British Sikhs number over 520,000 people and account for 0.88% of
England and Wales
England and Wales () is one of the three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. The substantive law of the jurisdiction is En ...
's population
as of 2021, forming the United Kingdom's
fourth-largest religious group. According to the
2021 United Kingdom census
The decennial 2021 censuses of England and Wales and of Northern Ireland took place on 21 March 2021, and the census of Scotland took place on 20 March 2022. The censuses were administered by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) in England a ...
, Sikhs in England & Wales numbered 524,140, with 520,092 in England and 4,048 in Wales. The largest Sikh populations in the U.K. are in the
West Midlands and
Greater London
Greater may refer to:
*Greatness
Greatness is a concept of a state of superiority affecting a person or object in a particular place or area. Greatness can also be attributed to individuals who possess a natural ability to be better than al ...
.
History
Sikhs and Britain have a long and storied history. Decades before the last Sikh King,
Duleep Singh
Maharaja Sir Duleep Singh, GCSI (4 September 1838 – 22 October 1893), or Sir Dalip Singh, and later in life nicknamed the "Black Prince of Perthshire", was the last ''Maharaja'' of the Sikh Empire. He was Maharaja Ranjit Singh's youngest son, ...
, stepped onto British soil in the middle of the 19th century, there had been Anglo-Sikh contact as far back as the 1800s in the Punjab with his father Maharaja Ranjit Singh. Since then, even though this relationship has changed in nature many times, both communities have left a strong permanent influence on each other. For instance, in such varied parts of British society as food, language, political systems, soldiering and of course cricket, the British-Sikh relationship has given rise to many new facets of modern British and Indian society.
The first permanent Sikh in Britain was
Maharaja Duleep Singh
Maharaja Sir Duleep Singh, GCSI (4 September 1838 – 22 October 1893), or Sir Dalip Singh, and later in life nicknamed the "Black Prince of Perthshire", was the last ''Maharaja'' of the Sikh Empire. He was Maharaja Ranjit Singh's youngest son, ...
(1838-1893), the last Sikh Emperor of the Imperial Sukerchakia Dynasty, from 1844 to 1849. He arrived in England in the year 1854, having been exiled from his kingdom by the East India Company. His mother,
Empress Jind Kaur (1817-1863), arrived in 1860 at Kensington in Victorian London and settled permanently, after being at war with Britain for an extended period of time until the fall of the Sikh Dynasty in 1849. She was given permission by Parliament to settle on English soil.
The First Sikh Settlers started migrating from the Punjab in 1911, when the first Sikh Gurdwara was opened in London. During the start of the First and Second World Wars respectively, there was already an established Sikh presence in many parts of England. Britain’s first south Asian immigrants after the war were Pakistani Muslims and Punjabi Sikhs from the Jullundur Doab. They tended to settle in midland towns such as Birmingham and Leeds, as well as in the London borough of Southall.
In 2019,
Seema Malhotra MP set up the first debate in Parliament to discuss the positive contribution of the Sikh community over the last 70 years.
Despite the existence of advocacy organisations like the British Sikh Report, there is very little systematic research on British Sikhs. The only major academic work that is comprehensive, systematic and a through history of the community is by Gurharpal Singh and Darshan S. Tatla, ''Sikhs in Britain: The Making of a Community'' (Zed, 2006). This work needs updating in light of the impending Census 2021 to reflect changes in the community's profile.
Demography
Politics
Incumbent Sikh
Lords
Lords may refer to:
* The plural of Lord
Places
*Lords Creek, a stream in New Hanover County, North Carolina
*Lord's, English Cricket Ground and home of Marylebone Cricket Club and Middlesex County Cricket Club
People
*Traci Lords (born 19 ...
include four
Conservatives (
Baron Rana,
Baroness Verma
Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knigh ...
,
Baron Suri, and
Baron Ranger), one
crossbencher
A crossbencher is an independent or minor party member of some legislatures, such as the British House of Lords and the Parliament of Australia. They take their name from the crossbenches, between and perpendicular to the government and oppositi ...
(
Baron Singh of Wimbledon), and one Labour member (
Baron Sahota). Both incumbent Sikh
MPs are from the
Labour party (
Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Punjabi: ਤਨਮਨਜੀਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਧੇਸੀ, born 17 August 1978) is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Slough since 2017. He was appointed Shadow Minister for ...
and
Preet Gill). The first Sikh MP was
Piara Singh Khabra and the first Sikh Lord was
Baron King of West Bromwich.
