Brij Lal

Brij V. Lal is a Indo-Fijian historian . He was born in Labasa, on the northern island of Vanua Levu. He was educated at the University of South Pacific, the University of British Columbia and the Australian National University.

Academic career

Lal is currently a Professor of Pacific and Asian History at the Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies (RSPAS), Australian National University. He has previously lectured at the University of the South Pacific in Suva, the University of Hawaii in Manoa, and at the University of Papua New Guinea. He is also a Visiting Professor at the University of South Pacific and simultaneously, Head of the Centre for Diasporic Studies at the University of Fiji.

Among his many books are an autobiography, "Mr Tulsi's Store: A Fijian Journey" (2001), which won the San Francisco-based Kiriyama Prize in 2002. He is also the author of "Chalo Jahaji: On a journey through indenture in Fiji" (2000) and "Bittersweet: The Indo-Fijian Experience" (2004), the latter two recounting the history of the trials and triumphs of the Indo-Fijian community. He is the present Editor of the Journal of Pacific History and the Founding Editor of the literary journal, Conversations.

Honours

On 3 November 2005, it was announced that Lal had been awarded the inaugural Distinguished Pacific Scholar Award by the UNESCO-sponsored International Council for the Study of the Pacific Islands, in recognition of his research into Fijian and...
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