Culture of Goa

File:Churches in Old Goa.jpg is considered to be the heart of Goan culture and religion.]]

According to the 1909 statistics in the Catholic Encyclopedia, the total Catholic population was 293,628 out of a total population 365,291 (80.33%).{{cite book

|chapter=Archdiocese of Goa

|author=Ernest Hull

|title=Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. 6

|date=1909

|publisher=Robert Appleton Company

|location=New York}} Within Goa, there has been a steady decline of Christianity due to Goan emigration, and a steady rise of other religions, due to massive non-Goan immigration since the Annexation of Goa. Native Goans are outnumbered by non-Goans in Goa, but Christianity remains prevalent in the state, with a higher percentage of Christians than the national average. {{cite news

|first=Vivek

|last=Menezes

|title=Who belongs to Goa? This question resurfaces as the State battles the raging pandemic

|url=https://www.thehindu.com/society/who-belongs-to-goa-this-question-resurfaces-as-the-state-battles-the-raging-pandemic/article34554870.ece

|date=15 May 2021

|work=The Hindu}} Conversion seems to play little role in the demographic change. According to the 2011 census, in a population of 1,458,545 people, 66.1% were Hindu, 25.1% were Christian, 8.3% were Muslim and 0.1% were Sikh.{{cite news

|url = http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/religious-communities-census-2011-what-the-numbers-say/article7582284.ece

|title = India's religions by numbers

|date = 29 March 2016

|publication-date = 26 August 2015

|work = The Hindu

|access-date = 6 September 2017

|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160110201326/http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/religious-communities-census-2011-what-the-numbers-say/article7582284.ece

|archive-date = 10 January 2016

|url-status = live

}}

The most popular celebrations in the Indian state of Goa include the Goa Carnival, (Konkani: Intruz), Shigmo and São João (Feast of John the Baptist).{{Cite web|url=http://www.goatourism.gov.in/festivals/christian-festivals/201-sao-joao|title=Department of Tourism, Government of Goa, India - SAO JOAO|last=Administrator|website=www.goatourism.gov.in|language=en-gb|access-date=27 November 2018}} The most popular festivals in Goa include Ganesh Chaturthi (Konkani: Chavath),{{Cite web|url=http://www.goatourism.gov.in/festivals/hindu-festivals/184-ganesh-chaturthi-or-chovoth|title=Department of Tourism, Government of Goa, India - GANESH CHATURTHI or CHOVOTH|last=Administrator|website=www.goatourism.gov.in|language=en-gb|access-date=27 November 2018}} Diwali,{{Cite web|url=http://www.goatourism.gov.in/festivals/hindu-festivals/185-diwali|title=Department of Tourism, Government of Goa, India - DIWALI|last=Administrator|website=www.goatourism.gov.in|language=en-gb|access-date=27 November 2018}} Christmas (Konkani: Natalam),{{Cite web|url=http://www.goatourism.gov.in/festivals/christian-festivals/195-christmas|title=Department of Tourism, Government of Goa, India - CHRISTMAS|last=Administrator|website=www.goatourism.gov.in|language=en-gb|access-date=27 November 2018}} Easter (Konkani: Paskanchem Fest), Samvatsar Padvo or Sanvsar Padvo and the feast of St. Francis Xavier, who is known as Goencho Saib by the Catholic Community in Goa.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ot6BAAAAMAAJ|title=Feasts, festivals, and observances of Goa|author-link=Maria de Lourdes Bravo da Costa Rodrigues|last=Bravo da Costa Rodrigues|first=Maria de Lourdes|publisher=L & L Publications|year=2004|location=Goa|pages=43–74}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.goatourism.gov.in/festivals/christian-festivals/203-feast-of-st-francis-xavier|title=Department of Tourism, Government of Goa, India - FEAST OF ST FRANCIS XAVIER|last=Administrator|website=www.goatourism.gov.in|language=en-gb|access-date=27 November 2018}}

