View source for Siddis of Karnataka

{{Short description|Ethnic group inhabiting India}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2019}}
{{Use Indian English|date=December 2019}}
{{more citations needed|date=May 2016}}
[[File:Siddi Girl.jpg|thumb|A [[Siddi]] girl from Yellapur taluk, Uttara Kannada District, [[Karnataka]], [[India]].]]
The '''Siddis of Karnataka''' ({{langx|kn|ಕರ್ನಾಟಕದ ಸಿದ್ಧಿಗಳು}}) (also spelled '''Siddhis''') are an ethnic group inhabiting [[India]]. Members are descended from [[Bantu peoples]] from [[African Great Lakes|Southeast Africa]] that were brought to the [[Indian subcontinent]] as slaves by Portuguese merchants.<ref name="Shah">{{cite journal|last=Shah|first=Anish M.|title=Indian Siddis: African Descendants with Indian Admixture|journal=[[American Journal of Human Genetics]]|date=15 July 2011|volume=89|issue=1|pages=154–161|doi=10.1016/j.ajhg.2011.05.030|display-authors=etal|pmid=21741027|pmc=3135801}}</ref> There is a 50,000 strong [[Siddi]] population across India, of which more than a third live in [[Karnataka]]. In Karnataka, they are concentrated around [[Yellapur]], [[Haliyal]], [[Ankola]], [[Joida]], [[Mundgod]] and [[Sirsi, Karnataka|Sirsi]] taluks of [[Uttara Kannada]] and in [[Khanapur]] of [[Belgaum]] and [[Kalghatgi]] of [[Dharwad district]]. Many members of the Siddi community have migrated to [[Pakistan]] after independence and have settled in [[Karachi]] and [[Sindh]]. Recently, they have come into the limelight by [[Sneha Khanwalkar]]'s soundtrack 'Yere' for ''[[MTV Sound Trippin']]''.

==Etymology==
There are various hypotheses on the origin of the name ''Siddi''. One theory is that the word was a term of respect in [[North Africa]], similar to the word ''sahib'' in modern India and [[Pakistan]]. A second theory is that the term ''Siddi'' is derived from the title borne by the captains of the Arab vessels that first brought Siddi settlers to India. These captains were known as ''Sayyid''.<ref name="Prashad">{{Citation|title=Everybody Was Kung Fu Fighting: Afro-Asian Connections and the Myth of Cultural Purity|author=Vijay Prashad|year=2002|publisher=Beacon Press|isbn=978-0-8070-5011-8|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xiO6zUS9gigC|quote=... since the captains of the African and Arab vessels bore the title Sidi (from Sayyid, or the lineage of Muhammad), the African settlers on the Indian mainland came to be called Siddis ...}}</ref> The term seems to have found currency following a description in a letter written by one William aboard the ''S.S. Nepal'', a ship that sailed from England to South India and Ceylon. In the letter he describes the crew of the ship as "composed of seven English quarter masters and forty three lascar seamen, six English engineers, thirty-five men (Muslim) and fifteen Sidimen or negroes for coal shifters."<ref name="book" />

Similarly, another term for Siddis, ''habshi'' (from ''Al-Habsh'', the Arabic term for [[Ethiopia|Abyssinia]]), is held to be derived from the common name for the captains of the [[Ethiopia]]n/[[Habesha people|Abyssinian]] ships that also first delivered Siddi slaves to the subcontinent.<ref name=autogenerated2>Vijay Prashad, ''Everybody Was Kung Fu Fighting: Afro-Asian Connections and the Myth of Cultural Purity'', (Beacon Press: 2002), p.8</ref> The term eventually came to be applied to other Africans and not only to emancipated Siddis. In time, it came to be used to refer to their descendants as well. It is sometimes pronounced "Hafsi" and is considered an insult.<ref name="segal2002">{{Citation | title=Islam's Black Slaves: The Other Black Diaspora | author=Ronald Segal | author-link = Ronald Segal | year=2002 | publisher=Macmillan | isbn=978-0-374-52797-6 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fdh3GYnXvrAC | quote=... Ethiopians were particularly favored; the term Habashi or Habshi— from the Arabic word for Ethiopian – came to be applied to other Africans as well, and referred not only to the freed but to their descendants ...}}</ref>

==History==
While some Siddis were victims of the Portuguese slave trade, most were imported by the rajas in the 15th-16th centuries as military mercenaries.  Others were sailors on the trade routes to the east.<ref name="nearforgotten">{{cite web |url=http://www.deccanherald.com/archives/mar202005/n1.asp |title=Near forgotten, Siddis to meet |accessdate=2007-07-19 |author=Devika Sequeira |publisher=[[Deccan Herald]] |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929122614/http://www.deccanherald.com/archives/mar202005/n1.asp |archivedate=2007-09-29 }}</ref>

