Dougla people (plural Douglas) are Caribbean people who are of mixed African and Indian descent. The word Dougla (also Dugla or Dogla) is used throughout the Dutch and English-speaking Caribbean. Afro-Indo people may also be another term used to describe them.
| Regions with significant populations | |
|---|---|
| Caribbean (notably in Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Suriname, Jamaica, Guadeloupe, and Martinique) Diaspora in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and the Netherlands | |
| Languages | |
| English, French, Dutch, English creoles, Sranan Tongo, Antillean French Creole, Caribbean Hindustani | |
| Religion | |
| Predominantly: Minority: | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Afro-Caribbeans, Indo-Caribbeans |
Definition
editThe word Dougla originated from dogala (दोगला), which is a Caribbean Hindustani word that literally means "two-necks" and may mean "many", "much" or "a mix".[1] Its etymological roots are cognate with the Hindi "do" meaning "two" and "gala", which means "throat". Within the West Indies context, the word is used only for one type of mixed race people: Afro-Indians.[2]
The 2012 Guyana census identified 29.25% of the population as Afro-Guyanese, 39.83% as Indo-Guyanese, and 19.88% as "mixed," recognized as mostly representing the offspring of the former two groups.[3]
In the French West Indies (Guadeloupe, Martinique), the few Afro-Indian people used to be referred to as Batazendyen or Chapé-Kouli, while in Haiti they were called Marabou.
History
editThere are sporadic records of Indo-Euro interracial relationships, both consensual and nonconsensual, before any ethnic mixing of the African and Indian variety.[4]
Other Indo-based types of mixed heritage (Indo-Chinese (Chindians), Indo-Latino/Hispanic (Tegli), Indo-English (Anglo-Indians), Indo-Portuguese (Luso-Indians), Indo-Irish (Irish Indians), Indo-Scottish (Scottish-Indians), Indo-Dutch, Indo-Arabs and Indo-Amerindian) tended to identify as one of the older, unmixed ethnic strains on the island: Afro, Indo, Amerindian or Euro or passing as one of them.[5]
In Trinidad culture
editIn 1961, the calypsonian musician Mighty Dougla (born Cletus Ali) described the predicament of Douglas:[6]
If they sending Indians to India,
And Africans back to Africa,
Well, somebody please just tell me,
Where they sending poor me,
I am neither one nor the other,
Six of one, half dozen of the other,
So if they sending all these people back home for true,
They got to split me in two— Split Me in Two
Notable Douglas
edit- Cletus Ali, Trinidadian musician, better known as Mighty Dougla
- Tatyana Ali, Indo-Trinidadian/Afro-Panamanian American actress
- Esther Anderson, actress (United Kingdom; born in Jamaica)[7]
- Nicole Beharie, actress
- Johnson Beharry, Grenadian British soldier in the British Army[8]
- Melissa Bell, Jamaican-British singer and mother of Alexandra Burke
- Katharine Birbalsingh, teacher and education reformer
- Foxy Brown, rapper (United States; Trinidadian and Tobagonian background)[9]
- Alexandra Burke, British-Jamaican singer and daughter of Melissa Bell
- Super Cat, Jamaican deejay[10]
- Joseph Charles (born Serjad Makmadeen), founder of the Solo Beverage Company[11]
- Tanya Chutkan, jurist and lawyer
- Sabrina Colie, actress (United States; born in Jamaica)[citation needed]
- Mervyn Dymally, Trinidadian-American politician[12]
- Special Ed, rapper (United States; Jamaican background)
- Indira Etwaroo, stage producer and director
- Melanie Fiona, Canadian singer
- Marlene Malahoo Forte, politician (Jamaica)[13]
- Amy Ashwood Garvey, activist (Jamaica)[14][15]
- Masaba Gupta, actress and fashion designer (Antiguan and Indian)
- Lisa Hanna, Miss World 1993, MP for Saint Ann South Eastern[16]
- Kamala Harris, Vice-President of the United States (Jamaican and Indian)
- Maya Harris, lawyer and writer (Jamaican and Indian)
- Lester Holt, U.S. news anchor and journalist[17][18]
- Kenny J, calypsonian[19]
- Diana King, singer (United States; born in Jamaica)[20]
- Jeffery Kissoon, actor
- Vashtie Kola, music-video director
- Sonnet L'Abbé, Guyanese Canadian poet
- Darryl Lachman, footballer (Netherlands; Curaçaoan and Surinamese background)
- Rajendra Ramoon Maharaj, playwright
- Sir Trevor McDonald, Trinidadian British news anchor and journalist
- Nicki Minaj, singer, rapper (United States; born in Trinidad and Tobago)
- Nicole Narain, model and actress
- Rajee Narinesingh, LGBT activist (United States; Trinidadian and Tobagonian background)[21]
- Furdjel Narsingh, footballer (Netherlands; Surinamese background)
- Luciano Narsingh, footballer (Netherlands; Surinamese background)
- Roxanne Persaud, politician (United States; born in Guyana)[22][23][24]
- Thara Prashad, American singer and model[25][26]
- Prince Rajcomar, footballer (Netherlands; Curaçaoan and Surinamese background)
- Mary Rambaran-Olm, literary scholar specializing in early medieval England from the fifth to eleventh centuries[27]
- Gema Ramkeesoon, social worker and women's-rights activist (Trinidad and Tobago)[28]
- Andre Rampersad, Trinidadian footballer
- Nick Sagar, British actor and model
- Sean Sagar, British actor and model
- Kenneth Salick, chutney soca singer[29]
- Krishmar Santokie, cricketer
- Edward Seaga, banker, businessman, politician and former
- Abrahim Simmonds, youth advocate (Jamaica)
- Toni-Ann Singh, Miss World 2019 (Jamaica)
- Justine Skye, entertainer (Jamaica)
- XXXTentacion, rapper[30]
- Joyce Vincent, British woman whose death went unnoticed for over two years (Grenadian of black and Indian ancestry)
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Wilk, Richard; Barbosa, Livia (2013-05-09). Rice and Beans: A Unique Dish in a Hundred Places. Berg. ISBN 9781847889058.
