Beyond East & West

The migratory trajectories of non-Muslims from the cities explored in the project have not been limited to London, New York and Vienna. Religious and ethnic affiliations as well as trading opportunities have resulted in communities being established in a diverse array of locations, and individuals and families being scattered globally.

Trace the Journeys

Click on a dot and scroll to uncover global migration stories.

Trace the Journeys

Click on a dot and scroll to uncover global migration stories.

What challenges and opportunities did these communities face when establishing their businesses and places of worship in a new country?

Magnus Marsden, Principal Investigator: On the one hand, these communities have been able to use the skills and aptitudes they learned as traders to establish various commercial activities in one of the world’s ‘global cities’. Afghanistan’s Jews used their knowledge of the fur trade to broker relations between the great fur companies of the 1920s with Afghanistan, for example. On the other hand, they have had to struggle to gain citizenship, faced racism and connected forms of exclusion, and suffered due to a lack of wider public awareness about their distinctive pasts.
Sikh and Hindu faiths are mainly associated with India, so Afghan Sikh and Hindu communities often come as a surprise. Could you explain their distinctions and why they are often overlooked in portrayals of the country?

Magnus Marsden, Principal Investigator: Sikhs and Hindus in Afghanistan have lived in the country for centuries. They were fully integrated in rural and urban life in the country and thus followed practices and spoke languages that reflect that wider cultural milieu. At the same time, however, both communities were well-connected to their co-religionists in India and their religious lives have closely reflected religious change and transformation in that country. Moska Najib, Principal Photographer: I feel their existence is often overlooked because Afghanistan’s story is usually told through the lens of Islam and conflict. The presence of Sikh and Hindu communities complicates that dominant narrative, pushing them into the background. But their resilience and struggles, especially in recent decades, are crucial to understanding Afghanistan’s broader diversity.

What challenges and opportunities did these communities face when establishing their businesses and places of worship in a new country?

Magnus Marsden, Principal Investigator: On the one hand, these communities have been able to use the skills and aptitudes they learned as traders to establish various commercial activities in one of the world’s ‘global cities’. Afghanistan’s Jews used their knowledge of the fur trade to broker relations between the great fur companies of the 1920s with Afghanistan, for example. On the other hand, they have had to struggle to gain citizenship, faced racism and connected forms of exclusion, and suffered due to a lack of wider public awareness about their distinctive pasts.
Sikh and Hindu faiths are mainly associated with India, so Afghan Sikh and Hindu communities often come as a surprise. Could you explain their distinctions and why they are often overlooked in portrayals of the country?

Magnus Marsden, Principal Investigator: Sikhs and Hindus in Afghanistan have lived in the country for centuries. They were fully integrated in rural and urban life in the country and thus followed practices and spoke languages that reflect that wider cultural milieu. At the same time, however, both communities were well-connected to their co-religionists in India and their religious lives have closely reflected religious change and transformation in that country. Moska Najib, Principal Photographer: I feel their existence is often overlooked because Afghanistan’s story is usually told through the lens of Islam and conflict. The presence of Sikh and Hindu communities complicates that dominant narrative, pushing them into the background. But their resilience and struggles, especially in recent decades, are crucial to understanding Afghanistan’s broader diversity.