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Desi (/ˈdeɪsi/ or /ˈdɛsi/ DAY-see or DESS-ee; Hindustani: देसी (Devanagari), دیسی (Perso-Arabic), Hindustani: [deːsiː]) also Deshi, is a loose term used to describe the peoples, cultures, and products of the Indian subcontinent and their diaspora, derived from Sanskrit देश (deśá), meaning 'land' or 'country'. Desi traces its origin to the people from the South Asian republics of Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan, and may also sometimes include people from Afghanistan, Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka.

Etymology

The ethnonym belongs in the endonymic category (i.e., it is a self-appellation). Desi (देसी/دیسی desī) is a Hindustani (Hindi-Urdu) word, meaning 'national', ultimately from Sanskrit deśīya, derived from deśa (देश) 'region, province, country'. The first known usage of the Sanskrit word is found in the Natya Shastra (~200 BCE), where it defines the regional varieties of folk performing arts, as opposed to the classical, pan-Indian margi. Thus, svadeśa (Sanskrit: स्वदेश) refers to one's own country or homeland, while paradeśa (Sanskrit: परदेश) refers to another's country or a foreign land.

Usage

The word Desi is widely used by South Asians, as well those of the South Asian diaspora, to describe themselves; those of South Asian origin, especially Indians, Pakistanis and Bangladeshis, use the term "as a means of asserting or reclaiming a sense of pride" in being South Asian, "particularly in the face of racism, discrimination, and stigmatization" of minorities in various parts of the world. With regard to usage of the word Desi, Helen Kim writes:

Desiness imagines a more conhesive, pan-South Asian American community that goes beyond nation, class, and religion. Instead, a 'desi' South Asian American community comes together over its shared experiences of being positioned as non-White 'others', often cutting across differences in caste, class, religion, and gender. In the UK, the term 'desi' is commonly used to describe British Asian forms of cultural production such as music, literature, and television programming. For example, shows such as Desi DNA, featured on the BBC and BBC Asian Network, cover all areas of current British Asian popular culture such as film, music, and the visual arts, including fashion and style. Club nights that feature Asian music such as bhangra and hip hop, as previously mentioned, are often billed as 'desi' nights. The Internet radio station DesiHits.com, rivaling the BBC Asian Network in cultural significance as well as in the number of young Asian listeners, plays all the current Asian hits, which allows one to browse online by artist and by genre, listing them under categories such as 'desi beats', 'Bollywood', and 'hip hop'.

Among teenagers who have ancestral roots in the Indian subcontinent, the term Desi is "embraced to elucidate a new inclusive identity of South Asians in the US, who participate as 'public consumers and producers of a distinctive, widely circulating cultural and linguistic forms'." To this end, channels such as MTV Desi have recognized "the transnational nature of Desi youth culture, writers, producers, and VJs" and have shared "a range of topics relating to life in South Asia and the South Asian diaspora worldwide".

"Desi" is sometimes perceived as offensive among some South Asian expatriates, as they claim that it erases the diversity of cultural identities within the South Asian community, and that it primarily identifies the dominant North Indian community while excluding other South Asian groups. Some resist the label, citing historical Indian imperialism and cultural hegemony. They believe that terms like "Desi" impose a homogenous identity and fail to acknowledge the pluralistic nature of South Asian communities. Alternatives like "South Asian" or "Brown" have been proposed, but they also have their limitations and can be perceived as misleading or exclusive. While some individuals find the term "South Asian" inclusive and encompassing, others feel it does not fully capture their specific backgrounds. The complexity and diversity of the diaspora necessitate recognizing multiple identities and resisting the tendency to homogenize or erase particular communities.

Among non-diasporic South Asians, the term Desi is sometimes used to indicate that a person is rural, unexposed to foreign/modern culture, and more deeply steeped in native South Asian culture.

History

The word "Desi" comes from the Sanskrit word "Desh" meaning "country". The word "Desi" is used to refer to something "from the country" and with time its usage shifted towards referring to people, cultures, and products of a specific region; for example, desi food, desi calendars, and desi dress.

Desi contrasts with the Hindustani language word vilāyati (Anglicised as "Blighty") meaning 'foreign', which more specifically came to mean 'European', and 'British; English' during the time of the British Raj in colonial India. The Bengali word is a loan of Indian Persian vilāyatī (ولایاتی), from vilāyat (ولایت) meaning 'Iran' and later 'Europe' or 'Britain', ultimately from Arabic wilāyah ولاية‎ meaning 'state, province'.

After the passage of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, the United States dramatically increased immigration from the subcontinent. As increasing numbers of students from the subcontinent arrived in the US and UK, their countries of origin were colloquially referred to as deś. For example, all things Indian including Indian expatriates were referred to as "desi".

Culture

Frank Anthony, an Anglo-Indian Christian leader who helped write the Constitution of India stated that unlike Europe, “ India had achieved a basic ethnic and cultural unity.” (the boundaries of colonial India include the modern-day republics of independent India, as well as what is now Pakistan and Bangladesh.)

