The Indians

Indians in Singapore form 9% of the country’s citizens and permanent residents, making them Singapore’s third largest ethnic group. The mass migration of Indians to Singapore only began with the British founding of modern Singapore in 1819. Initially, the Indian population was small, mainly comprising young men who came as workers, soldiers and convicts. But by the mid-20th century, a settled community had emerged, with a more balanced gender ratio and a better spread of age groups. Among cities, Singapore has one of the largest overseas Indian populations.

In Singapore, the term ‘Indian’ refers broadly to people from the Indian subcontinent, rather than the Republic of India. This would comprise of persons of Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi or Sri Lankan origin, such as Telugus, Tamils, Sri Lankan Tamils, Malayalees, Punjabis, Bengalis, Sinhalese, etc.

Indians ‘in Singapore’ may be further defined in terms of nationality and residency status. Most ethnic Indians are Singapore citizens, known as ‘Indian Singaporeans’, or ‘local Indians’. They are usually the locally-born second, third, fourth and even fifth generation descendants of immigrants from South Asia. In addition, there are many ethnic Indian immigrant workers in Singapore. They are referred to by their nationality, e.g. ‘Bangladeshis’, ‘Sri Lankans’ or ‘Malaysian Indians’. Citizens of the Republic of India are called ‘Indian nationals’, or even ‘Indian Indians’. Foreign Indians may be distinguished in terms of residency status.

Prominent Indian individuals have long made a mark in Singapore as leaders of various fields in national life. Indians are also collectively well represented in areas such as politics, education, diplomacy and law.

Origins

Indian contact was rekindled from 1819 to World War II, when both India and Singapore were under British colonial rule. This led to mass migration and, eventually, the formation of a large, settled and distinct population. By 1824, Singapore’s first census counted 756 Indian residents, or about 7% of the total population.

Initially, Indian immigrants were predominantly adult men who came from India to find work, serve military duties or prison sentences for several years before returning home. There was a constant flow of Indians in and out of the city, keeping the local community fairly transient. A minority of Indians were also wealthy merchants who settled in Singapore and built local commercial and social institutions. Best known amongst them was Naraina Pillai, the earliest Indian community leader and the island’s first building contractor. In 1827, he also founded the Sri Mariamman Temple, Singapore oldest Hindu place of worship.

Social characteristics

During the early years, the Indian social hierarchy in Singapore comprised four main groups: the educated professional elite (over 0.5% of the Indian community), mercantile groups (under 10%), the white collar middle class (5-7%) and the uneducated labourers (over 80%).

Economic class and job functions were also aligned with the ethnic origins of immigrants. For example, Sri Lankan Tamils and Malayalees formed the core of the English educated middle and upper classes. Mercantile families tended to be Sindhi, Gujarati, Parsi, and Tamil Muslim. South Indian caste Hindus tended to perform traditional skilled jobs, such as moneylenders and priests. Sikhs were often policemen or private security guards. Unskilled coolies tended to be landless Tamil and Telugu peasants from the shudra caste as well as Adi Dravidas or ‘(untouchables)’. These were often indentured labourers who were brought through various labour recruitment systems to work on rubber plantations in Malaya. Many later came to work in Singapore once free of their bonds.

Another group which was less than free was the military. The first Indians in Singapore were 120 sepoys in the Bengal Native Infantry and a ‘bazaar contingent’ of washermen, servants and others who came with Stamford Raffles on his first visit in 1819. Throughout the colonial period, military personnel came from all over India. Most returned home after their service without settling in Singapore.

Languages

Persons of ethnic Tamil ancestry form about 58% of Singapore’s Indian residents. Minority Indian groups include Malayalees, Punjabis, Sindhis, Gujaratis and Hindi people, among others. In terms of actual daily language use, 39% of Indian residents speak mainly English at home, and a similar number use Tamil. The remainder speak either Malay (11%) or other languages, including other Indian languages (11%).

3.1% of all Singapore residents speak mainly Tamil at home and it is one of the country’s four official languages. Tamil is taught as a second language in most public schools. Tamil content (produced locally or abroad) is available on free-to-air and cable television as well as radio channels, and in libraries, cinemas, theatres and bookshops. Tamil is used in temples, mosques and churches catering to the community. Some business and non-profit groups, especially those in the Little India neighbourhood, use Tamil on a daily basis.

Religions

Indian Singaporeans are a religiously heterogeneous group. According to a recent census, 55.4% of the Indian population is Hindu, while 25.6% and 12.1% are Muslims and Christians respectively. A smaller portion of Indians are Sikhs and Buddhists.