The term Diaspora has multiple layers of meaning in academic circles today. The term primarily used to refer to Jewish dispersion, came to be used to refer to contemporary situations that involve the experiences of migration, expatriate workers, refugees, exiles, immigrants and ethnic communities. The Indian Diaspora can probably be traced to ancient times when Buddhist monks travelled to remote corners of Asia. During the ancient times a large number of Indians migrated to Far East and South East Asia to spread Buddhism. The issues of colonialism and slavery, insider- outsider have posed the most difficult problems in the production of identity particularly for the black and third world people. In this way, the many diasporic–literary energies work today. For example, India, Africa, Canada and the West Indies have distinct diasporic backgrounds through which the respective writers’ works echo a variety of issues.
Diasporic Consciousness in Jhumpa Lahiri’s The Namesake