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Indians in Japan

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See also: Nepalis in Japan, Sri Lankans in Japan, and Japan - India relations

Indians in Japan
在日インド人
Zainichi Indojin
Total population
46,262 (in June, 2023)[1][2]
Regions with significant populations
Tokyo, Kobe, Yokohama
Languages
Religion

Indians in Japan consist of those with Japanese citizenship and those with foreign citizenship.

As of June 2023, there were 46,262 Indian nationals living in Japan. Indian nationals in Japan are often employed in IT, engineering, management, finance, and scientific research, and other office jobs where English language is used.[1][2][4] Today, in the 21st century, Indian migration to Japan has undergone a major increase and Japan is seeing influx of professionals from India.[5] Indian nationals are the second largest Indian ethnic group, preceded by Nepali nationals and followed by Sri Lankan nationals.[6]

A significant number of the Indians in Japan also descend from the large Indian populations in Hong Kong and South East Asia such as Thailand and Singapore.[7]

India is also the largest source of tourism to Japan after East Asian countries.[8]

In an opinion poll published by the Pew Research Center, India was the most liked major Asian country by Japanese people with a majority of people holding favorable views, while Japan was the most liked major Asian country by Indian people with a majority of people holding favorable views.[9]

History

The Indian Water Fountain in Yamashita Park, Yokohama was donated by the local Indian community to remember those who perished in the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake, including more than 90 Indians.

Japan has been a destination for Indian travellers and merchants for hundreds of years, including a famous voyage by a monk from the southern intellectual city of Madurai.[10] India and Japan have maintained relations through direct contact and indirect contact via the Sinosphere and South East Asia.[11][12]

The history of modern Indian settlement in Japan goes back more than a century. As early as 1872, a few Indian businessmen and their families had settled in Yokohama as well as Okinawa.[13] In 1891, Tata, then a small trading firm, established a branch in Kobe.[14] By 1901, Japanese government statistics recorded 30 people from British India living in Japan.[15] Local statistics of the Hyōgo Prefecture government showed 59 Indians living in the prefecture in 1905, among whom all but one were men.[16] After the destruction wreaked on Yokohama in the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake, the Indian traders there also migrated to Kobe; from then on, Kobe became the center of Japan's Indian community's growth.[17]

By 1939, on the eve of World War II, the number of Indians in Hyōgo Prefecture had reached 632. However, due to British sanctions against Japan and the 1941 halt of shipping between Japan and their homeland, many closed their shops and left; by 1942, there were only 114 remaining. Three years after the Partition of India, their numbers had recovered somewhat to 255.[18] Prior to 1990, the Indian community in Japan remained centred on the Kobe area. However, after 1990, the numbers in Tokyo began to show a sharp increase.[19] Migrants who arrived in the 1990s included industrial trainees sent by Japanese car manufacturers which had set up factories in India.[20] IT professionals and their families also came to Tokyo, settling primarily in Setagaya and Minato wards.[21]

There is some technical cooperation between India and Japan, such as for the Shinkansen in western India, or for the numerous Japanese companies present in India such as Sony, Softbank or Suzuki. In 2016, the two sides signed the "Manufacturing Skill Transfer Promotion Programme” agreement for training 30,000 people over 10 years.[22]

In 2021, Japan and India signed an agreement to allow Indian citizens to obtain the specified skilled visa, which allows Indians to work in several fields including nursing, industrial machinery, shipbuilding, aviation, agriculture and the food services industry.[23]

Business and employment

As of 2000, there were also around 800 Indians working in the IT industry in Japan, up from 120 in 1993.[24] Kenichi Yoshida, a director of the Softbridge Solutions Japan Co., stated in late 2009 that the Indian engineers are becoming the backbone of Japan's IT industry and that "it is important for Japanese industry to work together with the India."[25][26] Another 870 Indians were employed as cooks.[24] Others are engaged in trading, importing the Indian handicrafts, garments, precious stones, and marine products, and exporting Japanese electronic goods, textiles, automotive parts, and jewellery.[13]

