The (punjabi) Indian population in NWA

[Mith242]

I hadn't heard anything about that. Thanks for mentioning that and for mentioning UP as well.

[KJW]

Last Saturday night, my husband and I attended the Inaugural India Live Banquet at the John Q. Hammonds Center. It's amazing to see how many Indians are in the area now (at least 300 in Walmart ISD alone, according to one of the speakers).

[Julles]

I hadn't heard anything about that. Thanks for mentioning that and for mentioning UP as well.

[Julles]

Doesn't surprise me. That looked like a pretty neat event, Julles.

[Mith242]

I've been meaning to ask this for a while. I've been wondering if our area has seen any other people from South Asia, or has it basically been just punjabis? I've been trying to study a little about South Asia and doing so has made me think more about the punjabi people living here and the possibility of any other groups from that general area possibly here as well.

[Julles]

I've been meaning to ask this for a while. I've been wondering if our area has seen any other people from South Asia, or has it basically been just punjabis? I've been trying to study a little about South Asia and doing so has made me think more about the punjabi people living here and the possibility of any other groups from that general area possibly here as well.

[Mith242]

The Indian population in NW Arkansas is comprised of people from all over India, not just the northern Punjab region. "Punjabi" is not synonymous with "Indian", as the Punjab region straddles India and Pakistan. Many of the Indians here are from central, south, and western India as well as Punjab. So, yes, as far as Indian immigrants are concerned, it actually has not basically been punjabis. Generally, when you see the gentlemen with the turbans, they are Sikh Punjabi's.

[Julles]

Thanks, for the info. I thought you might be the one to answer my question. Yeah I have seen that Punjab makes up a part of Pakistan as well. I'm not sure of all the differences throughout the country. Only that there seems to be a big difference between northern and southern India. I wonder how their numbers compare to other groups. I guess I'm just sorta curious which group could be the next 'big' minority in the area. Hispanics are more of a cultural group. We also have the Marshallese, but I'm not sure there's enough population back on the islands to ever make them a large group here.

[Mith242]

I'm not an expert, of course, but I have gotten the impression that the "wave" of Indian immigration has abated, at least for now. Shortly after my husband arrived here in '92, there was a large influx of Indians, but somewhere in the late 90's, he began hearing from friends that it was becoming much more difficult to get H-1 visas. My brother-in-law (from India) began trying to emigrate here around '95, and eventually found it easier to get into Australia. I think many of the Indians are going there now, as well as to the Gulf and to Canada.

To answer your question, I have no idea which group will be the next "big" minority.