eastern Africa, together with several other immigrant communities of Indian origin, took place in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth centuries. This thesis argues that the primary mover of the migration were the edicts, or Farmans, of the Ismaili spiritual leader. They were instrumental in motivating Ismailis to go to East Africa. Although there were other Indian groups from the general geographical area of Western Indian and Gujarat who also migrated to East Africa, the crucial factor in the migration of Ismailis were the edicts or Farmans of the Imams. My thesis argues that the Farmans or edicts played a very important role in persuading Ismailis to move to East Africa. Though other groups from Gujarat and Western India also moved to East Africa, the Ismailis followed the edicts or Farmans of the Imam and this was the major factor for the Ismailis to move. Ismaili history is replete with migratory movements, whether due to persecution or economic reasons. The religious leader of the Ismailis, the Imam or the “Imam of the Time” as he is known as by the Ismailis, including all the Aga Khans to date, sought to bring the Ismailis out of their poverty and famine-stricken land and settle into more favored economic areas under British jurisdiction. This thesis will demonstrate that Aga Khan III actively promoted the movement of the Ismailis to East Africa. His edicts shaped the migration of Ismailis and they provided uneducated people the reason as well as the motivation to go together with a sense of reassurance. I will use personal oral histories which add to the historiography to make my case for both Ismailis and the Ithnasheris, the largest Shia Muslim community. Since Ismailis are generally a closed community and actively practiced Taqia (secret practice), I will use whatever written material I have been able to find to make my case. The Ithnasheris were also Khojas who had split from the main Khoja Ismaili community in India because of their objection to the iii control being exercised by the Imam, Aga Khan I, who had arrived in Sind Province in 1843 from Persia. Though they were part of the Shia sect, the Ismailis who converted to the Ithnasheri sect, became Shias but maintained the Khoja name. To support my argument, I draw on oral histories of both Ismailis and Ithnasheris as there is no written record of any pronouncements by the leaders of the Ismailis and it is entirely oral history by word of mouth. This thesis adds substantially to the historiography of the subject matter. Since written accounts are not available, my oral history recollections accomplish this. iv For my granddaughters and My daughter, Aliya v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS My thanks go to my dedicated advisor Dr. Yovanna Pineda, and my committee, Dr. Scott French and especially Dr. Ezekiel Walker My wife, Nafisa, for her patience and understanding of my quest to learn. The help I received from Dr. Chayya Goswami and her graduate student, Steffi Noronha, from Bombay University in India, in hunting down and sending e-copies of the Marashtra State Archives was invaluable. I would also like to thank Dr. Abdul Sheriff of Zanzibar and Dr. Iqbal Akhtar Of Florida International University, for their guidance and direction and for giving me access to the Ithnasheris trade directory. Finally, I would like to thank my cousin, Salma Deng of Vancouver, Canada, for inquiring and locating various oral sources in Vancouver for me. Dilshad Walji of Orlando was invaluable for her translation from Gujarati to English of the histories of the Khoja Ithnasheris. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES ....................................................................................................................... ix LIST OF TABLES .......................................................................................................................... x CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION AND HISTORICAL BACKGROUND ............................. 1 East African Migration and Trading Environment ..................................................................... 6 Ismailis in East Africa: A Short Background ........................................................................... 13 Sources and Methodology ........................................................................................................ 15 Historiography .......................................................................................................................... 17 Chapter Outlines ....................................................................................................................... 20 CHAPTER TWO: ENVIRONMENT AND MIGRATION CONDITIONS ................................ 22 The Indian Ocean Environment ................................................................................................ 22 Kachchh .................................................................................................................................... 26 Famines ..................................................................................................................................... 31 Muscat ....................................................................................................................................... 34 CHAPTER THREE: THE ISMAILIS AND OTHER INDIAN COMMUNITIES ...................... 39 The Aga Khans ......................................................................................................................... 45 Aga Khan I and the British ....................................................................................................... 45 Economic Background .............................................................................................................. 52 Bohras ....................................................................................................................................... 55 Hindus ...................................................................................................................................... 57 Bhatias ...................................................................................................................................... 57 Lohanas .................................................................................................................................... 58 Sunni Memons .......................................................................................................................... 58 vii CHAPTER FOUR: CONVERSATIONS WITH PEOPLE CURRENTLY LIVING IN CANADA .................................................................................................................................................. 64 The Ithnasheris .......................................................................................................................... 67 CHAPTER FIVE: CONCLUSION............................................................................................... 71 APPENDIX A: PERMISSION FOR USE OF FIGURE 2 ........................................................... 75 APPENDIX B: MAP OF THE WESTERN INDIAN OCEAN ................................................... 77 LIST OF REFERENCES .............................................................................................................. 79 Primary Sources ........................................................................................................................ 79 Secondary Sources .................................................................................................................... 80 Books ........................................................................................................................................ 80 Articles ..................................................................................................................................... 84 Unpublished Sources ................................................................................................................ 85 Electronic .................................................................................................................................. 85 viii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: The Indian Ocean Environment ...................................................................................