Education
65% percent of British Sikhs have a
graduate level qualification or above. Sikhs in the 20 - 34 age group have the highest level of graduates (55%) within the Sikh community. The highest level of postgraduate qualifications of
Master’s degrees (22%) is in the 35 - 49 age group. Eight percent of Sikhs aged 65 and over
have a
PhD PHD or PhD may refer to:
* Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification
Entertainment
* '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series
* '' Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic
* Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group
** Ph.D. (Ph.D. al ...
. The split of formal education between women and men is roughly equal, with slightly more women holding a university degree or equivalent (48% of women, 42% of men).
Employment
The most popular employment sectors for British Sikhs include:
Healthcare
Health care or healthcare is the improvement of health via the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in people. Health care is delivered by health pro ...
(10%),
IT and Technology (8%),
Teaching and Education (9%),
Accountancy
Accounting, also known as accountancy, is the measurement, processing, and communication of financial and non financial information about economic entities such as businesses and corporations. Accounting, which has been called the "langua ...
and
Financial Management (7%), indicating that Sikhs tend to favour professional and technical employment sectors over others. Healthcare is a popular sector for all age groups. Teaching and Education is more common in the 35 - 49 and the 50 - 64 age groups than others, whereas accountancy and financial management is more popular with the 20 - 34 age group (9%) compared with 6% respectively for both the 35 - 49 and the 50 - 64 age groups. The top career choices for Sikh women are Healthcare (14%) and Teaching and Education (15%). Healthcare is also a joint second most popular choice for Sikh men along with Accountancy and Financial Management, the most popular sector being IT and Technology (13%).
Wealth
Home ownership
Home ownership is very high amongst British Sikhs with 87% of households owning at least a portion of their home. Thirty percent of British Sikh households own their homes outright and only 9% rent their properties. Only 1% of British Sikhs claim
Housing Benefit
Housing Benefit is a means-tested social security benefit in the United Kingdom that is intended to help meet housing costs for rented accommodation. It is the second biggest item in the Department for Work and Pensions' budget after the state ...
. This represents the highest level of private home ownership rate over any other community in the UK. In addition, half of all British Sikh families (49%) own more than one property in the UK, with a similar number (50%) owning at least one property in India, apparently indicating that property ownership is used as a top means of building assets for the future. 6% of British Sikhs own property elsewhere in Europe.
Income
Relative to the national average income at approximately £40,000 before tax (according to the ''British Sikh Report''), it found that Sikh households tend to be affluent. Two in every three British Sikh households (66%) have pre-tax incomes in excess of £40,000, and over a third (34%) have an income in excess of £80,000, giving a value for the Sikh Pound of 7.63 billion.
However this data appears to be contradicted by research carried out by the ''
Joseph Rowntree Foundation
The Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) is a charity that conducts and funds research aimed at solving poverty in the UK. JRF's stated aim is to "inspire action and change that will create a prosperous UK without poverty."
Originally called the ...
'', which actually states Sikhs have the second highest poverty rate in the UK, with 27% of British Sikhs living below the poverty line; this is in comparison to 18% of the population as a whole.
About one in three British Sikh families (34%) own a business in the UK.
Charitable giving and volunteering
Performing Seva (selfless service) is a basic tenet of Sikhism, and Sikhs are also expected to share at least 10 per cent their earnings with those less fortunate and for good causes (Dasvandh).
Sixty-four percent of British Sikhs engage in some volunteering work, and 40% give between one and five hours per week on voluntary activities, including
Seva at their
Gurdwara, whilst more than 2% spend over 25 hours on such activities, spending about on average 200 hours per year on voluntary activities. Ninety-three percent claim to donate some money to charity every month, with 50% donating between £1 and £20 every month, and 7% donating more than £100 per month. It is estimated that Sikhs in Britain donate around £380 per year to charity on average. Taken as a whole, Sikhs in the UK are estimated to donate about £125 million to charity per annum and spend over 65 million hours each year on voluntary activities.
Care of the elderly
Sikhs prefer to live in extended family households as they grow older - 61% of males and 52% of females. The second highest preference is in their own home (44% males and 41% females) and the third preference is in a
retirement village
A retirement community is a residential community or housing complex designed for older adults who are generally able to care for themselves; however, assistance from home care agencies is allowed in some communities, and activities and socializ ...
(31% females and 24% males).
Geographical distribution
British Sikhs have been praised as an example of positive cultural integration in the United Kingdom, many having achieved success due to a strong cultural work ethic combined with an emphasis on the importance of the family.
