Maldives , GDh. Gan Island "Big Cats"Piracy: A Masked Threat or Folklore?

Slavers may have targeted G.Dh Gan due to: Geographical Location (proximity to trade routes), Economic Opportunities 

The Maldives, a breathtaking archipelago of coral atolls in the Indian Ocean, is famed for its unspoiled beauty, though its history is marked by tales of conquest, mystery, and loss. G.Dh Gan, situated in Huvadhoo Atoll—the 10th largest atoll in the world—was once a bustling center, with its population flourishing across eight towns that featured mosques, homes, agricultural fields, coconut plantations, and copra (dried coconut meat) production. Around 1785 CE, this vibrant community mysteriously disappeared overnight, leaving everything untouched, as told in the haunting legend of the “big cats,” which suggests these creatures swept through the island, eliminating its people and wealth without violence. GDh. Gan’s affluent past, its sudden desertion, and the possibility of slavers targeting the island are examined alongside connections to the Indian Ocean slave trade, piracy, and a smallpox epidemic linked to the 1799 CE Hajj tragedy, correcting the myth that smallpox is spread by rats and interpreting the “big cats” as a cultural metaphor for human-to-human disease transmission.

GDh. Gan: A Flourishing Community Lost

GDh. Gan was the vibrant center of Huvadhoo Atoll, a densely populated island famous for its affluence and cultural heritage. Archaeological findings indicate the presence of eight towns, remnants of eight mosques (with tales of up to 40), ten cemeteries, and mounds that suggest Buddhist stupas buried before the Maldives converted to Islam in 1153 CE. Its fertile lands and coconut plantations yielded enough crops and copra to sustain the atoll for months, while its adept seafarers linked G.Dh Gan to distant regions through robust ships. The island's wealth—gold, silver, and prosperity—gave it a stellar reputation, with well-constructed homes reflecting a lively community. Yet today, G.Dh Gan is uninhabited, its fields and plantations now used only by residents of nearby Gadhdhoo, and its mosques and homes stand deserted. The legend of the “big cats,” told by a lone survivor in Malé, describes how one quiet night around 1785 CE, these creatures arrived on the western beach, traversed the island, and left from the east, taking the entire population and their wealth, while leaving the infrastructure intact. This story invites speculation: were slavers responsible for targeting G.Dh Gan, or does the mystery allude to piracy or a smallpox outbreak?

Huvadhoo Atoll, Gdh. Gan Island.

The “Big Cats” Fable: A Metaphor for Trauma

The fable of the “big cats” tells of a mysterious, bloodless event where creatures eradicated GDh. Gan’s population and wealth, leaving structures intact. The idea of cats, which avoid water and cannot plunder, suggests a metaphor. Maldivian folklore connects to "cats," as seen in the 1975 cat ban on Gan islands. The fable hints at a maritime event, but the untouched infrastructure suggests a systemic cause like smallpox, which spreads human-to-human, not via rats.

Could Slavers Have Targeted G.Dh Gan?

The 18th-century Indian Ocean slave trade provides context for evaluating whether slavers targeted G.Dh Gan. Active from the 16th to 19th centuries, it involved the Portuguese, Dutch East India Company (VOC), French, and British, trafficking 1.1–2.1 million slaves from East Africa, Madagascar, and the Indian subcontinent to destinations like South Africa, Southeast Asia, and the Atlantic. The Malabar coast, 400 miles away, was a key hub, exporting slaves, including children, from ports like Cochin to Lisbon and beyond (Shell, 1994). Ethnonyms like “Bengala” often denoted capture locations, as seen with Nicolau Bicho, labeled “Bengala caste” but “native of Cochin,” complicating origin tracing.Several factors make it unlikely that slavers targeted G.Dh Gan:

Credit https://www.portail-esclavage-reunion.fr/en/ The slave trade route to Bourbon island from India in the 17th and 18th centuries.

Bourbon Island was the former name of Réunion, a French island situated in the Indian Ocean. It was renamed Île de la Réunion in 1793, then Bonaparte Island in 1801, reverted to Bourbon in 1815, and finally became Réunion in 1848, as noted by the Nations Online Project. The island lies east of Madagascar and southwest of Mauritius. 

• Portuguese Involvement: The Portuguese, active in the Malabar slave trade, controlled parts of the Maldives in the 16th century but had limited influence by the 18th century. No records document raids on GDh. Gan, and its small population (likely a few thousand) made it less attractive than larger coastal communities. Slave raids typically involved violence and looting, yet the fable’s silent, bloodless nature and intact homes, mosques, fields, and copra stores suggest no plundering occurred. The absence of bodies or family records, as noted by Mohamed Ibrahim Luthfy, further undermines this hypothesis.

• Dutch East India Company (VOC): The VOC enslaved 660,000–1.1 million people from India, Indonesia, and Madagascar. A 1694 VOC ship carrying Malagasy slaves passed near the Maldives, but no records link GDh. Gan to VOC activities. The island’s isolation and small size reduced its appeal.

• VOC and Colombo’s “Slave Island" :

  The VOC enslaved between 660,000 and 1.1 million people, with “Slave Island” in Colombo serving as a holding area for slaves gathered from regional ports.

  
  

• French and British Roles: The French imported 336,000–388,000 slaves to the Mascarene Islands from Madagascar, 700 miles away, but no evidence suggests raids on G.Dh Gan. The British, with minimal influence in the Maldives before 1796, focused on larger markets, and their later anti-slavery patrols make raids unlikely.

