Gujaratis have a long tradition of seafaring and a history of overseas migration to foreign lands, to
Yemen Oman Bahrain, Kuwait,
Zanzibar and other countries in the
Persian Gulf since a mercantile culture resulted naturally from the state's proximity to the Arabian Sea. The countries with the largest Gujarati populations are Pakistan, United Kingdom, United States, Canada and many countries in Southern and East Africa. Globally, Gujaratis are estimated to constitute around 33% of the Indian diaspora worldwide and can be found in 129 of 190 countries listed as sovereign nations by the
United Nations.
Non Resident Gujaratis (NRGs) maintain active links with the homeland in the form of business,
remittance,
philanthropy, and through their political contribution to state governed domestic affairs. Gujarati parents in the diaspora are not comfortable with the possibility of their language not surviving them. In a study, 80% of
Malayali parents felt that "children would be better off with English", compared to 36% of
Kannada parents and only 19% of Gujarati parents. Estimated to number 3.5 million they virtually all live in
Karachi. Community leaders estimate that it roughly amounts to some 15% of Karachi's total population, while also highlighting the dire state of the Gujarati language in the country, with only two newspapers,
Vatan and
Millat, still serving the community.
United States in many urban districts worldwide, notably in
India Square, or
Little Gujarat, in
Bombay,
Jersey City,
New Jersey, USA, within the
New York City Metropolitan Area, as large-scale immigration from India continues into
New York, with the largest metropolitan Gujarati population outside of India. The United States has the second-largest
Gujarati diaspora after Pakistan. The highest concentration of the population of over 200,000 is in the
New York City Metropolitan Area, notably in the growing Gujarati diasporic center of
India Square in
Jersey City,
New Jersey, and
Edison in
Middlesex County in
Central New Jersey. Significant immigration from India to the United States started after the landmark
Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965. Early immigrants after 1965 were highly educated professionals. Since US immigration laws allow sponsoring immigration of parents, children and particularly siblings on the basis of family reunion, the numbers rapidly swelled. A number of Gujarati are twice or thrice-migrant because they came directly from the former British colonies of East Africa or from East Africa via Great Britain respectively. Given the Gujarati propensity for business enterprise, a number of them opened shops and motels. While they may make up only around 0.1% of the population in the United States, Gujarati Americans control over 40% of the
hospitality market in the country, for a combined net worth of over US$40 billion and employing over one million employees. Gujaratis in Britain are regarded as affluent middle-class peoples who have assimilated into the milieu of British society. They are celebrated for revolutionising the corner shop, and energising the British economy which changed Britain's antiquated retail laws forever. Demographically, Hindus form a majority along with a significant number of
Jains and Muslims, and smaller numbers of
Gujarati Christians. They are predominantly settled in metropolitan areas like
Greater London,
East Midlands,
West Midlands,
Lancashire and
Yorkshire. Both Hindus and Muslims have established caste or community associations, temples, and mosques to cater for the needs of their respective communities. A well known temple popular with Gujaratis is the
BAPS Swaminarayan Temple in Neasden, London. A popular mosque that caters for the Gujarati Muslim community in Leicester is the
Masjid Umar. Leicester has a Jain Temple that is also the headquarters of Jain Samaj Europe. Gujarati Hindus in the UK have maintained many traditions from their homeland. The community remains religious with more than 100 temples catering for their religious needs. All major Hindu festivals such as
Navratri, Dassara, and
Diwali are celebrated with a lot of enthusiasm even from the generations brought up in UK. Gujarati Hindus also maintain their caste affiliation to some extent with most major castes having their own community association in each population center with significant Gujarati population such as Leicester and London suburbs.
Patidars form the largest community in the diaspora including Kutch Leva Patels, followed closely by
Lohanas of
Saurashtra origin. Gujarati
Rajputs from various regional backgrounds are affiliated with several independent British organisations dependent on caste such as Shree Maher Samaj UK, and the Gujarati Arya Kshatriya Mahasabha-UK. Endogamy remains important to Gujaratis in UK with the existence of matrimonial services specifically dedicated to their community. The Gujarati Muslim society in the UK have kept the custom of Jamat Bandi, literally meaning communal solidarity. This system is the traditional expression of communal solidarity. It is designed to regulate the affairs of the community and apply sanctions against infractions of the communal code. Gujarati Muslim communities, such as the
Ismāʿīlī, Khoja,
Dawoodi Bohra,
Sunni Bohra, and Memon have
caste associations, known as jamats that run mosques and community centers for their respective communities.
Belgium Two Gujarati business communities, the
Palanpuri Jains and the Kathiawadi Patels from Surat, have come to dominate the diamond industry of
Belgium. They have largely displaced the
Orthodox Jewish community which previously dominated this industry in Belgium.
