Gandaulim (Ilhas)
Village in Goa, India
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Gandaulim is a village located on the western bank of the Cumbarjua Canal, within Ilhas in the state of Goa, India.
Gandaulim
Gaundalim | |
|---|---|
Village | |
Igreja de São Brás, Gandaulim | |
  Gandaulim | |
| Coordinates: 15°30′44.5″N 73°56′28.9″E | |
| Country |  India |
| State | Goa |
| District | North Goa |
| Sub District | Ilhas |
| Established | 1540s |
| Government | |
| • Type | Panchayat |
| • Sarpanch | unknown |
| Elevation | 8 m (26 ft) |
| Population (2021) | |
• Total | approx. 300 |
| Demonym | Gandaulicar |
| Languages | |
| • Official | Konkani |
| • Also spoken (understood) | English, Marathi, Hindi |
| • Historical | Portuguese |
| Religions | |
| • Dominant | Christianity |
| • Minor | Hinduism |
| • Historical | Roman Catholicism |
| Time zone | UTC+5:30 (IST) |
| Postcode | 403505 |
| Telephone code | 08343 |
History
Croatian sailors and merchants from the Republic of Ragusa in Dalmatia established contact with Goa, India, in the 16th century, then amidst Portuguese colonization.[1][2] Between 1530 and 1535, adventurers from Dubrovnik joined the Portuguese to establish Sao Braz, a small Ragusan colonial settlement in the modern-day village of Gandaulim.[3] The colony was named after Saint Blaise, the patron saint of Dubrovnik.[3][2] In the annals of 1605, Jakov Lukarević noted that Ragusan merchants invested in decorating a local church.[4] Goese historian Gomes Catão documented the town to have a population of 12,000 settlers.[2] The 1667 Dubrovnik earthquake destroyed the city of Dubrovnik which left the Ragusan Republic financially strained.[3] Trading disputes with Portuguese settlers and declining trade with Indians forced the Republic of Ragusa to surrender their colony.[1]
Public interest in the former colony was revived in 1999, when Croatian Indologist Zdravka Matišić discovered a reference to ties between Ragusa and Goa while studying Sanskrit texts in India.[2][5] After an official Croatian delegation visited the village that year, benefactors have since donated to and refurbished local buildings.[6][7] The Church of Saint Blaise in the village is a common tourist attraction buoyed by Croatia–India relations.[3][1] Since the 2000s, heritage tourism between Dubrovnik, Croatia and Gandaulim has increased.[6]
Genetic findings in 2012 suggest the Romani people in Croatia originated in northwestern India and migrated to Europe as a group.[8] Romani people were mentioned for the first time in the Republic of Ragusa in 1362 in some commercial records.[9][10][11] Sushma Swaraj, Indian Minister of External Affairs, stated that the people of the Roma community in Croatia were to be recognized a part of the Indian diaspora.[12]
Infrastructure
In 2016, a bridge was constructed on the outskirts of the village, over the canal. This bridge now links the islands of Tiswadi taluka to Cumbarjua.[13][14]
Gandaulim Fort
Gandaulim was a site of the historical Gandaulim Fort, which was demolished in early 21st century for a road expansion project.
Gandaulim Fort Entrance Gate
Gandaulim Fort Entrance Gate after Demolition
Gandaulim Fort Entrance Gate post Demolition
