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Commonwealth diaspora

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The South Asian diaspora playing cricket in Toronto, Canada.

The Commonwealth diaspora is the group of people whose ancestry traces back to countries in the Commonwealth of Nations, a group mainly consisting of former British colonies.[a]

History

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Colonial era

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See also: Indian diaspora § European Colonial rule (to 1947), and British diaspora

The British Empire enabled a substantial amount of commercial migration; for example, 1.5 million Indian merchants are estimated to have gone abroad in the 19th century.[2] Preferential access to trade with other British colonies, as well as new commercial opportunities unlocked within India by railways and markets established by the British, influenced this migration flow.[3] Indian migrants played a significant role in the expansion of the British Empire, though at times involuntarily, as in the case of many indentured servants or exiled criminals.[4]

Contemporary era

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See also: Modern immigration to the United Kingdom § British Empire and the Commonwealth, and Windrush scandal

In the aftermath of World War 2 and the rapid breakup of the British Empire, Britain invited Commonwealth citizens to immigrate to Britain as part of the post-war rebuilding of the nation.[5] Many of these immigrants faced significant racism.[6][7] Restrictions on Commonwealth migration to Britain later emerged with the Commonwealth Immigrants Act 1962.[8]

Inter-Commonwealth migration began to slow down in general, as recently liberated countries began to develop a greater sense of national identity and desire to limit foreign influences in general.[9]

Recent decades

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See also: Hong Kong diaspora

The Commonwealth diaspora in Britain in particular has been identified as a potential asset, allowing Britain to make economic and other connections to other Commonwealth countries, which has been a particularly relevant topic of discussion as Britain charts its post-Brexit future and decides which groupings of countries to focus on working with (such as with the European Union).[10][11][12]

Immigration between Commonwealth countries, which makes up half of all Commonwealth migration, has played a significant role in linking Commonwealth countries together economically and culturally.[13]

The British royalty have previously hosted events commemorating this diaspora.[14]

Culture

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Language

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The English language has played a role in facilitating migration within the Commonwealth.[15]

Sports

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Various groups in the Commonwealth diaspora, such as Caribbean diasporas,[16][17] have been noted for being bound together by the sport of cricket,[18][19] as well as introducing cricket to a number of countries, such as Canada and the United States.[20][21]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Bidwell, Sam (2023-05-17). "Bangladesh should put the Commonwealth at the centre of its thinking". The Daily Star. Retrieved 2024-03-12.
  2. ^ Carter, Marina (2008-09-22), "2 INDIANS AND THE COLONIAL DIASPORA", 2 INDIANS AND THE COLONIAL DIASPORA, ISEAS Publishing, pp. 12–26, doi:10.1355/9789812308009-007/pdf?licensetype=restricted, ISBN 978-981-230-800-9, retrieved 2024-10-08
  3. ^ Persaud, Alexander (2020-08-27), "Indian Merchant Migration within the British Empire", Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Asian History, doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780190277727.001.0001/acrefore-9780190277727-e-602, ISBN 978-0-19-027772-7, retrieved 2024-10-08
  4. ^ Haitao, Jia (2020-01-01). "British colonial expansion with Indian diaspora: the pattern of Indian overseas migration". Cappadocia Journal of Area Studies (CJAS), Cappadocia University. 2 (2 (1)): 56–81. doi:10.38154/cjas.27. ISSN 2717-7254.
  5. ^ Webster, Wendy (2011). "The Empire Comes Home: Commonwealth Migration to Britain". Britain's Experience of Empire in the Twentieth Century. pp. 122–160. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199236589.003.0004. ISBN 978-0-19-923658-9.
  6. ^ Richards, Gella (2023). "Racism on Campus". Cyberbullying and Online Harms. pp. 52–56. doi:10.4324/9781003258605-7. ISBN 978-1-003-25860-5.
  7. ^ Ruiz, Marie (2018). "Review of 'Migrants of the British Diaspora Since the 1960s. Stories From Modern Nomads'". Reviews in History. doi:10.14296/RiH/2014/2275.
  8. ^ Adogame, Afe (2016-02-24). The Public Face of African New Religious Movements in Diaspora: Imagining the Religious 'Other'. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-01863-6.
  9. ^ Tinker, Hugh (1984), Groom, A. J. R.; Taylor, Paul (eds.), "Migration in the Commonwealth", The Commonwealth in the 1980s: Challenges and Opportunities, London: Palgrave Macmillan UK, pp. 244–259, doi:10.1007/978-1-349-05691-0_15, ISBN 978-1-349-05691-0, retrieved 2024-05-29
  10. ^ Buckle, Ralph; Hewish, Tim; Hulsman, John C. (2015-02-17). BREXIT: Directions for Britain Outside the EU. Do Sustainability. ISBN 978-0-255-36682-3.
  11. ^ Révauger, Guilène (March 2022). The Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games: Where from, What for, and Where to?. Journée d'études - Cultural Encounters in English-Speaking Societies. Laboratoire DIRE & UFR LSH Département du monde anglophone & INSPE de La Réunion.
  12. ^ Commonwealth in 2020 UK Parliament
  13. ^ Nurse, Keith (2016-02-26). The Diasporic Economy, Trade and Investment Linkages in the Commonwealth. International Trade Working Paper. Commonwealth iLibrary. doi:10.14217/5jm2jfg8c26c-en.
  14. ^ AfricaNews (2024). "King Charles hosts Commonwealth reception in London". Africanews. Retrieved 2024-10-03.
  15. ^ Johnson, Roli (2010-01-01). "The Indian Diaspora within the Context of the Modern Commonwealth - Acknowledging the Past, Constructing the Future". Journal of Social Sciences.
  16. ^ Joseph, Janelle (17 February 2011). Cricket as a Diasporic Resource for Caribbean-Canadians (Thesis). hdl:1807/26276.[page needed]
  17. ^ Joseph, Janelle (December 2014). "Culture, community, consciousness: The Caribbean sporting diaspora". International Review for the Sociology of Sport. 49 (6): 669–687. doi:10.1177/1012690212465735. S2CID 145003439.
  18. ^ Jacoviello, Stefano; Sbriccoli, Tammaso (2012-12-19). Shifting Borders: European Perspectives on Creolisation. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4438-4442-0.
  19. ^ Degazon-Johnson, Roli (October 2010). "The Indian Diaspora within the Context of the Modern Commonwealth - Acknowledging the Past, Constructing the Future". Journal of Social Sciences. 25 (1–3): vii–x. doi:10.1080/09718923.2010.11892860. S2CID 149089263.
  20. ^ Pugh, Adam (June 2012). "Benedict Drew: GLISS". Art Monthly. No. 357. p. 32. ProQuest 1019053418.
  21. ^ "Cricket extends borders as USA and West Indies co-host men's 2024 T20 World Cup". The Guardian. 16 November 2021.
  1. ^ The term is also sometimes used to describe diasporas who currently live in Commonwealth nations.[1]

Further reading

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  • Creese, Gillian Laura (2011). The New African Diaspora in Vancouver: Migration, Exclusion, and Belonging. University of Toronto Press. ISBN 978-1-4426-1159-7.
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