In the United States, as in other countries, some diaspora desis are creating a "fusion" culture, in which foods, fashions, music, and the like from many areas of South Asia are "fused" both with each other and with elements from Western culture. For example, Urban Desi is a genre of music formed by the fusion of traditional South Asian music and Western urban music. The growing demand of popular programming for South Asians caused MTV to launch the desi-targeted television channel MTV Desi.

In the United Kingdom, desi communities have continued the fusion culture which first emerged during the 89 year rule of the British Raj in colonial India, influencing British music, art, fashion and food. There are now dedicated radio stations catering to British-South Asians such as the BBC Asian Network.

In Canada, desis have established sizable ethnic enclaves in areas such as Brampton, Ontario (suburban Toronto) and Surrey, British Columbia (suburban Vancouver).

Performing arts

The Natya Shastra refers to the regional varieties of folk dance and music elements as desi, and states that these are meant as pure entertainment for common people, while the pan-Indian margi elements are to spiritually enlighten the audience. The medieval developments of the classical Indian dance and music led to the introduction of desi gharanas, in addition to the classical gharanas codified in Natya Shastra. The desi gharanas further developed into the present-day adavus. There is raga in Indian classical music known as "Desi".

Food and drink

In regions of South Asia, desi in the context of food, implies "native" or "traditional". For example, "Desi chicken" may refer to a native breed of chicken. This word is also usually restricted to Sanskrit-derived (Indo-Aryan) languages.

Heritage varieties of vegetables and other produce can also be qualified as "desi". "Desi diet" refers to a diet and food choices followed by Indians around the world. Desi daru refers to "country liquor", such as fenny, toddy and arrack. It is differentiated from Indian-made foreign liquor such as Indian-made whisky, rum, or vodka.

Desi pubs

In the United Kingdom, the term Desi pub is used to describe a pub which is owned or managed by an Indian landlord, or which serves Punjabi food. They developed during the 1960s and 1970s at a time when some British pubs enforced color bars to prevent Indians and other immigrants from drinking there. Desi pubs are especially common in the Black Country and surrounding areas of the West Midlands. As well as drinking places, they also act as community hubs and meeting places for people from different backgrounds and are considered to be an example of successful integration of Indian immigrants into British culture.

See also

• American-born confused desi
• Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb
• Greater India
• Habesha, an analogous term for Ethiopians and Eritreans
• Little Bangladesh
• Little India
• Little Pakistan
• Pinoy, an analogous term for Filipinos
• South Asian Heritage Month
• Indian Arrival Day

Notes

1. The tadbhava-form of the word is "desi", and the corresponding tatsama-form is "deshi".
2. The etymology of the word Desi is from the Hindi-Urdu language. In various other South Asian languages, the word is rendered as follows: Bangla: দেশী; Sinhala: දේශී; Tamil: தேசி; Telugu: దేశి; Gujarati: દેશી; Malayalam: ദേശി; Kannada: ದೇಸಿ; Odiya: ଦେଶୀ; Dhivehi: ދޭސީ; Dzongkha: ཁ་བྱང་ཀི་དེ།; Burmese: ဒေစီ
3. The modern-day independent countries of Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan were included within the boundaries of colonial India prior to the Partition of India in August 1947.

