History of Mangalorean Catholics - Ancestral Roots

Ancestral Roots

Traditional accounts of the ancestral roots of Mangalorean Catholics have taught that they are descended from the Aryans who lived on the banks of the now extinct Saraswati River. Most historians agree that the Aryans descended into India from the areas of present-day Iran, and some came by themselves, while others came with their leaders in search of territorial expansions. The Saraswati river dried up in long stretches around 1500 BCE, when its source in the Himalayas got diverted into the Yamuna River due to sand deposition and river piracy. Due to the harshness in their native environments, several Aryan groups migrated to various different locations across India. According to Historian Alan Machado Prabhu, the modern Mangalorean Catholic community is mainly descended from two Aryan groups: the group which migrated to the Konkan coast and Goa; and the group which migrated to Bengal.

The Aryans are thought to have first migrated to Goa beginning in 600 BCE, and continuing in several waves until 400 CE. The Goud Saraswat Brahmins (GSBs) are believed to have migrated to Goa later around 300 CE from the Saraswati River settlement in Bengal. The GSBs also claim their origin to the Brahmins who lived on the banks of the now extinct Saraswati River.