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The Kristang are an ethnic group of people of mixed Portuguese and Asian descent, which arose in Malacca (Malaysia) between the 16th and 17th centuries. The Portuguese people (os Portugueses literally the Portuguese) are the Ethnic group or Nation native to the country of Portugal, in the west For the biogeographical region see Malesia Malaysia (məˈleɪʒə or /məˈleɪziə/ is a country that consists of thirteen states and As a means of recording the passage of Time, the 17th Century was that Century which lasted from 1601 - 1700 in the Gregorian calendar Some of them speak a distinctive Kristang language, a creole based on Portuguese and Malay. Papiá Kristang ("Christian language" or just Kristang, is a Creole language. A creole language, or simply a creole, is a stable Language that originates seemingly as a nativized Pidgin. Portuguese ( or língua portuguesa) is a Romance language that originated in what is now Galicia (Spain and northern Portugal. The Malay language ( ISO 639-1 code MS is an Austronesian language spoken by the Malay people and people of other ethnic groups who reside in the

The Kristang community is believed to have originated in part from marriages between and local native women and Portuguese men (sailors, soldiers, traders, etc. ) who came to Malacca during the age of Portuguese explorations. The community probably was immigration of people of mixed Portuguese and Indian ancestry, coming from Portuguese-held possessions in India, chiefly Goa. Goa ( Konkani: गोंय /ɡɔ̃j/ is India 's smallest state in terms of area and the fourth smallest in terms of population.

The name "Kristang" appears to be used occasionally also for other people of mixed European and Asian descent presently living in Malaysia and Singapore; including people with Portuguese descent who are not part of the historical Kristang, and people with other European ancestry, such as Dutch or British. The community of Eurasians in Singapore is descended from Europeans who intermarried with local Asians The ethnicities within the community span the length and breadth The Dutch people ( Dutch:) are the dominant Ethnic group of the Netherlands. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located

The name comes from Malay kristang ("Christian"), itself from Portuguese cristão. The Malay language ( ISO 639-1 code MS is an Austronesian language spoken by the Malay people and people of other ethnic groups who reside in the Portuguese ( or língua portuguesa) is a Romance language that originated in what is now Galicia (Spain and northern Portugal. Other synonyms for the Portuguese community are Serani (short for Malay "Nasrani", meaning followers of Jesus the Nazarene); and "Gragok" (slang term for Malay "Geragau" or shrimp, referring to the fact that the Malaccan Portuguese were traditionally shrimp fishermen). Jesus of Nazareth (7–2 BC / BCE —26–36 AD / CE) The community is known, by themselves, as Gente Kristang ("Christian People").

Contents

History

Portuguese expeditions

Malacca played a major role in the great wave of sea expeditions launched by Portugal, around the turn of the 16th century, which eventually led to the Portuguese Empire. Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic (República Portuguesa is a country on the Iberian Peninsula. The Portuguese Empire was the earliest and longest lived of the modern European colonial empires spanning almost six centuries from the capture of Ceuta The first Portuguese expedition to reach Malacca landed in 1507. It is recorded in the Sejarah Melayu (Malay Annals) that they were mistaken to be Bengali Puteh ("White Bengalis"). Sejarah Melayu or The Malay Annals is a historical Malay literary work that chronicles the establishment of the Malacca Sultanate and spans over 600 years The story goes that the landing party insulted the Malaccan sultan by placing a garland of flowers on his head, and he had them detained. Sultan (سلطان is an Islamic title with several historical meanings In 1511, a fleet came from India with the purpose of freeing the landing party. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country

At that time, Portuguese women were barred from travelling overseas due to superstition as well as the substantial danger of the sea route around cape Horn. Cabo de Hornos redirects here for the Chilean commune see Cabo de Hornos Chile. Following the colonization of Malacca (Malaysia) in 1511, the Portuguese explorers were encouraged to marry local women, under a grand design set by the Viceroy of India, Afonso de Albuquerque. The Sultanate of Malacca was founded by Parameswara in 1402 and later married the princess of Pasai in 1409. For the biogeographical region see Malesia Malaysia (məˈleɪʒə or /məˈleɪziə/ is a country that consists of thirteen states and A viceroy is a royal official who governs a country or province in the name of and as representative of the Monarch. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country Dom Afonso de Albuquerque (or Afonso d'Albuquerque - disused (ɐˈfõsu dɨ aɫbuˈkɛɾk(ɨ (1453 Alhandra - Goa, December 16 1515 was a Portuguese A bill released by the King of Portugal granted freeman status and exemption from crown taxes to Portuguese men (known as casados or "married men") who ventured overseas and married local women. Mixed marriages flourished with Albuquerque's encouragement, and some 200 had been recorded by 1604.

The Dutch takeover

Portugal lost Malacca to the Calvinist Dutch burghers in 1641, coinciding with a civil war in Portugal that saw the end to an 80-year period known as the "Union of the Crowns" (1580-1640) when Portugual joined to Castillan Spain by political marriage. Almost all contact with Portugal ended, but trade relations with the now-former Portuguese outpost of Macau continues to this day.

