Dougla people explained

Group:	Dougla people
Regions:	Caribbean (notably in Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Suriname, Jamaica, Guadeloupe, and Martinique) Diaspora in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and the Netherlands
Languages:	English, French, Dutch, English creoles, Sranan Tongo, Antillean French Creole, Caribbean Hindustani
Religions:	Predominantly: Minority:
Related Groups:	Afro-Caribbeans, Indo-Caribbeans

Dougla people (plural Douglas) are Caribbean people who are of mixed African and Indian descent. The word Dougla (also Dugla or Dogla) is used throughout the Dutch and English-speaking Caribbean. Afro-Indo people may also be another term used to describe them.

Definition

The word Dougla originated from dogala (दोगला), which is a Caribbean Hindustani word that literally means "two-necks" and may mean "many", "much" or "a mix".^[1] Its etymological roots are cognate with the Hindi "do" meaning "two" and "gala", which means "throat". Within the West Indies context, the word is used only for one type of mixed race people: Afro-Indians.^[2]

The 2012 Guyana census identified 29.25% of the population as Afro-Guyanese, 39.83% as Indo-Guyanese, and 19.88% as "mixed," recognized as mostly representing the offspring of the former two groups.^[3]

In the French West Indies (Guadeloupe, Martinique), the few Afro-Indian people used to be referred to as Batazendyen or Chapé-Kouli, while in Haiti they were called Marabou.

History

There are sporadic records of Indo-Euro interracial relationships, both consensual and nonconsensual, before any ethnic mixing of the African and Indian variety.^[4]

Other Indo-based types of mixed heritage (Indo-Chinese (Chindians), Indo-Latino/Hispanic (Tegli), Indo-English (Anglo-Indians), Indo-Portuguese (Luso-Indians), Indo-Irish (Irish Indians), Indo-Scottish (Scottish-Indians), Indo-Dutch, Indo-Arabs and Indo-Amerindian) tended to identify as one of the older, unmixed ethnic strains on the island: Afro, Indo, Amerindian or Euro or passing as one of them.^[5]

In Trinidad culture

In 1961, the calypsonian musician Mighty Dougla (born Cletus Ali) described the predicament of Douglas:^[6]

Notable Douglas

• Cletus Ali, Trinidadian musician, better known as Mighty Dougla
• Tatyana Ali, Indo-Trinidadian/Afro-Panamanian American actress
• Esther Anderson, actress (United Kingdom; born in Jamaica)^[7]
• Johnson Beharry, Grenadian British soldier in the British Army^[8]
• Melissa Bell, Jamaican-British singer and mother of Alexandra Burke
• Katharine Birbalsingh, teacher and education reformer
• Foxy Brown, rapper (United States; Trinidadian and Tobagonian background)^[9]
• Alexandra Burke, British-Jamaican singer and daughter of Melissa Bell
• Super Cat, Jamaican deejay^[10]
• Joseph Charles (born Serjad Makmadeen), founder of the Solo Beverage Company^[11]
• Sabrina Colie, actress (United States; born in Jamaica)
• Mervyn Dymally, Trinidadian-American politician^[12]
• Special Ed, rapper (United States; Jamaican background)
• Melanie Fiona, Canadian singer
• Marlene Malahoo Forte, politician (Jamaica)^[13]
• Amy Ashwood Garvey, activist (Jamaica)^{[14] [15]}
• Masaba Gupta, actress and fashion designer (Antiguan and Indian)
• Lisa Hanna, Miss World 1993, MP for Saint Ann South Eastern^[16]
• Kamala Harris, Vice-President of the United States (Jamaican and Indian)
• Maya Harris, lawyer and writer (Jamaican and Indian)
• Lester Holt, U.S. news anchor and journalist^{[17] [18]}
• Kenny J, calypsonian^[19]
• Diana King, singer (United States; born in Jamaica)^[20]
• Jeffery Kissoon, actor
• Vashtie Kola, music-video director
• Sonnet L'Abbé, Guyanese Canadian poet
• Rajendra Ramoon Maharaj, playwright
• Sir Trevor McDonald, Trinidadian British news anchor and journalist
• Nicki Minaj, singer, rapper (United States; born in Trinidad and Tobago)
• Nick Sagar, British actor and model
• Sean Sagar, British actor and model
• Nicole Narain, model and actress
• Rajee Narinesingh, LGBT activist (United States; Trinidadian and Tobagonian background)^[21]
• Furdjel Narsingh, footballer (Netherlands; Surinamese background)
• Luciano Narsingh, footballer (Netherlands; Surinamese background)
• Roxanne Persaud, politician (United States; born in Guyana)^{[22] [23] [24]}
• Thara Prashad, American singer and model^{[25] [26]}
• Mary Rambaran-Olm, literary scholar specializing in early medieval England from the fifth to eleventh centuries^[27]
• Gema Ramkeesoon, social worker and women's-rights activist (Trinidad and Tobago)^[28]
• Andre Rampersad, Trinidadian footballer
• Kenneth Salick, chutney soca singer^[29]
• Krishmar Santokie, cricketer
• Edward Seaga, banker, businessman, politician and former
• Abrahim Simmonds, youth advocate (Jamaica)
• Toni-Ann Singh, Miss World 2019 (Jamaica)
• XXXTentacion, rapper^[30]
• Justine Skye, entertainer (Jamaica)
• Joyce Vincent, British woman whose death went unnoticed for over two years (Grenadian of black and Indian ancestry)

See also

• Indo-African (disambiguation)
• Indo-Trinidadian and Tobagonian
• Marabou (ethnicity)

Further reading

• Barratt, Sue A, and Aleah N. Ranjitsingh. Dougla in the Twenty-First Century: Adding to the Mix. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 2021. . See also CUNY Asian and Asian American Research Institute author interview on 19 November 2021.

