Bombay East Indians

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

East Indians or East Indian Catholics
Mangalorean Christians, Karwari Christians, Koli Christians, Marathi Christians & Latin Catholics of Malabar

The Bombay East Indians, also called East Indian Catholics or simply East Indians, are an ethno-religious

coast of India.[3][4] The community gets its name from the Bombay East Indian Association (BEIA), established in 1887.[5]

History

Church of Our Lady of Bethlehem
Velankanni Church, Uttan
Cross near Velankanni Beach, Uttan
Gorai Beach

Pre-Portuguese era

A

Thana & Kalyan-Dombivli towns of north Konkan in around 1323 AD. Sopara was an ancient port and an international trading center.[6]

Portuguese era

Main article: History of Bombay under Portuguese rule (1534–1661)

After ushering in the

Norteiros and later as "Portuguese Christians"[1]
or "Bombay Portuguese" in British Bombay.

The

Velha Goa. From 1534 to 1552, a priest by the name António do Porto converted over 10,000 people, built a dozen churches, convents, and a number of orphanages hospitals and seminaries. Prominent among the converts were two yogis from the Kanheri Caves who became known as Paulo Raposo and Francisco de Santa Maria. They introduced Christianity to their fellow yogis, converting many in the process.[7] Another notable convert during this period was the Brahmin astrologer Parashuram Joshi, who was baptized on 8 September 1565 with the name Henrique da Cunha. Joshi's conversion was followed by that of 250 Hindus, including over 50 Brahmins.[7] In Salsette, the priest Manuel Gomes converted over 6,000 Hindus in Bandra and was known as the Apostle of Salsette.[7]

In 1573, 1,600 people were converted. Beginning in 1548, Jesuits in Bassein (Baçaim) and Bandra converted many upper-caste Hindus; Bassein recorded 9,400 baptisms in 1588.[7] The Jesuit superior Gonçalo Rodrigues baptised between 5,000 and 6,000 Hindus in Thane (Tana), many of whom were orphans or the young children of lower-caste Hindus who were sold by their parents.[7] In 1634, Bassein had sixty-three friars, thirty Franciscans, fifteen Jesuits, ten Dominicans, and eight Augustines.[7] By the end of the 16th century the Catholic population of the Portuguese Province of the North was 10,000 to 15,000, centered mainly in and around Bassein.[8]

After the Province of the North came under Maratha occupation in 1739 and Catholicism was under severe threat from the Brahmin

British Bombay
.

British and modern eras

Main articles:
History of Bombay under British rule and Bombay Presidency

Changes occurred under British rule.

natural rights and privileges in comparison with immigrants.[10][independent source needed
]

The Bombay East Indian Association was founded on 26 May 1887 to advance the education, employment, rights and economic development of the East Indians. P F Gomes, who was knighted by Pope Leo XIII in 1888, was its first president and J L Britto its first secretary. D G D'Almeida donated ₹100,000 to establish an education fund.

During the 1960s, the

Archdiocese of Bombay estimated that there were 92,000 East Indians in Bombay: 76,000 in suburban Bombay and 16,000 in the city.[1]

Architecture

A typical Koli house consists of a veranda (oli), used for repairing nets and receiving visitors; a sitting-room (angan), used by women for household work; a kitchen, a central apartment, a bedroom, a devotional room (devaghar) and a detached bathroom.[11]

Language and literature

East Indian Catholics speak the

Bombay Portuguese.[13] At least 110 Portuguese lexical items are found in Maharashtra sponsored Marathi.[14]

Many of the characters in the book Bloodline Bandra[15] by Godfrey Joseph Pereira[16] (2014) are East Indian. The book is set in the 1950s in Pali Village.

Occasions and festivals

Main articles:
Koswad, and Sanna (dish)

Although the East Indians have preserved their pre-Christian

better source needed
]

Ethnic wear

East Indian women of Chimbai village performing at Bandra Gymkhana

Traditional dress for women is the

banian. A Koli Christian bridegroom usually wears an older Portuguese admiral's uniform, which is preserved and lent out for such occasions.[11]
East Indian women wore a blouse and cotton lugra, with the back pleats tucked into the waist; women did not use the upper portion of the sari (covering the head and breast) until they were married. This mode of wearing the sari is known as sakacch nesane. Gol nesane, a cylindrical style, is popular with young girls and women.[18]

Film industry

The film Tu Maza Jeev, in the East Indian language, was released on Maharashtra Day in 2009.[19]

Singing competition

Jacinto at an East Indian singing competition in Mumbai

East Indians organise singing competitions in their own language. The competition is primarily held in the evening of important village occasions;[20] for example, Kurla has an annual competition on the eve of the phool dongri feast in May at Holy Cross Church.[21]

