Goa (English),
गोंय (
Konkani) is currently the Republic of
India's smallest
state by area post the 1974/75 UN treaty and presently has the
fourth smallest population. Famously known as
Rome of the East it was the capital of historical
Portuguese eastern empire (1510 to 1910) followed by an Overseas province status of the
Portuguese Republic (1910 to 1974/75). Located in the South Western part of the Indian subcontinent as numerous islands and provinces in the region generally known as the
Konkan strip, it is bounded by the state of
Maharashtra to the north, and by
Karnataka to the east and south, while the
Arabian Sea forms its entire western coast. Goa is India's richest state with a GDP per capita two and a half times that of the country as a whole. It was ranked the best placed state by the Eleventh Finance Commission for its infrastructure and ranked on top for the best quality of life in India by the National Commission on Population based on the 12 Indicators. A native from Goa is called and identified as a
Goan and depending on ancestry and descent can be full Portuguese citizens or can be a Goan with full Indian citizenship.
Panaji is the state's capital,
Old Goa called Velha Goa is the former capital and
Vasco da Gama is the largest city with a historical port, presently occupied with migrants from all over the Republic of India. The historic city of
Margão still exhibits the 450 years cultural influence of
Portugal, as in the early 16th century the Portuguese sailed as explorers, merchants and conquered it soon thereafter as its extended eastern empire. Goa is a former Portuguese province; the Portuguese overseas territory of
Portuguese India existed for about 450 years until it was
annexed by the Republic of India in 1961. Large numbers of international and domestic tourists (Indian) visit Goa each year for its beaches, places of worship and
world heritage architecture. It also has rich
flora and
fauna, owing to its location on the
Western Ghats range, which is classified as a
biodiversity hotspot.
