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The Making of a Hub Society: Mauritius’ Path from Port of Call to Cyber Island

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Connectivity in Motion

Part of the book series: Palgrave Series in Indian Ocean World Studies ((IOWS))

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Abstract

This chapter is a contribution to the ethnohistory of island hubs, using the island of Mauritius in the southwest Indian Ocean as a case study and paradigm. Lying roughly halfway between the Cape of Good Hope and India, Mauritius provided a welcome intermediate anchoring point and shelter in the vastness of the sea during the age of sail. Originally starting as a maritime hub, the expertise and functions that Mauritius acquired and developed in this capacity were gradually transferred to several nonmaritime domains, where sooner or later, they began to lead an independent life. I demonstrate this by looking at Mauritius’ dynamic history as a hub, starting from the island’s early phase as a naval base and mercantile hub up to its present roles as tourist destination, offshore banking center, and cyber island. In conclusion, this article looks at the transformational, value-enhancing processes which have taken place within the Mauritian hub, suggesting that it is a hub society as much as the plantation society it is usually presented as.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for Social and Cultural Anthropology, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle, Germany

    Burkhard Schnepel

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  1. Burkhard Schnepel
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for Social and Cultural Anthropology, Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg, Halle, Germany

    Burkhard Schnepel

  2. Department of History, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Edward A. Alpers

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Schnepel, B. (2018). The Making of a Hub Society: Mauritius’ Path from Port of Call to Cyber Island. In: Schnepel, B., Alpers, E.A. (eds) Connectivity in Motion. Palgrave Series in Indian Ocean World Studies. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-59725-6_10

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-59725-6_10

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  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-59724-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-59725-6

  • eBook Packages: HistoryHistory (R0)

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