- ^ Winer, Lise (2009). Dictionary of the English/Creole of Trinidad & Tobago. Montreal: McGill-Queen's University Press. p. 311. ISBN 978-0-7735-3406-3.
- ^ Bureau of Statistics, Guyana (July 2016). 2012 Census Compendium 2: Computation Composition (PDF) (Report). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2021-01-05. Retrieved 2022-12-04.
- ^ Regis, Ferne Louanne (17 August 2016). The Trinidad Dougla: Identity, Ethnicity and Lexical Choice. Cambridge Scholars. ISBN 9781443898997.
- ^ "Dougla dilemma". www.trinidadandtobagonews.com.
- ^ Khan, Aisha (2007). "Mixing Matters: "Callaloo Nation" Revisited". Callaloo. 30 (1): 51–67. doi:10.1353/cal.2007.0145. ISSN 0161-2492. JSTOR 30135865. S2CID 154502534.
- ^ Batson-Savage, Tanya (2013-07-01). "Esther Anderson: "They said I'd snubbed Hollywood"". Caribbean Beat Magazine. Retrieved 2021-06-21.
- ^ "I wouldn't say I am lucky... Interview with Johnson Beharry, VC – The Best You Magazine". 17 May 2013. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
- ^ Calloway, Sway (2001-05-29). "Foxy Brown – Outspoken (Part 4)". MTV News. Archived from the original on 2006-05-02. Retrieved 2006-05-09.
- ^ Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2004) The Rough Guide to Reggae, Rough Guides, ISBN 1-84353-329-4, p. 286
- ^ "Mr. Solo: Serjad Makmadeen aka Joseph Charles". 14 June 2008.
- ^ "The Honorable Mervyn M. Dymally's Biography". The HistoryMakers. Retrieved 2020-02-26.
- ^ "Information director's criticisms of Indian descent conference don't represent gov't position". Stabroek News. 2018-01-13. Retrieved 2021-06-21.
- ^ https://ufmrg.files.wordpress.com/2019/01/diversity_-difference-and-caribbean-feminism-feb_2007.pdf [bare URL PDF]
- ^ Comparative studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East, Vols 17–8, Duke University Press, 1997, p. 124.
- ^ "'Seriously' Speaking: Will Lisa be the 'Last Woman Standing'? | Loop Jamaica".
- ^ Today Show: "Lester and Jenna trace their Jamaican roots" Aired on September 9, 2012 Archived September 13, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Holt, Lester (2007-05-11). "To Jamaica with Mom". allDAY. NBC News. Archived from the original on February 10, 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-25.
- ^ Regis, Ferne-Louanne (2016). The Trinidad Dougla: identity, ethnicity and lexical choice. Newcastle upon Tyne, UK: Cambridge Scholars Publishing. p. 34. ISBN 978-1-4438-9899-7. OCLC 956991420.
- ^ "Reggae Singer Diana King official Biography". Dance Hall Reggae World. Retrieved 24 April 2017.
- ^ Rajee Narinesingh
- ^ "Gala 2016". Indo-Caribbean Alliance, Inc. Archived from the original on 2020-08-11. Retrieved 2019-12-01.
- ^ "Guyanese-born New York Assemblywoman, Roxanne Persaud, was elected to the New York State Senate". November 4, 2015.
- ^ "New York's immigrant lawmakers make their mark". Times Union. 2016-01-13. Retrieved 2018-09-30.
- ^ Jennifer Bisram (Sep–Oct 2009). "Thara Aims High: What can't she do?". MoraFire. Retrieved 2009-11-02.[permanent dead link]
- ^ [1] [dead link]
- ^ Schuessler, Jennifer (2022-05-07). "Medieval Scholars Spar on a Modern Battlefield: Twitter". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2022-05-08. Retrieved 2022-05-09.
- ^ https://ufmrg.files.wordpress.com/2019/01/diversity_-difference-and-caribbean-feminism-feb_2007.pdf [bare URL PDF]
- ^ Baksh, Darrell Gerohn (2012). "Jep Sting Radica with Rum and Roti: Trinidadian Social Dynamics in Chutney Music". Popular Music and Society. 37 (2): 152–168. doi:10.1080/03007766.2012.737593. S2CID 143840668.
- ^ Sobat, Peter. "XXXTENTACION CALLS OUT DRAKE IN HIS FIRST INTERVIEW AFTER JAIL". blurredculture. Archived from the original on March 9, 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
Further reading
edit- Barratt, Sue A, and Aleah N. Ranjitsingh. Dougla in the Twenty-First Century: Adding to the Mix. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 2021. ISBN 9781496833709. See also CUNY Asian and Asian American Research Institute author interview on 19 November 2021.