The name literally means "beach of Makasar," alluding to the erstwhile trade with Makasar in Sulawesi (Celebes).
Under their leader Gaspar da Costa they attacked the Dutch colonial post at Kupang in 1749 but were smashingly defeated, and subsequently moved their residence to Pante Macassar (Oecusse) in 1759 due to Dutch military pressure.
It was in Pante Macassar that an Indonesian fifth column raised the Indonesian flag and took control of the exclave on 29 November 1975, a week before the Indonesian invasion of East Timor proper.