Portugal The 1961 takeover of Portuguese Goa by India made life difficult for the Indian population in the then Portuguese colony of Mozambique. The independence of Mozambique like in other African countries led to many Gujaratis to move to Portugal. Many Hindu Gujaratis have moved from Portugal to Great Britain since the 1990s.
Canada Canada, just like its southern neighbour, is home to a large Gujarati community. As per the
2021 Canadian census, Gujarati Canadians number approximately 210,000 and account for roughly 0.6% of Canada's population. The Muslim
Ismaili Khoja form a significant part of the Canadian diaspora estimated to be about 80,000 in numbers overall. Most of them arrived in Canada in the 1970s as either refugees or
immigrants from Uganda and other countries of
East Africa.
East Africa Former British colonies in East Africa had many residents of
South Asian descent. The primary immigration was mainly from Gujarat and to a lesser extent from Punjab. They were brought there by the
British Empire from
India to do
clerical work in Imperial service, or unskilled and semi-skilled manual labour such as construction or farm work. In the 1890s, 32,000 labourers from British India were brought to the then British East African colonies under indentured labour contracts to work on the construction of the
Uganda Railway that started in the Kenyan port city of
Mombasa and ended in
Kisumu on Kenyan side of
Lake Victoria. Most of the surviving Indians returned home, but 6,724 individuals decided to remain in the
African Great Lakes after the line's completion. Many Asians, particularly the Gujaratis, in these regions were in the trading businesses. They included Gujaratis of all religions as well many of the castes and Quoms. Since the representation of Indians in these occupations was high, stereotyping of Indians in Kenya, Uganda, and Tanganyika as shopkeepers was common. A number of people worked for the British run banks. They also worked in skilled labour occupations, as managers, teachers and administrators. Gujarati and other South Asians had significant influence on the economy, constituting 1% of the population while receiving a fifth of the national income. For example, in Uganda, the
Mehta and
Madhvani families controlled the bulk of the manufacturing businesses. Gated ethnic communities served elite healthcare and schooling services. Additionally, the tariff system in Uganda had historically been oriented toward the economic interests of South Asian traders. One of the oldest
Jain overseas diaspora was of Gujarat. Their number was estimated at 45,000 at the independence of the East African countries in the early 1960s. Most members of this community belonged to Gujarati speaking Halari Visa Oshwal Jain community originally from the
Jamnagar area of
Saurashtra. The countries of East Africa gained independence from Britain in the early 1960s. At that time most Gujarati and other Asians opted to remain as British Subjects. The African politicians at that time accused Asians of economic exploitation and introduced a policy of Africanization. The 1968 Committee on "Africanisation in Commerce and Industry" in Uganda made far-reaching Indophobic proposals. A system of work permits and trade licences was introduced in 1969 to restrict the role of Indians in economic and professional activities. Indians were segregated and discriminated against in all walks of life. During the middle of the 1960s many Asians saw the writing on the wall and started moving either to UK or India. However, restrictive British immigration policies stopped a mass exodus of East African Asians until Idi Amin came to power in 1971. He exploited pre-existing Indophobia and spread propaganda against Indians involving stereotyping and scapegoating the Indian minority. Indians were stereotyped as "only traders" and "inbred" to their profession. Indians were labelled as "dukawallas" (an occupational term that degenerated into an anti-Indian slur during Amin's time), and stereotyped as "greedy, conniving", without any racial identity or loyalty but "always cheating, conspiring and plotting" to subvert Uganda. Amin used this propaganda to justify a campaign of "de-Indianization", eventually resulting in the expulsion and ethnic cleansing of Uganda's Indian minority. The immigrants who arrived with the British were the first ones to open up businesses in rural Kenya a century ago. These dukanwalas or shopkeepers were mainly Gujarati (Mostly Jains and Hindus and a minority of Muslims). Over the following decades the population, mainly Gujarati but also a sizeable number of Punjabi, increased in size. The population started declining after the independence of Kenya in the 1960s. At that time the majority of Gujaratis opted for British citizenship and eventually moved there, especially to cities like
Leicester or
London suburbs. Famous Kenyans of Gujarati heritage who contributed greatly to the development of East Africa include
Thakkar Bapa,
Manu Chandaria,
Uganda There is a small community of people of Indian origin living in Uganda, but the community is far smaller than before 1972 when Ugandan ruler Idi Amin expelled most Asians, including Gujaratis. In the late 19th century, mostly
Sikhs, were brought on three-year contracts, with the aid of Imperial British contractor
Alibhai Mulla Jeevanjee to build the
Uganda Railway from Mombasa to Kisumu by 1901, and to
Kampala by 1931. Some died, while others returned to India after the end of their contracts, but few chose to stay. They were joined by Gujarati traders called "passenger Indians", both Hindu and Muslim free migrants who came to serve the economic needs of the indentured labourers, and to capitalise on the economic opportunities. After the 1972 expulsion, most Indians and Gujaratis migrated to the United Kingdom. Due to the efforts of the
Aga Khan, many Khoja Nizari Ismaili refugees from Uganda were offered asylum in Canada.