Notes and References

1. Book: Rice and Beans: A Unique Dish in a Hundred Places. Wilk. Richard. Barbosa. Livia. 2013-05-09. Berg. 9781847889058. en.
2. Book: Winer, Lise. Dictionary of the English/Creole of Trinidad & Tobago. McGill-Queen's University Press. Montreal. 2009. 978-0-7735-3406-3. 311.
3. 2012 Census Compendium 2: Computation Composition . Bureau of Statistics, Guyana . July 2016 . 2022-12-04 . 2021-01-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210105002255/https://statisticsguyana.gov.gy/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Final_2012_Census_Compendium2.pdf . dead .
4. Book: The Trinidad Dougla: Identity, Ethnicity and Lexical Choice. 9781443898997. Regis. Ferne Louanne. 17 August 2016. Cambridge Scholars.
5. Web site: Dougla dilemma. www.trinidadandtobagonews.com.
6. Khan . Aisha . 2007 . Mixing Matters: "Callaloo Nation" Revisited . Callaloo . 30 . 1 . 51–67 . 10.1353/cal.2007.0145 . 30135865 . 154502534 . 0161-2492 . JSTOR.
7. Web site: Batson-Savage. Tanya. 2013-07-01. Esther Anderson: "They said I'd snubbed Hollywood". 2021-06-21. Caribbean Beat Magazine. en-GB.
8. Web site: I wouldn't say I am lucky… Interview with Johnson Beharry, VC – The Best You Magazine. 17 May 2013. 11 November 2020.
9. Web site: Calloway. Sway. Sway Calloway. 2001-05-29. Foxy Brown – Outspoken (Part 4). dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20060502130142/http://www.mtv.com/bands/archive/f/fbrown01/index4.jhtml. 2006-05-02. 2006-05-09. MTV News.
10. Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2004) The Rough Guide to Reggae, Rough Guides,, p. 286
11. Web site: Mr. Solo: Serjad Makmadeen aka Joseph Charles . 14 June 2008 .
12. Web site: The Honorable Mervyn M. Dymally's Biography. 2020-02-26. The HistoryMakers. en.
13. Web site: 2018-01-13. Information director's criticisms of Indian descent conference don't represent gov't position. 2021-06-21. Stabroek News. en-US.
14. https://ufmrg.files.wordpress.com/2019/01/diversity_-difference-and-caribbean-feminism-feb_2007.pdf
15. Comparative studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East, Vols 17–8, Duke University Press, 1997, p. 124.
16. Web site: 'Seriously' Speaking: Will Lisa be the 'Last Woman Standing'? | Loop Jamaica .
17. https://www.today.com/video/lester-and-jenna-trace-their-jamaican-roots-44495427630 Today Show: "Lester and Jenna trace their Jamaican roots"
18. Web site: To Jamaica with Mom. Holt. Lester. 2007-05-11. allDAY. NBC News. 2009-03-25. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20090210170155/http://allday.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2007/05/11/189148.aspx. February 10, 2009.
19. Book: Regis, Ferne-Louanne. The Trinidad Dougla: identity, ethnicity and lexical choice. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. 2016. 978-1-4438-9899-7. Newcastle upon Tyne, UK. 34. 956991420.
20. Web site: Reggae Singer Diana King official Biography. Dance Hall Reggae World. 24 April 2017.
21. Rajee Narinesingh
22. Web site: Gala 2016. Indo-Caribbean Alliance, Inc.. 2019-12-01. 2020-08-11. https://web.archive.org/web/20200811122015/https://www.indocaribbean.org/gala-2016.html. dead.
23. Web site: Guyanese-born New York Assemblywoman, Roxanne Persaud, was elected to the New York State Senate. November 4, 2015.
24. News: New York's immigrant lawmakers make their mark. 2016-01-13. Times Union. 2018-09-30.
25. Web site: Thara Aims High: What can't she do?. Jennifer Bisram. MoraFire. Sep–Oct 2009. 2009-11-02.
26. http://aud.iamthemoon.com/index.php?element=features_gt&archive=232
27. News: Schuessler . Jennifer . 2022-05-07 . Medieval Scholars Spar on a Modern Battlefield: Twitter . en-US . The New York Times . 2022-05-09 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220508001955/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/06/arts/medieval-race-twitter.html . 2022-05-08 . 0362-4331.
28. https://ufmrg.files.wordpress.com/2019/01/diversity_-difference-and-caribbean-feminism-feb_2007.pdf
29. Jep Sting Radica with Rum and Roti: Trinidadian Social Dynamics in Chutney Music . Popular Music and Society . 2012 . 37 . 2 . 152–168 . Baksh . Darrell Gerohn . 10.1080/03007766.2012.737593 . 143840668 .
30. News: Sobat . Peter . XXXTENTACION CALLS OUT DRAKE IN HIS FIRST INTERVIEW AFTER JAIL . March 26, 2019 . blurredculture . https://web.archive.org/web/20190309232624/http://blurredculture.com/xxxtentacion-calls-out-drake-in-his-first-interview-after-jail/ . March 9, 2019 . live .