The Goan Rural Heritage | Goa State PSC (GPSC) Preparation - GPSC (Goa) PDF Download

 Page 1


Land, resources and people
T
HE ‘OLD CONQUESTS’ region of Goa consists of three provinces, namely
Bardez, Tisvadi and Salcete, and it lies almost at the centre of the west
coast of India c. 250 miles SSE of Bombay. The three provinces are divided
and separated from each other by rivers descending from the western Ghats.
Bardez has Chapora river to its north and Mandovi river to its south; Tisvadi
is an agglomeration of islands formed by the turnings of the Mandovi and
Zuari rivers; and Salcete is separated from Tisvadi by Zuari river and from
its neighbouring eastern and southern regions by Sal river.
The entire region has a narrow littoral strip bathed by the Indian Ocean. The
eastern approach is barred by a mountain range thickly forested. The lush
greenery all over presents a ?ne contrast to the red of the laterite soil. The
idyllic impression is further enhanced by the silvery ribbons of rivers and
rivulets with their serpentine windings.
The three provinces of Bardez, Tisvadi and Salcete occupy an average land
mass of 264 sq. km., 166 sq. km., and 233 sq. km respectively. The names of
the three provinces are derived from the number of the original settlements
in each of them. Thus, Bardez derives from Bara+desa, meaning ‘twelve
regions’; Tisvadi derives from Tis+vadi, meaning ‘thirty settlements’; and
Salcete is a corruption of Sasashta or ‘sixty-six’ (settlements). The earliest
reference to these province names occurs in a Sanskrit copper-plate grant in-
scription issued by Madhava Mantri, Vijayanagara governor of Goa, around
A.D. 1391.
1
Page 2


Land, resources and people
T
HE ‘OLD CONQUESTS’ region of Goa consists of three provinces, namely
Bardez, Tisvadi and Salcete, and it lies almost at the centre of the west
coast of India c. 250 miles SSE of Bombay. The three provinces are divided
and separated from each other by rivers descending from the western Ghats.
Bardez has Chapora river to its north and Mandovi river to its south; Tisvadi
is an agglomeration of islands formed by the turnings of the Mandovi and
Zuari rivers; and Salcete is separated from Tisvadi by Zuari river and from
its neighbouring eastern and southern regions by Sal river.
The entire region has a narrow littoral strip bathed by the Indian Ocean. The
eastern approach is barred by a mountain range thickly forested. The lush
greenery all over presents a ?ne contrast to the red of the laterite soil. The
idyllic impression is further enhanced by the silvery ribbons of rivers and
rivulets with their serpentine windings.
The three provinces of Bardez, Tisvadi and Salcete occupy an average land
mass of 264 sq. km., 166 sq. km., and 233 sq. km respectively. The names of
the three provinces are derived from the number of the original settlements
in each of them. Thus, Bardez derives from Bara+desa, meaning ‘twelve
regions’; Tisvadi derives from Tis+vadi, meaning ‘thirty settlements’; and
Salcete is a corruption of Sasashta or ‘sixty-six’ (settlements). The earliest
reference to these province names occurs in a Sanskrit copper-plate grant in-
scription issued by Madhava Mantri, Vijayanagara governor of Goa, around
A.D. 1391.
1
The climate of the region is monsoonic, characterised by sultry weather and
a long rainy season followed by a long spell of heat. The temperature varies
between 16.3º C and 36.2º C, these two extremes registering in the months
of December and February respectively.
2
Page 3


Land, resources and people
T
HE ‘OLD CONQUESTS’ region of Goa consists of three provinces, namely
Bardez, Tisvadi and Salcete, and it lies almost at the centre of the west
coast of India c. 250 miles SSE of Bombay. The three provinces are divided
and separated from each other by rivers descending from the western Ghats.
Bardez has Chapora river to its north and Mandovi river to its south; Tisvadi
is an agglomeration of islands formed by the turnings of the Mandovi and
Zuari rivers; and Salcete is separated from Tisvadi by Zuari river and from
its neighbouring eastern and southern regions by Sal river.
