A Trip to French Roots in Santiago de Cuba
A sort of trip to the origins has begun for descendants of French families in this city, by means of researches that take them closer to those family trees and confirm their identity, along with their Cuban condition.
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One of these people is cartographer Jose Luis Manet, who works at the City Curator’s Office and has made inquiries on numerous French-descending families that arrived in the south-eastern coasts two centuries ago as a result of the Haitian Revolution.
Manet told Latin Press about his interest in going deep into those origins, since he was just a child, and the fruitful career along with notable geographer and archaeologist Fernando Boytell, a scientist that remarkably contributed to that research.
The Manet-Lestapis family is one of cases included in the research, with a legacy that has come to our time and speaks of the economic development of the region, specifically the production of coffee and socio-cultural spaces.
Margarita Gachassin-Lafite, president of the French Casino at the city, points out that there is still a lot to be discovered about the heritage of those European inhabitants in this area of Cuban geography. She’s also committed to carry on with the research.
Both researchers referred to the visits of French younger generations, looking for memories and elements related to their ancestors, some of which can be found on documents.
On the other hand, Dr. Maria Cristina Hierrezuelo, from the Social Sciences Faculty at the Eastern University, talked about the studies that are being conducted so as to reflect the influence of French families in rules of conduct and ethic, which have been passed from generation to generation.
During the monthly meeting organized by Montaigne-Montesquieu Cathedra of French-Cuban and Caribbean Studies, linked to the Eastern University, the attendees once again shared the result of their work on that cultural heritage in the city, this time round with a family approach.
