Francisco Félix de Souza

Francisco Félix de Souza (5 ga Oktoba 1754 - 8 ga Mayu 1849) ɗan kasuwar bayi ne na ƙasar Brazil wanda ke da tasiri sosai a siyasar yankin kafin mulkin mallaka na Afirka ta Yamma (yanzu Benin, Togo da Najeriya). Ya kafa al'ummomin Afro-Brazilian a yankunan da yanzu suna cikin waɗannan ƙasashe kuma ya ci gaba da zama "Chacha" na Ouidah (cibiyar cinikin bayi ta yankin), taken da ba ta ba da iko ba amma ta ba da girmamawa a cikin Masarautar Dahomey, inda, bayan Sarki Adandozan na Dahomey ya ɗaure shi, ya taimaka wa Ghezo ya hau gadon sarauta a juyin mulki. Ya zama Chacha ga sabon sarki, kalma mai ban sha'awa wanda aka bayyana cewa ya samo asali ne daga maganarsa " (...) já, já".

Shekaru na farko a Afirka an rubuta su sosai a cikin wani dogon labarin (a Portuguese) na Alberto Costa e Silva, "The Early Years of Francisco Féliz de Souza on the Slave Coast".

De Souza babban ɗan kasuwa ne na bayi kuma ɗan kasuwa wanda ke kasuwanci da Man dabino, zinariya da bayi. Ya yi ƙaura daga Brazil zuwa abin da ke yanzu jamhuriyar Afirka ta Benin .  An kira shi "mafi girman mai sayar da bayi". 

Yin cinikin bayi daga yankin Dahomey a lokacin, de Souza an san shi da almubazzaranci kuma ana kyautata zaton ya haifi yara akalla 80 tare da mata a cikin haraminsa .  Ya ci gaba da sayar da bayi bayan da aka soke cinikin a mafi yawan hukunce-hukuncen.  Ga dukkan alamu mutanen garin Dahomey sun amince da shi har aka ba shi matsayin sarki .  Ko da yake Katolika ne, ya yi addinin Vodun, kuma yana da wurin ibada na iyali.  An binne shi a Dahomey. 

 Iyali da gado 
De Souza an dauke shi a matsayin "mahaifin" birnin Ouidah . Birnin yana da mutum-mutumi na shi, wani fili mai suna bayan shi, da kuma gidan kayan gargajiya da aka keɓe ga Iyalin de Souza.

A cewar Edna Bay, de Souza ya kasance "mai tasiri sosai a matsayin matsakaici tsakanin al'adun Turai da Afirka". A yau an san shi a matsayin wanda ya kafa al'ummomin Afirka da Brazil a Ghana, Togo, Benin da Najeriya. Iyalin de Souza sun kasance masu amfani sosai wajen yaki da 'yancin Togo, Ghana, Najeriya da Benin. Mutane kamar Paul-Emile de Souza, shugaban Benin, da Chantal na Souza Boni Yayi, tsohuwar uwargidan shugaban Benin, sun nuna ajin.

A cewar dangin de Souza, shi ne na takwas - zuriyar Tomé de Sousa (1503-1579), wani dan kasar Portugal wanda shine gwamnan farko na Mulkin mallaka na Portugal na Brazil daga 1549 zuwa 1553.  Idan gaskiya ne, zai sa de Souzas na zamani su zama mambobi ne na manyan mutanen Portugal ban da kasancewa dangin shugabanci Afirka.

An ce mai gabatarwa na littafin Bruce Chatwin The Viceroy of Ouidah ya dogara ne akan rayuwarsa.

 Bayanan da aka ambata