INHABITANTS OF MADAGASCAR,East African Islands

The population is somewhat under two and three-quarter millions,1 including some 10,000 or 11,000 Europeans, and a smaller number of Indian, Arab1 and other Asiatics, mostly small traders found in the seaports, the Chinese being found in every town of any size. The island, it will be seen, is very sparsely inhabited; the most densely peopled province is that of Imrina with (1905) 388,000 inhabitants. The natives, collectively known as Malagasy, are divided into a considerable number of tribes, each having its distinct customs. Although geographically an African island, the majority of its inhabitants are derived, the lighter portion of them from the MalayoPolynesian stock, and the darker races from the Melanesian. This is inferred from their similarity to the peoples of the Indian and Pacific archipelagoes in their physical appearance, mental habits, customs, and, above all, in their language. Their traditions also point in the same direction. There is, however, an undoubted African mixture in the western and some other tribes. There is also an Arab element both on the north-west and south-east coasts; and it appears that most of the families of the ruling classes in all parts of the island are descended from Arabs, who married native women. It is believed that there are traces of an aboriginal people, who occupied portions of the interior before the advent of the present inhabitants, and these appear to have been a somewhat dwarfish race, and lighter-colored than the Malagasy generally. The Hva became the dominant tribe from the beginning of the 19th century; they appear to be the latest immigrants, and are the lightest in color; and they are also the most intelligent and civilized of all the peoples inhabiting the island. The most striking proof of the virtual unity of the inhabitants of Madagascar is that substantially but one language is spoken over the whole country. The Malay affinities of Malagasy were noted in the 16th century; indeed, the second and fifth books published upon the country (in 1603 and 1613) were comparative vocabularies of these two languages. Later investigations have confirmed the conclusions thus early arrived at; and Van der Tuuk, Marre de Mann and W. E. Cousins have shown conclusively the close relationships between the language of the Malagasy and those of the Malayo-Polynesian regions; similar connections exist, especially in grammatical construction, between the Malagasy and Melanesian languages. The Malagasy had never invented for themselves a written character, and had consequently no manuscripts, inscriptions or books, until their language was reduced to writing, and its orthography settled by English missionaries. Their speech nevertheless is very full in many of its verbal and other forms, while it also exhibits some curious deficiencies. It is very soft and musical, full of vowels and liquids, and free from all harsh gutturals. Native oratory abounds in figures, metaphors and parables; and a large number of folk-tales, songs and legends, together with the very numerous proverbs, give ample evidence of the mental ability and imaginative powers of the Malagasy. Native society in Imrina among the HOva was formerly divided into three great classes: the Andriana, or nobles; the Hva, freemen or commoners; and the Andvo, or slaves; but these last became free by a proclamation issued in 1896. The Andriana are, strictly speaking, royal clans, being descendants of petty kings who were conquered or otherwise lost their authority through the increasing power of the ancestors of the reigning family. Their descendants retained certain honors in virtue of their royal origin, such as special terms of salutation, the use of the smaller scarlet umbrella (the larger one was the mark of royal rank), the right to build a particular kind of tomb, &c.; they also enjoyed exemption from certain government service, and from some punishments for crime. The Hflvaf or commoners form the mass of the population of Imrina. They are composed of a large number of tribes, who usually intermarry strictly among themselves, as indeed do families, so that property and land may be kept together. The third great division was the slave population, which since 1896 has become merged in the mass of the people. This is a special and restricted use of the word, Hflva in its widest sense being a tribal name, including all ranks of people in Imrina. Mozambiques or African slaves, who had been brought from the African coast by Arab dhows, were in 1877 formally set free by an agreement with the British government. Royalty and chieftainship in Madagascar had many peculiar customs. It had a semi-sacred character; the chief was, in heathen tribes, while living, the high priest for his people, and after death, was worshipped as a god; in its modern development among the Hva sovereigns it gathered round it much state and ceremony. There were many curious examples of this taboo with regard to actions connected with royalty, and also in the words used which relate to Malagasy sovereigns and their surroundings. These were particularly seen in everything having to do with the burial of a monarch. While the foregoing description of native society applied chiefly to the people of the central province of Imrina, it is applicable, with local modifications, to most of the Malagasy tribes.

1890s Wood Engraving Antique Map

Approximate Overall Size: 7 X 10 1/2 inches

CONDITION: Book Plate INTEXT MAP - Excellent Condition. Beautiful with excellent detail. There is Text on Front and Back Side.