ABSTRACT
This chapter looks at older Hindustani Surinamese migrants in the Netherlands. The share of older migrants in the Dutch population is increasing. Within the existing scholarship about migration there is a strong focus on younger migrants and retirement migration and to a lesser extent on older migrants who are ageing. The process of migration, transnational ties, home-making and a sense of place shape the ageing process in the country of destination. The aim of this chapter is to examine the sense of home of older Hindustani Surinamese migrants living in the Netherlands in relation to migration, ageing and home-making. In-depth interviews and photographs from the project Ageing in Institutional Settings are analysed. The in-depth interviews are conducted at four co-housing communities for older Hindustani Surinamese adults in the Netherlands. The findings indicate that a sense of home is related to having a place for oneself and living with people from the same origin. A sense of home is not restricted to one place and emerges from multiple places. Adapting past routines to the new environment, expressing religion and culture and placing meaningful objects within the home are found to be important aspects in the home-making process.
