Franco-Mauritians are an ethnic group from

Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label= Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It ...

who trace their ethnic ancestry to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and ethnic

French people The French people (french: Français) are an ethnic group and nation primarily located in Western Europe that share a common French culture, history, and language, identified with the country of France. The French people, especially the na ...

. Franco-Mauritians make up approximately 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. 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.

Demographic factors

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

Notable people

Angry Anderson Gary Stephen "Angry" Anderson (born 5 August 1947) is an Australian rock singer, songwriter, television personality and actor. He has been the lead vocalist with the hard rock band Rose Tattoo since 1976. As a solo artist, he is best known f ...

, rock singer-songwriter, television presenter-reporter and actor *

Claude de Baissac Claude Marie Marc Boucherville de Baissac, DSO and bar, CdeG, known as Claude de Baissac or by his codename ''David'' (born 28 February 1907, Curepipe, Mauritius; died 22 December 1974) was a Mauritian of French descent who was an agent of t ...

Lise de Baissac Lise Marie Jeanette de Baissac MBE CdeG (11 May 1905 – 29 March 2004), code names ''Odile'' and ''Marguerite,'' was a Mauritian agent in the United Kingdom's clandestine Special Operations Executive (SOE) organization in France during World ...

Joanna Bérenger Joanna Marie Bérenger (born in 1989), also known as ''Joanna Bérenger'' is a Mauritian politician. Early life and career Joanna Bérenger is the daughter of Paul Bérenger and Arline Perrier. She has worked as a Project Manager of private ente ...

, politician *

Paul Bérenger Paul Raymond Bérenger GCSK, MP (born 26 March 1945) is a Mauritian politician who was Prime Minister of Mauritius from 2003 to 2005. He has been Leader of the Opposition on several occasions – from 1983 to 1987, 1997 to 2000, 2005 to 20 ...

, former

Prime Minister of Mauritius The prime minister of Mauritius (french: link=no, Premier Ministre de Maurice) is the head of government of Mauritius. He presides over the Cabinet of Ministers, which advises the president of the country and is collectively responsible to t ...

Benoit Bouchet Serge Benoit de Robillard Bouchet (born September 7, 1973, in Curepipe, Mauritius) was the first Mauritian athlete to gain international recognition in the sport of windsurfing for sailing between Mauritius and Réunion Island unassisted. Care ...

, windsurfer *

Havana Brown The Havana Brown was the result of a planned breeding between Siamese and domestic black cats, by a group of cat fanciers in England, in the 1950s. Early breeders introduced a Siamese type Russian Blue into their breeding. However, using curren ...

, Mauritian-Australian DJ, singer, recording artist, record producer, songwriter and dancer *

Antoine Toussaint de Chazal upPortrait of Captain Matthew Flinders (1806–1807) Antoine Toussaint de Chazal (1770–1854) was a French settler established as a planter on the (now Mauritius). De Chazal was born on 15 December 1770, in Port Louis, . He was deputy of the d ...

, plantation owner and artist *

Enzo Couacaud Enzo Couacaud (born 1 March 1995) is a French professional tennis player. He has a career high singles ranking of world No. 155, which he achieved on 14 February 2022 and a doubles ranking of world No. 188 achieved on 8 March 2021. Career 2015: ...

, Mauritian-born French Tennis Player * Adrien d'Épinay, politician and slave-owner *

Prosper d'Épinay Charles Adrien Prosper Caïez d'Épinay (13 July 1836 – 23 September 1914) was a French sculptor and caricaturist (under the name Nemo). Many of his clients were from the nobility and royalty. He was sometimes referred to as the "sculpteur de so ...

, sculptor and caricaturist *

Laurina Fleure Laurina Fleure (born 19 June 1981) is an Australian model and television personality. Fleure has Mauritian ancestry. She competed in the second season of ''The Bachelor Australia'' in 2014 as well as the second season of '' I'm a Celebrity... ...

, Australian Model and TV Personality *

Andrew Florent Andrew Florent (24 October 1970 – 16 August 2016) was an Australian professional tennis player. Florent was born in Melbourne to parents who had migrated from Mauritius. He enjoyed most of his tennis success while playing doubles. During h ...

Australian tennis player *

Oliver Florent Oliver Florent (born 22 July 1998) is a professional Australian rules footballer playing for the Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League (AFL). He was drafted by the Sydney Swans with their first selection and eleventh overall in the 20 ...

Australian rules footballer *

Firoz Ghanty Firoz Abdul Cader Ghanty (14 August 1952 – 3 December 2019) was a Mauritian painter, poet, and activist. Biography Ghanty was born in Mauritius to a Persian-Gujarati father and a French mother. He held Marxist-Leninist ideas, and his involvem ...

, painter, poet, and activist *

Genevieve Gregson Genevieve Gregson-Gregson (née LaCaze-Gregson; born 4 August 1989) is an Australian athletics competitor who specializes in the 3000 metre steeplechase. She qualified for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and ran 9:26.11 in her Women's 3000m steeplechas ...

, Australian Athlete * *

Marie Leblanc Marie Leblanc (1867–August 14, 1915) is a Mauritian writer, best known for her work as an editor of literary journals and other periodicals, as a novelist, and as a translator. Early life Marie Leblanc was born in 1867, during a period when Mau ...

