Growth of Muslim Population in Medieval India, A.D. 1000–1800 c11.16

c11.16

In the sixteenth century (1501-1600) many more foreigners came to India. The Italian Ludovico di Varthema came early in the century, and was at Calicut from 1504 to 1506. Duarte Barbosa, a Portuguese official in Malabar from 1500 to 1516, wrote his account around 1518. Pires, who wrote between 1512 and 1515, also stayed mostly in Malabar. Castanheda was here between 1528 and 1538. Paes wrote around 1520 and Fernao Núniz in 1536-37. Barros apparently never came to India himself but his Decada, based on Portuguese eye witnesses and therefore a very authoritative work on India, began to be published in 1552. Balbai, Sassetti, Fitch and Linschoten were in India during the decade of 1580's. Father Monserrate was in Goa in 1582 and in the court of Emperor Akbar for many years. Father Pinheiro was in India at about the end of the sixteenth century.