Ethnicity and Surnames in Goa

The people of Goa are Indo-Aryan and are closely related to the neighbouring Marathi people. The majority of Goa’s population comprises of the Aryan Marathas. The present chief minister of Goa, Pratapsinh Rane belongs to a royal clan of Maratha. The common surnames of Marathas are Rane, Sawant, Kadam, Porob and many others. For a listing of Goan Maratha surnames, see Maratha Clan System. Most of the Goan Marathas are closely related to the Maratha people of the neighbouring region of Sawantvadi, which was a former princely state and is often called the sister-region of Goa. The other major ethnic groups of Goa are Goud Saraswat Brahmins and Christians. The Goud Saraswats trace their lineage to the Saraswati river, although the exact location of which is unknown. The surnames amongst Saraswats include Benegal, Bhat, Shenoy, Pai, Prabhu etc.
Goan Hindus of all castes converted to Catholicism, either through Catholic missionary efforts or as a result of the Inquisition. The new converts to Catholicism adopted Portuguese surnames such as Silva, Souza or Sousa, Pereira, etc. and some Catholic Goans have no Portuguese descent what-so-ever. This is evident in the caste system used by the Catholics. Some Goan Catholics still have records of their original Hindu surnames. Portuguese surnames are also present further down the West Coast in the largely Catholic city of Mangalore, in Karnataka State. Similar surnames are also prevalent in the neighbouring country, Sri Lanka, but with some variations. Most of the Goan Hindus surnames end with “-Kar” suffix, similar to the surnames of Maharashtrian people. eg. Chandavarkar, Usgaonkar, etc. However, some Goan Hindus prefer the “-Car” suffix a konkani version of ‘Kar’, eg. Salgaocar, Caro, Verlecar, Domotcar, Raiturcar, etc. The local influence goes beyond the “Kar” suffix as some traditional Maratha surnames are influenced by konkani eg. Parab to Porob, Kadam turned to Kadoum, etc.

First Woman PM of Trinidad of Indian Origin

The nation of Trinidad and Tobago has finally got its first woman Prime Minister. But that is not the important aspect here. Kamla Persad-Bissessar is a 58 year old woman of Indian origin.
Of the forty one seats in the Parliament, the People’s Partnership which is Persad-Bissessar party won twenty nine seats in the elections. This win by the People’s Partnership has brought to an end the rule of the Ruling Party which has been in power since the last forty three years.
Persad-Bissessar was also the first woman who became the Attorney General in her nation. She was also elected the Legal Affairs Minister and also, served as the Minister of Education. Her forefather was among 1, 48,000 laborers who were transported from India between the timelines of 1845 to 1917. These laborers were brought to work in the plantations of cocoa and sugar.
On the occasion, Persad-Bissessar said that she is very grateful for the constant support that she received from the women in her nation. At the same time, she made it clear that her government would not permit any form of social or ethnic group to reign on the nation. It is important to work on the nation’s strengths as a collective that would help everyone rise.
Trinidad and Tobago is a Caribbean island country. It was once a Spanish colony. Major part of its population which consists of 44 percent is of Indian origin. This makes up for 1.3 million people in the nation who belong to the ethnicity of India.