Synonyms
Surinam
Surinam, formerly known as Dutch Guyana, has been a Dutch colony until 1975. It is a tiny country on the northeastern part of South America. When the Dutch authorities abolished slavery in 1863, replacement of the slaves became necessary to keep the sugar, coffee, and cocoa estates running. In that regard about 34,000 Indians were brought to Surinam between 1873 and 1916 under the Indenture Labor Act. After the expiration of their contract, about one-third opted to return to India, whereas the remaining two-third settled in Surinam as they were offered a piece of land and some cash if they would stay in the colony. When indenture labor stopped in 1920, most of the Indians started small-scale enterprises in agriculture and animal husbandry. Since then this group has prospered and established its social, religious, political, and educational institutions [1].
Hindu Immigrants
The...
References
Ramsoedh H, Bloemberg L (1995) The instituteionalization of Hinduism in Surinam and Guyana. In: Rukmani TS (ed) Hindu diaspora. Global perspectives. University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam. pp 123–165
De Klerk CJM (1953) De immigratie der Hindostanen in Suriname. Urbi et Orbi, Amsterdam
De Klerk CJM (1951) Cultus en ritueel van het Orthodoxe Hindoeïsme in Suriname (“Cult and ritual of orthodox Hinduism in Surinam”). Urbi et Orbi, Amsterdam
Algoe K, Schalkwijk J (2016) Religion in suriname: demographic changes between 1971 and 2012. In: Menke J (ed) Mozaic of the surinamese population: censuses in demographical, economic and social perspective. http://www.igsr.sr/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/E-book-Mozaiek-van-het-Surinaamse-volk-25.10.16.pdf
Lynbakke B (2007) Contested equality: social relations between Indian and Surinamese Hindus in Amsterdam. In: Oonk G (ed) Global Indian diaspora: exploring trajectories of migration and theory. Amsterdam University Press, Amsterdam
Vertovec S (1994) ‘Official’ and ‘popular’ Hinduism in the Caribbean: historical and contemporary trends in Surinam, Trinidad and Guyana. Contrib Indian Sociol 28(1):123–147
van der Veer P, Vertovec S (1991) Brahmanism abroad: on Caribbean Hinduism as an ethnic religion. Ethnology 30(2):149–166
den Boer EP (2009) Kastenbewustzijn in Suriname. OSO Tijdschrift voor Surinamistiek 28(1):43–59
den Boer EP (2014) Hindu ritual food in Suriname: women as gatekeepers of Hindu identity? In: Beushausen W et al (eds) Caribbean food cultures. Culinary practices and consumption in the Caribbean and its diasporas. Transcript, Bielefeld, pp 257–277
Adhin JH (1956) Enige aspecten van het Hinduïsme. Vox Guyanae 2(1):41–48. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41851112
Arya U (1968) Ritual songs and folksongs of the Hindus of Surinam. Brill, Leiden
Bakker FL (1999) Hindoes in een Creoolse wereld: Impressies van het Surinaamse Hindoeïsme. Meinema, Zoetermeer
Hoefte R (1998) In place of slavery: social history of British Indian and Javanese laborers in Suriname. University Press of Florida, Gainesville
Sinha-Kerkhoff K, Bal E (2007) No ‘holy cows’ in Surinam: India, communal relations, identity politics, and the Hindostani diaspora in Surinam. SACS 1(2):17–35
Speckman JD (1965) Marriage and kinship among Indian in Surinam. Van Gorcum & Co, Assen
Strange, SE (2015) Hinduism in Suriname. Encyclopedia of Latin American religions. Springer Reference Live, pp 1–9
van der Burg C, van der Veer P (1986) Pandits, power and profits: religious organization and the construction of identity among the Surinamese Hindus. Ethn Racial Stud 9(4):514–528
Vertovec S (2000) The Hindu diaspora: comparative patterns. Routledge, London
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2018 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.
About this entry
Cite this entry
Mohkamsing, N. (2018). Hinduism in Surinam. In: Jain, P., Sherma, R., Khanna, M. (eds) Hinduism and Tribal Religions. Encyclopedia of Indian Religions. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1036-5_816-1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1036-5_816-1
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-024-1036-5
Online ISBN: 978-94-024-1036-5
eBook Packages: Springer Reference Religion and PhilosophyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Humanities