page_title: Indo-Canadians in British Columbia
section_title: Culture
hierarchical_section_title: Indo-Canadians in British Columbia / Culture
caption_attribution_description: Parade and fair are a part of the Sikh Baisakhi tradition
context_page_description: The South Asian community in British Columbia was first established in 1897. The first immigrants originated from Punjab, British India, a northern region and state in modern-day India and Pakistan. Punjabis originally settled in rural British Columbia at the turn of the twentieth century, working in the forestry and agricultural industries.
  As their numbers grew, anti-"Hindu" sentiment increased among the Europeans living in the province thus preventing them from voting in 1908. Originally, Indian settlement was predominately male; large numbers of women and children began arriving in the mid 20th century. In 1947, South Asians were given the right to vote, therefore permitting their entry into British Columbian political life.
  In the late 20th Century many South Asians transitioned from living in rural areas of the province into living in urban areas as the economic vitality of the forestry industry declined.
context_section_description: Many British Columbian Punjabi Sikh families eat Indian cuisine, practice Sikhism, prioritize family, and speak Punjabi. Many Punjabi-Sikh parents in British Columbia try to pass on their cultural values to their children, and Ruby Rana and Sukkie Sihota, the authors of "Counselling in the Indo-Canadian Community: Challenges and Promises," wrote that in many cases, "A disconnect exists between the home culture and the dominant Western culture outside of the home."
  In regards to Sikh history in India and Sikhism, Rana and Sihota wrote, "Many Punjabi-Sikhs in BC have formed opinions and values on the basis of key religious and/or cultural traumas that took place in the history of India and the state of Punjab."
  Small town Sikhs in British Columbia tend to have a larger interaction with other ethnic groups, while urban Sikhs in Vancouver have less interaction.
  The first Canadian official heritage site that has no French and English heritage is the Gur Sikh Temple in Abbotsford, which had opened in 1911.
caption: South Asians celebrating Vaisakhi. Surrey, 2012
exif: {}