Sejarah Awal Pulau Pinang

Muhammad Haji Salleh, Editor. Sejarah Awal Pulau Pinang. Penerbit Universiti Sains Malaysia, Pulau Pinang. 2008. ISBN 978-983-861-356-9. Printed by Sinaran Bros Sdn Bhd. [Malay text]

Font: ACaslon Regular

Distributors:
Koperasi Kedai Buku Universiti Sains Malaysia Bhd
MPH Distributors Sdn Bhd

Other books by the same author:
Syarahan Perdana: Muhammad Haji Salleh, 1989. Puitika Sastera Melayu: Suatu Pertimbangan, ISBN 967-942-157-0

Points to ponder in Sejarah Awal Pulau Pinang:

1. What ethnic groups existed in Malaya?
2. Who came to Malaya before Independence?

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Page 88, footnote 75

Terdapat juga pendatang dari India Utara yang disebut Benggali. [...] hampir semua kumpulan etnolinguistik dari India terdapat di Malaya. Antara kumpulan etnolinguistik India yang terdapat di Malaya pada tahun 1921 hingga 1957 ialah orang India Selatan (Tamil, Telugu, Malayali dan lain-lain), orang India Utara (Sikh, Punjabi, Pathan, Benggali, Gujarati, Mahratta, Sindhi, Rajput, Marwari dan Parsi) dan kumpulan orang India yang lain.

Pada awal abad ke-20, orang India di Pulau Pinang juga terdiri daripada dua kategori lain iaitu askar/sepoi yang dihantar untuk berkhidmat di Negeri-Negeri Selat dan banduan yang didatangkan dari Bangkahulu selepas Perjanjian Inggeris Belanda pada tahun 1824.

Askar dan banduan ini sudah pasti tidak terdiridaripada satu kumpulan etnolinguistik sahaja.

Kumpulan banduan ini juga mempercepatkan kadar pertumbuhan Jawi Peranakan apabila mereka mengambil keputusan menetap di Pulau Pinang selepas mendapat keampunan daripada kerajaan India.

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Analysis of the footnote above is given below.

Composition of Indians who came to Malaya. This composition is by etnolinguistic (ie by their spoken languages) and also for what they were hired in the British Army.

South Indians

Tamil - the founders of Masjid Kapitan Keling in Penang are forefathers of the Merican doctors
Telugu
Malayali
Other

North Indians

Sikh - non Muslim?
Punjabi - [Yasmin Begum Mokhtar Ahmad's ancestors]
Pathan - Sir Dr Kamil Ariff's ancestors
Benggali - Dr Mohamed Ibrahim Shaik Ismail Ballah's ancestors who arrived in Singapore
Gujarati
Mahratta
Sindhi - Dr Che Lah Md Joonos' ancestors in Butterworth who relocated to Kg Dodol, Jalan Perak
Rajput
Marwari
Parsi - non Muslim?

Soldiers (sepoy) - mixed etnolinguistic

Convicts - mixed etnolinguistic

1. Two other groups which are not mentioned are launderers (dhobi) and tailors (tukang jahit). The tailors served in the British Army and made uniforms. The other group washed dirty clothes and linen.
2. The sepoy category has sub-categories just like in the army today.
3. I will try and match the various etnolinguistic groups to the doctors' families but only for the ones I know and have been informed. You can read about them when the proposed book is published.
4. I was told that the Parsi group are non Muslim but are sun worshipers?  True? False?