Diaspora and cultural heritage

The case of Indians in Canada

Bibliographic Data

ID6040159
AuthorsAjaya Kumar Sahoo (0000-0003-3543-8021, University of Hyderabad, corresponding author), Dave Sangha (University of Northern British Columbia)
Year2010
Volume11
Issue1
Pages81-94
Publication date2010-02-01
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAsian Ethnicity (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1463-1369 • E-ISSN: 1469-2953
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/14631360903506786
OpenAlexW2077125241
LanguageEN
Citations received9
References cited11

The present paper examines the historical and contemporary context of Indian communities in Canada from a cultural heritage perspective and analyses the processes of migration, settlement and cultural identity. It also examines the challenges of developing museum exhibits which depict the Indian diaspora in Canada. Despite its colourful history and its growing size and prominence in Canadian society, the Indian diaspora has not been the subject of much interest by Canadian museums. While recognising the necessity of working with local communities and thereby reflecting local concerns, it is submitted that any museum exhibit attempting to portray the complex set of experiences of the Indian diaspora in Canada should include some portrayal of the highly marginalised position which the Indian community faced when it first established themselves in the early 1900s. In addition to this historical focus, any attempt to portray the contemporary Indian diaspora needs to portray its growing diversity and its efforts to maintain, and in many cases modify and ‘hybridise’, cultural practices. Such a display would also have to reflect the influence of transnational forces on the contemporary Indian diaspora. Ultimately, efforts by museums to develop exhibits reflecting the Indian presence in Canada will only further the aims of its widely praised state policy of multiculturalism

Archaeology · Cultural heritage · Diaspora · Ethnology · Geography · Political science · Sociology · Anthropology · Culinary Culture and Tourism · Cultural Heritage Management and Preservation · Gender Studies · History · Migration, Ethnicity, and Economy

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