Hi Cecil. I agree that Encyclopaedia Britannica is linguistically inaccurate when refers to us as Goanese. But regarding to the rest of their statement, they clearly state "are partly of Portuguese descent". So I cannot conclude from there that they meant all Goans are of Portuguese descent. They clearly state the word "partially". It is true that some of us goans do have Portuguese blood and are commonly known as "descendentes" or if you wish to use a more derogatory term, you can use "mesticos" (which basically means mixed race) and can be used for white/black mixed as well. There are many family names in Goa that are known to be descendentes like for example "Lobato Faria", "Marques", "Mendes da Silva", and many others.
Also I think you meant "canarins" and not "canarans". The Portuguese gave the name of Canarins to the first non-Muslim Indians they found (canarin meaning canary, the saffron bird) because they were impressed with the dresses of the religious non-Muslim Indians who used to dress in this saffron colour. I do not know what East-Africa Portuguese documents you refer to (possibly from Mozambique?) but most of our Goans in Portuguese Africa (Mozambique in the East and Angola, Cabo Verde, Guine-Bissau e Sao Tome e Principe in the West) were in the later centuries called simply as Goeses and classified of Arian Race. Yes, I do remember coming across documents in Portuguese where our race was commonly described as Arian race (Raça: Ariana). You will possibly find these in Goa too. Best regards, Paulo Colaco Dias. -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Cecil Pinto Sent: 07 November 2003 12:56 To: Frederick Noronha Subject: [Goanet]Goanese & non-Goans: Webquest column from Goa Today This error isn't recent though. Till a few decades back Goans were often referred to as Goanese in British records and as Mesticos and Canarans in Portuguese records in East Africa. In the Portuguese language the word for Goans is: "Goeses" (plural) and "Goes" (singular) or 'Goesa' (female). Alternative Portuguese terms are "goano" (male) and "goana" (female), Even the Encyclopaedia Brittanica 1995 (www.goanet.com/text/general/intro.htm) states "Many Goanese bear Portuguese names and are partly of Portuguese descent as a result of intermarriage between early Portuguese settlers and the local inhabitants." Besides being linguistically inaccurate, the other fact of the matter is that the Portuguese surnames came by during mass conversions, when the presiding Portuguese officer gave the recently baptised the legacy of his name. ########################################################################## # Send submissions for Goanet to [EMAIL PROTECTED] # # PLEASE remember to stay on-topic (related to Goa), and avoid top-posts # # More details on Goanet at http://joingoanet.shorturl.com/ # # Please keep your discussion/tone polite, to reflect respect to others # ##########################################################################