According to the 2017 British Sikh Report which surveys the community in the UK, 71% were born in England, followed by 15% in India, 8% in East Africa, 2% in Scotland, and 1% in Afghanistan.
According to the
2021 United Kingdom census
The decennial 2021 censuses of England and Wales and of Northern Ireland took place on 21 March 2021, and the census of Scotland took place on 20 March 2022. The censuses were administered by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) in England a ...
, Sikhs in England & Wales enumerated 524,140, or 0.9% of the population
West Midlands
West Midlands has the highest Sikh population and Sikh proportion of any English region, with 172,398 Sikhs making up 2.9% of the region's population at the 2021 census. The five West Midlands local authorities with the highest Sikh population are
Sandwell
Sandwell is a metropolitan borough of the West Midlands county in England. The borough is named after the Sandwell Priory, and spans a densely populated part of the West Midlands conurbation. According to Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council ...
(39,252),
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...
(33,126),
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunians ...
(31,769),
Coventry
Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed b ...
(17,297), and
Walsall
Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands County, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east of Wolverhampton and from Lichfield.
Walsall is th ...
(17,148). The five West Midlands local authorities with the highest Sikh proportion are
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunians ...
(12.0%),
Sandwell
Sandwell is a metropolitan borough of the West Midlands county in England. The borough is named after the Sandwell Priory, and spans a densely populated part of the West Midlands conurbation. According to Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council ...
(11.5%),
Walsall
Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands County, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east of Wolverhampton and from Lichfield.
Walsall is th ...
(6.0%),
Coventry
Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed b ...
(5.0%), and
Warwick
Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon, Warwickshire, River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined wit ...
(4.2%). The
Black Country
The Black Country is an area of the West Midlands county, England covering most of the Metropolitan Boroughs of Dudley, Sandwell and Walsall. Dudley and Tipton are generally considered to be the centre. It became industrialised during its ...
is home to 93,485 Sikhs and is 7.7% Sikh.
Sandwell
Sandwell
Sandwell is a metropolitan borough of the West Midlands county in England. The borough is named after the Sandwell Priory, and spans a densely populated part of the West Midlands conurbation. According to Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council ...
has a large Sikh community numbering 39,252 at the 2021 census (the largest of any local authority in England) and making up 11.5% of the area's population (the second-largest proportion of any local authority in England). The majority live in
West Bromwich
West Bromwich ( ) is a market town in the borough of Sandwell, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is north-west of Birmingham. West Bromwich is part of the area ...
and
Smethwick
Smethwick () is an industrial town in Sandwell, West Midlands, England. It lies west of Birmingham city centre. Historically it was in Staffordshire.
In 2019, the ward of Smethwick had an estimated population of 15,246, while the wider b ...
. Sandwell’s first
gurdwara was built in
Smethwick
Smethwick () is an industrial town in Sandwell, West Midlands, England. It lies west of Birmingham city centre. Historically it was in Staffordshire.
In 2019, the ward of Smethwick had an estimated population of 15,246, while the wider b ...
, and is the largest outside of London.
Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...
has a large Sikh community numbering 33,126 at the 2021 census (the second-largest of any local authority in England) and making up 2.9% of the city's population. In 2011, Sikhs were the second-largest religious group in
Handsworth, where they numbered 7,105 and made up 25.6% of the population.
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunians ...
has a large Sikh community numbering 31,769 at the 2021 census (the third-largest of any local authority in England) and making up 12.0% of the city's population (the largest proportion of any local authority in England).
Blakenhall
Blakenhall is a suburb and ward in Wolverhampton, England.
Toponymy and history
Blakenhall's name, according to toponymists comes from the Old English 'blæc', meaning 'black' or dark coloured, & 'halh' meaning 'nook' or 'corner'. It was dev ...
, in Wolverhampton, was home to 4,384 Sikhs in 2011 and had a 36.5% Sikh plurality.
London
With 144,543 Sikhs living in London at the 2021 census (1.6% of
London's population), the area is home to the second-largest Sikh community in the UK. The five
London boroughs
The London boroughs are the 32 local authority districts that together with the City of London make up the administrative area of Greater London; each is governed by a London borough council. The present London boroughs were all created at t ...
with the highest Sikh population are
Ealing
Ealing () is a district in West London, England, west of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Ealing. Ealing is the administrative centre of the borough and is identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Plan.
Ealing was his ...
(28,491),
Hillingdon
Hillingdon is an area of Uxbridge within the London Borough of Hillingdon, centred 14.2 miles (22.8 km) west of Charing Cross. It was an ancient parish in Middlesex that included the market town of Uxbridge. During the 1920s the civ ...
