A Portuguese colonial official who served twice as Governor of Macau (first term 1894–1897) and later as Governor of Portuguese India. The Macau avenue named after him was originally rendered 柯高 in Chinese but later changed to 高士德 because the earlier reading sounded unflattering in Cantonese.
A governor who served Macau twice left behind an avenue — and that avenue's Chinese name was rewritten because of how it sounded in Cantonese.
José Maria de Sousa Horta e Costa was a Portuguese colonial official who twice governed Macau. The avenue named after him survives, and the story of its Chinese renaming is a telling footnote in the history of Macau's street names.
Profile
- Chinese Name: 高士德
- Portuguese Name: José Maria de Sousa Horta e Costa
- Born: 20 October 1858
- Died: 21 September 1927
- Region: Portugal / Macau / Portuguese India
- Domains: Politics · Colonial administration
- Subject type: Historical figure · Governor of Macau
Background
Born in 1858, Horta e Costa was an official of the late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century Portuguese colonial service. His career spanned both Macau and Portuguese India, reflecting the era's normal rotation of officials across Portugal's overseas territories.
Career
I. First term as Governor of Macau (1894–1897)
Horta e Costa became Governor of Macau in 1894, serving until 1897, during a period of continuing urban and administrative development in the city.
II. A second term and Portuguese India
He returned as Governor of Macau in 1900, and later served as Governor of Portuguese India from 1907 to 1910 — among the last to hold that post before the Portuguese republican revolution.
Defining Moments
I. Naming and renaming of the avenue
The Macau avenue named after him was established around 1905. Notably, its Chinese name was first rendered 柯高馬路, but the reading of 柯高 was considered unflattering in Cantonese, so it was changed to the more euphonious 高士德. The change is a classic example of how Macau street names were adapted across the Chinese and Portuguese languages.
Public Character
Horta e Costa was a representative official of the late-nineteenth-century colonial administration of Macau. This archive presents his historical role neutrally, without praise or blame. Today his name is known to residents mainly through Avenida Horta e Costa.