{{main|Education in Goa}}

{{main|Goan cuisine}}

Rice with fish curry (Xit kodi in Konkani) is the staple diet in Goa.{{Cite news|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/travel/eating-out/food-travel-soul-stirring-seafood-in-india/as66630323.cms|title=Food travel: soul-stirring seafood in India|last=Chowdhury|first=Arka Roy|date=14 November 2018|work=Times of India Travel|access-date=27 November 2018}} Goan cuisine is renowned for its rich variety of fish dishes cooked with elaborate recipes. Coconut and coconut oil is widely used in Goan cooking along with chili peppers, spices and vinegar giving the food a unique flavour. Pork and beef dishes such as Vindalho,{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/0/24432750|title=BBC Food - Curry: Where did it come from?|last=Taylor|first=Anna-Louise|date=11 October 2013|website=BBC Food|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141211232211/http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/0/24432750|archive-date=11 December 2014|url-status=dead|access-date=27 November 2018}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.thetiffinbox.ca/2011/11/vindalho-de-galinha-chicken-vindaloo.html|title=Indian Classics - Vindalho de Galinha (Chicken Vindaloo)|website=www.thetiffinbox.ca|access-date=27 November 2018}} Xacuti and Sorpotel are cooked for major occasions among the Catholics. An exotic Goan vegetable stew, known as Khatkhate, is a very popular dish during the celebrations of festivals, Hindu and Christian alike. Khatkhate contains at least five vegetables, fresh coconut, and special Goan spices that add to the aroma. A rich egg-based multi-layered sweet dish known as bebinca is a favourite at Christmas.{{Cite news|url=https://www.mid-day.com/articles/goa-government-readies-to-brand-feni-as-heritage-brew/16890188|title=Goa government readies to brand Feni as heritage brew|date=23 January 2016|work=Mid-Day|access-date=27 November 2018|language=en}} Cashew feni is made from the fermentation of the fruit of the cashew tree, while coconut feni is made from the sap of toddy palms.

{{Main|Architecture of Goan Catholics}}

File:Panaji, Goa, India, Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception Church at night.jpg at Panjim.]]

The architecture of Goa shows a distinct Portuguese influence. Fontainhas in Panaji has been declared a cultural quarter, showcasing the life, architecture and culture of Goa.{{Cite news|url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/metroplus/travel/the-quiet-goa-fontainhas/article4105686.ece|title=The quiet Goa: Fontainhas|last=Datta|first=Sravasti|date=18 November 2012|work=The Hindu|access-date=27 November 2018|language=en-IN|issn=0971-751X}}

The Churches and Convents of Goa are a group of six churches that are a UNESCO World Heritage Site.{{Cite web|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/234/|title=Churches and Convents of Goa|website=UNESCO World Heritage Centre|language=en|access-date=6 December 2018}} The Basilica of Bom Jesus holds the mortal remains of St. Francis Xavier, the patron saint of Goa.{{cite news

|url=https://m.tribuneindia.com/news/archive/nation/casket-housing-st-xavier-relics-in-goa-to-undergo-restoration-687837

|title=Casket housing St Xavier relics in Goa to undergo restoration

|date=23 November 2018

|work=The Tribune (Chandigarh)}} Once every ten years, the body is taken down for veneration and for public viewing. The last such event was conducted in 2024.{{cite news

|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Exposition-of-St-Francis-Xaviers-relics-ends-on-January-4/articleshow/45730692.cms

|title=Exposition of St. Francis Xavier's relics ends on January 4

|first=Paul

|last=Fernandes

|date=2 January 2015

|work=Times of India}}

Influences from other eras (Kadambas of Goa, Maratha Empire) are visible in some of Goa's temples, notably the Mahadev Temple[http://www.goa-india-tourism.com/goa-temples/mahadevatemple.html Mahadev Temple, Tambdi Surla] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090107105533/http://www.goa-india-tourism.com/goa-temples/mahadevatemple.html |date=7 January 2009 }} and Saptakoteshwar Temple.{{cite book|