• Historical Context: The 1752 invasion by the Ali Raja of Cannanore, who captured Malé, targeted political control, not mass enslavement, and no similar records exist for G.Dh Gan.

  The untouched infrastructure—homes, mosques, fields, and copra stores—contradicts the looting typical of slave raids. The absence of violence or remains suggests a non-violent cause, and the Maldives’ isolation made it an improbable target for slavers prioritizing populous regions. The fable’s “boat” could symbolize a slaving vessel, but the “big cats” imagery aligns more with cultural metaphors for disease.

Piracy: An Unexpected Explanation

The “big cats” fable has sparked a fascinating array of theories, particularly one that suggests the intriguing notion of pirates disguising themselves with cat masks. This practice, reminiscent of various cultural festivals, highlights the use of lion or tiger masks as potent symbols of power, strength, and ferocity. Such masks are often donned during celebrations to invoke the fierce attributes associated with these majestic creatures, embodying the spirit of bravery and dominance that pirates may have sought to project. Historically, the Malabar coast became a notorious hotspot for piracy, where the infamous Magh pirates, alongside Portuguese marauders, engaged in numerous raids that terrorized local communities and disrupted trade routes. The strategic location of the Malabar coast made it an attractive target for these seafaring brigands, who sought to exploit the wealth of the coastal towns. The Portuguese, driven by their colonial ambitions, often clashed with these pirates, leading to a tumultuous period marked by violence and upheaval. In addition to the Malabar coast, the Maldives also faced similar threats from these marauding pirates.

The archipelago's stunning islands, though beautiful, acted as a strategic point in the Indian Ocean, making them susceptible to invasion and looting. A significant event highlighting this vulnerability is the Cannanore invasion in 1752, where pirate factions coordinated efforts, causing major disruptions in the area. This invasion not only illustrated the threats of piracy but also shed light on the broader geopolitical struggles of the era, as various powers competed for control over profitable trade routes. However, the impact of these events goes beyond simple tales of piracy and masks. The blend of folklore, cultural symbolism, and historical events creates a rich tapestry that reflects the complexities of human experience in adversity. The stories about the “big cats” and their link to piracy remind us of how societies have historically used symbols and narratives to understand their world, often merging myth with the harsh realities of life at sea.

The Smallpox Hypothesis: The 1799 Hajj Tragedy

In 1799 CE, Sultan Hassan Nooraddeen I embarked on his second Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca with a retinue of 300, including Prime Minister Muhammadu Handegiri Takurufanu and 238 military personnel. A smallpox outbreak (kashividhuri) decimated the group, killing the sultan, the prime minister, and approximately 230 others, with only 70 survivors returning after 11 months. The sultan had appointed his son, Muhammad Mueenuddeen I, as Prince Regent, ensuring governance continuity. The tragedy, documented left a leadership vacuum and a nation in mourning. Rumors of conflicts with the Sharif of Mecca over shipwrecked gold and cannons, possibly linked to a 1787 shipwreck, are likely conflated, as the Sharif typically received pilgrim donations. The sea journey to Jeddah, fraught with disease risks, underscores the dangers of long-distance travel in the 18th century.

• Epidemiological Evidence: Smallpox devastated the Indian Ocean region, as documented in The Journal of African History. The depopulation of GDh. Gan Island aligns with the rapid spread of smallpox, which could annihilate populations within weeks through direct contact or contaminated materials, leaving infrastructure intact.

• Maritime Vulnerabilities: The tale’s “boat” symbolizes trade or travel routes that introduced smallpox, possibly through infected travelers or items from Malé or India. The sudden abandonment and lack of remains suggest swift mortality or evacuation to nearby islands like Gadhdhoo Island.

• Cultural Parallels: The 1975 cat prohibition and the mourning following the Hajj tragedy reflect the trauma of epidemics. The “big cats” may represent infected individuals or objects, symbolizing fears of smallpox’s unseen spread.

Archaeological investigations by Thor Heyerdahl (1980s) and H.C.P. Bell (1922) found no mass graves, supporting theories of evacuation or rapid mortality due to smallpox.

Conclusion

The sudden depopulation of GDh. Gan around 1785 CE remains one of the Maldives’ most haunting mysteries, encapsulated in the enigmatic fable of the “big cats.” This lost paradise, once a thriving hub with intact homes, mosques, agricultural fields, coconut plantations, and copra stores, was likely abandoned due to a smallpox epidemic, linked to the 1799 CE Hajj tragedy’s kashividhuri outbreak, spread through human-to-human contact via bodily fluids or contaminated objects. The “big cats” likely symbolize infected individuals or materials, reflecting cultural fears of an invisible plague in Maldivian folklore, as evidenced by the 1975 cat prohibition. The Indian Ocean slave trade and piracy, while significant regional forces, are improbable causes due to G.Dh Gan’s isolation, small population, and the absence of violence or looting, as the untouched infrastructure attests. The lack of bodies or family records, noted by historian Mohamed Ibrahim Luthfy, and archaeological findings by Thor Heyerdahl and H.C.P. Bell showing no mass graves further support a rapid, non-violent event like smallpox over slaving or piracy. However, the scarcity of local records and reliance on oral traditions leave gaps in the historical narrative. Further research is needed to uncover definitive evidence, potentially through expanded archaeological excavations, maritime trade records, or regional smallpox outbreak data, to fully illuminate the fate of G.Dh Gan and its enduring legacy as a haunted relic of Maldivian resilience.