References

1. ^ Zimmer, Ben (27 September 2013). "Here She Comes, 'Desi' Miss America". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 12 October 2020. But as South Asians have built up diasporic communities around the world, 'desi' has traveled with them, used not as a put-down but as an expression of ethnic pride. Make that pan-ethnic: Anyone with heritage from the subcontinent—India, Pakistan, or Bangladesh—can identify as a 'desi' and partake in 'desi' culture.
2. "Desi". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. Retrieved 31 July 2024. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
3. ^ Sharma, Nitasha Tamar (17 August 2010). Hip Hop Desis: South Asian Americans, Blackness, and a Global Race Consciousness. Duke University Press. ISBN 978-0-8223-9289-7. The lives of South Asians in America, or desis—a term meaning "of the land" from the Hindi/Urdu word desh, or country—are both historically constituted and circumscribed by global processes and the limitations of what is possible today.
4. Glenn, Charles L. (2018-08-01). Muslim Educators in American Communities. IAP. p. 222. ISBN 978-1-64113-363-0.
5. Steinberg, Shirley R.; Kehler, Michael; Cornish, Lindsay (17 June 2010). Boy Culture: An Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. pp. 86–88. ISBN 978-0-313-35080-1. Retrieved 12 March 2012.
6. Irani, Farzin (27 February 2022). Cultural Diversity in Neuropsychological Assessment. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-000-51578-7. People from this region in South Asia (i.e., Afghanistan, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan) are broadly referred to as "Desi," meaning from this land. This is a colloquial term used by other South Asians to refer to people of their region when outside of their native land.
7. "Who is APIDA?". California State University San Marcos. Archived from the original on 20 March 2023. Retrieved 25 January 2024. In our references, Desi countries of origin include Afghanistan, Bhutan, Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.
8. Conroy, Colette; Ong, Adelina; Rodricks, Dirk J. (2020-06-09). On Access in Applied Theatre and Drama Education. Routledge. p. 81. ISBN 978-1-000-70848-6. Desi refers to the peoples indigenous to the precolonial Indian subcontinent, which is now comprised of several nation states that include India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Maldives.
9. Mallapragada, Madhavi (15 October 2013). Virtual Homelands: Indian Immigrants and Online Cultures in the United States. University of Illinois Press. pp. 117–118. ISBN 9780252096563.
10. "desi". OxfordDictionaries.com. Oxford University Press. 2016. Archived from the original on July 21, 2012. Retrieved 12 October 2016.
11. ^ Kim, Helen (21 August 2014). Making Diaspora in a Global City: South Asian Youth Cultures in London. Routledge. pp. 34–36. ISBN 978-1-134-75756-5.
12. Khanduri, Ritu Gairola (2 October 2014). Caricaturing Culture in India: Cartoons and History in the Modern World. Cambridge University Press. p. 202. ISBN 978-1-107-04332-9.
13. Wilkins, Karin; Straubhaar, Joe; Kumar, Shanti (11 September 2013). Global Communication: New Agendas in Communication. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-135-01096-6. In July 2005, MTV Networks announced the launch of MTV-Desi, a niche channel for South Asian-American youth. Launched with great fanfare, MTV-Desi sought to respond to ongoing changes in South Asian-American culture and to create a space within mainstream media that would speak to the particular experiences of Desi youth. In addition to Bollywood song sequences and Indi-pop music videos, the channel would feature US- and UK-based artists such as DJ Rekha, MIA, and Jay Sean, alongside popular American stars in order to create a "multi-ethnic, multi-genre playlist" that would resonate with Desi youth (Dev 2006). While music would remain the primary focus of programming, MTV-Desi would also develop new segments covering a range of topics relating to life in South Asia and the South Asian diaspora worldwide, including original shows such as LiveFrom, which would track Desi youth culture in cities across North America and the UK, and hit shows such as Roadies from MTV-India. Recognizing the transnational nature of Desi youth culture, writers, producers, and VJs worked hard to define MTV-Desi as a unique site of cultural production that neither mainstream American television nor the India-centric programming on Dish and DirecTV could match. Declaring that MTV-Desi would soon become the "pop culture destination for desis," Nusrat Durrani, general manager and senior vice president of MTV World, explained: "But more than the music, it is also about articulating the stories from this community--young South Asian-Americans who have grown up in the country, but have not seen themselves on TV" (cited in Mozumder 2005).
14. ^ Sircar, Anisha (2020-12-08). "Is the term 'Desi' offensive? Some South Asian Americans think so". Scroll.in. Retrieved 2023-06-23.
15. "Is It Time to Kill Off the Word 'Desi'? – The Aerogram". theaerogram.com. Retrieved 2023-06-23.
16. ^ "Brown, Desi, South Asian: Diaspora reflects on the terms that represent, erase them". NBC News. 2021-10-06. Retrieved 2023-06-23.
17. Shin, Ryan; Lim, Maria; Lee, Oksun; Han, Sandrine (2022-12-26). Counternarratives from Asian American Art Educators: Identities, Pedagogies, and Practice beyond the Western Paradigm. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-000-81369-2.
18. Sircar, Anisha (2020-12-08). "Is the term 'Desi' offensive? Some South Asian Americans think so". Scroll.in. Retrieved 2023-11-08.
19. Mughal, M. A. Z. (20 October 2014). "Calendars Tell History: Social Rhythm and Social Change in Rural Pakistan" (PDF). History and the Four Nations India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka Has the Same Food, Culture. Anthropology. 25 (5): 592–613. doi:10.1080/02757206.2014.930034. ISSN 0275-7206. S2CID 55668409.
20. "blighty". Lexico UK English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020.
21. Entry for Blighty. World Wide Words.
22. "ولاية" in F. Steingass, A Comprehensive Persian-English Dictionary, 1892, p. 1480.
23. Kazim, Shehrbano (14 May 2016). "Drawn from the same wellspring". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
24. Bangash, Yaqoob Khan (2023). "Anglo-Indians and the Punjab Partition: Identity, Politics, and the Creation of Pakistan". The Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History. 51 (1): 124–155. doi:10.1080/03086534.2022.2086202.
25. Kvetko, Peter (2002). When the East Is in the House: The Emergence of Dance Club Culture among Indian-American Youth (Thesis). University of Texas. Archived from the original on 18 May 2006. Retrieved 27 October 2016.
26. Kurwa, Nishat (15 October 2008). "Urban Desi: A Genre on the Rise". All Things Considered. National Public Radio. Retrieved 27 October 2016 – via NPR.
27. Jesudason, David (21 April 2022). "The Triumphant Story of Britain's Desi Pubs". Atlas Obscura. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
28. R.V. (22 August 2016). "Raising a glass to Britain's Indian pubs". The Economist. Retrieved 12 May 2022. (subscription required)

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