The district was historically part of the Saurashtra region of Gujarat. Mirroring the system of administrative division in Portugal, Diu district (Distrito de Diu) was established as an administrative division of the Portuguese State of India (Estado da Índia) in the first half of the 19th century. It was headed by a district governor, subordinate to the governor-general of Portuguese India in Goa. The district included the single municipality of Diu, which was further subdivided into civil parishes.[10]
The area on the mainland borders Gir Somnath district of Gujarat. It contains the village of Ghogholá. The village lies on the mainland opposite the eastern end of the island .
Simbor
The tiny territory of Simbor, located about 25 km east of the town of Diu, is also part of the district. It has no permanent population.
Diu is home to a few surviving buildings and monuments with Portuguese architecture. The best preserved are the churches and fortifications.
The nearest railway junction is Veraval, which is 90 km from Diu. Major cities like Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Pune, Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh), Dwarka and Thiruvananthapuram are directly connected to Veraval Railway Station. Delwada is 8 km from Diu.
Churches and chapels
There has been a steady exodus of Christians from Diu[14] ever since the Invasion of 1961. This has led to many of their historic and historic and religious sites being victims of abandonment, disrepair, conversion to secular use or demolishment.
Due to constant invasions from neighboring kingdoms as well as distant powers, the Portuguese built several fortifications all over the district. Most survived to this day, although some have little to no physical traces of their existence.
^US Directorate of Intelligence. "Country Comparison: Population". Archived from the original on 13 June 2007. Retrieved 1 October 2011. Saint Kitts and Nevis 50,314 July 2011 est.
^"Município – Cooperação externa – Diu". cm-loures.pt (in Portuguese). Loures, Portugal: Câmara Municipal de Loures. 2014. Archived from the original on 29 November 2014. Retrieved 17 November 2014.