Chinchinim is a village in southern Salcete. National Highway no; 17 neatly passes through and along with State highway from St. Sebastian Chapel junction to Assolna bridge divided the village into eastern and western parts. There is another road from Orlim/Deussua bridge via bazaar area to Sarzora which cuts Chinchinim into northern and southern halfs. River Sal forms its western boundary , Orlim and Carmona being villages on the other side of river Sal. In the south are Assolna and Cuncolim villages and to its north is Navelim. The villages Chinchinim, Assolna and Carmona have a common ending- oneam - known as Chinch-oneam, Ons -oneam and Corm-oneam respectively
Chinchinim is Portuguese version of Chinch-oneam. Chinch in konkani is tamaring tree. Tamar-e-hind in Arabic is date (sourish fruit) of India. This sourish fruit is the essentian ingredient in Goan kitchens.It is possible in olden days the village was full of chinch trees (tamarind trees) although the low lying paddy fields which get inundated in monsoon season occupy much more area especially along the River Sal. The village church is dedicated to O.L. of Hope and nearby is bazaar area being the central part of the village. There are 3 high schools, a hospital, four banks ( a sign of economic progress!) a post office, a rural telephone exchange, panchayat ghor, fish market, a football ground all in the vicinity of the crowded bazaar are. All minor village roads end in the bazaar area, Chinchinim is the biggest rural village of Goa with Catholic population of 22 thousand. Navelim has more Catholics but northern parts of Navelim are urban areas being extension of Margao town. Originally Chinchinim had wards like Deussua, Sirlim, Dharmapur and Sarzora. In good old days when there were no roads, the trading commodities were carried by sailing ships in the River Sal and it is possible there were two minor riverine ports like Deussua and Tolleaband. When the Portuguese constructed a road from St Sebastian Chapet to Assolna, trading activities moved towards present day centre of the village. It is possible that in a century or two trading zones may move eastwards towards Dharmapur, Sarzora and Panzorconi because Konkan Railway passes through these areas. and it is equally possible that National Highway no: 17 could be shifted eastwards. When missionaries started converting Salcete population, Jesuits entered Chinchinim via Orlim and landed in Deussua ,a trading center in those days.There was a Hindu temple in Deussua over whose ruins today stand s St. Anthony's Chapel The other minor trading centre Tolleaband was mos t probably served by another temple at Devular which is a small circular mound type elevation surrounded on all sides by paddy fields. Devular is at the southern end of Secreamvaddo and probably Devular temple priests together with their retainers lived in Sankle-Tolleaband ward. Dr. Alvaro de Loyola Furtado in his historical notes on the village of Chinchinim writes inter-alia: '''The Chinchinim church building was completed by the Jesuits in 1590. The Jesuit historian Fr. Sebastian Gonsalves S.J. adds however that the church was built in Deussua . Dr. Loyola Furtado further asks: In which place in Deussua as we know it today was the Church of OL of Hope built ? and then answers : the hypothesis that the site in which the Church today stands belonged in times past to Deussua Comunidade seems to be acceptable. If we accept the theory that missionaries normally built churches over the ruins of Hindu temples , then it is highly probable that the first Chinchinim Church was built over the ruins of the temple at Devular because till today paddy fields surrounding Devular are owned the Comunidade of Deussua and the Church was later built in its present day location i.e. Secreamvaddo/ Dandeavaddo. By the way, Devular today is the property of the family of nineteen century Latin Professor, Advocate, Acting Judge and President of DIU Municipality namely Adv. Laurente Menezes Antonio