(26,339),
Hounslow
Hounslow () is a large suburban district of West London, west-southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hounslow, and is identified in the London Plan as one of the 12 metropolitan centres in ...
(24,677),
Redbridge (17,622), and
Newham
The London Borough of Newham is a London borough created in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963. It covers an area previously administered by the Essex county boroughs of West Ham and East Ham, authorities that were both abolished by the ...
(5,638). The five London boroughs with the highest Sikh proportion are
Hillingdon
Hillingdon is an area of Uxbridge within the London Borough of Hillingdon, centred 14.2 miles (22.8 km) west of Charing Cross. It was an ancient parish in Middlesex that included the market town of Uxbridge. During the 1920s the civ ...
(8.6%),
Hounslow
Hounslow () is a large suburban district of West London, west-southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hounslow, and is identified in the London Plan as one of the 12 metropolitan centres in ...
(8.6%),
Ealing
Ealing () is a district in West London, England, west of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Ealing. Ealing is the administrative centre of the borough and is identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Plan.
Ealing was his ...
(7.8%),
Redbridge (5.7%), and
Bexley (2.1%).
Ealing
The area of
Southall
Southall () is a large suburban county of West London, England, part of the London Borough of Ealing and is one of its seven major towns. It is situated west of Charing Cross and had a population of 69,857 as of 2011. It is generally divided ...
in Ealing, also known as "Little Punjab", was home to 20,738 Sikhs at the 2011 census and had a 29.7% Sikh plurality.
Hounslow
Heston
Heston is a suburban area and part of the Hounslow district in the London Borough of Hounslow. The residential settlement covers a slightly smaller area than its predecessor farming village, 10.8 miles (17.4 km) west south-west of Charing ...
, in
Hounslow
Hounslow () is a large suburban district of West London, west-southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hounslow, and is identified in the London Plan as one of the 12 metropolitan centres in ...
, was home to 9,518 Sikhs in 2011 and had a 25.6% Sikh plurality.
South East
With 74,348 Sikhs living in the South East at the 2021 census (0.8% of the region's population), the area is home to the third-largest Sikh community in the UK. The five South East local authorities with the highest Sikh population are
Slough
Slough () is a town and unparished area in the unitary authority of the same name in Berkshire, England, bordering west London. It lies in the Thames Valley, west of central London and north-east of Reading, at the intersection of the ...
(17,985),
Gravesham
Gravesham ( ) is a local government district with borough status in north-west Kent, England. Its administrative centre and largest town is Gravesend, which was known as ''Gravesham'' in ancient times.
Gravesham was formed on 1 April 1974 ...
(8,560),
Medway
Medway is a unitary authority district and conurbation in Kent, South East England. It had a population of 278,016 in 2019. The unitary authority was formed in 1998 when Rochester-upon-Medway amalgamated with the Borough of Gillingham to ...
(4,363),
Southampton
Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
(4,192), and
Wokingham
Wokingham is a market town in Berkshire, England, west of London, southeast of Reading, north of Camberley and west of Bracknell.
History
Wokingham means 'Wocca's people's home'. Wocca was apparently a Saxon chieftain who may ...
(2,992). The five South East local authorities with the highest Sikh proportion are
Slough
Slough () is a town and unparished area in the unitary authority of the same name in Berkshire, England, bordering west London. It lies in the Thames Valley, west of central London and north-east of Reading, at the intersection of the ...
(11.3%),
Gravesham
Gravesham ( ) is a local government district with borough status in north-west Kent, England. Its administrative centre and largest town is Gravesend, which was known as ''Gravesham'' in ancient times.
Gravesham was formed on 1 April 1974 ...
(8.0%),
Windsor and Maidenhead (2.9%),
Spelthorne (2.5%), and
Southampton
Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
(1.7%).
East Midlands
With 53,950 Sikhs living in the East Midlands at the 2021 census (1.1% of the region's population), the area is home to the fourth-largest Sikh community in the UK. The five East Midlands local authorities with the highest Sikh population are
Leicester
Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands.
The city l ...
(16,451),
Derby
Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby g ...
(9,762),
Oadby and Wigston (4,342),
Nottingham
Nottingham ( , locally ) is a city and unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east of Sheffield and north-east of Birmingham. Nottingham has links to the legend of Robi ...
(4,110), and
Blaby
Blaby () is a large village in the Blaby District in central Leicestershire, England, some five miles south of Leicester city centre. At the time of the 2011 census, Blaby had a population of 6,194, a slight fall from 6,240 in 2001 figures). B ...
