(Wikimedia/Public domain). Reprinted with permission. In 2009, a bill was tabled in Parliament to designate the first Monday in February as Mathieu Da Costa Day throughout Canada, but it died on the Order Paper. This novel provides an imaginative account of the life of the first African interpreter in New France. about Da Costa’s fate. Historical records describe Mathieu Da Costa as a Black African who, working as a free man, served as an Americas and learned one or more Indigenous languages in the process — or even that he met North American Indigenous people in Europe and became familiar with some aspects of their languages there. [2], He was originally engaged by the Portuguese as a translator, having learned their language quickly. [10] It was unveiled in July 2005[11], The Mathieu da Costa Challenge was an annual creative writing and artwork contest started in 1996 by the Department of Canadian Heritage. Asked in Celebrity Births Deaths and Ages Da Costa would later be sought by both the English and the Dutch to help in their contacts with Aboriginal peoples in North America, but the French secured his services. "Estéban Gomez et Mathieu Dacosta: Marins noirs sur l'atlantique(XVIe et XVIIe siecles)" Par Arsene Francoeur Nganga,Préface du Professeur John.K.Thornton, Edilivre,Saint denis(France),Décembre 2017. Du Gua's activities in Canada did not end until 1617. 18 Indigenous books and video games to read, watch or play. [13], Matthew da Costa and the Trails of Megumaagee, Port Royal, Annapolis County, Nova Scotia, "Mathieu Da Costa and Early Canada: Possibilities and Probabilities*", "Mathieu Da Costa | The Canadian Encyclopedia", Black History - Mathieu Da Costa: Permanent Domestic Stamps, Government of Canada "Mathieu da Costa Challenge", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mathieu_da_Costa&oldid=977577571, Articles containing explicitly cited English-language text, Articles with dead external links from March 2020, Articles with permanently dead external links, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. He lived in Port Royal (Nova Scotia) for a short time, and a plaque to honour his life and time spent there has been placed on a monument at the Port-Royal National Historical Site. This contract ran for three years, starting on 1 January 1609, and paid Da Costa a salary that was quite considerable at the time. He also spoke a language used by fishermen on the Atlantic coast that was a mix of a French-Spanish dialect and First Nations languages including Mi' kmaq.

His work is Of at least partial African ancestry, he is known to have been a freeman favoured by explorers for his multilingual talents. Historians believe that Africans began to serve as interpreters for the Portuguese in the late 15th century, and then, around the turn of the 17th century, for the Dutch, the From 1996 to 2011, the Government of Canada held the Mathieu Da Costa Challenge, an annual creative writing and artwork contest to encourage young people to discover The challenge encourages youth to discover how diversity has shaped Canada’s history and the important role that pluralism plays in Canadian society. An Act to establish Mathieu Da Costa DayRead the full text of the Act on the Parliament of Canada website. It is part of the Mathieu da Costa African Heritage Trail, a series of monuments marking African Nova Scotian history in the Annapolis Valley. Details about Mathieu's early life are hard to find. He was the first recorded free black person to arrive on the territory of today's Canada. From Parks Canada. “The Mathieu da Costa Challenge is an annual creative writing and artwork contest launched in 1996 by the Department of Canadian Back in the 1600s, an intelligent young man from nearly halfway around the world arrived on the shores of what would eventually be known as Canada. One aspect of the dispute was Da Costa’s kidnapping by the Dutch, which suggests that by then, he may already have been working as an interpreter and may have participated in trade expeditions along the St. Lawrence River and the Atlantic A school in Toronto, and a street in Montreal and Quebec City have been named after him. Mathieu da Costa (sometimes d'Acosta) was a member of the exploring party of Pierre Dugua, the Sieur de Monts, and Samuel de Champlain that travelled from France to the New World in the early 17th century. [7] He was also the subject of a French graphic novel, called Mathieu de Costa, which was written by Diane Groulx and illustrated by Jocelyne Jatte. vessels in 1606. It is also possible that Da Costa made some extended stays in the What are Mathieu da Costa historical accomplishments? Mathieu Da Costa: It is thought that he came to Canada at some time before 1603, and died 1698.. Mathieu Da Costa was the first namable person of African descent to come to Canada. interpreter for French and Dutch traders and explorers in the early 17th century. [7] His work in Canada is honoured at the Port-Royal National Historic Site in Port Royal, Annapolis County, Nova Scotia. This might explain why Mathieu Da Costa spoke French, Dutch Mathieu da Costa was in Amsterdam, Holland, in February 1607. just how much diversity has shaped the history of Canada, and the important role that pluralism plays in Canadian society. The Port-Royal National Historic Site, in Annapolis Royal, [4], French documents record da Costa working for the leaders of Port Royal in 1608. A.J.B Johnston, "Research Note: Mathieu Da Costa along the Coasts of Nova Scotia: Some Possibilities," Journal of the Royal Nova Scotia Historic Society, 4 (2001): 152‒64. Drawing of Benin City, the capital of Benin Empire, made by an English officer in 1897. Did you know?