The entire region has a narrow littoral strip bathed by the Indian Ocean. The
eastern approach is barred by a mountain range thickly forested. The lush
greenery all over presents a ?ne contrast to the red of the laterite soil. The
idyllic impression is further enhanced by the silvery ribbons of rivers and
rivulets with their serpentine windings.
The three provinces of Bardez, Tisvadi and Salcete occupy an average land
mass of 264 sq. km., 166 sq. km., and 233 sq. km respectively. The names of
the three provinces are derived from the number of the original settlements
in each of them. Thus, Bardez derives from Bara+desa, meaning ‘twelve
regions’; Tisvadi derives from Tis+vadi, meaning ‘thirty settlements’; and
Salcete is a corruption of Sasashta or ‘sixty-six’ (settlements). The earliest
reference to these province names occurs in a Sanskrit copper-plate grant in-
scription issued by Madhava Mantri, Vijayanagara governor of Goa, around
A.D. 1391.
1
The climate of the region is monsoonic, characterised by sultry weather and
a long rainy season followed by a long spell of heat. The temperature varies
between 16.3º C and 36.2º C, these two extremes registering in the months
of December and February respectively.
2
Paddy cultivation constitutes the main occupation of the rural population,
and the chief crop known as sorod depends upon the heavy monsoon rain-
fall in the months of June, July and August. The serpentine river net and
seasonal lakes enable several villages to raise a second crop known as vain-
gan during the months of December-April. Where the vaingan crops is not
feasible, generally beans of various kinds are grown, as well as several other
kinds of vegetables.
The sandy soil of the areas lying along the extensive seashore is responsi-
ble for the poor yield in those villages that lie in the coastal region. This
de?ciency is compensated manifold by the palm groves sprawling all over
the seaside area. Besides, ?shing constitutes a compensating substitute for
the better rice production in the hinterland. In this connection one can
appreciate the hypothesis of the late D. D. Kosambi regarding the origin of
the settlement of the west coast. According to him, only the existence of
coconut trees could have made possible that settlement.
3
During the seven-
teenth century the rural population of Goa depended to a very large extent
upon palm and palm products to satisfy many of their needs connected
with habitation and food, including their need of expressing their joy and of
drowning their sorrow. The only home grown export commodities which
paid in part for a variety of goods that needed to be imported were copra,
salted ?sh and salt.
4
A study of the natural resources of Goa cannot help referring to the suf?-
ciency of pasture for the animals that gave to the territory its name Gomant
and to its people milk for drink, cow-dung for house cleanliness, house-
warming and manure, urine for sacred ablutions, and backs for plough,
yoke and packs. The conversion to Christianity and the consequent dietary
changes made of beef an important diet ingredient. For the Hindus it con-
tinued to be an assurance of ultimate bliss to die holding on to the tail of a
sacred cow.
5
Details regarding the population ?gures are sparse and inexact. We are rela-
tively fortunate to have such data for the areas where the Jesuits exercised
their missionary activities and recorded these in their regular reports sent to
Europe. These data need to be handled with caution but conservative esti-
mates based on them would give population ?gures for Tisvadi and Salcete
during late seventeenth century as 30,000 and 80,000 respectively. Totalling
an average of 2500 Christians in Salcete villages during the ?rst decade of
the seventeenth century, when the conversion work was still going on, the
total of Christian population was around 35,000.
6
The limited information
from the Franciscan sources suggests that the population of Bardez did not
depart very much from the pattern of density in the other two provinces.
There must have been about 70,000 inhabitants in that province during
the seventeenth century.
7
The population growth could not have made any
signi?cant difference, because during that century the region was plagued
by wars and famines, which must have heightened the otherwise high rate
Page 4


Land, resources and people
T
HE ‘OLD CONQUESTS’ region of Goa consists of three provinces, namely
Bardez, Tisvadi and Salcete, and it lies almost at the centre of the west
coast of India c. 250 miles SSE of Bombay. The three provinces are divided
and separated from each other by rivers descending from the western Ghats.