(2,927). The five East Midlands local authorities with the highest Sikh proportion are
Oadby and Wigston (7.5%),
Leicester
Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands.
The city l ...
(4.5%),
Derby
Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby g ...
(3.7%),
Blaby
Blaby () is a large village in the Blaby District in central Leicestershire, England, some five miles south of Leicester city centre. At the time of the 2011 census, Blaby had a population of 6,194, a slight fall from 6,240 in 2001 figures). B ...
(2.8%), and
South Derbyshire
South Derbyshire is a local government district in Derbyshire, England. The population of the local authority at the 2011 Census was 94,611. It contains a third of the National Forest, and the council offices are in Swadlincote. The district ...
(2.1%).
Festivals and community events
Some of the bigger festival celebrations within the British Sikh community include
Vaisakhi
Vaisakhi (Punjabi: ), also pronounced Baisakhi, marks the first day of the month of Vaisakh and is traditionally celebrated annually on 13 April and sometimes 14 April as a celebration of spring harvest primarily in Northern India. Further, ot ...
which usually involves colourful street processions throughout the country and
Diwali
Diwali (), Dewali, Divali, or Deepavali ( IAST: ''dīpāvalī''), also known as the Festival of Lights, related to Jain Diwali, Bandi Chhor Divas, Tihar, Swanti, Sohrai, and Bandna, is a religious celebration in Indian religions. It is ...
. Southall hosts one of the largest Vaisakhi street processions in Europe. Since 2009, both Vaisakhi and Diwali have been celebrated every year at
10 Downing Street
10 Downing Street in London, also known colloquially in the United Kingdom as Number 10, is the official residence and executive office of the first lord of the treasury, usually, by convention, the prime minister of the United Kingdom. Along w ...
, the residence of the British Prime Minister.
Exemptions in British law for Sikhs
Sikhs are exempt from a few British laws on account of religious reasons. For example, men wearing a
Dastar (turban) may ride a motorcycle without a helmet, and are permitted to wear their
Kirpan
The kirpan is a curved, single-edged dagger or knife carried by Sikhs. Traditionally, it was a full-sized sword but modern Sikhs have reduced the length to that of a dagger or knife due to modern considerations based on societal and legal chang ...
as religious dress rather than offensive weapon in certain situations. In February 2010, Sir
Mota Singh
Sir Mota Singh, QC (26 July 1930 – 13 November 2016) was a British judge who was noted for being the United Kingdom's first Asian judge.
Early life
Singh was born in 1930 in Nairobi, Kenya.
Career
After a short stint as a clerk at the ...
, Britain's first Asian judge, criticised the banning of the Kirpan in public places such as schools. The tenth and final guru,
Guru Gobind Singh
Guru Gobind Singh (; 22 December 1666 – 7 October 1708), born Gobind Das or Gobind Rai the tenth Sikh Guru, a spiritual master, warrior, poet and philosopher. When his father, Guru Tegh Bahadur, was executed by Aurangzeb, Guru Gobind Sin ...
formally included the
Kirpan
The kirpan is a curved, single-edged dagger or knife carried by Sikhs. Traditionally, it was a full-sized sword but modern Sikhs have reduced the length to that of a dagger or knife due to modern considerations based on societal and legal chang ...
as a mandatory article of faith for all baptised Sikhs,
making it a duty for Sikhs to be able to defend the needy, suppressed ones, to defend righteousness and the freedom of expression.
British converts to Sikhism
*
Alexandra Aitken - actress and daughter of former British cabinet minister Jonathan Aitken
*
Vic Briggs - former
blues
Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the ...
musician, now Vikram Singh Khalsa; became the first non-subcontinental to perform
kirtan
Kirtana ( sa, कीर्तन; ), also rendered as Kirtan, is a Sanskrit word that means "narrating, reciting, telling, describing" of an idea or story, specifically in Indian religions. It also refers to a genre of religious performance art ...
at
Harimandir Sahib
*
Max Arthur Macauliffe (1841–1913) - senior administrator of the
British Raj
The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent;
*
* it is also called Crown rule in India,
*
*
*
*
or Direct rule in India,
* Quote: "Mill, who was him ...
who was posted in the Punjab; prolific scholar and author; converted to Sikhism in the 1860s
Discrimination
In an online survey of 650 Sikhs in the UK, three-quarters of them said they had experienced racism. In spite of this, 95% said they are proud of being born or living in Britain. 43% of the women surveyed said they had experienced discrimination on the basis of gender, and 71% of those had also experienced it within their extended family.
