Curtorim

Curtorim
town
Curtorim Location in Goa, India
Coordinates: 15°17′N 74°02′E / 15.28°N 74.03°E / 15.28; 74.03Coordinates: 15°17′N 74°02′E / 15.28°N 74.03°E / 15.28; 74.03
Country	India
State	Goa
District	South Goa
Elevation	38 m (125 ft)
Languages
• Official	Konkani
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)

Curtorim is a town in the Salcette taluka of South Goa district in Goa, India.

Geography

Curtorim is located at .^[1] It has an average elevation of 38 metres (125 feet).

History

Curtorim was named by the Portuguese. Earlier it had been called by various other names. It was called ex Codtary, then it became Coddetary, then Kardally, Cuddtari, Kuddasthali (Sthali means place). Chicalim, Quelshim, Sancoale, Cortalim, Verna, Margao, Raia, Loutolim, Benaulim, Curtorim and Guirdolim were Saraswat Brahmin villages.^[2] The Daivajnas from Curtorim migrated to Karnataka.

Religion

St Alex Church Curtorim

Curtorim has a predominantly Catholic population. The Church of St Alex is the main feature of the village. It is one of the oldest churches in Goa. It was built in 1597 amidst a scenic natural backdrop of a lake Angoddi Tollem across woods on the site of an ancient Hindu temple dedicated to the deity Ravalnath (a form of Lord Shiva). The remains of the ancient temple of Ravalnath are still visible today.^[3] The church of St Alex was first a chapel church; in 1808 it was converted to a church. This church once housed the Kudtari/Kundodari Mahamaya temple deities, now currently located Ghudo Avadem.

Culture

Curtorim is known as the “granary of Salcete” and it is because of this characteristic that the village has got its name, which originally was KUDD+TARI or KUDD+TODDI, merely because the village has plenty of fields and the kudds or rooms to store the grain were constructed along the river bank (toddir).

The Curtorim Church was erected in 1597 and is amongst the oldest churches in Salcete. This church is situated on the banks of Angddi tollem giving the impression that this church was structured on the pattern of Hindu temples, which are constructed on the banks of a tank. The church was rebuilt in 1647 and St. Alex was declared the titular Saint of the Church by an Apostolic Brief on 13 January 1815.

Although the patron of this village is St. Alex, the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe is celebrated with more fervour by the villagers on 18 December. This feast is also known as ‘Feast of O’ as in earlier times when the services were in Latin, every prayer from 18 December till 25 December, would begin with the Latin alphabet ‘O’. Besides, this feast is also known as kelleam fest (Feast of bananas). This is because in ancient times, a lot of bananas would be traded at the fair for this feast.

As per the 2001 Census the village of Curtorim admeasuring 1,736 hectares had 2,576 households with a total population of 11,187. However as the Church Census in 2006, there are 13,400 Catholics in the village and their spiritual needs are looked after by Parish Priest Fr. Mariano Goes e Proença, Assistant to the Parish Priest Fr. Mariano Dias and the Chaplain Fr. Anthony Rodrigues attached to the Chapel of Our Lady of Carmel. There are two other big chapels in the Village – Chapel of St. Sebastiao at Virabhatt and Chapel of Our Lady of Miracles at Monte.

A unique feature of Curtorim is the various water bodies. The village has five big lakes and 16 small ponds.

A number of world class performers of western classical and contemporary music have their origins in this village. The village also boasts having perhaps the greatest no of its sons decorated for bravery in India's conflicts with her neighbours than any other village in Goa. It abounds with retired military officers. General Sunit Rodrigues was the first Goan Chief of Army staff and is now the Governor of the State of Punjab. His ancestral house, which can be seen from the Church of St Aleixo, lies abandoned and in slow decay.

Politics