Franco-Mauritians

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Franco-Mauritians are an ethnic group from Mauritius who trace their ethnic ancestry to France and ethnic French people. Franco-Mauritians make up apprxoimately 2% of the country's population.

Origins[]

The first French settlers arrived in Mauritius (then Isle de France) in 1722, after the previous attempts of settlement by the Dutch had failed, and the island had once again become abandoned. They lived and prospered on the island, ruling it until the British invasion of 1810. The French by now strongly identified with the island, and the terms of capitulation allowed the settlers to live on as a distinct Francophone ethnic group for the next 158 years under British rule before Mauritius attained independence. By 1920 the French Mauritian population on the island was between 70,000 to 80,000, around 20% of the total population.^[1]

Not all Franco-Mauritians have pure French lineage; many also have British or other European ancestors that came to Mauritius and were absorbed in the Franco-Mauritian community or the gens de couleur (Coloureds). Within the Afro-Creole community, a significant proportion of them have some degree of French lineage.^[2]

Demographic factors[]

Franco-Mauritians comprise 2% of the population of Mauritius and own many of the largest businesses in the country.^[3] Most Franco-Mauritians are Roman Catholic.

Notable people[]

• Claude de Baissac
• Lise de Baissac
• Joanna Bérenger, politician
• Paul Bérenger, former Prime Minister of Mauritius
• Benoit Bouchet, windsurfer
• Havana Brown, Mauritian-Australian DJ, singer, recording artist, record producer, songwriter and dancer
• Antoine Toussaint de Chazal, plantation owner and artist
• Adrien d'Épinay, politician and slave-owner
• Prosper d'Épinay, sculptor and caricaturist
• Firoz Ghanty, painter, poet, and activist
• Fabrice Lapierre, Mauritian-born Australian long jumper
• Marie Leblanc, writer
• J. M. G. Le Clézio, a French author of Franco-Mauritian origins awarded the 2008 Nobel Prize in Literature.
• Francoise Lionnet, professor
• Amédée Maingard, war hero, politician and businessman
• Alfred de Marigny, author
• Virgile Naz, lawyer and politician
• Françoise Pascal, actress, singer, dancer, fashion model, and producer
• Charles Thomi Pitot, politician
• Pierre De Sornay, writer
• Auguste Toussaint, archivist and author
• Alix d'Unienville, spy, war hero and author
• Corinne Leclair, swimmer, represented Mauritius at 1992 Summer Olympics
• Veronique Marrier D'Unienville, archer, represented Mauritius at 2008 Summer Olympics
• Heather Arseth, swimmer, represented Mauritius at 2012 and 2016 Summer Olympics
• Marie-Hélène Pierre, badminton player
• Aurelie Halbwachs, cyclist, represented Mauritius at 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics
• Yannick Lincoln, cyclist
• Marinne Giraud, tennis player
• Rémi Feuillet, judoka
• Priscilla Morand, judoka
• Camille Koenig, swimmer

See also[]

• Mauritian of Indian origin
• Mauritian of African origin
• Mauritian of Chinese origin

References[]