Cuisine

Indian food is very popular in Japan. Conversely Japanese food is also very popular with Indians.[27]

Historically many spices were imported into Japan as these spices could only be grown in certain climates found in Southern China (including Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau), Southern India (including Sri Lanka) and South East Asia.[28] In particular pepper is widely used in Japanese cuisine.[29] The various spices and cultural infusion that were imported along the same trade routes from South Asia into South East Asia led to the formation of cuisines in South East Asia heavily influenced by South Asia as far back as 2000 years ago, of which many of them are eaten in Japan.[30]

An Indian restaurant in Tokyo

Curry

Indian curry is one of the most popular dishes in Japan, sometimes labelled as the most popular dish of Japan.[31] Curry (カレー) is a loanword from Tamil (கறி kaṟi) via Indian English, popularized by naval contact between the Japan and the British East India Company.[32][33]

It is now considered to be a national dish of Japan and dishes from various parts of India are often sold in convenience stores and restaurants.[34] The majority of the Indian restaurants in Japan are a "fusion" of Nepali and Indian cuisine, who are by far the largest Indian ethnic group in Japan, but many restaurants are also run by Indians and Sri Lankans, the latter of whom number around 35,000 and make the third largest Indian ethnic group after Nepalis and Indians.[6][35]

The majority of Japanese will eat Japanese curry (カレー, karē) purchased from supermarkets and convenience stores, or from one of the numerous Japanese chain restaurants that specialize in curry.[36]

Tea

Furthermore, though tea is originally native to East Asia, tea is also often drunk in Japan as black tea or milk tea using tea leaves grown in South Asia (such as Darjeeling, Assam or Ceylon). [37]

Religion

India is strongly associated with religion in Japan since the introduction of Buddhism in the 6th century.[38] Buddhism has been heavily integrated into the native Shinto culture, and a large number of the festivals in Japan derive from Buddhism, with identical festivals being celebrated in Buddhist countries such as Sri Lanka, and similar festivals being found in Hinduism.[39] There are numerous shrines and temples native to Japan that cater for Hindu deities.

There are also numerous temples in Japan that were built by Sri Lankans but often affiliated with various Japanese Buddhist organizations, acting as a place of worship for Japanese, East Asian and South East Asians as well.[40] There is also a Nepali peace pagoda in Osaka, built by a German architect as part of the wider peace pagoda movement started by Japanese monks in response to the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Benzaiten shrine, Inokashira Park

Jainism

Indians in Japan speak a number of different languages and follow various religions; there is little correlation between religion or language and profession, except in the case of the Jains, many of whom work in the jewellery industry.[41] The Jains are generally concentrated around Okachi-machi in Taitō, Tokyo.[42] On the whole, Tokyo has fewer religious facilities for Indians than Kobe.[43]

Sikhism

There are Sikh gurudwaras in both Kobe and Tokyo; the latter is of more recent provenance, having been founded in 1999 in the basement of an office building.[44] Some Sikhs employed as unskilled labourers in small and medium enterprises had to cut their hair short and remove their turbans in violation of the principle of kesh, because their employers are unfamiliar with their customs and do not give them any latitude in their style of dress. They consider this as just a temporary adaptation to Japanese society. However, this practise is not common among Sikhs in skilled professions such as IT.[45]

Education

India International School in Japan, Tokyo
Global Indian International School, Tokyo Campus

Indians who send their children to school in Japan generally select English-medium schools. The first Indian-specific school, India International School in Japan, was established in 2004 in Tokyo's Koto ward at the initiative of some of the old trading families based in Tokyo and Yokohama.[46] The Global Indian International School, a Singapore-based school, has operated a branch in Tokyo since 2006, and plans to open another in Yokohama in 2008.[43] They follow the Indian Central Board of Secondary Education curriculum. The schools are popular not just among Indian expatriates, but among some Japanese as well, due to a reputation for rigour in mathematics education.[47] Other migrants leave their children behind in their native states, either with grandparents or at the boarding schools, in order to avoid interrupting their education.[46]

