Caramuru (-1557) was the
Tupi name of the
Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
colonist
A settler is a person who has migrated to an area and established a permanent residence there, often to colonize the area.
A settler who migrates to an area previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited may be described as a pioneer.
Settl ...
Diogo Álvares Correia, who is notable for being the first European to establish contact with the native Tupinambá population in modern-day
Brazil and was instrumental in the early colonization of Brazil by the Portuguese crown.
[.] Notably, Caramuru's native-born wife,
Catarina Paraguaçu
Catarina Álvares Paraguaçu,According to Catarina's baptism certificate, her original name was Guaibimpará, and not Paraguaçu. also known as Catarina do Brasil (baptized June 1528 – 1586), was a Brazilian Tupinambá Indian. She was born in ...
, was the first South American native to be received at the
Palace of Versailles
The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ...
in 1526. He and Catarina would become the first
Christian family in Brazil and have three children: Gaspar, Gabriel and Jorge, all named
knights by
Tomé de Sousa
Tomé de Sousa (1503–1579) was the first governor-general of the Portuguese colony of Brazil from 1549 until 1553. He was a nobleman and soldier born in Rates, Póvoa de Varzim. Sousa was born a noble and participated in military expeditions in ...
.
Life
Correia was born in
Viana do Castelo. He departed for the Portuguese
colony of Brazil
Colonial Brazil ( pt, Brasil Colonial) comprises the period from 1500, with the arrival of the Portuguese, until 1815, when Brazil was elevated to a kingdom in union with Portugal as the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves. Duri ...
in 1509, probably aboard a
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
vessel.
[. ] His ship wrecked, probably in the reefs off
Rio Vermelho,
[ and Correia found himself alone among the ]Tupinambá Indians Tupinambá may refer to:
*Tupinambá people
The Tupinambá are one of the various Tupi ethnic groups that inhabited present-day Brazil since before the conquest of the region by Portuguese colonial settlers. In the first years of contact with th ...
. They called him "Caramuru", meaning "moray
Moray () gd, Moireibh or ') is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland. It lies in the north-east of the country, with a coastline on the Moray Firth, and borders the council areas of Aberdeenshire and Highland.
Between 1975 ...
".[ Correia married Paraguaçu or Paraguassu, the daughter of Morubixaba (the Tupinamba's word for chief) Taparica.
During the following twenty years, Correia kept contact with European ships and used his influence on local natives to help the Portuguese crown and missionaries during the early years of ]colonization
Colonization, or colonisation, constitutes large-scale population movements wherein migrants maintain strong links with their, or their ancestors', former country – by such links, gain advantage over other inhabitants of the territory. When ...
. In 1526, he traveled to France with his wife. Paraguaçu was baptized by Mary Catherine des Granches, wife of Jacques Cartier
Jacques Cartier ( , also , , ; br, Jakez Karter; 31 December 14911 September 1557) was a French- Breton maritime explorer for France. Jacques Cartier was the first European to describe and map the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the shores of ...
, under the name Katherine du Brézil, thereby creating the first Brazilian Christian family.[ A couple of years later, he returned to ]Bahia
Bahia ( , , ; meaning "bay") is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo, Minas Gerais, and Rio de Janeiro) and the 5th-largest by ...
at the request of King John III of Portugal. In 1534, he assisted Francisco Pereira Coutinho, the first captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
of Bahia
Bahia ( , , ; meaning "bay") is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo, Minas Gerais, and Rio de Janeiro) and the 5th-largest by ...
, in establishing the settlement of Pereira (later known as Vila Velha
Vila Velha (; Portuguese for "Old Village") is a coastal city in Espírito Santo, Brazil. It lies across from Vitória, the state capital. Its population was 501,325 (2020) and its area is 210.23 km².
Location
Vila Velha forms part of t ...
or "Old Town") in modern Salvador's Ladeira da Barra neighborhood. By 1546, Pereira Coutinho, accused of heresy and disobedience to the Crown, having systematically mistreated the Tupinambá, had caused them to turn hostile and Correia followed him when he fled to Porto Seguro
Porto Seguro (, Safe Harbor in English), is a city located in the far south of Bahia, Brazil. The city has an estimated population of 150,658 (2020), covers , and has a population density of 52.7 residents per square kilometer. The area that inc ...