Bardez has Chapora river to its north and Mandovi river to its south; Tisvadi
is an agglomeration of islands formed by the turnings of the Mandovi and
Zuari rivers; and Salcete is separated from Tisvadi by Zuari river and from
its neighbouring eastern and southern regions by Sal river.
The entire region has a narrow littoral strip bathed by the Indian Ocean. The
eastern approach is barred by a mountain range thickly forested. The lush
greenery all over presents a ?ne contrast to the red of the laterite soil. The
idyllic impression is further enhanced by the silvery ribbons of rivers and
rivulets with their serpentine windings.
The three provinces of Bardez, Tisvadi and Salcete occupy an average land
mass of 264 sq. km., 166 sq. km., and 233 sq. km respectively. The names of
the three provinces are derived from the number of the original settlements
in each of them. Thus, Bardez derives from Bara+desa, meaning ‘twelve
regions’; Tisvadi derives from Tis+vadi, meaning ‘thirty settlements’; and
Salcete is a corruption of Sasashta or ‘sixty-six’ (settlements). The earliest
reference to these province names occurs in a Sanskrit copper-plate grant in-
scription issued by Madhava Mantri, Vijayanagara governor of Goa, around
A.D. 1391.
1
The climate of the region is monsoonic, characterised by sultry weather and
a long rainy season followed by a long spell of heat. The temperature varies
between 16.3º C and 36.2º C, these two extremes registering in the months
of December and February respectively.
2
Paddy cultivation constitutes the main occupation of the rural population,
and the chief crop known as sorod depends upon the heavy monsoon rain-
fall in the months of June, July and August. The serpentine river net and
seasonal lakes enable several villages to raise a second crop known as vain-
gan during the months of December-April. Where the vaingan crops is not
feasible, generally beans of various kinds are grown, as well as several other
kinds of vegetables.
The sandy soil of the areas lying along the extensive seashore is responsi-
ble for the poor yield in those villages that lie in the coastal region. This
de?ciency is compensated manifold by the palm groves sprawling all over
the seaside area. Besides, ?shing constitutes a compensating substitute for
the better rice production in the hinterland. In this connection one can
appreciate the hypothesis of the late D. D. Kosambi regarding the origin of
the settlement of the west coast. According to him, only the existence of
coconut trees could have made possible that settlement.
3
During the seven-
teenth century the rural population of Goa depended to a very large extent
upon palm and palm products to satisfy many of their needs connected
with habitation and food, including their need of expressing their joy and of
drowning their sorrow. The only home grown export commodities which
paid in part for a variety of goods that needed to be imported were copra,
salted ?sh and salt.
4
A study of the natural resources of Goa cannot help referring to the suf?-
ciency of pasture for the animals that gave to the territory its name Gomant
and to its people milk for drink, cow-dung for house cleanliness, house-
warming and manure, urine for sacred ablutions, and backs for plough,
yoke and packs. The conversion to Christianity and the consequent dietary
changes made of beef an important diet ingredient. For the Hindus it con-
tinued to be an assurance of ultimate bliss to die holding on to the tail of a
sacred cow.
5
Details regarding the population ?gures are sparse and inexact. We are rela-
tively fortunate to have such data for the areas where the Jesuits exercised
their missionary activities and recorded these in their regular reports sent to
Europe. These data need to be handled with caution but conservative esti-
mates based on them would give population ?gures for Tisvadi and Salcete
during late seventeenth century as 30,000 and 80,000 respectively. Totalling
an average of 2500 Christians in Salcete villages during the ?rst decade of
the seventeenth century, when the conversion work was still going on, the
total of Christian population was around 35,000.
6
The limited information
from the Franciscan sources suggests that the population of Bardez did not
depart very much from the pattern of density in the other two provinces.
There must have been about 70,000 inhabitants in that province during
the seventeenth century.
