62
You have learnt that, long ago, Arab sailors were trading in the Indian Ocean.
They discovered and named our islands. In this unit, you will learn about the
discovery of Mauritius and Rodrigues by the European explorers.
At the end of this unit, you will be able to:
• nameafewEuropeanexplorersinthefteenthandsixteenthcenturies;
• ndinformationfromsources(books,internet)abouttheexplorers;
• traceonamaptheroutetakenbythePortuguesetoreachIndiaandtheEastIndies;
• nametheexplorerafterwhomtheMascareneIslandsarenamed;
• explainthediscoveryofMauritiusandRodriguesbytheDutch;
• describechangesinthefaunaandoraoftheislandswiththearrivalofhumanbeings;
• readandinterprettimelines;
• observe,interpretandcomparepictures,photographs,gures,diagramsandmapsofthe 
islands in the past and now.
Maurice Van Nassau
discovery of
mauritius &rodrigues
Pedro Mascarenhas