Siddi boys
India, being a superpower of the ancient and medieval world,
had well developed trade networks all across the globe. The Queen of Sheba it is said adorned
herself in silks from Varanasi. Cambodia
and much of Southeast Asia, have cultural and historical roots tangled up in
Sanskrit and Hinduism carried to them by traders from the east coast of India.
The stories of these traders and the Brahmins and soldiers that accompanied
them make hilarious and moving reading and are found in such texts as Brihat Katha Sagar (The Great Ocean of
Stories).
It should come as no surprise to learn then that trade and
communication links between India and Africa existed as well. But one of the more unknown stories of this
interaction is that of the African Sufis of India. Known in the western state
of Gujarat where most of the community lives, as Siddis, these Afro-Indians have a very colourful, even illustrious
history. What follows is a collage of writings by others more knowledgeable
than I that gives some insight into this fascinating slice of India’s sparkling
human mosaic.
The first Siddis are thought to have arrived in the Indian subcontinent
in 628 CE at the Bharuch
port. Several others followed with the first Arab Islamic invasions of the
subcontinent in 712 AD. The latter group are believed to have been soldiers
with Muhammad bin Qasim's
Arab army, and were called Zanjis.
Most Siddis, however, are believed to be the descendants of slaves, sailors, servants
and merchants from East Africa
who arrived and became resident in the subcontinent during the 1200-1900 CE
period. A large influx of Siddis to
the region occurred in the 17th century when Portuguese slave traders
sold a number of them to local princes.
In Western India (the modern Indian states
of Gujarat and Maharashtra), the Siddi gained a reputation for physical
strength and loyalty, and were sought out as mercenaries by local rulers, and
as domestic servants and farm labor. Some Siddis
escaped slavery to establish communities in forested areas, and some even
established small Siddi
principalities on Janjira
Island and at Jaffrabad
as early as the twelfth century. A former alternative name of Janjira was Habshan (i.e.,
land of the Habshis). In the Delhi Sultanate period
prior to the rise of the Mughals in India, Jamal-ud-Din Yaqut was
a prominent Siddi
slave-turned-nobleman who was a close confidant of Razia Sultana
(1205–1240 CE). Although this is disputed, he may also have been her lover.
Malik Ambar |
As a power centre, Siddis were sometimes allied with the Mughal Empire in its
power-struggle with the Maratha Confederacy.
However, Malik Ambar, a
prominent Siddi figure in Indian
history at large, is sometimes regarded as the "military guru of the
Marathas", and was deeply allied with them. He established the town of
Khirki which later became the modern city of Aurangabad,
and helped establish the Marathas as a major force in the Deccan. Later, the
Marathas adapted Siddi guerrilla warfare tactics
to grow their power and ultimately demolish the Mughal empire. Some accounts
describe the Mughal emperor Jahangir as obsessed
by Ambar due to the Mughal empire's
consistent failures in crushing him and his Maratha cavalry, describing him
derogatorily as "the black faced" and "the ill-starred" in
the royal chronicles and even having a painting commissioned that showed Jahangir killing Ambar, a fantasy which was never realised in reality.
Some Indian Siddis are descended from Tanzanians and Mozambicans
brought by the Portuguese. While most African slaves became Muslim and a small
minority became Christian,
very few became Hindu
since they could not find themselves a position in the traditional Hindu caste
hierarchy.
Supposedly presented as slaves
by the Portuguese to the local
Prince, Nawab of Junagadh, the
Siddis also live around Gir Forest
National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary, the last refuge in the world
of the almost extinct Asiatic Lions,
in Junagadh a district of the
state of Gujarat, India.
On the way to Deva-dungar is
the quaint village of Sirvan, inhabited entirely by Siddis, a tribe of African people. They were brought 300 years ago
from Africa, by the Portuguese for the Nawab
of Junagadh. Today, they follow very few of their original customs, with a
few exceptions like the traditional Dhamal dance.
Although Gujarati Siddis have adopted the language and
many customs of their surrounding populations, some African traditions have
been preserved. These include the Goma
music and dance form, which is sometimes called Dhamaal . The term is
believed to be derived from the Ngoma drumming and dance
forms of Bantu East Africa. The Goma also has a spiritual significance and, at
the climax of the dance, some dancers are believed to be vehicles for the
presence of Siddi saints of the past.
(Wikipedia)
Some Siddis
are keenly aware of their past, and a few remain in touch with relatives in
Africa. But in the western Indian state of Gujarat - where most Siddis live - the community has lost
touch with its roots. The village of Jambur, deep in the Gir forest, is one of
two exclusively Siddi settlements. It
is miserably poor. The headman explains that yes, everyone in Jambur is a Siddi. Their forbears came from Africa.
But they have lost any knowledge of African languages, and don't know where
exactly their ancestors came from or why they settled in India.
The only remnant they retain of their
African lineage is their music and dance. The Siddi community is very poor. This is what Professor Amy Catlin, an American
ethno-musicologist, hopes to use to fill in the story of the Siddis. "In Gujarat, affinities with
African music include certain musical instruments and their names", she
says, "and also the performance of an African-derived musical genre called
"goma". In the nearby town of Junagadh, a smaller group of Siddis lives alongside the shrine of
Bava Gor, an ancient Sufi Muslim holyman who was himself of African descent.
Their hold on their African past is a little more secure. They say they know a
few songs in an African language, but not their meaning. And their dance is
more obviously African. But again, their music, song and dance are the only
links with their African past.
Amy
Catlin believes that the Siddis of western India came from coastal and inland villages in
east Africa which were raided by slave traders. But that's far from certain.
Indeed, one legend has it that the Siddis
of inland Gujarat originally came from Kano in northern Nigeria, and ended up
in India after undertaking a Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca. Music may be the only
key that can unlock their past. (http://www.nigeriamasterweb.com/special.html)
Track Listing
01 Naqqara Drumming
02
Baithi Damal (Aval Nabiyo)
03
Khairi Damal
04
Malunga Musical Bow
05
Khari Damal (alt version)
06
Tambol
07
Jikr
08
Bedi Damal
09
Jikr to Mai Mishra
10
Damal Sobilale
11 Damal
Sobilale (Alt version)
12
Azaan
Listen here.
6 comments:
You do know haw to keep a man occupied, thanks again.
you are so right, like always, kokolo, this man crazy ajnabi really keeps you busy...
;)
oh I see that we have a gathering of good friends here,gentlemen....
ajnabi,this is wonderful and thank you for expanding my horizons
I knew already about black populations in Iran and Pakistan but not in India and Gujarat.as for the music is certainly, as in the aforementioned places too, more East African than Western and additionally "goma" obviously comes from the east African ngoma drums.
Gentle sirs.
enjoy...some great drumming!
Hello and thank you for your wonderful blog and amazing music. I'm wondering if you may please re-upload the link http://www.mediafire.com/error.php?errno=320&origin=download - apparently mediafire.com has deleted this file. I would love to get a copy of this if and when made available for download. Sincerely, thank you.
Anonymous, all good now. Enjoy.
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