Influential British Sikh organisations
The Gurdwara remains the focal point of the Sikh community. There are also now a variety of notable organisations which have been setup by Sikhs to support the community:
*
British Sikh Report
*
Basics of Sikhi
*
Gurdwara Sahib Leamington and Warwick
The Gurdwara Sahib Leamington and Warwick is a Sikh gurdwara located on Tachbrook Drive, Warwick, England. It primarily serves the community around Leamington, Warwick and Kenilworth. It opened in 2009, and is the third largest purpose buil ...
*
Guru Nanak Nishkam Sevak Jatha
*
Gurdwara Sri Guru Singh Sabha
Gurdwara Sri Guru Singh Sabha Southall (SGSS) is a Sikh gurdwara situated on Guru Nanak Road and Park Avenue, Southall, in the London Borough of Ealing
The London Borough of Ealing () is a London borough in West London. It comprises seven ...
Southall
*
Guru Nanak Gurdwara Smethwick
*
Guru Nanak Darbar Gurdwara
The Guru Nanak Temple is a Sikh Gurdwara situated in the town of Gravesend, Kent. It is the largest Gurdwara in Europe and also one of the largest outside India.
The complex has 3 prayer rooms and 2 langar halls. There is a building used fo ...
*
Nishkam SWAT
*
Sangat TV
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Sikh Pioneers & Sikh Light Infantry Association UK
*
Sikh Channel
The Sikh Channel is a United Kingdom-based, free-to-air, Sikhi-focused satellite television channel. It broadcasts across Europe on satellite television, in Canada and is also streamed live on the internet. The Sikh Channel began to broadcast on ...
*
Sikh Federation (UK) The Sikh Federation (UK) describes itself as a non-governmental organisation that works with the main political parties to promote relevant Sikh issues. The organisation is a major pro-Khalistan organisation and supports Khalistani secessionist acti ...
*
The Sikh Awards
Controversies
Census data
In 2018, some Sikh organisations requested the ONS to include an ethnic
tick box
A checkbox (check box, tickbox, tick box) is a graphical widget that permits the user to make a binary choice, i.e. a choice between one of two possible mutually exclusive options. For example, the user may have to answer 'yes' (checked) or 'n ...
for Sikhs, creating an ongoing dispute between various Sikh organisations. The ONS rejected the request. The ONS rejected the demand in their published paper.
Inter-faith marriages
Holding an ''
Anand Karaj'' wedding ceremony between a Sikh and a non-Sikh has become a contentious issue. In 2016,
armed police arrested
scores of protesters at Gurdwara Sahib in Leamington Spa, which ''
The Telegraph
''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are popular names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include:
Australia
* ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaide, South Australia, publ ...
'' claims "has a history of tensions over mixed marriages".
Sikh Youth UK, who were behind the protest, blamed "a rogue Gurdwara committee creating discord".
One Sikh journalist called the issue a "deepening schism" while another expressed dismay at the protesters' use of masks, and the way their actions allowed the ''
kirpan
The kirpan is a curved, single-edged dagger or knife carried by Sikhs. Traditionally, it was a full-sized sword but modern Sikhs have reduced the length to that of a dagger or knife due to modern considerations based on societal and legal chang ...
'' (ceremonial dagger) to be seen as a bladed weapon rather than traditional dress, thus giving "the racists and the bigots justifications for their ignorant hatred". An investigation on
BBC Asian Network
BBC Asian Network is a British Asian radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station's target audience is people "with an interest in British Asian lifestyles", especially British Asians between the ages of 18 and 34. The station has ...
found that these disruptions over
interfaith marriage
Interfaith marriage, sometimes called a "mixed marriage", is marriage between spouses professing different religions. Although interfaith marriages are often established as civil marriages, in some instances they may be established as a religiou ...
had been going on for years.
Extremism
* In 2018, there were various violent incident at Gurdwaras involving Sikhs being attacked for supporting different views.
*In 2018, five Sikh homes were raided by
Anti-terror police. The reason for the arrests was questioned by
MP Preet Gill.
*In 2017, a Scottish Sikh named Jagtar Singh Johal was arrested in India for terrorism offences whilst wedding shopping. As of yet he has been held without charge.
*In 2016,an
interracial couple was terrorised for having a Sikh wedding by gangs of men.
*In 2015, BBC presenter
Bobby Friction was pressed by the
Sikh Federation to apologise for using the offensive term 'Sikh Taliban' on air.
*In 2015, a Sikh Lives Matter demonstration turned violent with at least one police officer injured.