7
The population growth could not have made any
signi?cant difference, because during that century the region was plagued
by wars and famines, which must have heightened the otherwise high rate
of mortality. This situation was particularly true of Bardez and Salcete which
were more exposed to invasions and were more easily affected by distur-
bances of trade contacts with the hinterland. The great famine of 1630-1,
two reported severe cyclones accompanied by earthquakes in April 1649
and in July 1654, the invasions of Bardez and Salcete by the forces of Adil
Shah in 1654-9, the invasion of Bardez by Shivaji in 1667, and a renewed
Maratha attack against the entire Goan territory in 1683, were some of the
major disasters which could not leave the population and economy of the
region unaffected. Fresh tax demands and recurring war contributions, the
religious fanaticism of the Inquisition aimed at the Hindus, as well as at the
poorly catechised native Christians, and constant threats of invasions were
further responsible for the reduction of the population by way of large-scale
emigrations. Most of the emigrants moved towards Kanara where rice was
more cheaply available. Manuel Themudo, S.J., visitor to Kanara missions
reported in 1669 that in the course of the previous 35 years nearly 30,000
Goans, chie?y Hindus had migrated to Kanara lands due the religious per-
secutions and other reasons.
8
There were bolder spirits who sought their
fortune in distant places, including the gold mines of Mozambique.
9
It was
the beginning of a tradition which had made of the Goans eternal pilgrims.
Those who stayed put could not have had much incentive for any improve-
ment in their standard of living owing to stagnant technology and increas-
ing burdens upon a stable productivity. In such conditions the growth of
population meant an increase of consumers. Even though agriculture is a
labour-intensive occupation and population growth could be an important
source of production increase, the prevailing system of land tenure was not
directed towards the expansion of settlement, cultivation and production.
The arrival of the Portuguese surely provided new avenues of employment,
but these helped more the artisan class than the landed gentry, which had
more to lose than to gain in the new situation.
Origin and distribution of the village communities
The efforts of the early sixteenth century Portuguese of?cials and chroniclers
did not lead them beyond the mist of tradition in their attempts to trace
the origin of the Goan village communities. Afonso Mexia who codi?ed
the customary legislation of the village communities in 1526 could only
ascertain from learned natives that in remote times four men had cleared
the island of Tisvadi and brought it under cultivation. Mexia came to the
conclusion that it was impossible to discover anything more about the origin
of the village communities.
10
The Portuguese chronicler Barros traced the origin of the Goan village set-
tlers to some poor immigrants from Kanara who descended the Ghats and
Page 5


Land, resources and people
T
HE ‘OLD CONQUESTS’ region of Goa consists of three provinces, namely
Bardez, Tisvadi and Salcete, and it lies almost at the centre of the west
coast of India c. 250 miles SSE of Bombay. The three provinces are divided
and separated from each other by rivers descending from the western Ghats.
Bardez has Chapora river to its north and Mandovi river to its south; Tisvadi
is an agglomeration of islands formed by the turnings of the Mandovi and
Zuari rivers; and Salcete is separated from Tisvadi by Zuari river and from
its neighbouring eastern and southern regions by Sal river.
The entire region has a narrow littoral strip bathed by the Indian Ocean. The
eastern approach is barred by a mountain range thickly forested. The lush
greenery all over presents a ?ne contrast to the red of the laterite soil. The
idyllic impression is further enhanced by the silvery ribbons of rivers and
rivulets with their serpentine windings.
The three provinces of Bardez, Tisvadi and Salcete occupy an average land
mass of 264 sq. km., 166 sq. km., and 233 sq. km respectively. The names of
the three provinces are derived from the number of the original settlements
in each of them. Thus, Bardez derives from Bara+desa, meaning ‘twelve
regions’; Tisvadi derives from Tis+vadi, meaning ‘thirty settlements’; and
Salcete is a corruption of Sasashta or ‘sixty-six’ (settlements). The earliest
reference to these province names occurs in a Sanskrit copper-plate grant in-
scription issued by Madhava Mantri, Vijayanagara governor of Goa, around
A.D. 1391.
