Ethnic Identity
Like most other Madagascan ethnic groups, their origins can directly be traced to Asia. According to linguistic and archaeological research, the Vezo belong to the Autronesian group of languages and culture (like those, among others, of Malaysia, Indonesia, and Polynesia). Scholars are still divided as to whether the earliest Austronesians originated from Taiwan or the South East Asian archipelago.
In fact, they have been known to state emphatically that they need have no common origin or shared essence with one another. Their identity is contextual and achieved by doing, embodied in learned skills such as fishing or swimming and the callouses they produce, rather than in blood, genes, or skin color.
Nevertheless, there is evidence of the Vezo's connections to Asia. This also applies to many of Madagascar's ethnic groups. By 500AD, Autronesian populations had reached Madagascar following trade routes, via the Straights of Malaka, the Bay of Bengal and Sri Lanka.
Read more about this topic: Vezo People
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