The 1947 Partition and the Archive

What was the 1947 Partition?

According to Wikipedia: “The Partition of India in 1947 divided British India into two independent dominions: India and Pakistan. […] The partition displaced between 10 and 20 million people along religious lines, creating overwhelming calamity in the newly-constituted dominions. It is estimated that around 200,000 - 1 million people died during migration. It is often described as the largest mass human migration and one of the largest refugee crises in history.”

What is the 1947 Partition Archive?

The 1947 Partition Archive is a nonprofit organization in Berkeley, California dedicated to preserving and sharing the oral histories of the people who witnessed the 1947 Partition.

What does that have to do with me?

My grandparents and elders migrated from India to Pakistan during the Partition. Many witnessed horrors and tragedies. Some did not. All had stories to tell. I wanted to preserve those that I could. I became interested in the Archive’s work in 2016 and was associated with them in various capacities until 2019.