Seychellois Creole People

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Seychellois Creole are the vast majority of people living in the Seychelles. They are principally of African and Malagasy origin. However, the Creole people today also include people of mixed African, Malagasy, Indian, Chinese, Portuguese, French and British origins.

[edit] Origins

Africans and Malagasy were brought as slaves to work on sugar and coffee plantations. These slaves were the last to be introduced to the Indian Ocean. Their origins lie in East Africa, and, to a lesser extent, Madagascar.

[edit] Creoles Today

Today Creoles are found throughout the Seychelles, numbering roughly 76,000; more than 70% of the entire Seychellois population. They are the dominant group in Politics.

There aren't a lot of musicians or musical groups in the Seychelles, and the few that exist are mostly Creole. The Seychellois genre of Sega is known as Moutia.

Seychellois Creoles are proud of their African/Malagasy heritage and have set up a Creole institute in Mahé to help promote and to help others understand their culture. Unlike Mauritius, where Creole has no official status, the Seychelles have made Creole one of the three official languages along with French and English.

[edit] Demographical factors

Almost the entire population belongs to one of the Christian denominations, largely Catholic, with Protestant, Anglican, Adventist and other Christian minorities. The remainder are Spiritualists or Non-religious. The language spoken by all is Seychellois Creole, French and English are also widely understood.