Los culíes indios eran reclutados por contratos que establecían un periodo de trabajo no menor a ocho años, a cambio del transporte y un sueldo; pasado dicho lapso, el trabajador podía regresar a su hogar o buscar otro trabajo. En el caso de los chinos las condiciones eran más irregulares.

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A coolie (alternatively spelled cooli, cooly, quli, koelie, and other such variations), during the 19th and early 20th century, was a term for an indentured servant hired by a company, mainly from the Indian subcontinent or South China. Today, it is used varyingly as a legal, inoffensive word (for example, in India for helpers carrying luggage in railway stations) and also used as a racial slur in Africa for certain people from Asia, particularly in South Africa.

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