1
The climate of the region is monsoonic, characterised by sultry weather and
a long rainy season followed by a long spell of heat. The temperature varies
between 16.3º C and 36.2º C, these two extremes registering in the months
of December and February respectively.
2
Paddy cultivation constitutes the main occupation of the rural population,
and the chief crop known as sorod depends upon the heavy monsoon rain-
fall in the months of June, July and August. The serpentine river net and
seasonal lakes enable several villages to raise a second crop known as vain-
gan during the months of December-April. Where the vaingan crops is not
feasible, generally beans of various kinds are grown, as well as several other
kinds of vegetables.
The sandy soil of the areas lying along the extensive seashore is responsi-
ble for the poor yield in those villages that lie in the coastal region. This
de?ciency is compensated manifold by the palm groves sprawling all over
the seaside area. Besides, ?shing constitutes a compensating substitute for
the better rice production in the hinterland. In this connection one can
appreciate the hypothesis of the late D. D. Kosambi regarding the origin of
the settlement of the west coast. According to him, only the existence of
coconut trees could have made possible that settlement.
3
During the seven-
teenth century the rural population of Goa depended to a very large extent
upon palm and palm products to satisfy many of their needs connected
with habitation and food, including their need of expressing their joy and of
drowning their sorrow. The only home grown export commodities which
paid in part for a variety of goods that needed to be imported were copra,
salted ?sh and salt.
4
A study of the natural resources of Goa cannot help referring to the suf?-
ciency of pasture for the animals that gave to the territory its name Gomant
and to its people milk for drink, cow-dung for house cleanliness, house-
warming and manure, urine for sacred ablutions, and backs for plough,
yoke and packs. The conversion to Christianity and the consequent dietary
changes made of beef an important diet ingredient. For the Hindus it con-
tinued to be an assurance of ultimate bliss to die holding on to the tail of a
sacred cow.
5
Details regarding the population ?gures are sparse and inexact. We are rela-
tively fortunate to have such data for the areas where the Jesuits exercised
their missionary activities and recorded these in their regular reports sent to
Europe. These data need to be handled with caution but conservative esti-
mates based on them would give population ?gures for Tisvadi and Salcete
during late seventeenth century as 30,000 and 80,000 respectively. Totalling
an average of 2500 Christians in Salcete villages during the ?rst decade of
the seventeenth century, when the conversion work was still going on, the
total of Christian population was around 35,000.
6
The limited information
from the Franciscan sources suggests that the population of Bardez did not
depart very much from the pattern of density in the other two provinces.
There must have been about 70,000 inhabitants in that province during
the seventeenth century.
7
The population growth could not have made any
signi?cant difference, because during that century the region was plagued
by wars and famines, which must have heightened the otherwise high rate
of mortality. This situation was particularly true of Bardez and Salcete which
were more exposed to invasions and were more easily affected by distur-
bances of trade contacts with the hinterland. The great famine of 1630-1,
two reported severe cyclones accompanied by earthquakes in April 1649
and in July 1654, the invasions of Bardez and Salcete by the forces of Adil
Shah in 1654-9, the invasion of Bardez by Shivaji in 1667, and a renewed
Maratha attack against the entire Goan territory in 1683, were some of the
major disasters which could not leave the population and economy of the
region unaffected. Fresh tax demands and recurring war contributions, the
religious fanaticism of the Inquisition aimed at the Hindus, as well as at the
poorly catechised native Christians, and constant threats of invasions were
further responsible for the reduction of the population by way of large-scale
emigrations. Most of the emigrants moved towards Kanara where rice was
more cheaply available. Manuel Themudo, S.J., visitor to Kanara missions
reported in 1669 that in the course of the previous 35 years nearly 30,000
Goans, chie?y Hindus had migrated to Kanara lands due the religious per-
secutions and other reasons.
8
There were bolder spirits who sought their
fortune in distant places, including the gold mines of Mozambique.
9
It was
the beginning of a tradition which had made of the Goans eternal pilgrims.
