British Asian
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The term British Asian is used to denote a person of South Asian ancestry or origin, who was born in or is an immigrant to the United Kingdom.
Usage
In British English the word "Asian" usually refers to those of South Asian ancestry; those of East Asian origin such as Chinese or Japanese are usually not included in the term; this is reflected in the "ethnic group" section of UK census forms and other government paperwork, which treat "Asian" and "Chinese" as separate.
Although increasingly common, the term is, like "Black Briton", somewhat contested. Some consider the term "Asian" somewhat vague given the wide variety of religious, ethnic, and racial groups in both South Asia and Britain, although others see a certain degree of unity in the South Asian diaspora.
Demographics
According to the 2001 Census there are 2.33 million British Asians, making up 4% of the population of the United Kingdom. This further subdivides to 1.05 million of Indian origin (1.8% of the population), 747,000 of Pakistani origin (1.3%), 283,000 of Bangladeshi origin (0.5%), and 247,000 from other Asian origins (0.4%). British Asians make up 50.2% of the UK's non-white population. British Indians tend to be religiously diverse, with 45% Hindu, 29% Sikh, and 13% per cent Muslim, while their counterparts of Pakistani and Bangladeshi origin are much more religiously homogenous, with Muslims accounting for 92% of each group.
History of Asians in the UK
Although some Asians had settled in the United Kingdom, either temporarily or permanently, before the Second World War (including, most notably, the young Mohandas Gandhi), most Asian immigration to the UK took place in the 1950s and 1960s from British Commonwealth countries such as India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, at the same time as immigrants from former Caribbean colonies were also moving to Britain.
Although this immigration was continuous three distinct phases can be identified:
- Manual workers were recruited to fulfil the labour shortage that resulted from World War II. These included Anglo-Indians who were recruited to work on the railways as they had done in India.
- Medical staff, particularly doctors from the Punjab, were recruited for the newly formed National Health Service. These people were targeted because they spoke English and held qualifications which were recognized in the UK.
- During the 1970's large numbers of East African Asians, who already held British passports, entered the UK after they were forced to leave Kenya and Uganda. Many of these people had been store-keepers in Africa and opened shops when they arrived in the UK, thereby reviving the traditional British corner-shop which until that point had been in decline.
The Commonwealth Immigrants Act 1962 and Immigration Act 1971 largely restricted any further primary immigration, although family members of already-settled migrants were still allowed. In addition, much of the subsequent growth in the British Asian community has come from the births of second- and third-generation Asian Britons.
Asian communities
Although there are Asian communities all over the UK, towns and cities with particularly significant Asian populations include:
- Birmingham
- Bradford
- Glasgow (especially Pollok)
- Leicester
- London (especially Tower Hamlets, Newham, Brent and Southall)
- Manchester
The British Asian influence on popular culture
The biggest influence of British Asians on popular culture has probably been the Indian restaurant, though the majority of these are run by people of Bangladeshi origin. A recent poll found that chicken tikka masala has surpassed fish and chips in terms of popularity as the national dish. Chicken tikka masala, like the popular balti, is itself a British Asian invention. These dishes were unknown in the Indian sub-continent until requests from British holiday-makers led to their introduction.
Since the late 1990s, British Asian performers and writers have achieved significant mainstream cultural success. The TV show The Kumars at No. 42 and the film Bend It Like Beckham have both managed to attract large, multi-ethnic audiences. The comedians Sanjeev Bhaskar, Meera Syal and Shazia Mirza are all well-recognised figures in British popular culture, while the actress Parminder Nagra has a prominent role in the US show ER. The broadcaster Krishnan Guru-Murthy, meanwhile, presents the respected Channel 4 News. See List of British Asian people.
