Indian Ocean Crossings: Indian Labor Migration and Settlement in Southeast Asia, 1870 to 1940

Abstract

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries Southeast Asia was one of two main destinations of mass migration (the other being the United States) and Indian and Chinese labor migrants dominated migration flows. This movement was a defining feature of Asian globalization and Chinese and Indian immigration rates were comparable to transatlantic immigration rates during the same period. While the transatlantic migration flows are acknowledged as voluntary and resulting from economic, demographic, and technological transformations, Asian voluntary migration has largely been misrepresented as coerced and circular migration only. Asian immigrants' experiences, their considerable impact on Southeast Asian economies and societies, and permanent overseas settlements must thus be seen through the lens of an integrated labor market, connections, and movement. This paper analyses the important pathways linking the British Empire, the complex exchanges, and opportunities associated with the global trade in commodities, and labor crossings in the region. It also examines the forces that shaped Indian emigration to Southeast Asia against the backdrop of India's pivotal role in the region and the interconnections between different societies in Asia. The focus is on Indian Ocean crossings and Indian labor migration to Burma and Malaya to establish and explain these imperial and global connections.