ABSTRACT
Since 1976, increasing numbers of Sri Lankan guest workers have migrated to the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. For 30 years, female domestic workers have formed the single largest category among these migrants. The author, a cultural anthropologist, has done research since 1992 in a village in southwestern Sri Lanka. Her research provides the qualitative data in this chapter (Gamburd 2000, 2003, 2005, 2008a, 2009). Using ethnographic sources and statistical information, this chapter provides a brief overview of Sri Lankan migration to the Middle East. 1
