My Roots :My Roots We may grow in different directions, yet our roots remain as one. Moriam Ahmed ~Class 75~


|Table of Contents| :|Table of Contents| Introducing Days of Old Once Upon A Time Beyond Reach All Around Decision Adventure Beginning of Forever Threads Connections Boomerang Parallel Universe Terminus Bibliography


|Introducing|Bangladesh :|Introducing|Bangladesh My roots trace back to the country of Bangladesh. Bangladesh is a country located in Southern Asia, bordering the Bay of Bengal and it’s between Burma and India. It is about 143,998 sq km in area. There are about 156,050,883 people in Bangladesh, making it the 7th most populated country in the world.


|Introducing|Bangladesh (Cont.) :|Introducing|Bangladesh (Cont.) Specifically, my family comes from Sylhet, Bangladesh. Sylhet is the north-eastern district of Bangladesh, and one of the largest cities in the country. Sylhet has its own dialect of Bengali, called Sylheti. This dialect is so different that many from Dhaka (Bangladesh’s capital) would have a hard time understanding us. And Vice Versa!


|Days of Old|Timeline of Bangladesh :|Days of Old|Timeline of Bangladesh In the 16th Century, the Europeans set up trading with the area that is now known as Bangladesh. Eventually, the British dominated the area and it became part of British India. In 1947, West Pakistan and East Bengal (both Muslim areas) separated from India (Hindu) and became a new country, called Pakistan, together. East Bengal became East Pakistan in 1955, but the arrangement of a two-part country left the Bengalis feeling marginalized and dissatisfied. East Pakistan seceded from its union with West Pakistan in 1971 and was renamed Bangladesh. However, there was still a lot of political unrest and corruption in the new country.


|Once Upon A Time|My Ancestors :|Once Upon A Time|My Ancestors My great-grandfather was a rich businessman. He made and sold perfume. Not much else is known about my ancestors except that they are Bangladeshi.


|Beyond Reach|My Extended Family :|Beyond Reach|My Extended Family My extended family is scattered across the UK, the USA, Bangladesh, Qatar, South Africa and Dubai. My dad's parents are both dead. My father has five sisters (two of whom are dead) and two brothers. He is the youngest sibling of all. His brothers live in Qatar, and two of his sisters live in Bangladesh; one sister lives in the US. My mother's parents are both still alive, and they are living in Bangladesh right now. My mother has two sisters. She is the eldest. The second oldest sister resides in South Africa, and the youngest is in Bangladesh. I have many cousins across the world, and I don't think I know half of them. Top: Grandfather (Dad's Dad) Bottom: Grandmother (Dad's Mom)


Slide 8:|All Around|My Immediate Family My immediate family consists of my father, my mother, my younger brother (8-years-old) and my little brother (5-years old). I am the oldest sibling, and the only girl.


|Decision|Departing For A New World :|Decision|Departing For A New World Bangladesh claimed its independence from Pakistan in 1971, one year before my father was born. However, there was still a lot of political turmoil in the country. Dad became involved in politics at a young age, and was being targeted by the opposition. He felt that his life was in danger, so in 1988, at the age of 18, he decided to come to Canada. My father at age 17


|Adventure|Journey to Canada :|Adventure|Journey to Canada My father came to Canada in 1989, when he was 19 years old. His flight path was: Dhaka, Bangladesh→ Karachi, Pakistan→ Frankfurt, Germany → New York, USA → Toronto, Canada. Once he arrived, he claimed refugee status, and told them that he was seeking shelter against the political crisis. It was difficult for him, because he did not know how to speak English, and a translator spoke for him. Eventually, the court reviewed his story and he was accepted into Canada. Dad's First Passport Picture


|Adventure|Journey to Canada (Cont.) :|Adventure|Journey to Canada (Cont.) In 1993, my father went back to Bangladesh and married my mother. He came back to Canada and sponsored her as an immigrant. In 1995, my mother arrived in Canada, after traveling for hours. Her flight path was Dhaka, Bangladesh → New Delhi, India → London, England → Toronto, Canada.