In 2013, the [[New York Public Library]] held an artistic exhibition entitled ''Africans In India: From Slaves to Generals and Rulers'', which retraced the lives and accomplishments of prominent Siddis from the past. Lasting until July, it included 100 reproductions of paintings and modern photographs.<ref name="nearforgotten"/>

==Religion==
{{bar box
| title    = Religion followed by Siddis in Karnataka
| titlebar = #Fcd116
| left1    = Religion
| right1   = Percent
| float    = right
| bars     = 
{{bar percent|[[Hindus]]|orange|41.8}}
{{bar percent|[[Muslims]]|green|30.6}}
{{bar percent|[[Christians]]|blue|27.4}}
| caption = Distribution of religions<br />
{{small|Source: 2011 Census.}}
}}
A plurality of the Siddis in Karnataka follow [[Hinduism]]. There is a significant number following [[Islam]] and [[Christianity]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=ST-14 SCHEDULED TRIBE POPULATION BY RELIGIOUS COMMUNITY |url=https://censusindia.gov.in/2011census/SCST-Series/ST14/ST-29-00-014-DDW-2011.XLSd |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220311150555/https://censusindia.gov.in/2011census/SCST-Series/ST14/ST-29-00-014-DDW-2011.XLS |archive-date=2022-03-11 |access-date=2023-09-01}}</ref>
The [[Haliyal]] taluk has populations of Muslims and Christians while the Hindu populations are concentrated in the ghat areas of [[Yellapur]] and [[Ankola]].<ref name="book">Sadiq Ali, Shanti. 1996. The African dispersal in the Deccan: from medieval to modern times. New Delhi: Orient Longman.</ref> Although Siddhis opt for different religions they intermarry across religions without any reservations.<ref name="marriage">{{cite web|url=http://www.kamat.com/kalranga/people/afro-indians/siddis.htm|title=  The Siddhi Community|work=K.L.Kamat|publisher=Kamat's Potpourri|accessdate=2007-07-20}}</ref>

;Hiriyaru worship
The one factor which binds the Siddhis, irrespective of their religion is the ''Hiriyaru'' or ancestor worship.  The dead are believed to be nearby, in the form of spirits.  They are regarded as witnesses to be consulted by a family in all its concerns.  On occasions like births, marriages and deaths, the ancestors are invoked.  The home is organised around ''Hiriyaru'', the spirits of departed parents.  It signifies a remembrance of the parents, thanking them for their care over several years and also entreating them to keep a vigil over the family in future.  It is obligatory for all relatives to attend the function, thus renewing kinship relations.<ref name="book" />

Hiriyaru worship may be performed twice a year by the 'Kartha'(head) of the family.  It normally is held during the [[Navarathri]] festival in the first week of November.  If this is not possible for some reason, it may also be performed in April–May during the other major festival - [[Holi]].  These obviously are not meant to coincide with the dates of the parents' deaths as the Siddis only observe the first death anniversary.  Hindu Siddhis usually have elaborate functions to mark the event, but not so the Christian and Muslim Siddhis.

==Language==
Siddis mainly speak [[Konkani language|Konkani]], the native language of [[Goa]] which belongs to the [[Indo-Aryan languages|Indo-Aryan]] family. Some also speak other languages, such as [[Kannada language|Kannada]] and [[Marathi language|Marathi]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Pinto|first=Jeanette|date=2006|title=The African Native in Indiaspora|url=https://brill.com/view/journals/aas/5/3/article-p383_7.xml|journal=African and Asian Studies|volume=5|issue=3|pages=383–397|doi=10.1163/156920906779134786|issn=1569-2094|url-access=subscription}}</ref>

==Occupation==
Almost all Siddis today subsist as agricultural and casual labourers, contractual or in some cases bonded,  some also work as domestic help.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Bhatt|first=Purnima Mehta|title=The African Diaspora in India|date=2017-09-05|publisher=Routledge India|doi=10.4324/9781315148380|isbn=978-1-315-14838-0}}</ref> The earliest Siddhi settlers who fled Goa and entered the Karnataka forests of [[North Canara]], made the forests  their home and started cultivation.  In some of the villages in these areas, they form the earliest settlers.
[[File:Siddi Farmer.jpg|thumb|Siddi Farmer in the fields of Yellapur District, Karnataka, India.]]

