Revelations? “Nationalities” in the 1871 Census of British Ceylon – By Michael Roberts
This table has been kindly abstracted by Iranga Silva of the ICES in Kandy from Michael Roberts, Ismeth Raheem & Percy Colin-Thome: People Inbetween. The Burghers and the Middle Class in the Transformations within Sri Lanka, Ratmalana, Sarvodaya Printers, 1989, pp 202-03.
Source:thuppahis.com
TABLE 21: LIST OF “NATIONALITIES” IN THE 1871 CENSUS with special reference to Colombo and the Coffee Estates
| 1 | Population of Colombo | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | |||
| Nationality or Race | 2
| 3
| 4
| % in Colombo | Population of Ceylon: numbers | Col.4 as % of Col.6 | Population on coffee estates | Col. 10 as % of Col.6 | |||
| Males | Females | Total | Males | Females | Total | ||||||
| Afghan | 02 | 02 | 04 | * | 06 | 66.6 | + | + | + | + | |
| African | 01 | – | 01 | * | 11 | 9.1 | + | + | + | + | |
| American | 06 | 01 | 07 | * | 28 | 25.0 | + | + | + | + | |
| Anglo Indian | – | – | – | – | 05 | – | 03 | 02 | 05 | 100 | |
| Anglo-Saxon | 01 | – | 01 | * | 06 | 16.7 | 01 | 01 | 02 | 33.3 | |
| Anglo-Scotch | – | – | – | * | 01 | – | + | + | + | + | |
| Anglo-Swiss | – | – | – | * | 02 | – | + | + | + | + | |
| Arab/Arab descendant | 27 | 05 | 32 | * | 153 | 20.9 | + | + | + | + | |
| Armenian | 01 | – | 01 | * | 01 | 100.0 | + | + | + | + | |
| Asiatic | – | – | – | * | 07 | – | + | + | + | + | |
| Belgian | 02 | – | 02 | * | 02 | 100.0 | + | + | + | + | |
| Bengalee | 100 | 72 | 172 | 1.5 | 691 | 24.9 | + | + | + | + | |
| Brahmin | 42 | 09 | 51 | * | 778 | 6.5 | + | + | + | + | |
| British | 04 | 03 | 07 | * | 24 | 29.5 | 06 | 02 | 08 | 33.3 | |
| Burgher | 1,383 | 1,383 | 2,766 | 2.9 | 5,771 | 47.9 | 54 | 34 | 88 | 1.5 | |
| Burmese | – | – | – | – | 07 | – | + | + | + | + | |
| Caffre | 24 | 15 | 39 | * | 245 | 15.9 | + | + | + | + | |
| Canadian | 03 | 01 | 04 | * | 08 | 50.0 | + | + | + | + | |
| Canarese | – | – | – | * | 35 | — | + | + | + | + | |
| Carnatic | 04 | 02 | 06 | * | 1,800 | 0.3 | 670 | 254 | 924 | 51.3 | |
| Caucasian | 01 | – | 01 | * | 03 | 33.3 | + | + | + | + | |
| Ceylonese | 46 | 54 | 100 | 0.1 | 176 | 56.8 | 11 | 03 | 14 | 7.9 | |
| Celtic | 01 | 02 | 03 | * | 22 | 13.6 | 06 | 01 | 07 | 31.8 | |
| Chetty | 893 | 283 | 1,176 | 1.1 | 3,114 | 37.7 | 24 | 04 | 28 | 0.9 | |
| Chinese | 23 | 11 | 34 | * | 59 | 57.6 | + | + | + | + | |
| Danish | 01 | – | 01 | * | 07 | 14.3 | + | + | + | + | |
| Dutch | 539 | 654 | 1,193 | 1.2 | 2,256 | 52.9 | 31 | 17 | 48 | 2.1 | |
| Dutch descendant | 192 | 186 | 378 | 0.4 | 783 | 48.3 | 13 | 03 | 16 | 1.7 | |
| East Indian | 16 | 13 | 29 | * | 65 | 44.6 | + | + | + | + | |
| English | 233 | 170 | 403 | 0.4 | 1,776 | 22.7 | 404 | 195 | 599 | 33.7 | |
| English descendant | 17 | 23 | 40 | * | 83 | 48.2 | 01 | + | 01 | 1.2 | |
| Eurasian | 776 | 820 | 1,596 | * | 3,341 | 46.5 | 01 | + | 01 | 1.2 | |
| Euro-African | – | – | – | – | 01 | – | + | + | + | + | |
| European | 124 | 86 | 210 | 0.2 | 639 | 32.9 | 108 | 42 | 150 | 23.5 | |
| European descendant | 48 | 47 | 95 | 0.1 | 167 | 56.9 | + | + | + | + | |
| French | 33 | 36 | 69 | * | 203 | 34.0 | 07 | 06 | 13 | 6.4 | |
| French descendant | 10 | 06 | 16 | * | 29 | 89.6 | + | + | + | + | |
| German | 29 | 28 | 57 | * | 124 | 46.0 | 10 | 01 | 11 | 8.9 | |
| German descendant | 13 | 05 | 18 | * | 24 | 75.0 | + | + | + | + | |
| Goanese (sic) | 02 | – | 02 | * | 02 | 100.0 | + | + | + | + | |
| Half Caste | 05 | – | 05 | * | 22 | 22.7 | 08 | 05 | 13 | 59.1 | |
| Hindostanee | 07 | 05 | 12 | * | 20 | 60.0 | + | + | + | + | |
| Illyrian | 01 | – | 01 | * | 01 | 100.0 | + | + | + | + | |
| Indo-Briton | 20 | 24 | 44 | * | 57 | 77.2 | + | + | + | + | |
