Zoroastrians in British Columbia

The province of British Columbia, Canada, is home to hundreds of sacred sites belonging to various religions, including Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism and Zoroastrianism.
This study focuses upon a unique diasporic group in the Greater Vancouver, whose members themselves are part of a two separate and distinct diasporas. The overwhelming majority of the members hail from Zoroastrian communities in India and in Iran. This essay will explore the ways in which this relatively new diaspora constructs notions of ethnic identity and belonging that are shaped by religious affinity and kinship, experience of exclusion, visibility and very small numbers.
This study will provide an overview examination of the Parsis’ and especially Iranian Zoroastrians’ migration processes from India and Iran, respectively, with a special focus upon intersecting themes of nationality, class, caste, racialization and settlement within the Greater Vancouver. It will be shown that despite their individual national origins, many adopt a new identity as “Zoroastrians” and actively engage in re-defining and re-articulating their place-based religious identity.