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The vast majority of indentured labourers in Guyana came from North India, most notably the Bhojpur and Awadh regions in the Hindi Belt of the present-day states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand. A significant minority also came from Southern India. [1] Among the immigrants, there were also labourers from other parts of South Asia.
After their indenture, many who stayed on in Guyana came to be known as successful retailers, with considerable integration with the local culture. The most notable person of Chinese ancestry was the Former Guyana President Arthur Chung , was independent Guyana's first President from 1970 to 1980, and the first Chinese head of state of a non ...
Guyana saw major slave rebellions in 1763 and 1823. Following the Slavery Abolition Act 1833, 800,000 enslaved Africans in the Caribbean and South Africa were freed, resulting in plantations contracting indentured workers, mainly from India. Eventually, these Indians joined forces with Afro-Guyanese to demand equal rights in government and society.
Indentured labour contracts were made for Portuguese and Chinese people, [11] but the largest numbers came from India. The diversity of the country is a point of pride as well as a challenge; conflicts along racial lines have been a source of significant social tension.
The two largest ethnic groups in Guyana and Suriname are Indians, who are largely descended from indentured labourers from the Bhojpuri regions of India, with smaller numbers from South India; and Africans, descendants of enslaved West Africans brought to the region during colonial times.
In Guyana the holiday is celebrated in May commemorating the first arrival of indentured labourers from India to the country, on May 5, 1838. On this day, the workers arrived in Guyana to work in sugar plantations. Their descendants today comprise 44 per cent of Guyana's population of over 750,000. [11]
Guyana, [b] officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, ... When Indians were brought to the country as indentured labour, Hinduism and Islam gained prominence ...
The present population of Guyana is racially and ethnically heterogeneous, with ethnic groups originating from India, Africa, Europe, and China, as well as indigenous or aboriginal peoples. The largest ethnic group are the Indo-Guyanese , the descendants of indentured labourers from India, who make up 39.8% of the population, according to the ...