* In 2014, a religious leader of a Sikh sect was attacked by an axe-wielding man. The attacker Harjit Singh Toor was jailed for 17 years.
* In 2012, the Indian general who led the raid on Sikhism's holiest shrine was attacked whilst walking with his wife in London by four men. The attackers were jailed in 2013.
*In 2011, a 21-year-old millionaire Sikh executive was murdered in revenge for allegedly seducing a woman. The student who lured him to her apartment and who was jailed for GBH was later released.
*In 2004 a play by
Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti
Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti (born Watford) is a British Sikh writer who has written extensively for stage, screen and radio. Her play '' Behzti'' (''Dishonour'') was cancelled by the Birmingham Rep after protests against the play by Sikhs turned violen ...
sparked controversy and its performances were cancelled after violent protests. The play included a scene set in a
gurdwara involving rape, physical abuse and murder. Sikhs protested its opening night at the
Birmingham Repertory Theatre.
Alleged grooming of Sikh girls by Muslim men
A BBC
''Inside Out (London)'' programme televised in September 2013 interviewed several young Sikh women who were allegedly
groomed and sexually abused by Muslim men, with one alleged ex-groomer even admitting that they specifically targeted Sikh girls. Bhai Mohan Singh, working for the Sikh Awareness Society (SAS), told the BBC he was investigating 19 alleged cases where Sikh girls were allegedly being groomed by older Muslim men, of which one ended with a successful conviction.
BBC ''Inside Out'' London, 02/09/2013: see from 24:10
In August 2013 four Muslims and two Hindus were convicted at Leicester Crown Court of paying a "vulnerable and damaged" 16-year-old Sikh girl for sex,
the investigation having been opened due to evidence Bhai Mohan Singh had presented to the police.
However, a report published the previous year by
Faith Matters
Faith, derived from Latin ''fides'' and Old French ''feid'', is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or In the context of religion, one can define faith as "belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion".
Religious people often ...
(which runs the
TELL MAMA
Tell MAMA (Measuring Anti-Muslim Attacks) is a national project which records and measures anti-Muslim incidents in the United Kingdom. It is modelled on the Jewish Community Security Trust (CST) and like the CST it also provides support for v ...
anti-Muslim violence helpline and works closely with the Jewish
Community Security Trust) claimed that the Sikh Awareness Society included radical anti-Muslim elements among its members;
Faith Matters furthermore alleged it was a matter of "common consensus" that the radical Sikhs said to have had secret meetings with the
English Defence League
The English Defence League (EDL) is a far-right, Islamophobic organisation in the United Kingdom. A social movement and pressure group that employs street demonstrations as its main tactic, the EDL presents itself as a single-issue movement ...
were members of the SAS.
The SAS denied allegations and distanced themselves from the organization,
a spokesperson telling
Hope not Hate: "We would have nothing to do with any racist or fascist group, certainly one that uses religion to divide people…I know nothing about this and no, we are not in any kind of talks and discussion with them".
''The Nihal Show'' on the
BBC Asian Network
BBC Asian Network is a British Asian radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station's target audience is people "with an interest in British Asian lifestyles", especially British Asians between the ages of 18 and 34. The station has ...
discussed the issue and debated the merits of the grooming claims in September 2013.
In 2018, a report by a Sikh activist organisation, ''Sikh Youth UK'', entitled “The Religiously Aggravated Sexual Exploitation of Young Sikh Women Across the UK" made allegations of similarities between the case of Sikh Women and the Rotherham child sexual exploitation scandal. However in 2019 this report was criticised by researchers and an official UK government report lead by two Sikh academics for false and misleading information.
[Jagbir Jhutti-Johal; Sunny Hundal (August 2019). ]
The changing nature of activism among Sikhs in the UK today
'. The Commission For Countering Extremism. University of Birmingham. p. 15.
WayBackMachine Link
'. Retrieved February 17th, 2020. It noted: ''"The RASE report lacks solid data, methodological transparency and rigour. It is filled instead with sweeping generalisations and poorly substantiated claims around the nature and scale of abuse of Sikh girls and causal factors driving it. It appealed heavily to historical tensions between Sikhs and Muslims and narratives of honour in a way that seemed designed to whip up fear and hate"''.
Allegations of forced conversions of Sikh girls to Islam
In 2007, a Sikh girl's family claimed that she had been
forcibly converted to Islam, and after being attacked by an armed gang, they received a police guard. In response to these news stories, an
open letter
An open letter is a letter that is intended to be read by a wide audience, or a letter intended for an individual, but that is nonetheless widely distributed intentionally.