, in order to appease the situation and bring him to his senses. When they returned the next year, the ship was damaged off the southern shore of Itaparica
Itaparica is an island located at the entrance of Todos os Santos Bay on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean in the state of Bahia, Brazil. It is located about from the city of Salvador, Bahia and covers . There are two municipalities on the islan ...
and the survivors captured by the Tupinambá. Correia was spared but the captain was consumed in a cannibalistic feast. In 1549, Correia aided Tomé de Sousa
Tomé de Sousa (1503–1579) was the first governor-general of the Portuguese colony of Brazil from 1549 until 1553. He was a nobleman and soldier born in Rates, Póvoa de Varzim. Sousa was born a noble and participated in military expeditions in ...
in founding Salvador and creating the first government over all of the Brazilian colony.
He died in October 1557, was buried in the Church of Jesus, and left half of his wealth to the Jesuits. His wife Catarina Paraguaçu died in 1582. His sons Gaspar, Gabriel, and Jorge were declared knights by Governor Tomé de Sousa for their services to the Portuguese Crown. They went on to help found Cachoeira
Cachoeira ( Portuguese, meaning waterfall) is an inland municipality of Bahia, Brazil, on the Paraguaçu River. The town exports sugar, cotton, and tobacco and is a thriving commercial and industrial centre.
The municipality contains 56% of the ...
on the Paraguaçu.
In culture
*The historical episode was the central theme of an epic poem by Santa Rita Durão
José de Santa Rita Durão (1722–1784), known simply as Santa Rita Durão, was a Colonial Brazilian Neoclassic poet, orator and Augustinian friar. He is considered a forerunner of " Indianism" in Brazilian literature, with his epic poem ''Cara ...
, titled '' Caramuru''. He was portrayed by Selton Mello
Selton Figueiredo Mello (born 30 December 1972) is a Brazilian actor and director. Since his childhood, he acted on TV shows. Now he works on TV, movies and theater. Throughout his career, he developed a strong and solid experience in cinema, pr ...
in the poem's 2001 film adaptation '' Caramuru: A Invenção do Brasil''.
*Caramuru appears briefly in Mário de Andrade's 1928 novel, '' Macunaíma''.
* Caramuru is the protagonist of Emilio Salgari's adventure novel "L'uomo di fuoco" (1904), translated into Portuguese, French, Spanish, Russian.
See also
* Jim Bridger
James Felix "Jim" Bridger (March 17, 1804 – July 17, 1881) was an American mountain man, trapper, Army scout, and wilderness guide who explored and trapped in the Western United States in the first half of the 19th century. He was known as Ol ...
* William Buckley
* Gonzalo Guerrero
Gonzalo Guerrero (also known as Gonzalo Marinero, Gonzalo de Aroca and Gonzalo de Aroza) was a sailor from Palos, in Spain who was shipwrecked along the Yucatán Peninsula and was taken as a slave by the local Maya. Earning his freedom, Guerr ...
* Pākehā Māori
Pākehā Māori were early European settlers (known as Pākehā in the Māori language) who lived among the Māori in New Zealand.
History
Many Pākehā Māori were runaway seamen or escaped Australian convicts who settled in Māori communitie ...
* Hans Staden
Hans Staden (c. 1525 – c. 1576) was a German soldier and explorer who voyaged to South America in the middle of the sixteenth century, where he was captured by the Tupinambá people of Brazil. He managed to survive and return safe to Europe. ...
* John Young John Young may refer to:
Academics
* John Young (professor of Greek) (died 1820), Scottish professor of Greek at the University of Glasgow
* John C. Young (college president) (1803–1857), American educator, pastor, and president of Centre Coll ...
References
{{Authority control
1470s births
1557 deaths
15th-century Portuguese people
16th-century Portuguese people
16th-century explorers
Portuguese explorers of South America
Year of birth uncertain
Portuguese colonization of the Americas
People from Viana do Castelo
Shipwreck survivors
https://dbe.rah.es/biografias/94206/diego-alvarez-correa