Mauritius: The Island That Perfected Cultural Coexistence
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Mauritius was uninhabited when Portuguese sailors discovered it in the early 16th century. The Dutch settled briefly, gave up, and left. The French settled next, established sugar plantations, and brought enslaved Africans. The British took over in 1810, abolished slavery, and brought indentured workers from India in such numbers that Mauritians of Indian origin now form roughly 70 percent of the population. Chinese, Creole, French, and Muslim communities complete a demographic picture unlike almost any other country on earth.
The result of this layered history is a cuisine of extraordinary richness. Bol renversé — rice covered with vegetables, egg, and meat in a Chinese-influenced sauce — is one popular expression. Dholl puri — flatbread filled with split peas, served with curry, is another. Biryani from the Muslim community, rougaille from the Creole tradition, gateaux piments — fried chili cakes — from street vendors. Every community's cooking has influenced the others, producing a national cuisine that belongs to everyone by belonging fully to no single tradition.
Sega music — the traditional music of the Creole community — is performed with drum, triangle, and maravanne, a shaker instrument, with songs in Creole that speak to the experience of enslaved and post-slavery generations. The dance is hip-driven, close to the ground, historically linked to ceremonies conducted by enslaved people around evening fires. It is both a historical record and a living entertainment tradition, performed at celebrations and cultural events across the island.
