Portuguese across cultures and time and space: the evolution of Portuguese descent in Macau

Is the term "Westerner" originally related to the historical event of the Portuguese arrival in Macau? What kind of group are "Macanese Portuguese"? What are their views on their own identity? Did many early Macanese Portuguese Eurasians actually have African, Indian, Malaysian, and Japanese ancestry?

Portugal leased Macau starting in 1557 until its return in 1999, a period spanning over four hundred years. Early Macau played the role of a Euro-Asian trade hub, and Portuguese descendants born and raised in Macau, with their advantages in diverse races, cultures, and languages, traveled between Macau, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and even various parts of Japan, playing a key role in global trade and serving as an important bridge for communication between Eastern and Western cultures. Later, with the decline of Portuguese power and the opening of Hong Kong, Macau's importance gradually diminished, and Macanese Portuguese began to disperse around the world.

As time goes by, the identity and cultural recognition of "Macanese Portuguese" are gradually weakening among the next generation. This unique group may not be able to pass on their feelings for Macau to their descendants, but the history they experienced and the culture they possess should be preserved as a testament to the era. This is also the purpose of the author, a Macanese Portuguese, in writing this book.