'A major contribution to the literature on ethnic minorities in Britain.'MAN'...a wealth of data...and clarity of analysis...this book is a must. It is also important reading for those interested in the social organization and rituals of South Asian Islamic communitites.'Anthropos'Werbner's study makes a valuable and readable contribution to the comparative literature on gift-economies in 'capitalist commoditised' societies. Recommended for all serious collections in anthropology and sociology.'Choice'...one of the most exhaustive studies to date of a South Asian diaspora in Britain...'American Anthropologist'...a fascinating insight into an ethnic minority culture of Muslim origin.'Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations
Introduction Part I: Capital Accumulation 1. Chains of Migrants: Culture, Value and the Housing Market 2. Chains of Entrepreneurs: The Production of an Enterprise Culture Part II: The Gift Economy: Women, Gifts and Offerings 3. Marriage, Exchange and the Reproduction of Inequality 4. Circles of Trust: Women and the Control of Ceremonial Exchange 5. Giving to God: The 'Naturalisation' of Ritual 6. Circles of Trust: Multiple Domains of Exchange 7. Circles of Trust: From Commodities to Gifts Part III: Conspicuous Giving and Public Generosity 8. Hierarchical Gift Economies 9. Wedding Rituals and the Symbolic Exchange of Substance 10. The Organisation of Giving and Immigrant Elites