Asian Surinamese, are Surinamese people of Asian descent. Asian migrants to Suriname came mostly from South Asia, Southeast Asia and East Asia. Historically, Asian Surinamese have been present in the country since the 19th century, the majority of which are descended from indentured labourers that were brought to Suriname after the abolition of slavery as replacements for African slaves.
| Languages | |
|---|---|
| Dutch, Sarnami Hindustani, Surinamese-Javanese, Chinese, Lebanese Arabic | |
| Religion | |
| Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Kejawèn, Buddhism | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Asian Caribbean |
History
editSuriname was a plantation colony that depended on slave labour to work on plantations. The Dutch West India Company supplied slaves from West Africa between 1667 until the abolition of slavery on 1 July 1863. Many Afro-Surinamese are descendants of slaves who were transported via the Atlantic slave trade. Thereafter the Dutch recruited indentured labourers from the British Raj (Indian subcontinent) via an arrangement with the British, the Dutch East Indies and China. Unlike other Asian population groups, migrants from the Middle East, mainly Maronites from Lebanon but also Syria and Palestine, were not recruited as indentured labourers but migrated later on their own initiative to engage in the textile trade. Most Asian Surinamese have ancestry from those regions of the Asian continent.
The results of a 2012 census in Suriname showed that of the 541,638 residents,[1] 27% are of Indian descent (Hindustani), 14% are Javanese and 13.4% are multiracial.[1] Chinese was not recorded as an ethnic group. Instead people of Chinese descent were grouped in "Other" together with Amerindian and White.[2] In the 2004 census, 1.8% were Chinese.[3] Between 2004 and 2012 there was a big increase in multiracial people from 12.5% to 17.6%.[1]
Ancestry
editAccording to estimates of the General Statistics Bureau of Suriname, the population was composed of the following groups (2004-2012):
| Ethnic group | 2004[1] | 2012[1] | Growth | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amount | % | Amount | % | Amount | % | |
| Marron | 72,553 | 14.7 | 117,567 | 21.7 | 45,014 | 62.0 |
| Creole | 87,202 | 17.7 | 84,933 | 15.7 | -2,269 | ‐2.6 |
| Hindustani | 135,117 | 27.4 | 148,443 | 27.4 | 13,326 | 9.9 |
| Javanese | 71,879 | 14.6 | 73,975 | 13.7 | 2,096 | 2.9 |
| Multiracial (mixed) | 61,524 | 12.5 | 72,340 | 13.4 | 10,816 | 17.6 |
| Other (Chinese, Amerindian, White etc) | 31,975 (includes 8,775 Chinese[2]) | 6.5 | 40,985 | 7.6 | 9,010 | 28.2 |
| Unknown | 32,579 | 6.6 | 3,395 | 0.6 | -29,184 | ‐89.6 |
| Total | 492,829 | 100 | 541,638 | 100.0 | 48,809 | 9.9 |
Subgroups
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d e "Censusstatistieken 2012". Algemeen Bureau voor de Statistiek in Suriname (General Statistics Bureau of Suriname). Presentatie Definitieve Resultaten Census 8 Vol. 1, pages 19-20. Archived from the original on 2014-11-13. Retrieved 2014-12-02.
- ^ a b "Censusstatistieken 2012". Algemeen Bureau voor de Statistiek in Suriname (General Statistics Bureau of Suriname). Presentatie Definitieve Resultaten Census 8 Vol. 1, page 42. Archived from the original on 2014-11-13. Retrieved 2014-12-02.
- ^ "REPORT ON CENSUS 2004 COVERAGE EVALUATION" (PDF). CENSUS OFFICE GENERAL BUREAU OF STATISTICS. 2006. p. 28. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 March 2021.
8,775 Chinese of total 492,829 residents