Jeevarani "Rani Sanku" Angelina,[48] established the Little Angels International School (now Musashi International School Tokyo), which caters to Japanese students.[49]

Tourism

India is the largest source of tourism to Japan after East Asian countries.[8] The leading motivations for Indian tourists to Japan are eating Japanese cuisine, sightseeing, shopping, walking around and experiencing Japanese culture and history.[50] Unlike westerners, Indians rarely view the culture of Japan "as exotic".[51]

Community organizations

One of the earliest Indian community organisations, the Oriental Club, was established in 1904 in Kobe; it changed its name to The India Club in 1913, and continued operating up to the present day. More were founded in the 1930s, including the Indian-dominated Silk Merchants' Association, the Indian Social Society, and the Indian Chamber of Commerce.[16] In 2000, Indian expatriates living in Edogawa, Tokyo, an area with a high concentration of Indian IT engineers founded the Indian Community of Edogawa.[42] Others include the Indian Community Activities Tokyo, whose Diwali celebration draws 2,500 participants, as well as the Indian Merchants Association of Yokohama.[24]

Notable people

Arata Izumi
Sarbjit Singh Chadha
Anastasia Malhotra

See also

Notes

  1. ^ a b "【在留外国人統計（旧登録外国人統計）統計表】 | 出入国在留管理庁".
  2. ^ a b 令和５年６月末現在における在留外国人数について [Regarding the number of foreign residents as of the end of June 2020]
  3. ^ a b Azuma 2008, p. 258; she lists the religions and languages in alphabetical order therein
  4. ^ "India, Japan sign agreement to give skilled Indian workers access to Japanese job market". Hindustan Times. 18 January 2021. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  5. ^ Wadhwa, Megha (2021). Indian Migrants in Tokyo - A Study of Socio-Cultural, Religious, and Working Worlds (1st ed.). London, New York: Routledge. p. 2. ISBN 978-1-032-73418-7.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  6. ^ a b "在留外国人統計（旧登録外国人統計） 在留外国人統計 月次 2023年6月 | ファイル | 統計データを探す". 政府統計の総合窓口 (in Japanese). Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  7. ^ gateway (2 May 2019). "Tracing Indian merchants in Japan". Gateway House. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  8. ^ a b "Japan-bound Statistics - Tourism Statistics". JTB Tourism Research & Consulting Co. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  9. ^ Pillalamarri, Akhilesh. "Japanese Cultural Influence Grows in India". thediplomat.com. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  10. ^ Aiyar, Pallavi (9 June 2018). "The oldest recorded Indian in Japan impacts the country's culture even today". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
  11. ^ Gupta, Sunil (1999–2000). "From Eastern Indian Ocean to the Yellow sea interaction sphere: Indo-Pacific beads in Yayoi Japan" (PDF). Purātattva. 30: 93–97.
  12. ^ Katsuhiko, Oga; Gupta, Sunil (1 January 2000). "The Far East, Southeast and South Asia: Indo-Pacific Beads from Yayoi Tombs as Indicators of Early Maritime Exchange". South Asian Studies. 16 (1): 73–88. doi:10.1080/02666030.2000.9628581. ISSN 0266-6030. S2CID 191984538.
  13. ^ a b Singhvi 2000, p. 283
  14. ^ Minamino & Sawa 2005, p. 5
  15. ^ Minamino & Sawa 2005, p. 4
  16. ^ a b Minamino & Sawa 2005, p. 6
  17. ^ Sawa & Minamino 2007, p. 15
  18. ^ Minamino & Sawa 2005, p. 7
  19. ^ Azuma 2008, p. 256
  20. ^ Azuma 2008, p. 258
  21. ^ Sawa & Minamino 2007, p. 66
  22. ^ "India, Japan sign agreement to give skilled Indian workers access to Japanese job market". Hindustan Times. 18 January 2021. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  23. ^ "India, Japan sign agreement to give skilled Indian workers access to Japanese job market". Hindustan Times. 18 January 2021. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  24. ^ a b c Singhvi 2000, p. 284