| Indo-Dutch | – | – | – | – | 02 | – | + | + | + | + | |
| Indo-Portuguese | – | – | – | – | 03 | – | + | + | + | + | |
| Irish | 66 | 33 | 99 | 0.1 | 260 | 38.1 | 38 | 11 | 49 | 18.8 | |
| Irish descendant | 02 | 04 | 06 | * | 11 | 54.5 | + | + | + | + | |
| Italian | 07 | 05 | 12 | * | 27 | 44.4 | + | + | + | + | |
| Jew | – | 01 | 01 | * | 01 | 100.0 | + | + | + | + | |
| Mahratta | 01 | – | 01 | * | 29 | 3.4 | + | + | + | + | |
| Maori | 01 | – | 01 | * | 01 | 100.0 | + | + | + | + | |
| Norman | – | – | – | * | 03 | – | 01 | 01 | 02 | 66.7 | |
| Parsee | 16 | 02 | 18 | * | 23 | 78.3 | + | + | + | + | |
| Pattany | 160 | 129 | 289 | 0.3 | 1,304 | 22.2 | + | + | + | + | |
| Pole | – | – | – | * | 03 | ||||||
| Polish descendant | – | – | – | – | 01 | ||||||
| Portuguese | 242 | 218 | 460 | 0.5 | 1,229 | 37.4 | 34 | 25 | 59 | 4.8 | |
| Portuguese descendant | 18 | 07 | 25 | * | 60 | 41.7 | + | + | + | + | |
| Prussian | 02 | 01 | 03 | * | 06 | 50.0 | + | + | + | + | |
| Prussian descendant | – | – | – | * | 02 | – | + | + | + | + | |
| Rajpoot | – | – | – | * | 09 | – | + | + | + | + | |
| Russian | – | – | – | – | 08 | – | * | * | * | * | |
| Saxon | – | – | – | – | 13 | – | 08 | 01 | 09 | 69.2 | |
| Scotch | 100 | 36 | 136 | 0.1 | 667 | 20.4 | 301 | 87 | 388 | 50.7 | |
| Scotch descendent | – | – | – | – | 04 | – | * | * | * | * | |
| Siamese | – | – | – | – | 07 | – | * | * | * | * | |
| Sikh | – | – | – | – | 04 | – | * | * | * | * | |
| Spanish | 04 | 01 | 05 | * | 07 | 71.4 | * | * | * | * | |
| Swedish | 02 | – | 02 | * | 11 | 18.2 | * | * | * | * | |
| Swiss | 01 | 01 | 02 | * | 15 | 13.3 | – | 03 | 03 | 20.0 | |
| Syrian | 01 | – | 01 | * | 01 | 100.0 | * | * | * | * | |
| Teutonic | 01 | – | 01 | * | 01 | 100.0 | * | * | * | * | |
| Welsh | 01 | 01 | 02 | * | 18 | 11.1 | 10 | 01 | 11 | 61.1 | |
| Malay | 1,221 | 1,265 | 2,486 | 2.6 | 6,839 | 36.3 | 126 | 61 | 187 | 2.7 | |
| Moor | 13,727 | 8,662 | 22,389 | 23.4 | 163,516 | 13.7 | 907 | 429 | 1,336 | 0.8 | |
| Sinhalese | 21,324 | 20,836 | 42,160 | 44.0 | 1,669,998 | 2.5 | 3,966 | 428 | 4,394 | 0.3 | |
| Tamil | 12,325 | 6,845 | 19,170 | 20.2 | 534,339 | 3.6 | 74,488 | 40,604 | 115,092 | 21.5 | |
| Total as above | 53,852 | 41,993 | 95,833 | 100.0 | 2,401,069 | *-* | 81,362 | 42,292 | -*- | ||
| Total elsewhere | 53,850 | 41,953 | 85,843 | 2,406,262 | |||||||
Column 1 is the principal interest from the point of view expressed in People Inbetween. The statistics have been included in order to serve wider interests.
Sources: Census of the Island of Ceylon, 1871, Colombo: Govt. Printer, 1874.
Cols. 1-4are from Table X: “Nationality of the Inhabitants of the Principal Towns of Ceylon” as well as Table IX.
Col. 6 is from Table IX: “Nationality of the Inhabitants of Ceylon (exclusive of the Military and Shipping)”
Cols. 8-10 are from Table XX: “Nationality of the Population on the Coffee Estates of Ceylon”
Note: The 1871 householders schedule (see Ibid: xxiv) requested each person to provide his or her Name; Relation to Head of Family; Condition: Sex; Age last birthday; Profession or Occupation; Where born; Race; Religious Denomination; If Deaf. Dumb. Blind. Crippled or Insane. It would seem that individuals were left free to stipulate their “race” or “nationality”
Notes: – indicates no persons in Colombo.
* indicates that the percentage is too small to be worth computing.
+ indicates that Table XX does not list these “nationalities” at all.
Totals: There are no totals provided in Table X. so we have added up the figures for columns 1, 2 and 3. The discrepancies are relatively minor, both in terms of internal consistency and with totals delineated elsewhere in the Census. The totals for the columns 8, 9 and 10 are those drawn from Table XX.