==Art==
The Siddis of Karnataka are known in recent years for their unique style of quilting called [[kawandi]]. Siddis go through a complicated process of quilting that makes their style distinct from surrounding groups. The process involves taking recycled fabric scraps and arranging them in stylistic geometric patterns, sometimes embedded with religious symbols. Quilts are usually made for family members by older women who can no longer work in the fields. The quilts are put to use as mattresses, crib covers, or covers for cold monsoon nights.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Drewal|first=Henry John|date=March 2013|title=Soulful Stitching: Patchwork Quilts by Africans (Siddis) of India|journal=African Arts|language=en|volume=46|issue=1|pages=6–17|doi=10.1162/AFAR_a_00039|s2cid=57560005|issn=0001-9933}}</ref> The non-profit organization Siddis Women Quilting Cooperative (SWQC) was created in 2004 in an effort to provide a source of income to the community and quilt makers. In 2011 an exhibition titled “Soulful Stitching: Patchwork Quilts by Africans (Siddis) in India” was shown in the [[Museum of the African Diaspora]], helping these quilt makers and the community to gain recognition.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Museum of the African Diaspora Presents "Soulful Stitching: Patchwork Quilts by Africans (Siddis) in India"|url=https://artdaily.cc/news/48853/Museum-of-the-African-Diaspora-Presents--Soulful-Stitching--Patchwork-Quilts-by-Africans--Siddis--in-India-#.XrtUfrJOmhB|website=artdaily.cc|access-date=2020-05-13}}</ref>

==Assimilation==
A feature common to the Siddis of Karnataka, as also of those of Maharashtra and Goa, is that they exhibit a remarkable level of assimilation with local culture.  This, in the absence of any form of force.  Even the uniquely Siddi custom of ''Hiriyaru'' has adopted symbols from the local Hindu religion.  Except for the racial characteristics of the tribe, there is little else that can set them apart from other native populations.<ref name="book" /> Almost all the Siddis in present-day India are mixed indo-African There are very few pure Siddi populations in Karnataka today, most of the pure Siddi population living in Gujarat. Many of them have lost their original African names and culture however they have retained some forms of African traditions in the form of dance and music.

==Historical references==
There are references to Siddhi palace guards in [[Kodagu]] during the reign of Dodda Veerarajendra (1763–1809) in the [[Kannada]] book ''Kodagina Itihasa''.  An account by Rev. G. Richter in 1870 also makes a note of "African bodyguards" in the service of the same king.<ref>''"The Raja had surrounded his house with African bodyguards"''</ref>  A Siddhi called Gajaveera is noted to have joined hands with [[Sangolli Rayanna]] in his revolt against the British in 1829–30 near [[Kittur]]. In the revolt of 1844 at Sawantwadi in the [[Ratnagiri district]] of neighbouring Maharashtra state, records show that two Siddhi brothers, Bastian and Benove, from Punsolli near [[Dandeli]] had been enlisted by Phen Sawant, a noble of the Sawantwadi court.

The first notable act of this group seems to have been their looting of a British outpost during the [[Supa Uprising]] when they confiscated government funds, took many ''chaukidars'' (watchmen) captive and burnt several outposts.  The leaders of the 'bundh' are said{{By whom|date=March 2012}} to have taken shelter in the Darshanigudda ranges and at times escaped into neighbouring Goa territory.  There are also references to a formidable fight at Dandeli and one at a Somalinga temple. These activities continued for several months and the British eventually sentenced some of them.  The Portuguese also deported more than 100 of these insurgents along with the Sawant brothers and their families to [[Timor]] in the [[East Indies]].  Gunaba Shenvi, Siddi Bastian, his brother Anna Saheb and the three Phadnis brothers were still at large and in July 1859, the British offered rewards of Rs. 1000 each for their arrest.  Chintoba Phadnis and Siddi Bastian were eventually killed in an encounter at Jagabet.

==Demographics==
In India, Karnataka has the largest concentration of Siddis.<ref name="nearforgotten" />  According to latest estimates there are around 3,700 Siddi families in the state with a total population of 18,000.  Other Siddhi populations in the sub-continent include around 10,000 in Gujarat and 12,000 in Hyderabad. A few hundreds are also in Lucknow, Delhi and Calcutta. Fewer than 1,000 "Ceylon Kapris" live in Sri Lanka.<ref name="nearforgotten" />

==Genetics==
Recent advances in genetic analyses have helped shed some light on the [[ethnogenesis]] of the Siddi. [[Genetic genealogy]], although a novel tool that uses the genes of modern populations to trace their ethnic and geographic origins, has also helped clarify the possible background of the modern Siddi.

