Abstract
The uninhabited, volcanic Indian Ocean island of Mauritius was visited by Middle Eastern and Malay seafarers from the ninth century and documented by Portuguese mariners between 1507 and 1512. In 1598 the Dutch admiral, Wybrand van Warwyck, established a settlement and named the island after Prince Maurice of Nassau—the stadthouder, or military chief, of Holland and Zeeland. The colony proved a useful staging post as the Dutch developed trade links with India, Southern Africa and the East Indies, but it was abandoned in favour of the Cape Colony in 1710. By then the Dutch settlers had cleared tracts of forest, introduced new species and, as of 1662, had caused the extinction of the island’s iconic flightless bird, the dodo.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Further Reading
Central Statistical Information Office. Bi-annual Digest of Statistics.
Bowman, L. W., Mauritius: Democracy and Development in the Indian Ocean. 1991
National Statistical Office: Central Statistics Office, LIC Building, President John Kennedy St., Port Louis.
Website: http://www.gov.mu/portal/site/cso
Editor information
Copyright information
© 2014 Palgrave Macmillan, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Turner, B. (2014). Mauritius. In: Turner, B. (eds) The Statesman’s Yearbook. The Statesman’s Yearbook. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-67278-3_274
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-67278-3_274
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-137-32324-8
Online ISBN: 978-1-349-67278-3
eBook Packages: Palgrave Political Science CollectionPolitical Science and International Studies (R0)