Badiu

Badiu (also: Badio ) refers to the language and inhabitants of the Cape Verde island of Santiago . Badiu is a variant of the Cape Verdean Creole .

Two explanations are given as the origin of the word:

• vadiu (altport .: escaped)
• baldio (port .: abandoned, remote for land and landscapes)

Badius were withdrawn communities of runaway slaves and convicts inside the island with a special code of conduct that protected them from being recaptured. Their independence, self-organization in a Christian religion with lay preaching and their fearlessness when raiding manors gave them a special reputation among free people and slaves, which fluctuated between fear and admiration.

When Cape Verdean national consciousness arose in the late 19th century and in the struggle for independence (see Amílcar Cabral ), the population of Santiago identified with the traditions of the Badius and the term became the name of the entire population and the language of the island.

In Badiu, members and the language of other ethnic groups in Cape Verdean are known as Sampadjudu .