Even after Portugal lost Malacca and almost all contacts in 1641, the Kristang community largely preserved its traditions, religion and language, and still has surprising cultural and linguistic similarities with today's Portugal (especially with the Minho region). Some church services are still held in Portuguese, and the community is sometimes called 'Portuguese' by Malaysians. Portuguese ( or língua portuguesa) is a Romance language that originated in what is now Galicia (Spain and northern Portugal. However, their language (Kristang) is not taught in schools, and is nearing extinction.

Present status

Currently, the Kristang in Malaysia has the status of semi-bumiputra. The Kristang community in Singapore is part of a larger umbrella group known generically as the Eurasian community, which has also spread to Perth, Western Australia through emigration over the past three decades. The community of Eurasians in Singapore is descended from Europeans who intermarried with local Asians The ethnicities within the community span the length and breadth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia.

The Portuguese Settlement is a thriving Kristang community in Malacca, established in 1933 with the goal of gathering the dispersed Kristang community and preserving their culture. The Portuguese Settlement is a Kristang community in Ujong Pasir, five km from Malacca, Malaysia. Year 1933 ( MCMXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. A simple village of poor fishermen for many decades, it has recently become a major tourist attraction of Malaca, improving the income of its Kristang population.

Kristang culture

Fishing

Since Portuguese times, the Kristang have been living by the sea, which is now an important part of their culture. Even today, with only 10 percent of the community earning their living by fishing, many men go fishing to supplement their income or just to relax with their neighbours. Traditionally fishing is done in small wooden perahus, or pushing the langgiang, a traditional bamboo poled shrimp net through the shallow. A proa or prau is a type of Multihull sailing vessel. While the word proa just means boat in its native language Bamboo is a group of Woody perennial Evergreen Plants in the True grass family Poaceae, subfamily

Religion

A large fraction of the Kristang are still practising Catholics.

Christmas (Natal) is the most festive occasion of the year when many Kristang families get together to celebrate by eating season dishes, singing carols and branyok, and revelling in saudade. Saudade (singular or saudades (plural (sawˈdade in Galician sawˈdadɨ in European Portuguese and or in Brazilian Portuguese) is a Galician

Like many other Portuguese-speaking communities around the world, the Kristang also celebrate a string of major Saints' days at the end of June, beginning with St. John (San Juang) on June 24 and closing with St. Peter (San Pedro), the fishermen's patron saint, on June 29. Saint John the Baptist ( heb. Jochanan ben Sacharja, arab. يحيى Yaḥyā or يوحنا Yūḥanna, aram. The patron saint of a particular group of people is a Saint who would protect and 'love' the group and its members The June festival of St. John's village is a major tourist attraction of Malacca. The Portuguese Settlement is a Kristang community in Ujong Pasir, five km from Malacca, Malaysia.

Music and dance

Kristang music and dance, known as the branyok, can be easily mistaken for the Malay joget, but rather the adoption of western music instruments and musical scales in traditional Malay and Indian orchestras suggest a strong Portuguese influence.

The most popular branyo tune is Jingkli Nona which is regarded as the "unofficial" anthem for Portuguese Eurasians in Singapore.

Incidentally, modern Hawaiian music and its instruments, such as the ukulele, were developed by Portuguese immigrants who were the first Europeans to settle there. The State of Hawaii ( or həˈwaɪʔiː Hawaiian: Mokuāina o Hawaii) is a state in the United States located on an Archipelago in the The ukulele (ˌjʉːkəˈlɛɪli from ʻukulele /ˌʔukuˈlele/ variantly spelled ukelele (particularly in the UK) or alternatively abbreviated uke

Portuguese fado music is not part of the Kristang culture, since it originated in the 19th century, after cultural links with Portugal were cut off. FADO - False and Authentic Documents Online A computerised image-archiving system to help combat illegal immigration and organised crime ACT Council Joint Action 98/700/JHA Moreover, the characteristic melancholic mood of fado does not find echo in the joyful Kristang culture. Saudade (singular or saudades (plural (sawˈdade in Galician sawˈdadɨ in European Portuguese and or in Brazilian Portuguese) is a Galician

Cuisine

Typical Kristang dishes include devil curry and pang su sit cake.

Portuguese influence on Malay language

The Portuguese ruled Malacca from 1511 to 1641, so it is not surprising that about 300 Portuguese words found their way into the Malay language. These include kereta (from carreta, "cart"); sekolah (from escola, "school"); bendera (from bandeira, "flag"); mentega (from manteiga, "butter"); keju (from queijo, "cheese"); meja (from mesa, "table"); and nenas (from ananás, "pineapple").

Notable people

See also (Related ethnic groups)

Links

Dato' Anthony Francis Fernandes (born 1964 also known as Tony Fernandes) is a Malaysian Entrepreneur and the founder of Tune Air Sdn Jeremy Monteiro (born June 20, 1960, Singapore, is a Jazz Pianist, Singer, Composer and Music Educator In the context of Ethnic origins, Eurasian is a term for people and ethnic groups of mixed European and Asian ancestry The Burghers are a Eurasian ethnic group historically from Sri Lanka, consisting for the most part of male-line descendants of European colonists The community of Eurasians in Singapore is descended from Europeans who intermarried with local Asians The ethnicities within the community span the length and breadth Indo or Indo-European or Eurasian people is a term used to describe people of mixed European and Indonesian and/or Chinese Indonesian ancestry
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