===Y DNA===
A [[Y chromosome|Y-chromosome]] study by Shah et al. (2011) tested Siddi individuals in India for paternal lineages. The authors observed the E1b1a1 haplogroup (now called [[Haplogroup E-M2]]), which is frequent among Bantu peoples, in about 42% and 34% of Siddis from [[Karnataka]] and [[Gujarat]], respectively. Around 14% of Siddis from Karnataka and 35% of Siddis from Gujarat also belonged to the Sub-Saharan [[Haplogroup B-M60|B-M60]]. The remaining Siddis had Indian or Near Eastern-associated clades, including haplogroups [[Haplogroup P (Y-DNA)|P]], [[Haplogroup H (Y-DNA)|H]], [[Haplogroup R1a|R1a-M17]], [[Haplogroup J2|J2]] and [[Haplogroup L-M20|L-M20]].<ref>{{cite journal|title=Indian Siddis: African Descendants with Indian Admixture| pmc=3135801 | pmid=21741027 | doi=10.1016/j.ajhg.2011.05.030| volume=89| year=2011| journal=Am. J. Hum. Genet.| pages=154–61 | last1 = Shah | first1 = AM | last2 = Tamang | first2 = R | last3 = Moorjani | first3 = P | last4 = Rani | first4 = DS | last5 = Govindaraj | first5 = P | last6 = Kulkarni | first6 = G | last7 = Bhattacharya | first7 = T | last8 = Mustak | first8 = MS | last9 = Bhaskar | first9 = LV | last10 = Reddy | first10 = AG | last11 = Gadhvi | first11 = D | last12 = Gai | first12 = PB | last13 = Chaubey | first13 = G | last14 = Patterson | first14 = N | last15 = Reich | first15 = D | last16 = Tyler-Smith | first16 = C | last17 = Singh | first17 = L | last18 = Thangaraj | first18 = K| issue=1 }}</ref>

Thangaraj (2009) observed similar, mainly Bantu-linked paternal affinities amongst the Siddi.<ref name="Mishra">{{cite book|last=Mishra|first=Rakesh K.|title=Chromosomes To Genome|year=2009|publisher=I. K. International Pvt Ltd.|isbn=978-9380026213|pages=183|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=39Yh3iclF7IC&pg=PA183}}</ref>

===mtDNA===
According to an [[mtDNA]] study by Shah et al. (2011), the maternal ancestry of the Siddi consists of a mixture of Sub-Saharan and Indian haplogroups, reflecting substantial female gene flow from neighboring Indian populations. About 53% of the Siddis from Gujarat and 24% of the Siddis from Karnataka belonged to various Sub-Saharan [[Macro-haplogroup L (mtDNA)|macro-haplogroup L]] sub-clades. The latter mainly consisted of [[Haplogroup L0|L0]] and [[Haplogroup L2 (mtDNA)|L2a]] sublineages associated with Bantu women. The remainder possessed Indian-specific subclades of the Eurasian haplogroups [[Haplogroup M (mtDNA)|M]] and [[Haplogroup N (mtDNA)|N]], which points to recent admixture with autochthonous Indian groups.<ref name="Shah"/>

===Autosomal DNA===
Narang et al. (2011) examined the [[Autosome|autosomal]] [[DNA]] of Siddis in India. According to the researchers, about 58% of the Siddis' ancestry is derived from Bantu peoples. The remainder is associated with local [[Indo-European languages|Indo-European]]-speaking North and Northwest Indian populations, due to recent admixture events.<ref name="Narang">{{cite journal|last=Narang|first=Ankita|title=Recent Admixture in an Indian Population of African Ancestry|journal=American Journal of Human Genetics|date=15 July 2011|volume=89|issue=1|pages=111–120|doi=10.1016/j.ajhg.2011.06.004|display-authors=etal|pmid=21737057|pmc=3135806}}</ref>

Similarly, Shah et al. (2011) observed that Siddis in Gujarat derive 66.90%-70.50% of their ancestry from Bantu forebears, while the Siddis in Karnataka possess 64.80%-74.40% such Southeast African ancestry. The remaining autosomal DNA components in the studied Siddi were mainly associated with local South Asian populations. According to the authors, gene flow between the Siddis' Bantu ancestors and local Indian populations was also largely unidirectional. They estimate this admixture episode's time of occurrence at within the past 200 years or eight generations.<ref name="Shah"/>

==Social status and rehabilitation==
Like Siddhi populations across the sub-continent, Siddhis in Karnataka also have remained isolated, and economically and socially neglected.<ref name="nearforgotten" />   In 1984, at the instance of the Secretary of the Rural Welfare Trust, Dandeli and few others, an "All-Karnataka Siddi Development Association" was formed to bring Siddhis together and work for their integrated development.  [[K. V. Subbanna]], the [[Ramon Magsaysay award|Magsaysay awardee]] also made some efforts in this direction with his [[Ninasam]].

