The "what" of Islam and the "who" of Muslims continue to attract significant attention globally and nationally. In the United Kingdom, questions of identity and belonging remain critical, with numerous studies suggesting that Muslims are often marginalised from mainstream British society. Research further indicates that young British Muslim women are increasingly prioritising religious over cultural identities as a means of resisting systemic prejudices and patriarchal structures, creating tensions within communities. However, limited attention has been paid to how the post-9/11 and 7/7 socio-political climate has shaped identity and belonging among Sylheti British Muslims. This study addresses this gap through critical autoethnography, drawing upon the author's lived experiences, memories, emotions, and dialogues to foreground the affective, relational, and political dimensions of identity formation. By situating personal narratives within broader socio-historical contexts, the thesis challenges dominant discourses on Muslim identity in Britain, offering a culturally specific and politically engaged analysis.
Adopting a chronological thematic approach, the study reinterprets the concepts of desh (home) and bidesh (abroad) as analytical frameworks to explore generational and gendered negotiations of identity and belonging. The structure comprises:
1. The Reality of Desh-Bidesh: Exploring first-generation migrants' transition from sojourners to settlers in the 1950s and 1960s.
2. The Conflation of Desh-Bidesh: Analysing family reunifications during the 1980s through an autoethnographic lens.
3. The Myth of Desh-Bidesh: Examining third-generation British-born young Muslim women’s identity (re)formations within contemporary socio-political pressures, and their relationships with Britain, Bangladesh, and the global Muslim Ummah.
By examining generational shifts, gendered negotiations, religious visibility, and the impacts of Islamophobia and securitisation, the study highlights the dynamic, negotiated, and resilient nature of identity among young British Muslim women of Sylheti Bengali heritage.
