generation that grew up disconnected from the wider family.Yet through writing this book I have come to appreciate the rich heritage that we have in common as well as the importance of knowing that I belong somewhere.Despite our differences we are still one family.And we have all come a long way since Haji McDoom's humble, ten-acre farm.Nonetheless it is my hope that those of you who belong to my generation may also feel this curiosity to understand this one piece in the complex puzzle of who we each are, where we came from, and how we got here.

This project began as a family tree but has evolved into something more.The document you hold also represents a short history, a contact directory, and hopefully - and perhaps most importantly - an opportunity to re-connect with long-lost family members and to discover new ones.You will see that I have included postal addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses for as many of you as I could find and who were willing to share them.


The possibilities of what may come from knowing how you are related to each of the many other individuals in this Family Book are really limited by your own imagination.For some of you it may be enough just to know that there is a written record of the genealogy.  Or else you may simply be curious to learn more about your cousins.It is endlessly fascinating to recognize traits, both physical and otherwise, in others who share your genes:linguistic dexterity, musical talents, and mathematical aptitudes to name but a few.But I suspect there may be some of you who may seek more.Perhaps you have collaboration in mind.A business opportunity beckons.Or else maybe you are willing to mentor younger members of the family.The range of professional skills within the family is impressive:doctors, lawyers, professors, dentists, accountants, and journalists abound.I hope this book may enable all of this synergy. 

I should say a word about the name McDoom.Of course it has been a source of endless amusement for even well-meaning friends and strangers unfamiliar with its heritage in Guyana.The name of course was not originally McDoom.It is in all likelihood the anglicized transliteration that a British emigration agent in Calcutta recorded in a colonial register before Haji set sail for new shores.[1]In fact the name could originally have been one of several possibilities: (i) Makhdoom (Arabic root letters Khay, Daal, Meem).This is connoted with the idea of serving; (ii) Maqdoom (Arabic root letters Qaf, Daal, Meem).The root meaning is to offer or to present; or (iii) Maktoum (Arabic root letter Kaf, Tay, Meem) meaning to conceal or to suppress (and is also the name of the ruling family of the United Arab Emirates).I list some of the other suggestions in the footnote below.[2]Indeed a similar-sounding name is quite common in the Asian subcontinent, particularly in Pakistan


[1] However, the spelling 'Muckdoom' appears on Haji's immigrant record in the Guyana National Archives and on his son's, Altaf Husain, amended birth certificate as the spelling of the father's name (interestingly Altaf's original birth certificate gives his own name as Usman Ali.It nonetheless re-affirms his father's name as Muckdoom.)Yet Altaf Husain's own family name is spelled as 'McDoom' on the same birth certificate.It is possible then that the name only came to be spelled as 'McDoom' with the second generation, Haji's children, when the family was already in Guyana.

[2] Other possibilities include: (i) Makhtoum meaning 'stamped' in Arabic; (ii) Magdoum, the name of a particular Arab tribe or umma; and (iii) Maqdoum (Arabic root letters Qaf, Daal, Meem) a military rank that is no longer in use.