The Indo-Surinamese make up 27% of the population of Suriname. They are the largest ethnicity within Suriname.

This post is about the Indo-Surinamese culture. I will cover topics such as clothing, music and food. Be sure to check out my previous post about the Creoles of Suriname; see footnote

Who are the Indo-Surinamese? According to Wikipedia and my own knowledge: “ Indo-Surinamese are Surinamese people with ancestry from the Indian subcontinent. Their ancestors were Indian Indentured workers brought by the Dutch to the (then) Dutch colony Suriname during the 19th and 20th century.” After the slavery of the Creoles ended in 1863 there was a shortage of workers on the plantations of Suriname. In 1873, the first Indians arrived to replace the former slaves.

Indo-Surinamese are called Hindostanen in Suriname. The name comes from the word Hindustani. The majority of them, and especially the younger generation, speak Dutch and Sranantongo. However they have their own cultural language called Sarnami. Sarnami is mainly spoken as first language by elderly Indo-Surinamese or those living in the rural areas. The ones living in the urbanized and city areas speak mainly Dutch, Sranantongo and Sarnami.

Sarnami or Sarnami Hindoestani came from the Bhojpuri language. It received some influence from Dutch and Sranantongo. Similarly Surinamese-Dutch and Sranantongo, were also influenced by this language.

Many Indo-Surinamese live in the Districts (provinces) of Paramaribo, Wanica, Nickerie and Saramacca.

Having said all that let’s go ahead with our first topic: Clothing.

Clothing:

Indo-Surinamese wear western clothing in their daily lives. Cultural clothing, as they are referred to, are worn on special occasions such as weddings, parties, funerals etc. The cultural clothing are the same as those worn in India. In the picture below Indo-Surinamese are wearing their daily western clothing.

• Sari:
• According to Wikipedia a sari is quote: “A sari is a piece of cloth, five to seven meters long and one meter wide, which the women wrap around themselves after some practice. An underskirt (petticoat) and a short blouse (choli) in matching colors are worn under a sari. The saree is wrapped around the hips and tucked into the petticoat. Then it is twisted around the body one more time and placed over one shoulder. The part that hangs over the shoulder is often worked separately and is called pallu.” In the picture below Surinamese women are wearing a sari.

• Salwar kameez:
• It consists of two parts, the kameez, a long shirt that falls to the knee and the salwar, a wide pair of trousers, down to the ankles

• Dhoti:
• A Dothi is a white piece of fabric that the men tie around their waist and that reaches to the ankles. Sometimes the fabric is pulled up through the legs and tucked into the back of the collar. The dhoti looks a bit like a pair of trousers. In the picture below the male is wearing a dhoti around his hips. The shirt he is wearing is called a kurta; more on this in soon.

• Kurta:
• The kurta is a long shirt worn by men in India. In the previous picture the man is wearing a kurta. In the picture below the men are also wearing one.

• Gharga choli:
• The costume consists of a tight-fitting, richly embroidered top that, with or without sleeves, reaches above the navel. It comes with a long skirt and a filmy stole that can cover the neck, head or chest. In the picture below the woman is wearing a gharga choli.

Music:

Indo-Surinamese traditional music often reflects the Bhojpuri heritage. Bhaitak Gana and Chutney music are two famous genres of Indo-Surinamese people. The latter one originating in Trinidad, because of the influence of the Indo-Trinidadians who are around 38% of the population in Trinidad. However, both traditional and modern music originating from (nowadays) modern India are also very popular.

• Baithak Gana:
• In basic Baithak Gana there are three instruments (though there are other instruments that could be added to the ensemble), harmonium, dholak and the dhantal. The harmonium is a free-standing keyboard instrument similar to a reed organ. The dholak is a double headed drum that originated in Northern India. The last instrument that is used in this style of music is the dhantal which serves as the rhythmic piece of the ensemble, it consists of a long steel rod which is then "struck" by a U-formed piece, the origin of this device is unclear, as it may have been brought by the Indian indentured-laborers. Below I will add a link to traditional Baithak Gana music and modern Baihtak Gana music.

• Chutney music:
• Chutney music is an Indo-Caribbean genre of music that developed in the southern Caribbean. Chutney music emerged mid-20th century and reached a peak of popularity during the 1980s. The modern chutney artist writes lyrics in either Sarnami, Dutch or English, then lays them over beats derived from Indian dholak beats mixed with the soca beat. Chutney is an uptempo song, accompanied by bass guitar, drum machine, electric guitar, synthesizer, dholak, harmonium, and dhantal, tassa played in rhythms imported from filmi, calypso or soca. Early chutney was religious in nature sung by mainly women in Trinidad & Tobago. Below I will add a link to traditional Chutney music, modern Chutney music as wel as Surinamese modern Chutney music.

Food:

Indo-Surinamese food has a lot of similarities with Indo-Caribbean food. In Indo-Surinamese cuisine, much use is made of rice, grains, pepper and spices and fresh herbs that are ground into garam masalas (aromatic mixtures).

• Savory:
• Roti met kip (Roti and chicken): In Suriname we know the 4 different rotis; Sada roti, Aloepuri (potato) roti, Pharata roti and Dhalpuri roti. Roti is eaten together with masala chicken. Masala potato, egg and long beans are also served. Optional is too: pumpkin, masala eggplant and kari.

• Bara: Bara is a deliciously hearty Surinamese Indian snack, it resembles a donut. The Surinamese bara is made of dough, urdi besan (green split pea flour) and tayerblad (arrowleaf). Bara is an indispensable snack at Surinamese Indian parties. It is served with an Indian dipping sauce called chutney. Chutney can be made from various fruits like green mango.

• Phulauri: An indo-Surinamese snack of yellow split peas. It is served with Surinamese hotsauce.

• Ghoegrie: Ghoegrie are fried chickpeas, with cumin, madam jeanette pepper and garlic.

• Samosa: A samosa is usually made from filo pastry or puff pastry. The basic filling consists of potatoes and peas. A Samosa can be made with or without meat. It is usually served with spicy ketchup.

• Kerrie ei (Curry egg): Kerrie ei are fried eggs in masala. It is usually cut in pieces and then served on bread. It can also be eaten with rice.

• Dessert and sweets:
• Gulab Jamun: Gulab jamun is a milk-solid-based sweet from the Indian subcontinent.

• Sew: Sew is a snack made from flour soaked in melted sugar. There are two types: a stick sized version an small thick sized version.

• Parsad: Parsad is a dish served at religious events

• Ladoe or Ladoo: The ladoo is a sweet coconut ball made during Hindu religious services.

• Jilebi (Jalebi): Jilebi is made by deep-frying maida flour batter in pretzel or circular shapes, which are then soaked in sugar syrup.

With this Quora article I’ve tried to cover the main topics of the clothing, music and food of the Indo-Surinamese. If you have a question or extra information just drop a comment below.

Footnotes