The Sahavoay are an ethnic group from the Farafangana District,Université de Montréal. Vulnérabilité des ménages à l'insécurité alimentaire et facteurs de résilience. 2022. p. 67. PDFArchives nationales d’Outre-Mer (ANOM), 44PA166-27. Notice en ligne in the Atsimo Atsinanana region, Madagascar.Chaigneau, Pascal. Rivalités politiques et socialisme à Madagascar. Paris : Centre des Hautes Études sur l’Afrique et l’Asie Modernes (CHEAM), 1985. p. 17. . PDF
Location The Sahavoay are primarily located in the Farafangana District, within the Atsimo Atsinanana region of Madagascar. They are especially concentrated in the communes of Bevoay,Ambohigogo, Maheriraty and Ambohimandroso.
Recognition The Sahavoay like the Karimbola, Vezo, Mikea and the Sahafatra aren't included in the 18 officially recognized tribes of Madagascar despite being a full-fledged ethnic group. They are registered as Antaifasy in official documents.Razafindrakoto, Mireille; Roubaud, François; and Wachsberger, Jean-Michel. Puzzle and Paradox: A Political Economy of Madagascar. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2020. p. 32 (map). .
History The Sahavoay and the Sahafatra were considered among the most remote tribes on Madagascar's east coast in the 19th century and are recognized as the earliest known inhabitants of the Farafangana District. Related isolated groups to the Sahavoay and Sahafatra are regarded as the first inhabitants of southeastern Madagascar, though they are not well documented and were largely assimilated by later arrivals such as the Antemoro, Antaifasy, Antaisaka, and Antambahoaka.The Chronicle of the London Missionary Society. London: London Missionary Society, 1890, vol. 40.
Over time, the Sahavoay lost parts of their ancestral territory due to the expansion of groups from the west, likely of Sakalava or Bara origin, who became the Antaisaka and Antefasy.R. K. Kent, « Chapitre 28 : Madagascar et les îles de l’océan Indien », in *Histoire générale de l’Afrique, Vol. V : L’Afrique du XVIᵉ au XVIIIᵉ siècle*, UNESCO, 1970, p. 957, PDF Many Sahavoay were assimilated by these groups—particularly the Antaisaka subgroups such as the Zaramanampy and Zarafagniliha as well as by the Antefasy of the Ndremamory clan. However, those who remained unassimilated continue to inhabit their present territory.Bied-Charreton, Marc. La Côte sud-est de Madagascar: Étude géographique et problèmes posés par l'intensification de l'agriculture. Thèse de doctorat de troisième cycle, Faculté des Lettres et des Sciences humaines, École pratique des hautes études (VIe section). Dir. G. Sautter. Paris: ORSTOM, 1972. Tome 1, pp. 42–48.
Clans The Sahavoay are traditionally divided into three clans: Marohava Mahasaka AndrakonyBied-Charreton, Marc. La Côte sud-est de Madagascar: Étude géographique et problèmes posés par l'intensification de l'agriculture. Thèse de doctorat de troisième cycle, Faculté des Lettres et des Sciences humaines, École pratique des hautes études (VIe section). Dir. G. Sautter. Paris: ORSTOM, 1972. Tome 1, p.42.
Economy The Sahavoay are primarily engaged in agriculture. Their economic activities include the cultivation of both subsistence and cash crops. Key export-oriented products include Coffee, cloves, and black pepper, while rice remains a staple crop cultivated for local consumption.Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). Poverty and Food Security Survey in Madagascar. Tokyo: JICA, 2017. p. 47. PDF
See also Ethnic groups in Madagascar Malagasy people Atsimo Atsinanana
References
Bibliography Marc Bied‑Charreton. La Côte sud‑est de Madagascar. Étude géographique et problèmes posés par l'intensification de l'agriculture. Thèse de doctorat de troisième cycle. Faculté des Lettres et des Sciences humaines, École Pratique des Hautes Études (VIe section), soutenue le 17 mars 1972. Directeur d'études : G. Sautter. Tome 1, ORSTOM, Paris, 1972. PDF Hubert Deschamps & Suzanne Vianès. Les Malgaches du Sud-Est : Antemoro, Antesaka, Antambahoaka, peuples de Farafangana (Antefasi, Zafisoro, Sahavoai, Sahafatra). Monographies ethnologiques no 1, Presses universitaires de France, Paris, 1959, 118 p.