with the mainstream community or left India for other countries in the west. There is also a movement of native Sri Lankan Tamils to India; some migrated to do white-collar jobs during the British days, but there has been a much bigger diaspora today. Post-1983 dispersal of Sri Lankan Tamils The Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora was well established in Malaysia, Singapore and the United Kingdom prior to the 1983 Black July induced dispersal of refugees and asylum claimants in India, Europe, and Canada. Although relatively recent in origin, this subgroup had well-established communities in these host countries prior to the 1983 pogroms. 20th century dispersal of Tamils from India In the second half of the 20th century, Tamils from India migrated as skilled professionals to various parts of India and countries like UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, UK, USA, Singapore and so on. Some of them got citizenship of respective countries but still having strong family and cultural ties with Tamil Nadu, than those who migrated before 1950, who lost touch with their ancestral links in Tamil Nadu. By region Africa Mainland Africa There is a significant number of Tamils in Africa, especially Kenya. At least 30% of the Tamils in Africa live in Kenya, followed by Uganda. Most of these people are migrants, while some have been living there for generations. South Africa Tamil migration to South Africa started as from 1860, first as indentured labor and in the first batch 340 Tamils were there. Now there are more than 250,000 Tamils spread over in many cities, the concentration being in Natal and Durban. In South Africa the Tamil Language can be taken in many schools as a Second Additional Language, It is recognised as a level 4 subject and carries points for entrance into university. Indian Ocean islands Mauritius Mauritius has a Tamil population of 115,000. Most arrived from Tamil Nadu after 1727 to serve as laborers on the sugar cane plantations. Tamil culture has flourished in Mauritius. Since 1727, the Tamil community has built almost 125 Tamil temples and Murugan is a popular deity. Tamil holidays and festivals such as Tamil New Year, Pongal, Timiti and Thaipusam are celebrated on a national level. Thiruvalluvar and Bharathi days are also celebrated while Deepavali, Thaipusam, Maha Shivaratri and Pongal are public holidays. But most of the people in Mauritius do not speak Tamil. The Tamil language is taught in