Tiswadi is a taluka of North Goa district of the state of Goa, India.The word Tiswadi itself means thirty settlements. It refers to the thirty settlements in which the Goud Saraswat Brahmins settled when they migrated to Goa. It is geographically an Island with the Mandovi river forming its northern boundary. The taluka of Tiswadi includes the smaller islands of Divar and Chorao The present capital of Goa, Panaji lis on this island. Tiswadi is also where the city of Old Goa(Goa Velha) was established where magnificent church of Bom Jesus lies.

Tiswadi with the rest of Goa was part of the Vijaynagar Kingdom of South India in the 14th century. In the 15th century the Adil shahi sultanate conquered Goa and it came under Muslim rule. Hindus were persecuted and temples were Hindu temples were destroyed. This included the famous temple of Ganesh on the Island of Divar which has been recently rebuilt. The Portuguese conquered Tiswadi under Afonso de Albuquerque in 1510. While this brought some relief, the aggressive Portuguese began forced conversions to Christianity in the 16th century. All the Hindu temples in Tiswadi were destroyed and Churches built. The populace was made to accept Christianity or leave the Island. There was a mass exodus of Konkani Hindus who left Goa for the safe havens of Ponda and the Canara, Malabar Coast Chandgad and Joida. The first Hindu temple to be rebuilt in Panaji was the Shree Mahalakshmi temple by the Mhamai Kamats who petitioned the Portuguese authorities for permission to build their place of worship.