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*Tracing Your Roots > South Asian > Migration Records
* Special Certificates of Nationality 
 
A small number of *lascars or Indian seamen who deserted their ships stayed in Britain and lived in the major seaport towns. The National Archives holds the Special Certificate of Nationality issued to coloured seamen, including certificates of British Origin, in record series (PRO) HO45 under the sub-heading 'Nationality and Naturalization'.

The PRO's *online catalogue is a good tool to find such references. Make a keyword search using the surname of the person. The surname of Muslims in the catalogue is slightly different from the normal spellings. For instance 'Halimullah' is keyed in as two different words 'Halim' and 'Ullah'. Therefore, try searching with different spellings.

Some examples of the Muslim surnames with different spellings:

  • Ali or Alli or Ally
  • Ullah or Ulla
  • Syed or Sayed
  • Ahmed or Ahmet or Hamed
  • Mohamed or Mahomet or Mohammad or Muhammad
  • Uddin or Deen or Din
  • Mia or Meaha or Miah
  • Mullah or Moolla
  • Shah or Shar
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Creators: Abi Husainy

 
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