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Kupari
The Kupari (from Portuguese: compadre[1][2] referring to the godfather of one's godchild; word derived from Kumpari and feminine being Kumari or Portuguese; comadre[3]) consist of Kadodi Christians and Samvedi Christians, which are a Roman Catholic Brahmin sub-group in the Christian Bombay East Indian community, of the people of Konkan division. They are concentrated mostly in Bassein (Vasai) (Portuguese: Baçaim),[4] India, which is about 60 kilometres (37 mi) north of Mumbai (Bombay) city. Kadodi ancestors were a mixture of Samvedi Brahmins, Goan Konkani Brahmins& Portuguese New Christians; because of intermarriages between them.[citation needed] The population is about 40,000 to 45,000. The two Konkani dialects spoken by the Kuparis are Samvedi Boli Bhasha and Kadodi, which are mixture of Gujarati, Marathi & Indo-Portuguese. 97% of the population is Roman Catholic[5][original research?] and the remaining minority is a mixed population of various Protestant Revolutionary denominations.[dubious – discuss] HistoryThe Samvedi Christian community came into existence during the Portuguese rule of Vasai in the 15th century, when most of the Samvedi Brahmans who converted to Christianity as their possessions were confiscated, and they were ostracised by ultra-conservative Brahmans. Their native speech is known as Kadodi which is a dialect of Marathi-Konkani languages. Till the late 1960s and early 1970s the population was highly dependent on farming. On 23 December 1534, the Sultan of Guzerat, signed a treaty with the Portuguese and ceded Bassein (Vasai) with its dependencies of Salsette, Mombaim (Bombay), Parel, Vadala, Shiv (Sion), Vorli (Worli), Mazagao (Mazgao), Thana (Trombay), Bandra (Vandre), Mahim, Caranja etc. In 1548, Francis Xavier stopped in Bassein to preach. This marked the advent of Christianity into Bassein. Missionaries with motive of conversions came serve the poor people who were farmers, thus those who were touched by missionaries, were ostracised or expelled from the Maharashtri Brahmin caste and declared as untouchables. These outcasts then converted by Catholic Christian missionaries with promises of land, social status, other monetary benefits etc. The church distributed the seized land amongst East Indians. Along with new names and dress codes the new converts were also endowed with political upper hand during Portugal's rule. Today these missionaries also run schools, hospitals and other such places benefiting both Christians and non-Christians. Despite initial hostility the Christians and Hindus are happily sharing the same neighbourhood. During Portuguese rule, four churches were built in northern Bassein for these converts: The Manickpur "St Michael Church" (1530), one in Nirmal (1557), one in Agashi (1568) and one in Nandakhal (1573). All these churches are still used by the Christian community of Vasai (Bassein). The Samvedi Christian community is mostly concentrated around these parishes in northern Vasai (Bassein):[6]
The first three in the list Agashi, Nirmal & Nandakhal were the only 3 churches built in north Vasai during the era of Portuguese Bombay and Bassein. Over 9 churches in total were built by the Portuguese in whole of Vasai of which these 3 churches in north Bassein. The parishes under these 3 churches were further bifurcated and brought closer to neighbourhoods, for the convenience the church attendance by parishioners. Traditional clothingThe traditional costume of the Samvedi Christian community consists of a Dhoti also called "Ponya" in local language, white shirt, black sleeveless jacket kabja and a red cap with earring vali pierced in the left ear for men, and a red blouse soli with red checkered kashta also called "lugadaa"(a type of sari for women).[7] Traditions
Recipes
Festivals
Kuparis todayKuparis have been well educated for generations. They are hardworking, which aids their ventures in a variety of sectors. In recent years Kuparis have shown transition towards various sectors, including engineering, medicine, and corporate enterprises. A considerable amount of the Kupari population has relocated to the North America, Europe, Middle East and Australia. Population and distributionThis community is concentrated mostly in Vasai (Portuguese: Baçaim),[8] India, which is about 60 kilometres (37 mi) north of Mumbai. A rough estimate of the population is about 45000. EthnicityMost of the Kuparis have their ancestry through the Samvedi Brahmin community, while some trace relations to the neighbouring Vadval community as well as the Goan community due to inter-communal marriages. Portuguese ancestry is also evident in this community due to Portuguese inter-communal marriages, including marriages between Portuguese individuals themselves during Portuguese rule, as in the case of St. Gonsalo Garcia. Religious practicesPaya bharniThis is the ceremony that is conducted when the foundation stone for a house has been laid. Ceremony begins with the burial of some jewellery into the earth