Migration and Settlement of Tamil Muslims in Penang, c. 1780–1840

In 1786, Captain Francis Light established an English East India Company (EIC) settlement in Penang, a largely uninhabited island that belonged to the Sultan of Kedah and located in the northern passage of the Straits of Melaka. Penang attracted migrants from neighboring Malay states, India, China, the Arabian Peninsula, and Europe and it became a bustling entrepôt within a few years of its establishment.

This paper focuses on a community of Tamil-speaking Muslims who were one of the earliest groups to arrive in Penang. Several differences existed among this broad category of Tamil Muslim migrants. Some came from ports in South India, whereas other Tamil Muslims came from Malay states in Penang’s neighborhood where they had already settled. The longevity of stay and the purpose of visit also varied. Some Tamil Muslims came to Penang for trade and returned to their homeports after the completion of their trade voyages. Tamil Muslims also settled in Penang and became part of a diverse society of migrant communities from other regions in the Indian Ocean world. In studying this group of merchants, I will critically explain the conditions underlying migration and settlement in a newly established European trading outpost. This paper makes a broader argument that the rise of EIC establishments, such as Penang and Singapore, can only be understood by integrating such places within the wider and historical patterns of trading and migration in the Indian Ocean world.