Next: 14 May 2027
Girmit Day, Fiji
On 14 May Indo-Fijians remember the arrival of the Leonidas in 1879 with prayers, songs and Indian dress.
What is worn for Girmit Day, Fiji
Girmit Day, 14 May, remembers the arrival of the ship Leonidas at Levuka in 1879, with the first Indian indentured workers of Fiji. Girmit comes from the word agreement, since the workers signed an agreement to work for five years. About sixty thousand Indians came before the system ended. Indo-Fijians, who are now a large part of the population, hold prayers, talks and cultural programmes. Many wear Indian clothes, and women wear sarees or salwar suits. The descendants mostly speak Fiji Hindi, a language that grew out of the plantation. The day is not a national holiday and is mainly kept by the community.
The sarees
Written by the EveryPallu desk with AI assistance. Background: "Girmit" on Wikipedia. Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Sari: Suyash.dwivedi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source