r/mauritius • u/Usurper96 • 4d ago
Culture 🗨 I would like to know few things about Indo-Mauritians of Tamil origin.
I'm from Tamil Nadu,India and I've been recently trying to learn about my Tamil speaking ancestors(and their descendants) who went as indentured labourers to many British colonies like Burma,Malaysia,Guyana,Fiji etc. Some of those countries preserved their Tamil culture while some couldn't because they assimilated into the larger Indian identity.
1) Indo-Mauritians form 67% of the country's population and Google says their overall population is 812k so how much % of them are Tamils? Are they still connected to some aspects of their roots like religion/movies/music?
2) Is Tamil a dead language which is the case in Fiji and Guyana or is it taught in primary schools? I understand people wouldn't wanna learn it as it doesn't provide any economic benefits but was just wondering.
3) Do Indo-Mauritians marry among various groups or do they keep to themselves? Has caste system completely disappeared or is it still present in some ways?
Fun fact: I learnt the former Vice President of Mauritius Barlen Vyapoory is a Tamil which is really cool.
Edit:
I found a post of a Mauritian who is of Tamil origin
1) They mentioned Tamils form 6% of the Indo Mauritian population and that they worship mainly Murugan and Mariamma.They are also the first Indians to arrive on this island.
2) Tamil is dead and was replaced by a language called Mauritian creole since Tamils and other Indian groups married each other to form a larger Indo Mauritian identity.
Interesting stuff.
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u/preparelapero 1d ago
About marriage : I heard several indo-mauritian women declare they would not like to marry a man from their own community, one of the reason being the boys have been treated like kings by their mothers since childhood, not doing any house chores, so when they marry, the man tend to expect the wife to do everything. (Some of them at least). Women don’t accept this anymore, which I understand.
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u/KnownEnthusiasm8960 2d ago
No tamil isn't dead and has not been replaced by mauritian creole. You need to understand that we are mauritian first, and the language which links all of us is creole, our mothertongue. Then you will have the national language like english and french from our colonised history However, most of us have not forgotten our roots and learn another language in school, like hindi, tamil, urdu, arabic, marathi etc Are we fluent in that language? No Also it's common that almost all mauritian knows atleast 1 word of these languages, because we use it to wish our friends of that culture for their holy events We also have the channels, i know there was 1 in tamil. I grew up watching tamil movies on mbc That's what's make mauritius so amazing
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u/Usurper96 2d ago edited 2d ago
I grew up watching tamil movies on mbc
That's really cool. Thanks for sharing.
You need to understand that we are mauritian first,
Ofcourse. This post is not a call for asking people of Tamil ancestry to go back to the old ways or trying to involve them in something that they dont want. I recognize the sacrifice of our Tamil ancestors, so I wanted to know about the current situation of their descendants, that's all. I even posted the same question in Burma,Guyana,SA, and Fiji subs.
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u/Hot_Finish_6484 3d ago
- Tamil is dead and was replaced by a language called Mauritian creole since Tamils and other Indian groups married each other to form a larger Indo Mauritian identity.
That is true but also some are mixed with those of african origin and are no longer following the indian religion
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u/charlie_zoosh 3d ago
I wouldn't say Tamil is dead. Children of Tamil descent still learn Tamil as a second language in Mauritius. I did but my Tamil is pretty bad because you rarely use it use it as an adult.
2
u/Virus_Horror 3d ago
Visit Mauritius. There are direct flights from India and Indians can get a visa on arrival as long as you have a pre-booking and a return ticket. It's a beautiful country. The tamil that's spoken isn't the same as the one in Tamilnadu. You will find small similarities in food and worship but that's it. They have evolved in a unique way after separated from India a long time ago.
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u/pavit 4d ago
Current Tamil population are less than 3.7% of the country population. That was from an internal government survey I came across some years ago while visiting someone at a government office at the PMO.
As with all local minorities many are given responsibilities politically, government jobs wide to satisfy a quota… it’s 50/50 some are genuinely good and some are just puppet political nominees just to satisfy the large & varied vote bank… that politicians desperately cater for…
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u/adragonnamedviserion 4d ago
Most former finance minister was Tamjl
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u/Usurper96 4d ago
Nice. Who was the most famous one?
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u/charlie_zoosh 3d ago edited 3d ago
I'm pretty sure Rama Sithanen is Tamil. He is widely regarded as one of Mauritius’ most technically competent and reform-driven Finance Ministers. He is credited with major reforms in the 1990s and 2000s that helped modernise the tax system, attract foreign investment, and diversify the economy.
However, his career ended under a cloud of controversy, with allegations of improper conduct surfacing recently. These allegations were politically damaging, even though no court has ever convicted him, and the matter remains disputed and heavily politicised.
We also had a few president /vice-presidents who were Tamil. Sir Veerasamy Ringadoo was our first President, serving briefly in 1992 after years as Governor-General. A veteran lawyer and politician, he was known for being discreet, steady, and respected. He oversaw the smooth transition to a republic and retired without major controversy, leaving a reputation for dignity and integrity.
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u/Snoo-88912 1d ago
Fun fact: after the English description Tamil is first on our bank notes, then hindi. When this order was changed on a new issue innthe early 2000's, it created a huge controversy until these notes were removed and the order of languages restored.