Trust the Sikhs to go anywhere and everywhere, an
example of undaunting spirit of adventure. But then the
founder of the Sikh faith Guru Nanak was himself a great
traveller of the era. In the earlier migration of Sikhs
to Latin America, British were helpful, as they were for
the Sikh migration to other countries especially the
Southeast Asia and the Far East. Sikhs have not been
able to set up any major settlements in Latin America.
In fact, Latin American settlements are a case of
assimilation into the local population. Small numbers in
isolated places and local marriages are major
contributory factors. However, many of the immigrants
keep in touch with Punjab especially those who have Sikh
marriage partners from India. New arrivals keep
providing incentive for linkage with Punjab. Gurdwaras
are a great institution builder and help retain linkage
with Sikhi and Sikhs - within the country, Punjab and
globally. For most immigrants the final Eldorado still
remains North America and whenever opportunity arises
the younger generation migrates to North America. It
must be stated that this study is a mere introduction to
the subject and does not cover any aspect in detail
because the scope of the study was limited. More
detailed work needs to be undertaken by scholars with
more time, expertise, and resources.
