Evolution of Writing in English By and About East Indians of Guyana 1838-2018

An appreciable number of indentured Indians shipped to British West Indian plantations were literate and brought a number of sacred books (Ramanayas, Mahabaratas, Vedas, Qur'ans) among their paltry possessions. A few were Haffizs who could recite the Holy Qur'an from memory. They were each versed in many dialects. These men kept the literate culture alive among East Indians in those oppressive times. Yet, a hundred years after the cessation of the indentureship system no listing exists in the Caribbean region of the writings that have evolved by East Indians since their dislodgement from India; no comprehensive listing exists that records the distinctive aesthetics, the substantial scholarly and creative writings, and the intriguing artistic works of the cultural block loosely referred to as the East Indians of Guyana. This Bibliography attempts to provide a record of the evolution of such writings in English produced by those who chose to remain, as settlers in what was then British Guiana, and their descendants, up to the present generation.