On 8 January 2003, the Union government brought the Siddis under the [[Scheduled castes and scheduled tribes|list of Scheduled Tribes]] with a view to empowering them constitutionally.  Further, policies to provide homes for homeless Siddis, water facilities, education, employment opportunities, roads, electricity, mobile hospitals {{convert|2|acre|m2}} of land to each Siddi family and the right to collect forest products were also endorsed by parliament.  It is hoped that proper implementation of these policies would go a long way in helping the Siddhi community enhance their social and economic status.

Internationally too, awareness of sub-Saharan African diaspora in the east has been limited.<ref name="prof" />  In 2006, however, 'The African Diaspora in Asia' (TADIA), a [[UNESCO]] backed initiative<ref name="prof">{{cite web |url=http://www.deccanherald.com/Archives/jan132004/spt6.asp |title=Empowering the Siddi community|accessdate=2007-07-19|author=Beeranna Nayak Mogata|publisher=[[Deccan Herald]] |archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20070929125447/http://www.deccanherald.com/Archives/jan132004/spt6.asp <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archivedate = 2007-09-29}}</ref> has also increased interest in the rehabilitation of this tribe.  Headed by Prof Angenot of Brazil, it has become the academic link between the Siddis of Karnataka, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh and other research scholars.  It aims at involving academic research, promoting cultural exchanges and raising funds for education and employment generation programmes for the Siddis.

==Trivia==
* According to [[B. G. L. Swamy]], a renowned botanist, seeds of a huge tree, the ''[[Adansonia digitata]] Linn.'', which is native to Africa, were probably brought by the Siddhis.<ref name="book" />
* A popular Kannada film of the 70s, [[Bhootayyana Maga Ayyu]], has a Siddi playing the role of ''Siddi Byra'' in the movie.
* It has been reported that Siddis from Karnataka believe that [[Barack Obama]] shares their genepool and that they wanted to gift a bottle of honey to him on his visit to India in 2010<ref name="http://www.openthemagazine.com">[http://www.openthemagazine.com/shorts/smallworld/2010-10-30#1 Anil Budur Lulla, '' A Bottle of Honey for Our Brother Prez''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101031195611/http://www.openthemagazine.com/shorts/smallworld/2010-10-30 |date=2010-10-31 }}, Short Takes section, Open Magazine, 30 October 2010</ref>

==Notable people==
* [[Shantaram Siddi]], member of [[Karnataka Legislative Council]] (first man of African-origin to be a legislator in India)

* [[Prashanth Siddi]] is an Indian actor who works in Kannada-language films.

==See also==
* [[Siddi]]

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
* Sadiq Ali, Shanti. 1996. The African dispersal in the Deccan: from medieval to modern times. New Delhi: Orient Longman.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070929122614/http://www.deccanherald.com/archives/mar202005/n1.asp An article in the Deccan Herald]
* [http://www.deccanherald.com/Archives/jan132004/spt6.asp Empowering the Siddi community]
==External links==
* [https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702304636404577294730846658816 Karnataka's Indian-African Tribe]
* [http://hindujobs.com/thehindu/mp/2002/03/25/stories/2002032500770200.htm The Hindu : Fighting the formula]
* [http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/482277.cms A mention of Siddhi music in The Times of India]
* [http://www.rmaf.org.ph/Awardees/Biography/BiographySubbannaKV.htm Mention of Magsaysay Awardee K. V. Subbanna's work with Siddhis] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120205045626/http://www.rmaf.org.ph/Awardees/Biography/BiographySubbannaKV.htm |date=5 February 2012 }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070929130544/http://www.deccanherald.com/Archives/jan202004/spt9.asp Catering to the tribals - Deccan Herald]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20071001063316/http://www.hindu.com/fr/2006/03/17/stories/2006031702180300.htm The Hindu - Music : Evening of mystical melodies]

{{ Ethnic and social groups of Goa and Konkan}}

[[Category:African diaspora in India]]
[[Category:Karnataka society]]
[[Category:Muslim communities of Karnataka]]
[[Category:Social groups of Karnataka]]