|Beginning of Forever|Arrival :|Beginning of Forever|Arrival After arriving in Canada, my parents had a hard time, because they couldn't understand the language. Sometimes this lead to very funny incidents. But it was a big problem. My dad got a job in a fast-food restaurant, and lived in bachelor housing for a while. Through his job, he learned English, and then later taught my mother. Eventually, he earned his citizenship, and later on, so did my mother. Around that time, I was born. Mother Arrives in Canada in 1995


|Threads|Family Stories :|Threads|Family Stories My Dad often had trouble understanding English when he first came to Canada. One day, he goes to work and his boss comes over to him and says “You’re from Bangladesh, right?” “Yes.” “Do they have a lot of earthquakes in Bangladesh? I see them all the time on the news.” Now, my Dad doesn’t know what an earthquake is, so he assumes that an earthquake was a flood. “Yes, I see a lot of people, they are dripping and muddy…” he replies in his limited English, continuing in this way for a while. He continues to describe a flood for a whole minute. Meanwhile, his employer is getting more confused by the second. Eventually, she realizes that he had misunderstood what an earthquake was. So she calls out to her husband and mutters a few things to him in Greek. She and her husband tried to get him to understand what an earthquake was, but to no avail. Dad just didn’t get it. “Come with me, Shahed.” she says. The threesome go into the back and face the fridge. The two owners take each end of the refrigerator and start shaking it like mad. My father gets scared; he’s thinking that his employers have gone crazy. “Stop, stop!” he yells. “This is how the fridge would look if there was an earthquake,” the woman replied. Eventually, my father understood what exactly an earthquake was, and to this day, he will never confuse it with a flood.


|Connections|Expatriate Community in Canada :|Connections|Expatriate Community in Canada About 90% of all Bangladeshis are Muslim. So, most of Bangladesh is united in their faith. Muslims celebrate Ramadan and Eid together. There are many Muslim Bengalis in Toronto. The most prominent Bengali communities are in Victoria Park and Regent Park. Most of these Bengalis are emigrants and refugees. I live in Regent Park and there is a community mosque that many Bengalis attend. Sometimes, it is even used as a meeting place. However, none of my parents’ friends from Bangladesh are in Canada, so the only connection that they have with friends and family are talking on the telephone.


|Boomerang|My Family’s Visit to Bangladesh :|Boomerang|My Family’s Visit to Bangladesh In 2006, my family went to Bangladesh. This was my second visit, the first being in 2001. (At that time, I was an only child. I have few memories of the time.) It was simply a mind-blowing experience. The food was different, the temperature was different, even the rules were different. I was waking up early and sleeping as late as 12:00AM! I was allowed to roam the house, and I played with everyone that came my way. It was very fun. I met many relatives that I didn’t know existed and also people that I only recognized the voice of, from telephone calls. We were staying at my grandparents’ house (my mom’s childhood home). They lived in the country, so there was a whole expanse of nothing that I could play in. There was a pond that everyone swam in. Unfortunately, I wasn’t allowed to swim in it because there were a lot of diseases in the water that could make me sick, as I wasn’t used to them. We stayed in Bangladesh for about six months, from September to February. I missed most of Fourth Grade, but I don’t regret it. Eid in Bangladesh


|Parallel Universe|Similarities and Differences :|Parallel Universe|Similarities and Differences Similarities There are many cities in Bangladesh, that are very much like that of Canada’s. Bangladesh is a democracy. The infrastructure is similar as well. There is also a lot of pollution in Bangladesh, especially smoke and garbage. Differences The climate is much more warm and humid. There are many floods, earthquakes, and there’s a monsoon season. There’s no snow. There are a lot of black-outs in Bangladesh. Bangladesh’s political state is a bit unstable, as well. Bangladesh is a small country with a big population. There are more homeless and needy people in Bangladesh than in Canada. The currency is Bangladesh is the Taka. One Canadian Dollar is worth about sixty Taka. Also, the dialect spoken in Bangladesh is different from the dialect of Bengali spoken in Canada. The dialect in Canada is sometimes mixed with English, unknowingly. Of course, Bangladesh’s Bengali is pure.


|Terminus|Conclusion :|Terminus|Conclusion Bangladesh is a small country and it’s barely visible on a world map. It is so very different from Canada, like a whole different universe. But it’s a great universe, and it is the source of My Roots. Goodbye and Thanks for Listening!


|Bibliography| :|Bibliography| Family Information & Pictures Ahmed, Shahed. Personal INTERVIEW. 17 October 2009 Ahmed, Parbin. Personal INTERVIEW. 17 October 2009 Family Video Created by Moriam Ahmed on animoto.com Information About Bangladesh https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/bg.html Bangladesh Map http://www.rimixbd.com/assets/images/bangladesh-map.gif https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/maps/bg_largelocator_template.html Sylhet Map http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1f/LocMap_Bangladesh_Sylhet.png Family Tree Clip Art http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~lsfeist/bd05112_.gif Other Clip Art Courtesy of Microsoft Clip Art Service All Photos modified in Photoshop by Moriam Ahmed