This page was last edited on 9 September 2020, at 17:44. [8], A domestic rate postage stamp honoring da Costa was issued by Canada Post on February 1, 2017, in conjunction with Black History Month. It is a contest for creative writing and artwork which encourages the youth to discover how diversity shaped Canadian history. Numerous mixed-race African-Portuguese persons were part of the Atlantic Creole generation, often working as sailors or interpreters. Heritage Trail, a series of monuments erected and unveiled in 2005 to highlight the history of Black Nova Scotians in the Annapolis Valley. He was the first recorded free black person to arrive on the territory of today's Canada Da Costa’s name is mentioned in a series of lawsuits between Dugua and de Bauquemare, starting in 1609. A pidgin is an improvised contact language. There is no reason to think that he remained in prison; on the contrary, there is a proxy from Dugua, dated 11 December 1609, to have him released from prison, which suggests that he was in fact, freed. Nova Scotia, celebrates his role as an interpreter between Indigenous peoples and the French explorers. De Bauquemare had worked not only for Dugua, but also for the Dutch, and was on board a Dutch ship, the White Lion, when it attacked Dugua’s But many aspects of his life remain unclear or unknown. Pierre Dugua de Mons, travelled to Amsterdam at that time to contest the Dutch seizure of the contents (cannons, anchors and other goods) of two of his ships at

English and the French, the last of whom had by then begun exploring farther and farther south down the coast of Africa. This is a plausible hypothesis, but it is certain that during the first few months of this contract, Da Costa was not on board a ship headed for North America, because he was in Rouen in the spring of 1609, and on 15 June of that year, de Bauquemare terminated There is little documentation about Mathieu da Costa. Whether he visited Canada that year is open to question.[2]. Mathieu Da Costa landing in Montreal with Champlain and engaging in negotiations. Jean Ralluau, the secretary to French explorer Da Costa has also been the subject of works of fiction, including Mathieu Da Costa, a graphic novel published in 2013, with text by Diane Groulx and illustrations by Jocelyne Jatte. ditch.

His abduction strongly suggests that his talents helped bridge the gap between the Europeans and the First Nations of Canada. Some historians believe that his family was from the African kingdom of Benin (southern part of Nigeria), though Mathieu himself may have been born in the Azore Islands (near Portugal and Morocco). Mathieu Da Costa landing in Montreal with Champlain and engaging in negotiations. The case dealt, among other things, with the costs that the French had to assume following Da Costa’s kidnapping by the Dutch. Related Questions. and Portuguese. commemorates da Costa’s contribution. Although the story of Mathieu Da Costa is not well known in Canada, and the lack of evidence makes some historians question whether he was ever even there, a number of Canadian heritage sites, museums and cultural organizations commemorate his passage. It was un-veiled in July 2005. Mathieu Da Costa landing in Montreal with Champlain and engaging in negotiations. The Mathieu Da Costa African Heritage Trail is the physical manifestation of the African Nova Scotian experience as it has unfolded within Western Nova Scotia.

his contract on the pretext that “the said n— violated its terms.” A few months later, in December 1609, de Bauquemare had Costa imprisoned in Le Havre and transferred the contract for his services to Pierre Dugua. A plaque honouring him has been placed on the Mathieu Da Costa African In the early 1600s, fur trader and governor of Acadia, Pierre Dugua de Mons, had Mathieu use his ability to speak and understand several languages to serve as an interpreter between the explorers and First Nations people living in New France (Quebec). Although little is known of his background before he reached Canada, Da Costa is said to have had some education and was also baptized. He assisted well-known explorers such as Samuel de Champlain and Pierre Dugua de Mons on many expeditions. [5] In 1608 he was hired for three years by Pierre Du Gua de Monts.