and breaking of a coconut the priest then makes some prayers and blesses its construction. This ceremony has its roots in the Hindu tradition of bhoomi pujan. BejimatBejimat is the ceremony conducted during the inauguration of a new home. During this ceremony a priest is invited to a home who then prays before the people sprinkles holy water throughout the home and blesses it. YentarThis ceremony is conducted when final funeral rites are given to a person. This is conducted in a church followed by prayers and burial at a cemetery. SaatvohThis ceremony is conducted on the seventh day of a funeral. During this the affected family dedicates a mass for the dead this is followed by a dining service at the family's place which usually includes meat and alcohol to mark the passing of sorrow. Upas (Korosma)This is the fast carried out during the lent season of 40 days. As respect to their Hindu roots they abstain from beef consumption. Its carried out in the month between March and April Religious servicesThe religious services of the Samvedi Christian community confirm with the seven sacraments of the Roman Catholic faith. Some of them can be seen below. Baltim (Baptism)A new born infant is taken to the church and blessed by holy water and fire in presence of his/her parents, relatives, godmother and godfather .... hence he will be called by a name decide by his/her parents. its almost like a name ceremony. Cominyao, Komsar (First Holy Communion)Also called as the first holy communion because it is the first time when a child baptised as catholic receives the holy eucharist. Chrisma (Confirmation)Varad [Lagin] (Wedding)Varad i.e. wedding is a ritual where the bride and groom exchange vows in the catholic church. The bride wears a white gown and the groom wears black suit. The bridesmaid and bestman are the witnesses for the bride and groom respectively. The couple exchange wedding rings as a remembrance of their lifetime commitment. There after a reception is done to celebrate the occasion. Yentar (portuguese word-entierro) (Final Funeral rites)Lifestyle and cultureOlden DaysLanguageKadodi (Devanagari: कादोडी बोली), also known as Samavedi, is an Indo-Aryan language belonging to the Marathi–Konkani subgroup. It is spoken by the Kupari community in the Vasai region of Maharashtra, India. The language has evolved as an intermediate dialect of Marathi and Konkani, incorporating significant lexical and phonetic influences from Portuguese as well as elements found in Goan speech patterns. ClothingPonya and Lugda are still worn, particularly by old people. With changing times, people have adopted western clothing and fewer people are seen with the traditional clothes. In order to keep the tradition alive, young people do wear the traditional Ponya and Lugda on special occasions such as weddings. TraditionsNavnaThis word is derived from (Nahana in Hindi). This is a ceremony similar to Haldi in other cultures across India which consists of bathing the bride and the groom with haldi(turmeric) and coconut oil. This ceremony typically takes place on Saturday morning(a day prior to the wedding day) early in the morning. The water for bathing is brought from a nearby source of water (a well, borewell or a pond) in a procession with drums and singing traditional songs. This ceremony is followed by attending the morning Mass at the parish Church. AyaezAyaez means ornaments owned by a married woman given to her by in-laws on a day before the marriage ceremony; also the ornaments given by her parents on the wedding day. HamdaoBefore the marriage the in-laws of the bride send garlands[aboli, gulshedi, shevanti, etc.]and sweets(laadoo, karji, mesoor, khaja, etc.)to the bride and she distributes it to her relatives and to her neighbors. SaudioIt's the day after the wedding day. On this day at the groom's house the relatives play pranks and take money from the newly married couple [also known as postao in Kadodi language]on this day mostly in the evening the bride's relatives dress in old traditional dresses and go to the groom's house singing and dancing with music played on musical instrument known as "GHUMAT"[a drum made from earthen pot which has openings on both the sides one opening is tied with leather] when the bride's relatives reach the groom's house, his relatives play pranks on them like putting spices in the drinks which is being served to them after all the fun the bride's relatives take newly married couple to the bride's place for a day. Kupari MohotsavWith the fast growing urbanization in and aroud the Mumbai City, the Kupari community felt the need to unite & let the newer generations know about their traditions, & feel proud about the 400+ years of history how the community has evolved & come through various challenges over generations & developed its name as the one of the highly qualified & infuential communities in Vasai. The Kupari Sanskruti Mandal, formed the Samvedi Christi (Kupari) Trust, & have organized Kupari Mohotsav since 2012.
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