Untouchable migrants made up a significant proportion of Indian labour migration into Singapore in the 19th and 20th centuries. During this period, they were subject to forms of caste prejudice that powerfully reinforced their identities as untouchables overseas. Today, however, untouchability has disappeared from the public sphere, replaced by other notions of identity, leaving unanswered questions as to how and when this occurred.

This book takes this "disappearance" as a starting point to examine a history of untouchable migration and identity negotiation amongst Indians who arrived...