Representation and reservation

The East Indians were recognised as

non-governmental organisations such as the Watchdog Foundation, Mobai Gaothan Panchayat, the Bombay East Indian Association, Vakola Advanced Locality Management, Kalina Civic Forum and the Kolovery Welfare Association founded the Maharashtra Swaraj Party (MSP), to give voice to the community's concerns.[23]
The party, which represents the East Indian community, was expected to support five candidates from Mumbai's suburbs in the 13th Maharashtra Legislative Assembly elections.[24][3]

Notable East Indians

See also

Citations

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Baptista 1967, p. 27
  2. ^ James, V (1965), "Marriage Customs of Christian Son Kolis", Asian Ethnology, 2, 24, Nanzan, Japan: Nanzan Institute for Religion and Culture, Nanzan University: 131–148, archived from the original on 2 December 2013, retrieved 15 April 2017
  3. ^ a b Kumar, Raksha (4 June 2016), "The original East Indians", The Hindu, Bombay (published 2 August 2013), archived from the original on 13 April 2018, retrieved 19 August 2017
  4. ^ a b Datta, Rangan. "Who are the East Indians of India's western coast and what is their Portuguese link". The Telegraph. My Kolkata. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  5. ^ "Bombay's East Indian community". 23 December 2021.
  6. ^ Thana District Gazetteer Part – I: Population:Christians-History Archived 10 November 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ a b c d e f g Machado 1999, p. 104
  8. ^ a b Machado 1999, p. 108
  9. ^ "Catherine of Bragança (1638–1705)". BBC. Archived from the original on 4 August 2011. Retrieved 3 June 2009.
  10. ^ "East Indians: History" (PDF), East-Indians.com, archived (PDF) from the original on 15 May 2013, retrieved 19 August 2017(Article based on Baptista 1967){{citation}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)
  11. ^ a b Gazetteer of Bombay City and Island I, II & III 1997, Chapter III : Population : The Kolis
  12. ^ Gazetteer of Bombay City and Island I, II & III 1997, Chapter III : Population : Languages
  13. ^ "Thane Gazetteer: Population: Christians – Speech". Archived from the original on 10 November 2010. Retrieved 28 December 2009.
  14. ISBN 978-81-8069-074-7, archived
    from the original on 22 June 2013, retrieved 29 March 2016
  15. ISBN 9789351364429
    .
  16. ^ "Godfrey Joseph Pereira". www.goodreads.com. Archived from the original on 10 October 2022. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
  17. ^ "The East Indian Community Original Inhabitants of Bombay, Salsette & Thana". Archived from the original on 11 March 2007. Retrieved 15 March 2007.
  18. ^ Gazetteer of Bombay City and Island I 1986, Chp. People: Dress
  19. ^ "First East Indian movie releases on Maharashtra Day". The Times of India. 4 May 2009. Archived from the original on 1 March 2018. Retrieved 9 December 2016.
  20. ^ "The East Indians of Kurla". geracao.in. Archived from the original on 15 February 2017. Retrieved 15 February 2017.
  21. ^ "Phool Dongri Feast – 10th May 2015 – Holy Cross Church". holycrosschurch.co.in. Archived from the original on 16 February 2017. Retrieved 15 February 2017.
  22. ^ "Government Resolutions (शासन निर्णय)" (PDF). Government of Maharashtra. Archived (PDF) from the original on 8 July 2021. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
  23. I am in DNA of India
    . 23 September 2014. Archived from the original on 27 September 2014. Retrieved 26 September 2014.
  24. ^ "East Indian party to field 5 candidates from suburbs", The Times of India, 18 September 2014, archived from the original on 9 January 2017, retrieved 19 August 2017
  25. ^ "Our Programmes". Archived from the original on 18 April 2019. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
  26. ^
    ISSN 0971-8257
    . Retrieved 12 August 2023.
  27. ^ Target Goa. "Two hats of James Ferreira couture and activism". targetgoa.com. Archived from the original on 22 September 2013. Retrieved 3 June 2013.
  28. ^ Dhyan, Chand (1952). GOAL. Chennai, India: Sports & Pastime. p. 10. Archived from the original on 22 September 2013. Retrieved 3 June 2013.
  29. ^ "Mumbai: Protesting flat buyers warn of poll boycott". Mid-day. 6 March 2023. Retrieved 12 August 2023.
  30. ^ "Catholics mourn Cardinal Simon Pimenta | Mumbai News". The Times of India. 20 July 2013. Archived from the original on 28 November 2020. Retrieved 9 February 2019.

References

Look up East Indian Catholic in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
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