Brief History
Mauritius was known to the early Arab traders, being marked on their maps. But the first visitors from Europe were the Portuguese (Petro Mascarenhas) who landed 1510. They used the island as a victualling stop on their way to Goa and Malacca but did not settle. The first attempt at colonization was made by the Dutch, who arrived in 1598 (Wybrandt van Warwijk) and named the island Mauritius after Prince Maurice de Nassau. They introduced sugar, Malagasy slaves and a herd of Javanese deer.
But they were also said to be responsible for the disappearance of the magnificent ebony forests and the extinction of the famous dodo. They eventually abandoned their settlements in 1710.
The French occupied the island between 1715 and 1810 and renamed it “Isle de France”. Many place names are reminders of this period. Mahe de Labourdonnais, who took over as governor in 1735, rebuilt Port Louis and opened the first sugar mill.
In 1810, with the British take-over, the name reverted to Mauritius. The abolition of slavery led to the importation of Chinese and Indian indentured labourers, who were followed by traders of their own nationalities.
Mauritius gained independence from Britain on 12 March 1968 and since then has been an independent sovereign nation within the British Commonwealth.
Under the Constitution, which is based on the Westminster model, political power is vested in the Prime Minister and the Cabinet. Elections are held every 5 years. On 12 March 1992 Mauritius became a Republic.
Geographical Location
Mauritius is a tiny island of about 1,865 km² surrounded with 330 km of beaches of silvery sand. It is situated to the North of the Tropic of Capricorn on the latitude 20º South and the longitude 57º35' East.
The country includes Rodrigues, an island 560 km to its north-east, and other scattered islands such as Agalega and Cargados Carajos (St. Brandon).
Mauritius is approximately 855 km off the east coast of Madagascar, Africa being the nearest continent, with Mombasa some 1800 km away.
Mauritius is a volcanic island, about 10 million years old. The central plateau reaches 800m in altitude with the highest peak, Le Piton de la Riviere Noire, hitting 828m. The coastline is almost entirely surrounded by one of the largest unbroken coral reefs in the world.
People & Culture
With its population of just over 1,169,000 plus around 37,000 living in Rodrigues, Mauritius is remarkable in it's ethnic diversity. Mauritian society is woven from many multi-cultured threads: Indian, African, Chinese, and European. This has produced a heady brew of races, languages, religions and eating habits. English is the official language, but almost everyone speaks and reads French. Many oriental languages are also Spoken, mainly Bhojpuri (a sort of Creole-Hindi), but Creole remains the lingua franca.
Creole rougailles, Indian curries, Muslim bryanis, Chinese sweet-and-sour pork, French delicacies, English bacon and eggs ….. you name it, you'll get it here. Basic ingredients of the Creole Cuisine are tomatoes, onions, ginger, garlic and chillies. Palm hearts, and Cameron's (giant prawns), venison and wild boar are favourite items of French cuisine. Fresh fish and seafood are basic ingredients of Chinese cooking. Local vegetables and fruits abound all year round in a colourful selection of mouth-watering delights.
Mauritians having their origin from three continents celebrate a variety of religions festivals. Besides the Christian celebrations, such as Christmas and Easter, Hindu, Muslim and Chinese holidays are observed.
Temples, Mosques, Churches and Pagodas can be visited. Visitors are requested to dress properly (no shorts, etc) and to remove shoes when entering mosques and temples.
The music for the Sega, the local specialty, is derived from the African music of the old slave days, with added Creole patios lyrics. Listening to its beat and atmosphere will invite even the most inhibited visitor to try joining in on the dance floor, swaying his hips. There are professional troupes that give performances, which highlight the hotel shows. It is not to be missed.
The village has developed in the past few years mainly by reason of its proximity to Ile aux Cerfs and the well known hotels Touessrok and St. Géran. Daily shuttle service to Ile aux cerfs where all different nautical activities are available.
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