Dear Oslo City Archive
Photo: Unn Hovdhaugen (left) and Johanne Bergkvist (right) from Oslo City Archive visit the exhibition at Deichman Linderud (DTA, 15.11.2022)
Thank you for visiting the exhibition: “Tamil-Norwegian women in a male-dominated world” yesterday, 15th November 2022. The pop-up portrait exhibition is a continuation of “Our Day” in April 2022 and a celebration of “Archives Day 2022”.
On behalf of the Tamil diaspora in Norway, we are delighted to receive your attention to the exhibition and interest in the long-term preservation of Tamil-Norwegian migration history at Oslo City Archives. The exhibition is a small taste of the 66-year-long history of Tamil migration in Norway. Tamil-Norwegian women in the 11 portrait posters represent a few, but a diversity of Tamil organisations/initiatives in the Tamil diaspora in Norway. The exhibition also showcases the Gloriosa lily (kāntaḷ (காந்தள்)/ kārttikaippū (கார்த்திகைப் பூ)/ ceṅkāntaḷ (செங்காந்தள்)/) in honour of all Tamil-Norwegian women who have migrated, born and raised in Norway and who have their roots from either Tamil Nadu in India or Tamil Eelam (North-East Sri Lanka). The flower was chosen based on Tamil literary references which show that the Gloriosa lily has been a part of Tamil literature and culture since the Sangam period (600 BCE – 300 CE). The gloriosa lily is the state flower of Tamil Nadu in India and the national flower of Tamil Eelam (North-Eastern Sri Lanka).
The resourceful young and adult women in the portrait posters are the faces of an indescribably enormous effort of volunteering that has built up the Tamil diaspora in Norway. It is also applicable to the Tamil diaspora worldwide. The exhibition illustrates the sweat and blood of hard work by many volunteer women and men, and zealots in Tamil organisations and in Tamil society in general. The exhibition is a small drop from many tears, which have become the source for the formation of the rich Tamil migration history in Norway and around the world. Finally, it is a small piece of the puzzle in the history of Oslo and Norway.
We want to rest the attention and interest of Oslo City Archives in the hands of the Tamil diaspora in Norway. They have created this history and given us an opportunity to show it to you and the whole of Norway.
DiasporA Tamil Archives (DTA) is an online resource centre and Community Archives. The work of DTA is a celebration of Tamil migration history in Norway. On this occasion, we thank all voluntary individuals and organisations in the Tamil diaspora in Norway for their support, contribution, cooperation and motivation for this and future work.
With best regards,
From all of us in
DiasporA Tamil Archives
Read more about the exhibition here.
புதுப்பிப்பு│Update: 24.11.2022
புலம்பெயர் தமிழ் சுவடிகள் காப்பகங்கள் 