Konkani Muslims

Konkani / Kokani / Kokni Muslims are a sub-ethnic group of the Konkani people living in the Konkan region of western India, who practice Islam. They speak the Konkani language.[1]

History

History of Kokani Muslims settled in Mumbai (erstwhile Bombay) is documented well in publications such as The Bombay Gazette and newspapers like Times of India since the later part of nineteenth century. Many prominent Kokani Muslim families' names, their activities and contributions to social and cultural life are accessible.

Geography

India

Konkani Muslims are natives of Konkan region in Western India, the population is mainly concentrated in the Maharashtrian districts of Mumbai, Raigad, Thane, Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg. Muslim people of south Sindhudurg near Malvan and the former Maratha princely states of Sawantwadi and Oros speak a dialect of Marathi / Konkani called Málvani language.

Outside India

There are Konkani Muslims in Karachi, Pakistan who migrated after the Partition of India in 1947. The Konkani Muslims in Karachi now speak Urdu and have assimilated with other Muhajirs. The Konkani Muslims in Karachi are concentrated in the Kokan Cooperative Housing Society in Gulshan-e-Iqbal Town.

There is a large Konkani Muslim diaspora community of economic migrants working in the Arab states of the Persian Gulf, the UK, the USA, South Africa and East Africa (where they have been established for almost a century).

Cuisine

The main food of Konkni Muslims is non-vegetarian, mostly seafood. Its staple food is rice and bread made of rice (preferred at dinners) with fish and lentils or vegetables. It is mainly influenced by Maharashtrian cuisine.

Religion

They predominantly adhere to the Sunni Muslim Shafi'i Madhab, unlike most Muslims from the South Asia who are Hanafis.

Notable

References

  1. ↑ Dr Omar Khalidi. "History". www.ikonkani.com. i-konkani. Retrieved April 2015.
  2. ↑ http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report-the-name-s-dawood-dawood-ibrahim-1160063

External links