Those who stayed put could not have had much incentive for any improve-
ment in their standard of living owing to stagnant technology and increas-
ing burdens upon a stable productivity. In such conditions the growth of
population meant an increase of consumers. Even though agriculture is a
labour-intensive occupation and population growth could be an important
source of production increase, the prevailing system of land tenure was not
directed towards the expansion of settlement, cultivation and production.
The arrival of the Portuguese surely provided new avenues of employment,
but these helped more the artisan class than the landed gentry, which had
more to lose than to gain in the new situation.
Origin and distribution of the village communities
The efforts of the early sixteenth century Portuguese of?cials and chroniclers
did not lead them beyond the mist of tradition in their attempts to trace
the origin of the Goan village communities. Afonso Mexia who codi?ed
the customary legislation of the village communities in 1526 could only
ascertain from learned natives that in remote times four men had cleared
the island of Tisvadi and brought it under cultivation. Mexia came to the
conclusion that it was impossible to discover anything more about the origin
of the village communities.
10
The Portuguese chronicler Barros traced the origin of the Goan village set-
tlers to some poor immigrants from Kanara who descended the Ghats and
reclaimed the land for cultivation. And when the soil had been made pro-
ductive and the population had grown sizably the territory was overrun by
a ruler of Kanara, who left the people to cultivate their lands in peace, but
only after they had agreed to pay him a ?xed annual rental per village on
the basis of joint responsibility of all the original settler-families of each
village.
11
There is one curious attempt made by a noted Jesuit in the mid-seventeenth
century (1641) to explain the origin and nature of the Goan village communi-
ties. Alfonso Mendes, S.J. traced the origin of the settlement of Goan villages
to some time around eighth century A.D. basing his calculations upon a
copper-plate grant inscription issued by the Kadamba king Jayakesi II (sic)
in 1099. Reading in it that there had been nine rulers before the grantor-ruler
and arguing that their rule must have covered a span of nearly 200 years, the
Jesuit investigator placed the rule of the ?rst ruler of Goa around A.D. 899. In
order to arrive at the ?nal conclusion he deduced another 100 years, which
he assumed, must have been necessary for settlement and cultivation.
12
This calculation of Alfonso Mendes, S.J. was based on the assumption that
the tradition of Barros was fully reliable, and for that reason he did not
think of the possibility of any other prior dynasty of non-Kanarese kings
ruling in Goa. The discovery of a statue of Buddha at Colvale (Bardes) by
Rev. Heras, S.J. and the results of the limited excavations conducted recently
by the Archaeological Survey of India at Kotta, which was once the capital
of the Goa Kadambas, have left us with no doubts about the existence of
an organised society in Goa already in the early centuries of the Christian
era.
13
A number of theories have also been proposed to determine the ethnic
origin of the ?rst settlers. The Pauranic tradition recorded in the Sahyadri-
khanda of the Skanda Purana refers to Saraswat Brahmins migrating from
Bengal-Bihar region to Goa c. fourth century A.D. at the invitation of the
Kadamba king Mayuravarma in order to support his throne.
14
The late D.
D. Kosambi has upheld this tradition with arguments drawn from religion,
linguistics and ethnology.
15
According to another theory, the Shenvi Sarasvat
Brahmins of Goa may have migrated from the Kutch-Saurastra region some
time around the eighth century A.D., probably under the pressure of the
early Arab invastions of that area.
16
P .S.S. Pissurlencar tried to reconcile the
tradition recorded in Sahyadri-khanda and Konkanakhyana, and visualised
the possibility of one early migration of the labouring classes, possibly of
South Indian origin, and a later migration of the Sarasvat Brahmins who
then established themselves as administrators.
17
It is true that the village community set-up as it was found on the arrival
of the Portuguese was controlled by the Brahminical exegesis of Dharma-
shastras and Smritis.
18
The immigration of the Goan Brahmins from some-
where in northern India is corroborated by the peculiar nature of the Goan
village communities; these bear similiarity with those in the North and differ