Open letters usually take the form of a letter addressed to an indiv ...
to
Sir Ian Blair signed by ten academics argued that claims that Hindu and Sikh girls were being forcefully converted were "part of an arsenal of myths propagated by right-wing
Hindu supremacist organisations in India". The
Muslim Council of Britain issued a press release pointing out there was a lack of evidence of any forced conversions and suggested it was an underhand attempt to smear the British Muslim population.
An academic paper by Katy Sian published in the journal ''South Asian Popular Culture'' in 2011 explored the question of how "forced conversion narratives" arose around the
Sikh diaspora in the United Kingdom.
Sian, who reports that claims of conversion through courtship on campuses are widespread in the UK, says that rather than relying on actual evidence they primarily rest on the word of "a friend of a friend" or on personal
anecdote
An anecdote is "a story with a point", such as to communicate an abstract idea about a person, place, or thing through the concrete details of a short narrative or to characterize by delineating a specific quirk or trait. Occasionally humorous ...
. According to Sian, the narrative is similar to accusations of "
white slavery" lodged against the Jewish community and foreigners to the UK and the US, with the former having ties to
anti-semitism
Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism.
Antis ...
that mirror the
Islamophobia
Islamophobia is the fear of, hatred of, or prejudice against the religion of Islam or Muslims in general, especially when seen as a geopolitical force or a source of terrorism.
The scope and precise definition of the term ''Islamophobia'' ...
betrayed by the modern narrative. Sian expanded on these views in 2013's ''Mistaken Identities, Forced Conversions, and Postcolonial Formations''.
See also
*
List of British Sikhs
List of British Sikhs is a list of notable Sikhs from the United Kingdom.
Academia and education
* Harjinder Singh Dilgeer – National Professor of Sikh History. Member of SGPC Sikh History Research Board and author of 60 books on Sikhism.
* ...
*
Sikhism in England
English Sikhs number over 520,000 people and account for 0.92% of England's population in 2021, forming the country's fourth-largest religious group. In 2006 there were 352 gurdwaras in England. The largest Sikh populations in the U.K. are in t ...
*
Sikhism in Northern Ireland
*
Sikhism in Scotland
Sikhism in Scotland includes all aspects of Sikh life and Sikhism in Scotland. Sikhs have been present in Scotland for over a century, with the first documented Sikh, Maharaja Daleep Singh, arriving in Perthshire in 1855. The next wave of migra ...
*
Sikhism in Wales
*
British Indians
British Indians are citizens of the United Kingdom (UK) whose ancestral roots are from India. This includes people born in the UK who are of Indian origin as well as Indians who have migrated to the UK. Today, Indians comprise about 1.4 mil ...
*
British Punjabis
British Punjabis are citizens or residents of the United Kingdom whose heritage originates wholly or partly in the Punjab, a region in South Asia which is divided between India and Pakistan. Numbering 700,000 in 2006, Punjabis represent the l ...
*
British Sikh Report
*
Sikhism by country
Most of the 25 million followers of Sikhism, the world's fifth-largest religion, live in the northern Indian state of Punjab, the only Sikh-majority administrative division on Earth, but Sikh communities exist on every inhabited continent. Sizeab ...
*
Sikhism in Australia
Australian Sikhs number over 210,000 people and account for 0.8% of Australia's population as of 2021, forming the country's fifth-largest and fastest-growing religious group. The largest Sikh populations in Australia are found in Victoria, f ...
*
Sikhism in Canada
Canadian Sikhs number nearly 800,000 people and account for 2.1% of Canada's population as of 2021, forming the country's fourth-largest and fastest-growing religious group. The largest Sikh populations in Canada are found in Ontario, followed ...
*
Sikhism in the United States
American Sikhs number nearly 500,000 people and account for 0.1% of the United States population as of 2021, forming the country's seventh-largest religious group. The largest Sikh populations in the U.S. are found in California, especially in t ...
*
Sikhism in New Zealand
New Zealander Sikhs number over 40,000 people and account for 0.9% of New Zealand's population as of 2018, forming the country's fifth-largest and fastest-growing religious group.
Small numbers of Sikh immigrants from Punjab settled in New Zeal ...
References
Further reading
*''Sikhs in Britain: the making of a community '' (Zed, 2006) by Prof. Gurharpal Singh and Dr. Darshan Singh Tatla.
External links
Reassessing what we collect website – Sikh LondonHistory of Sikh London with objects and images
{{Europe topic, Sikhism in
Indian diaspora in the United Kingdom