last1=Esteves|first1=Sarto |last2=de Sousa|first2=Vatsala

|title=This is Goa |year=1983

|pages=19}}

{{see also|Goans in sports}}

Football is the most popular sport in Goa along with Cricket.{{Cite news|url=http://englishnews.thegoan.net/story.php?id=32509|title=Craze for football has doubled since ISL: Aaren|work=The Goan|access-date=27 November 2018}} Athletics, chess, hockey, swimming, table tennis and basketball are other popular sports in Goa. Fishing is also a popular recreational activity.

{{see also|Goans in science and technology}}

{{main|Music of Goa}}

Goan Catholics have been performing Western classical music since the 1500s, because it is an integral part of the Catholic liturgy. Mando, dekhnni, dulpod and tiatr are traditional Goan musical forms in Konkani developed from Western Music.

Goan Hindus are very fond of Natak, Bhajan and Kirtan. Many famous Indian Classical singers hail from Goa, such as, Kishori Amonkar, Kesarbai Kerkar, Jitendra Abhisheki, Prabhakar Karekar.

File:Fugdi Dancers from South Goa.jpg

Some traditional Goan dance forms are dekhnni, fugdi, corridinho and dashavatara. Western social dancing is a part of most celebrations.

Goans are very fond of theatre and acting. Kalo and dashavatar were popular art forms. Marathi Nataks have been very popular among Hindus in Goa for the past two centuries. Tiatr is the major Goan form of theatre common amongst Catholics and is the most commercial offering as it has entertained Goans not only in Goa but also in Mumbai and Pune (which are major cities of India and have a sizeable Goan population) and in the Gulf regions of UAE, Kuwait and so on.

{{see also|Konkani cinema}}

{{main|Goan literature}}

The majority of Goans speak Konkani as their first language, while the remaining speak other languages, like Hindi, Portuguese or Marathi as their primary language.{{cn|date=February 2025}} However, practically all Goans can speak and understand Konkani. Konkani is an important part of the Goan identity that binds together all Goans.

{{main|Tourism in Goa}}

Goa developed an international reputation in the 1960s as one of the prime stops on the legendary India-Nepal "hippie trail". In the mid-1960s, several Westerners, including "Eight Finger Eddie" walked over the hill to Calangute, and decided to create a community for Westerners. In the early years, Calangute and Baga were the center of this scene, but it grew over the years to include other nearby cities like Anjuna Beach, which became, and arguably still is, the center of the Western youth culture of Goa. By the mid-1980s, there were over 8000 Westerners living in Goa, mostly from Western Europe. The scene was marked by drug culture, trance music and free love. Goa remains today an international center of youth culture.

Starting in the late 1990s, Goa began to attract a more "upscale" audience, which in turn drove prices up, which in turn drove many in the "hippie" community to other less-expensive areas. Arambol—the beach community furthest away from "civilization", like electricity and running water—became the center of a battle between those wanting to turn Goa into a more traditional upscale resort area, and those wanting Goa to retain its traditional rustic counterculture appeal.

• Goans in Hindi film music composition

{{Reflist}}

• {{cite journal |last1=Davidson |first1=Sarah |first2=Eleanor |last2=Phelps |title=Folk Tales from New Goa, India |journal=The Journal of American Folklore |volume=50 |issue=195 |date=1937 |pages=1–51 |doi=10.2307/535980}}
• {{cite book |last=Rodrigues |first=Lucio |date=2020 |title=The Wise Fools of Moira... and Other Goan Folk Tales |location=Goa |publisher=Goa, 1556 |isbn=978-81-940107-7-7}}

• [http://www.india-seminar.com/2004/543/543%20pandurang%20r.%20phaldesai.htm Goan culture article]

{{Goa topics}}