Borahigny island
A legend tells that a fisherman called Borahigny, living on the big land, was taken away by a whale with its dugout which capsized to the large. A big fish came to his rescue by taking him away on its back and deposited him on a beach. As the animal was hungry, it asked Borahigny to feed it, then the man fished and opened some stoups for it. To thank Borahigny for this meal, the fish invited him to dig the sand under his legs and a source of soft water springs from it, close to the present village of Ankobahoba. They parted and Borahigny made acquaintance of three grandmothers who introduced their children and grandchildren to him. With the passing of the years, the Borahigny's descendants populated the island. The survivor of whom adventure presents similarities with Jonas would have given his name to the island.
Nosy Hibrahim
During the Antiquity, according to the history, Jews from Yemen had frequented the region of the North of Madagascar. Besides, former maps mention Sainte Marie under the name of Nosy Hibrahim. Finally, Flacourt writes: " I estimate that the firsts who had reached Madagascar, were the Zafin'Ibrahims or people of Abraham's lineage, who live in the Sainte Marie Island and the neighbouring lands. They celebrate the Saturday and don't work during this day, not on Friday like the Moors. They don't have any name similar to these lasts, what makes me believe that their ancestors passed in this island since the first transmigrations of the Jews, or that they were descended from the oldest families of the Ismaélites since before the captivity of Babylon, or from those who could have been remained in Egypt before the exit of the children of Israel."
Santa Maria
Around 1506, some Portuguese navigators discovered the island, while escaping a wreck during the Assumption day. As it was of use, they gave to the discovered place the name of the saint of the day: " Santa Maria". 
At this time, “de Constantin” makes the following description of the island: « The men had four silver peak garnished javelins. (...) owned only a garment very skilfully woven with some herbs of various colours. They each carried a reed with salty water. These were tall men, powerful, as are commonly all those of this island. They have big wood shields they cover themselves entirely with when they bent down, so that only a part of their feet can be seen. The island has a length of about one-degree from the north to the south. The landscape is pleasant. It is filled of very beautiful and very green big trees. The land is very high, but while sailing along the coast, we saw that it was separated in two islands.»
Princess Betia and her corporal
Betia, which means “well beloved” in Malagasy was the daughter of King Ratsimilaho the unifier of the eastern kingdoms. This princess received Sainte Marie Island in inheritance in the middle of the 18 th century. The legend tells that she married a French man Louis-Onésime Filet, called "la Bigorne" who would have been the initiator of the uniting of the Island with France. This Gascon of origin was wounded on board of a commercial ship of the Company of the Indies between Madras and Pondichéry and had to join the Bourbon Island. A love affair with an officer's wife obliged him to escape on board of a frail barque that would come to run aground the Sainte Marie Island. Betia fell in love to him while taking care of the shipwrecked victim. Playing with this passion, “La Bigorne” would have then convinced the princess to yield Sainte Marie to France...
Although, the history testifies that Betia
didn't know «la Bigorne» when she
accepted to yield the sovereignty
of the island to the king of France
by an official act signed on
July 30, 1750.
