These 11th–13th century sites on the coastal dunes were small (0.5 ha [1.2 acres] in size) and seasonal or temporary, based on the need to move to find food.

[7] Evidence suggests that between the 13th and 15th centuries, those living in Anosy were working chlorite schist which was exchanged through the trade network for Chinese greenware pottery.

Settlements grew slightly, primarily located on the flood plains and coastal lagoons, with cultivation of sweet potatoes and further development of iron working.

[7] In the early 14th century, a Gujarat ship wrecked off the Anosy coast; it has been theorized that the stranded Gujarati went north to found the Zarabehava dynasty of Antesaka, though some scholars disagree.

[8]: 857 In the 16th century, the Zafiraminia (descendants of the Muslim Ramini) arrived in present-day Anosy and moved into the Efaho valley after being defeated by the Antambahoaka people to the north.

[9] The Zafiraminia had lived in Madagascar from about the 13th century and had assimilated into the Malagasy population; they did not have Islamic institutions though they retained Arabic script and several socio-religious practices.

On 4 August 1508, Diogo Lopes de Sequeira arrived on a Portuguese trade mission, recovering two shipwreck survivors who served as a Malagasy translators for contact and resupply.

[16] Beginning in 1604, French King Henry IV began sending ships to Madagascar to compete with the Dutch colonies at the Gold Coast of Africa.

In 1642, Cardinal Richelieu sought possession of Madagascar for France, granting trading rights to Captain Rigault and associates who created the first French East India Company.

There were many deaths in the first months, likely due to malaria and dysentery in the swampy area, and the settlement was moved 40 km (25 mi) southwest to the peninsula of Taolanara where they built what was later named Fort Dauphin, France's first colony in the Indian Ocean.

[7] Successive governors of Fort Dauphin in the mid-17th century sought to conquer Anosy by wresting control from the Zafiraminia kings, who had united under Dian Ramack (and later, his son Andriampanolahy).

In 1674, after the French East India Company had twice been reorganized due to poor profits, the rebuilt Fort Dauphin was evacuated and the colony abandoned.

In 1887–88, Norwegian missionary Nielsen-Lund described the Antanosy population as "very scattered" and ruled by 30 feudal kings, and that northern Anosy was a lawless place.

A Lutheran church and school was established outside Fort Dauphin, but the support given by the Queen of Imerina caused the missionaries to be viewed as collaborators by the Antanosy.

The harsh regime and disregard for Malagasy culture were met by a number of small revolts and raids, which culminated in a general uprising in 1904–1905.

The fighting was concentrated in the north and central regions; the Vichy governor-general had retreated steadily southward, and surrendered rather than enter Anosy.

Political power of the new government was consolidated amongst the Imerina middle-class, and was challenged in 1971 by a peasant uprising in Toliara Province (which included the Anosy Region).

Student protests joined by a general strike and rioting led to a state of emergency, a military government fraught with ethnic coups, and the 1975 establishment of the Democratic Republic of Madagascar.

Ecotourism in Anosy grew rapidly in the early and mid-1990s, but temporarily collapsed during 2007–2009 due to the complete booking of Fort-Dauphin hotels for QMM employees and contractors.

The Coastal Sands are dunes at the ocean's edge cut with meandering rivers, ribbon lakes, and a series of lagoons and bays which vary in size from a few to two dozen square kilometres.

The Coastal Sands can be further subdivided into the Andriambe, Ebakika, Efaho, Fanjahira, Lakandava, Lanirano, Manampanihy, Mandromodromotra, Vatomena, Vatomirindry and Vatorendrika basins.

Eighty percent of its inhabitants don't have access to clean water, one in six suffer from serious respiratory illness, literacy is less than 20%, and 65% of the watershed slopes are highly degraded.

[44] The two largest Christian denominations in the Anosy region are the Roman Catholic[45][46][47] and the Malagasy Lutheran Church, both established in Fort Dauphin (also called: Tolagnaro) in the 1890s.

Some road repairs have been conducted with loans from the World Bank, and by international companies seeking access to the region's natural resources.

The growth of Port-Dauphin and poor condition of its generators resulted in mining firm QIT Madagascar Minerals (QMM) assuming responsibility for production of the town's electricity.

[62][63][64] The 1986 opening of the QMM owned Mandena mine prompted a boost in employment, migration to the area, development of roads and exacerbation of deforestation.

In 1963, the original Ambindandrakemba mine was exhausted, and the centre was moved 40 km (25 mi) north to Betioky, near the Belafa ore body which was thought to have between 2,000 and 5,000 tons of uranothorianite.

In 2005, the Malagasy government conducted aerial magnetic and radiometric surveys of the area, which found thorium and uranium deposits increased to the west.

[28] [80][81][82][83][84][85][86][87][88][89][90][91][92][93][94][95][96][97][98][99][100][101][102][103][104][105][106][107][108][109][110][111][112][113][114][115][116][117][118] Sapphires were first documented in Anosy by Étienne de Flacourt in 1658, and were described by a French geologist working in the mica mines near Tranomaro in the 1950s.

[132] Anosy has a high potential for tourism with its pleasant climate, sprawling beaches, and nature reserves with distinctive wildlife (several containing lemurs).