  25. ^ "FOCUS: Indian engineers becoming backbone of Japan's IT". Kyodo News. Minato, Tokyo. 9 November 2009. Retrieved 6 November 2009.[permanent dead link]
  26. ^ "Backbone of Japan's IT industry? Indian engineers!". Rediff.com. Mumbai. 6 November 2009. Retrieved 6 November 2009.
  27. ^ Dhillon, Amrit (8 December 2019). "Changing tastes: why is Japanese food so popular in India?". The National. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  28. ^ "Did You Know? The Exchange of Spices along the Silk Roads | Silk Roads Programme". en.unesco.org. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  29. ^ "The Blessings of Wa-Herb" (PDF). Japan Herb Federation.
  30. ^ Wang, Weiwei; Nguyen, Khanh Trung Kien; Zhao, Chunguang; Hung, Hsiao-chun (21 July 2023). "Earliest curry in Southeast Asia and the global spice trade 2000 years ago". Science Advances. 9 (29): eadh5517. Bibcode:2023SciA....9H5517W. doi:10.1126/sciadv.adh5517. ISSN 2375-2548. PMC 10361603. PMID 37478176.
  31. ^ Bhaumik, Sita Kuratomi (13 October 2020). "How 'Indian curry' became Japan's favourite dish". Scroll.in. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  32. ^ "kari – A Dravidian Etymological Dictionary". Archived from the original on 23 June 2020.
  33. ^ Taylor, Anna-Louise (11 October 2013). "Curry: Where did it come from?". BBC Food. Archived from the original on 29 March 2014. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  34. ^ "India gets a taste for Japanese curry | NHK WORLD-JAPAN News". NHK WORLD. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  35. ^ KHAREL, Dipesh (16 May 2022). "Vulnerability and Pathways to Precarity: How COVID-19 Has Affected Japan's Nepali Immigrants". Social Science Japan Journal. 25 (2): 229–246. doi:10.1093/ssjj/jyac007. ISSN 1369-1465.
  36. ^ NEWS, KYODO. "FEATURE:Japanese chain "CoCoIchi" making inroads in curry's toughest market". Kyodo News+. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  37. ^ "Tea farmer eyes India as export market with cinnamon flavor | The Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis". The Asahi Shimbun. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  38. ^ "Japan-India Relations".
  39. ^ Rambelli, Fabio (26 February 2018), "Buddhism and Shinto", Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Religion, doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780199340378.013.612, ISBN 978-0-19-934037-8, retrieved 17 March 2024
  40. ^ "Srl Lankan Temples In Japan - The Embassy of Sri Lanka in Japan". www.slembassyjapan.com. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  41. ^ Azuma 2008, p. 259
  42. ^ a b Azuma 2008, p. 262
  43. ^ a b Sawa & Minamino 2007, p. 19
  44. ^ Azuma 2008, p. 264
  45. ^ Azuma 2008, pp. 263–264
  46. ^ a b Sawa & Minamino 2007, p. 21
  47. ^ Hani, Yoko (11 April 2007), "Indian schools make a mark", Japan Times, retrieved 25 September 2009
  48. ^ "History Archived 9 March 2015 at the Wayback Machine." Little Angels International School. Retrieved on 9 March 2015.
  49. ^ Fackler, Martin (2 January 2008). "Losing an Edge, Japanese Envy India's Schools" (PDF). The New York Times. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 March 2015. Retrieved 9 March 2015. Unlike other Indian schools, Ms. Angelina said, Little Angels was intended primarily for Japanese children, to meet the need she had found when she sent her sons to Japanese kindergarten.
  50. ^ "Japan: leading travel motivations of Indian tourists 2022". Statista. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  51. ^ "The Growing Indian Middle Class" (PDF). Kobe University.

Sources

Further reading

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