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Indian Diaspora in New Zealand

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The Palgrave Handbook of Ethnicity

Abstract

This chapter surveys the Indian diaspora in New Zealand through both the earliest historical presence of Indians in Aotearoa and through the lens of Indian settlement as recorded in the New Zealand Census. The earliest Indian presence is summarized through a previously unused historical source, the ships logs and muster rolls of the very earliest European vessels of exploration and exploitation to New Zealand. It places Indians in Aotearoa at the very instance of Māori-European first contact on land in 1769, 70 years earlier than previously recorded. Indian settlement, viewed through a more complete review of the New Zealand Census than previously reported, also places the first instance of Indians in the New Zealand Census 20 years earlier than previously reported, back to 1861. The chapter also charts the historical growth of the Indian population, ranging from their first appearance in the 1861 Census through to the 2018 Census. It also discounts the previous belief that early Indian settlers were predominantly scrub cutters, hawkers, bottle collectors, and market gardeners, showing instead that early Indian settlement consisted of entrepreneurs, teachers, and skilled professionals as well. The chapter concludes with a brief look at Indian accomplishments in terms of their political participation, and their greater inclusion in modern New Zealand society, as compared with the invisibility that characterizes their earliest presence and settlement.

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  1. University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand

    Todd Nachowitz

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  1. Todd Nachowitz
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  1. Dept of Socio & Anthro, Rm 309, Univ of Canterbury Dept of Socio & Anthro, Rm 309, Christchurch, New Zealand

    Steven Ratuva

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  1. Pacific Studies, Te Wānanga o Waipapa, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand

    Melani Shyleen Anae

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Nachowitz, T. (2019). Indian Diaspora in New Zealand. In: Ratuva, S. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Ethnicity. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-0242-8_90-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-0242-8_90-1

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