Tanzania Indians have a long history in
Tanzania starting with the arrival of Gujarati traders in the 19th century. There are currently over 50,000 people of Indian origin in Tanzania. Many of them are traders and they control a sizeable portion of the Tanzanian economy. They came to gradually control the trade in
Zanzibar. Many of the buildings constructed then still remain in
Stone Town, the focal trading point on the island.
South Africa The Indian community in South Africa is more than 150 years old and is concentrated in and around the city of
Durban. The vast majority of immigrant pioneer Gujaratis who came in the latter half of the 19th century were
passenger Indians who paid for their own travel fare and means of transport to arrive and settle South Africa, in pursuit of fresh trade and career opportunities and as such were treated as
British subjects, unlike the fate of a class of Indian indentured labourers who were transported to work on the sugarcane plantations of
Natal Colony in dire conditions. Passenger Indians, who initially operated in Durban, expanded inland, to the South African Republic (
Transvaal), establishing communities in settlements on the main road between
Johannesburg and Durban. After wealthy
Gujarati Muslim merchants began experiencing discrimination from repressive colonial legislation in
Natal, they sought the help of one young lawyer,
Mahatma Gandhi to represent the case of a
Memon businessman.
Umar Hajee Ahmed Jhaveri was consequently elected the first president of the
South African Indian Congress. Indians in South Africa could traditionally be bifurcated as either indentured labourers (largely from Tamil Nadu, with smaller amounts from UP and Bihar) and merchants (exclusively from Gujarat). Indians have played an important role in the
anti-apartheid movement of South Africa. Many were incarcerated alongside
Nelson Mandela following the
Rivonia Trial, and many became martyred fighting to end racial discrimination.
Mozambique In the second half of the 1800s, many Gujarati Hindus belonging to the Vaniya community migrated to the South of
Mozambique, in particular to the provinces of
Inhambane and
Lourenço Marques to run businesses. This was followed by migration of Hindus of various artisan castes from
Diu to the region. Later in 1800s, immigration restrictions imposed by the colonial authorities in neighbouring South Africa and the
Boer republic made Mozambique the preferred destination for many Gujarati Hindus from the
Saurashtra (namely, Rajkot and Porbandar) and Surat regions. The 1961 takeover of Portuguese Goa by India made life difficult for the Indian population in the then Portuguese colony of Mozambique. The independence of Mozambique like in other African countries led to many Gujaratis to move to Portugal. Some of the earliest Indian immigrants to settle in Oman were the
Bhatias of
Kutch, who have had a powerful presence in Oman dating back to the 16th century. At the turn of the 19th century, Gujaratis wielded enough clout that
Faisal bin Turki, the great-grandfather of the current ruler, spoke Gujarati and
Swahili along with his native Arabic and Oman's sultan Syed Said (1791-1856) was persuaded to shift his capital from Muscat to
Zanzibar, more than two thousand miles from the Arabian mainland, on the recommendation of Shivji Topan and Bhimji families who lent money to the Sultan. In modern times, business tycoon Kanaksi Khimji, from the famous Khimji family of Gujarat was conferred title of
Sheikh by the Sultan, the first ever use of the title for a member of the Hindu community. The Muscati Mahajan is one of the oldest merchants associations founded more than a century ago.
Southeast Asia Gujaratis had a flourishing trade with Southeast Asia in the 15th and 16th centuries, and played a pivotal role in establishing
Islam in the region. Miller (2010) presented a theory that the indigenous scripts of
Sumatra (
Indonesia),
Sulawesi (Indonesia) and the
Philippines are descended from an early form of the
Gujarati script.
Tomé Pires reported a presence of a thousand Gujaratis in
Malacca (
Malaysia) prior to 1512. The Gujarati language continues to be spoken in Singapore and Malaysia.
Hong Kong Gujaratis also dominate the diamond trade in the city. As of 2012 350 diamond firms in Hong Kong were owned by Gujaratis.
Malaysia There estimated around 31,500 Gujarati in Malaysia. Most of this community work as traders and settled in the urban parts of Malaysia like Melaka, George Town, Kuala Lumpur and Ipoh. ==Culture==