, writer * J. M. G. Le Clézio, a French author of Franco-Mauritian origins awarded the 2008 Nobel Prize in Literature. *

Chad le Clos Chad Guy Bertrand le Clos, OIS (born 12 April 1992) is a South African competitive swimmer who is an Olympic, World and Commonwealth Games champion. He is the African record, Commonwealth record, and South African record holder in the short ...

, Swimming, representing South Africa * Francoise Lionnet, professor *

Amédée Maingard Sir Louis Pierre Rene "Amédée" Maingard de la Ville-ès-Offrans, CBE (21 October 1918 - 1981) was born in Mauritius, then a British colony. During the Second World War, he served with distinction with the British clandestine organization, the S ...

, war hero, politician and businessman *

Alfred de Marigny Alfred de Marigny (29 March 1910 – 28 January 1998) was a French Mauritian acquitted of the murder of his father-in-law, Sir Harry Oakes. Biography Marie Alfred Fouquereaux de Marigny, whose real name was Alfred Fouquereaux, "de Marigny" bein ...

, author *

Jean-Paul de Marigny Jean-Paul de Marigny (born 21 January 1964, in Mauritius) is an Assistant Coach with Melbourne Victory. Jean-Paul is a former Socceroo. Managerial career Melbourne Victory de Marigny served as an assistant coach of A-League side Melbourne Victo ...

, footballer, Football Manager, former Socceroo *

Virgile Naz Sir Virgile Naz (1825-1901) was a Mauritian lawyer, businessman and politician who was elected in British Mauritius to the Council of the Government of Mauritius, the predecessor of modern-day National Assembly or Parliament. Early life Virgile ...

, lawyer and politician * Françoise Pascal, actress, singer, dancer, fashion model, and producer *

Charles Thomi Pitot Charles-Thomi Pitot de la Beaujardière (7 November 1779 – 25 May 1821), most commonly known as ''Charles Thomi Pitot'' was a Franco-Mauritian lawyer and politician. Biography Charles Thomi Pitot was educated in Paris with brother Édouard ...

, politician *

Pierre De Sornay Marie Joseph Pierre de Sornay (born Port Louis, Mauritius October 11, 1876 died Curepipe, Mauritius August 5, 1968) was a Mauritian agronomist and writer. Sornay was awarded the Chevalier de la Légion d'honneur in 1934, the Officier de la L� ...

, writer *

Auguste Toussaint Auguste Toussaint (1911–1987) was the Archivist in Chief of Mauritius Alix d'Unienville Alix Marrier d'Unienville, MBE (8 May 1918 – 10 November 2015) was a French-British agent in the Free French (RF) Section of the Special Operations Executive (SOE), during World War II . Biography D'Unienville was born in Mauritius to a wea ...

, spy, war hero and author *

Corinne Leclair Corinne Leclair (born 24 June 1970) is a Mauritian swimmer who represented her country at the 1992 Summer Olympics. Leclair was eleven years old when she started swimming, and just four years later she was competing in the 1985 Indian Ocean Isl ...

, swimmer, represented Mauritius at

1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...

Veronique Marrier D'Unienville Veronique Marrier D'Unienville-Le Viuex (born 18 July 1967) is an athlete from Mauritius who competes in archery. At the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the P ...

, archer, represented Mauritius at

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...

Heather Arseth Heather Ann Arseth is an American-Mauritian swimmer. At the 2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 J ...

, swimmer, represented Mauritius at

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

and

2016 Summer Olympics ) , nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams) , athletes = 11,238 , events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines) , opening = 5 August 2016 , closing = 21 August 2016 , opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer , cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro de ...

Marie-Hélène Pierre Marie-Hélène Valérie-Pierre (born 20 October 1978) is a Mauritian badminton player. She competed at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia in the women's doubles event partnered with Amrita Sawaram, and in the mixed doubles event with ...

, badminton player *

Aurelie Halbwachs Aurélie Marie Halbwachs (born 24 August 1986) is a Mauritian road bicycle racer. She is a four-time winner of Mauritius' Athlete of the Year, winning in 2006, 2008, 2010 and 2011. Halbwachs started her career in cycling in 2006 and competed in ...

, cyclist, represented Mauritius at

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

and

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, th ...

Yannick Lincoln Yannick Lincoln (born 30 December 1982) is a Mauritian cyclist, who rides for Mauritian amateur team Moka Rangers SC. He has won numerous national titles, and has competed at the 2006, 2010, 2014 and 2022 Commonwealth Games. Major results Road ...

, cyclist *

Marinne Giraud Marinne Giraud (born 23 April 1986) is a Mauritian former professional tennis player. She has a career-high singles ranking by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) of 237, achieved on 15 December 2008, and a career-high WTA doubles ranking of 29 ...

, tennis player * Rémi Feuillet, judoka *

Priscilla Morand Priscilla Morand is a Mauritius, Mauritian judoka. She won the gold medal in the women's 48 kg event at the 2022 African Judo Championships held in Oran, Algeria. In 2021, she won the silver medal in her event at the 2021 African Judo Champi ...

, judoka *

Camille Koenig Camille Koenig (born 23 June 2001) is a Mauritian swimmer. In 2019, she represented Mauritius at the 2019 World Aquatics Championships held in Gwangju, South Korea. She competed in the women's 50 metre freestyle event. She did not advance to ...

, swimmer *

References

{{White people Ethnic groups in Mauritius

Origins

Demographic factors

Notable people

See also

References