Africans in India: From Slaves to Generals and Rulers
Following free traders and artisans who migrated to and traded with India, Sri Lanka and Malaysia in the fist centuries of the common era; from the 1300s onward, East Africans from Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, Tanzania and adjacent areas entered the Indian subcontinent, mostly through the slave trade. Others came as soldiers and sailors. They were known as Sidis and Habshis. From Bengal in the northeast to Gujarat in the west and to the Deccan in Central India, they asserted themselves in the country of their enslavement.
Some Africans carved out princely states — Janjira and Sachin — complete with their own coats of arms, armies, mints, and stamps. They fiercely defended them from powerful enemies well into the 20th century when, with another 600 princely states, they were integrated into the Indian State.
Today, about 50,000 to 70,000 Sidis are scattered across India. Some Sidi settlements, organized as separate communities, have the status of "scheduled tribes," which offers some affirmative action programs. Depending on where they live, Sidis speak Hindi, Urdu, Gujarati, Konkani, or other local languages. Education, the need to maintain their distinctive culture and have a strong leadership are some of the priorities expressed by various Sidi groups.