Madagascar, a Métis Island without Any Métis ?
Miscegenation is a notion associated with Madagascar since the first European writings on the island. In particular, in the 19th century, it is associated with questioning the origin of Malagasy. But it was also used as a pretext for the French to conquer the island. The colonization which was set up came along with the creation of a colonial category, that of « métis ». Worried of preserving the colonial order and the subdivision between groups, the colonial power chose to intervene towards the métis : estimation of their number, child-care in orphanages for métis, decree allowing them to gain French citizenship more easily than the Malagasy. However, the métis were able to bypass the colonial categorization and to elaborate strategies to gain French or Malagasy societies. The undifferentiated kinship and the moderate intervention of the power towards the métis explain why the métis did not constitute any group or separate community in the island.