Travelling Ayahs in the British Empire: A History of Counterflows, Care and Personal Relationships
When: Wednesday, March 26, 2025, 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM
Where: School of Geography, Queen Mary University of London, Mile End Road, London, E1 4NS
Seminar and discussion with IHSS Visiting Fellow Dr Arunima Datta (University of North Texas) at the Centre for Studies of Home, a partnership between Queen Mary University of London and Museum of the Home
The expansion of the British Empire facilitated movement across the globe for both the colonizers and the colonized. This talk will focus on the largely forgotten group of South Asian travelling ayahs (servants and nannies), who traveled between India and Britain while caring for British families on the move, influenced the various consumptions in British homes, and held certain privileges in "homes in crisis." Delving into the stories of individuals travelling ayahs from a wide range of sources, this talk will illuminate their influences on British consumption cultures, their brave struggle to assert their rights, and more.
Dr Arunima Datta is an award-winning historian at the University of North Texas and QM IHSS Visiting Fellow at the Centre for Studies of Home, a partnership between Queen Mary University of London and Museum of the Home. Arunima's research focuses on labour, women's history, food and emotions and her publications include Waiting on Empire: a History of Indian Travelling Ayahs (2023, OUP) and Fleeting Agencies: a Social History of Indian Coolie Women in British Malaya (2021, CUP). Visit Arunima Datta | University of North Texas for more details.
About the Seminar
Seminar and discussion will be followed by a drinks reception. This event is free, but ticketed. Please use Book Now link to Eventbrite to book your place.
Please email Alison Blunt (A.Blunt@qmul.ac.uk) if you would like to join on online via Teams.
The seminar is convened by the Centre for Studies of Home, Centre for the Study of the 19th Century and its Legacies, and Public Humanities Network at Queen Mary University of London and supported by the IHSS Visiting Fellowship scheme.