“EAST INDIANS” OF BELIZE

ORIGIN

• East Indians arrived in Belize when the British Parliament arranged for the transportation in 1858 of one
thousand Indian mutineers with their wives and families, after the suppression of the Indian Mutiny in India.
• Indentured workers were encouraged to come to the Caribbean to work, under a signed contract, for about
five years; after which time they were free to return to India, or remain in the Caribbean as laborers on their
own terms
•.
• The East Indians that came to Belize again in the 1880s were from Jamaica, and were brought mainly to
work on the sugar estates.
•
As laborers, it was proven over and over again in the Caribbean and Belize that, for light field work in the
Tropics, the East Indian is an invaluable worker. 
 Food, clothing, utensils, tools, musical instruments
•
Cow, in the Indian culture, is considered to be a Holy animal. She is worshipped as a maternal figure and is a depiction of the bounty of
Mother Earth.
• Temples (Source)
•
Most temples are located along 
• magnetic wave lines of the Earth, which help in maximising the available positive energy.
•
Going to the temple often helps in having a positive mind and garnering positive energies, which in turn lead to healthier functioning.
•

Indian women are often seen sporting 'saris'. The sari is a single cloth and needs no stitching;
•

Indian food has a significant reputation for its extensive use of spices and herbs.

For men, traditional clothes are the Achkan/Sherwani, Bandhgala, Lungi, Kurta, Angarkha, Jama and Dhoti or Pajama. Additionally,
recently western clothing such as trousers and shirts have been accepted as traditional Indian dress by the Government of India.

Done by: Rachel Salam

•Non-Material Culture
DANCES AND LANGUAGE OF THE “EAST INDIANS” IN
BELIZE

• Their own native dance, the “who-se-mi-se” is only performed on special

occasions.
•  Some groups have gone from Belize to participate in festivals and other events
in Trinidad to perform Indian dances from Belize such as the “masala” dance.
RELIGIOUS BELIEFS OF THE “EAST INDIANS”
IN BELIZE

• Indian religions, also termed as Dharmic religion or Indic religions, are the
religions that originated in the Indian subcontinent; namely Hinduism,
Jainism, Buddhism, and Sikhism. These religions are also classified as
Eastern religions.
 HINDUISM

• Truth is eternal.
• Hindus pursue knowledge and understanding of the Truth: the very essence of the universe and the only
Reality. According to the Vedas, Truth is One, but the wise express it in a variety of ways.
• Brahman is Truth and Reality.
• Hindus believe in Brahman as the one true God who is formless, limitless, all-inclusive, and eternal.
Brahman is not an abstract concept; it is a real entity that encompasses everything (seen and unseen) in the
universe. The three heads that face us are the three states of consciousness waking, dreaming and deep sleep.
The fourth and final head which is not facing us, but still it is present. That fourth represents the Turiya or
the Super Conscious state which is the Brahman and God.
• The Vedas are the ultimate authority.
• The Vedas are Hindu scriptures that contain revelations received by ancient saints and sages. Hindus believe
that the Vedas are without beginning and without end; when everything else in the universe is destroyed (at
the end of a cycle of time), the Vedas remain.
 SIKHISM

• Sikhs believe that human beings spend their time in a cycle of birth, life, and
rebirth. They share this belief with followers of other Indian religious
traditions such as Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism.
• The quality of each particular life depends on the law of Karma. Karma sets
the quality of a life according to how well or badly a person behaved in their
previous life. The only way out of this cycle, which all faiths regard as
painful, is to achieve a total knowledge of and union with God.
LOCATION
 LOCATION OF “EAST INDIANS” IN BELIZE

• Today, they live mostly in secluded communities in the Toledo District in

places like Forest Home and Mafredi; in the Corozal District with place-

names like San Antonio, Carolina, and Calcutta; and in Belize City they are

more diversified, although areas like Queen Charlotte Town still exist today.
• Done by: Jayleen Logan
CONTRIBUTIONS MADE BY THE “EAST INDIANS”
OF BELIZE
• When slavery was abolished in 1833, the sugar plantation owners needed a
large labor force to replace the freed slaves, where the Indians were then put
to work.
• They usually lived in their own farms planting variety of fruits and
vegetables for sale.
• The Indians contributed through food, by spices and other flavors.
 OUTSTANDING
INDIVIDUALS
• Mr. Tyrone Bardalez- President of Indian Council
• Wellington Ranguy- local acknowledged Indian historian
• Arun Hotchandani- Import and export company executive. Named most
influential Indian of Belize.
• Denish Bhojwani-Dinesh Bhojwani, Former President of the Community
says plans are in the works to extend their food assistance efforts for a longer
period of time.

Done by: Anahi Garcia

 REFERENCES
•https://twocircles.net/2013mar27/indian_drums_and_music_resound_distant_belize.html
•https://hinduism.stackexchange.com/questions/6789/what-is-the-origin-of-brahmas-four-heads#:~:
text=The%20three%20heads%20that%20face%20us%20are%20the,best%20%E2%80%93%20Sai%20Mar%2019
%20%2715%20at%2015%3A12
•https://www.belmopanonline.com/belize-east-indian-culture
•
https://corozal.com/coeich
•
https://daily.jstor.org/why-saris-are-indian-material-culture/
•
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Plains-Indian/Material-culture-and-trade
•
https://amandala.com.bz/news/the-facts-about-east-indians/
•https://www.open.uwi.edu/sites/default/files/bnccde/belize/conference/papers/premdas.html 
•https://edition.channel5belize.com/archives/38476/arun-hotchandani 
•https://www.belizehub.com/east-indians-in-belize/
•https://corozal.com/coeich