Rajkumar Kanagasingam
Author: "German Memories in Asia"
German Memoirs - Brazilian-Germans in Southern Brazil
Summary:Most of the German-Brazilians live in Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina and Parana, the southernmost states of Brazil. There are around 10 million Brazilians who have German ancestry by some estimates. The percentages become higher in some cities, for example, in the town of Pomerode, in Santa Catarina, 90% of the population are Brazilians of German descent, and the main local language is Pomeranian dialect. It is considered the most German city in Brazil and the Germans there are the richest people in Brazil.
Most of the German-Brazilians live in Rio Grande do Sul, Santa
Catarina and Parana, the southernmost states of Brazil. There are
around 10 million Brazilians who have German ancestry by some
estimates. The percentages become higher in some cities, for
example, in the town of Pomerode, in Santa Catarina, 90% of the
population are Brazilians of German descent, and the main local
language is Pomeranian dialect. It is considered the most German
city in Brazil and the Germans there are the richest [...]
Exploring the Human Evolution
Summary:While we were having a chat by the seashore, twilight has turned into night and the German team who were playing volleyball has already left the beach. We were discussing many things. The similarities of genes between the human and the chimpanzee became a hot topic in our discussion. When I was telling about genealogy, my other German friend couldn't grasp it, but Walker did quiet easily.
While we were having a chat by the seashore, twilight has turned into night and the German team who were playing volleyball has already left the beach.
We were discussing many things. The similarities of genes between the human and the chimpanzee became a hot topic in our discussion. When I was telling about genealogy, my other German friend couldn’t grasp it, but Walker did quiet easily. I don’t know why my other friend couldn’t understand it. Perhaps it was because I was conversing in English [...]Jaffna under Portuguese Rule
Summary:The Bishop of Jaffna Rt. Rev. Thomas Saundranayagam had a lengthy chat with all of us in the conference hall and praised the German students for their kind service to the tsunami victims. While I was returning in the corridors with German students, I was reminded of the era of Portuguese rule and how Catholism was introduced into Jaffna. The conquest of Jaffna by the Portuguese under Captain General Constantine de Sa under the command of Philip de Oliveira in 1620-21 spelt the demise of the independent Kingdom of Jaffna. In order to increase the number of converts rapidly, they resorted to "general baptism". A typical case of general baptism in a village was first the announcement of the arrival of the Portuguese missionaries made by tom-tom. The villagers in question would be asked to assemble and then a missionary would ask them to reject their "false" gods and accept "one true God". Though the Jaffna Peninsula today is a Hindu-dominated area in population, the Bishop of Jaffna is highly respected by all communities irrespective of their religious differences. And still the Church is playing a powerful, influential and healthy role in the life of the Tamils in the Peninsula.
When we joined with the German relief team in a few minutes, they were in a rather relaxed mood planning the day’s mission.
Having finished our breakfast, a delicious Jaffna dish
quickly, we all started to move towards the Bishop House of
Jaffna.
Journey of the Early Man: Africa to America!
Summary:Their studies showed that there were three waves of early humans from Africa that swept across India and Australia: There were three major waves of migration of quite different ancient people who came to the Australian continent from Southeast Asia. The early Africans crossed to Australia from Africa through Asia, and then to the Americas by crossing the Pacific Ocean. The first hint of an American aborigine settlement of South America came from cave paintings in Brazil. The Africans crossed the Atlantic and reached various parts of the Americas as well.
Prof. Pitchappan, a Senior Professor from the School of Biological Sciences in India played an important role in the discovery of first coastal migration of the early man from Africa to Australia through India, which had taken place 50,000 years ago and the second migration to Central Asia around 45,000 years ago.
The second wave of the early man's migration expanded in Central Asia leading to dispersal towards Europe, the Americas, South Asia and China.
His research confirmed the first coastal migration [...]
An Exploration into Early Human Migration
Summary:Closing my eyes in bed my inner-eyes started to visualize many events of the past. I was able to visualize the Homo erectus who were living in the old world nearly two million years ago inhabiting the planet. I was enthralled by the 'Journey of Man' by Spencer Wells, the geneticist from Oxford University, in the National Geographic Channel, where he asserts that - "All of us are literally Africans underneath the skin, Brothers and Sisters separated by mere 2000 generations".
Closing my eyes in bed my inner-eyes started to visualize many events of the past.
I was able to visualize the Homo erectus who were living in the old world nearly two million years ago inhabiting the planet.
The Homo erectus was extant in Africa, Asia, and Europe. Their migration was made possible by a greater intelligence and new cultural technologies, probably including better hunting skills and the ability to create fire. Homo erectus were very successful in creating cultural technologies [...]