DOCSLIB.ORG

Sociology of Northeast India

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Sociology of Northeast India GSO (S5) 01 (M/P) Exam Code : SOP5A / SOM5A Sociology of Northeast India SEMESTER V SOCIOLOGY BLOCK - 2 KRISHNA KANTA HANDIQUI STATE OPEN UNIVERSITY Subject Experts 1. Professor Jyoti Prasad Saikia, 2. Dr. Nirmali Goswami, Tezpur University, Tezpur Course Co-ordinator : Dr. Gargi Gayan, Asst. Prof. (KKHSOU) SLM Preparation Team UNITS CONTRIBUTORS 8, 9 Madhuja Handique 10 Udeepta Phukan 11 Dr. Piyashi Dutta, Assistant Professor, Amity University 12 Priyanku Hazarika 13 Rituparna Choudhury Editorial Team Content (English Version) : Dr. Shabeena Yasmin Saikia, Associate Professor, (GU) Language (English Version) : Dr. Labiba Alam Structure, Format & Graphics: Dr. Gargi Gayan, Asst. Prof. KKHSOU June , 2019 This Self Learning Material (SLM) of the Krishna Kanta Handiqui State Open University is made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-Share Alike 4.0 License (international): http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/ Printed and published by Registrar on behalf of the Krishna Kanta Handiqui State Open University. Headquarters: Patgaon, Rani Gate, Guwahati-781017 City Office: Housefed Complex, Dispur, Guwahati-781006; Web: www.kkhsou.in The University acknowledges with thanks the financial support provided by the Distance Education Bureau, UGC for preparation of this material. BACHELOR OF ARTS THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES IN SOCIOLOGY DETAILED SYLLABUS BLOCK-2 UNIT 8: ETHNIC IDENTITY IN NORTHEAST INDIA: Page : 117-136 Ethnicity: Meaning and Characteristics; Intercommunity relations and its changing nature; Ethnic Conflict. UNIT 9: AUTONOMY MOVEMENTS IN ASSAM: Page : 137-149 Autonomy: Meaning and Concept; Demand for Sixth Schedule; Demand for separate homeland; Causes and Its implications in Intercommunity relations UNIT 10: INSURGENCY IN NORTHEAST INDIA: Page : 150-161 Origin and Development of insurgency in the region; Major insurgent groups UNIT 11: LAND RELATION IN NORTHEAST INDIA: Page : 162-173 Land holding patterns, agrarian structure UNIT 12: ECONOMIC PROBLEMS IN NORTH EAST INDIA: Page : 174-188 Unemployment, Infrastructure, Industrialization UNIT 13: DEVELOPMENT IN NORTHEAST INDIA: Page : 189-198 North Eastern Council (NEC), The Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (MDoNER), Look East Policy BLOCK INTRODUCTION This is the second block of the course. This block consists of six units. The first unit of this block is unit 8 which is titled as Ethnic identity in Northeast India. This unit will discuss the concept of ethnicity and the intercommunity relation among different ethnic communities in the northeastern region. The second unit of this block is Unit 9 which is titled as Autonomy movements in Assam This unit will discuss the different autonomy movements undertaken by different ethnic groups in Assam. The third unit is unit 10, which is titled as Insurgency in Northeast India. This unit will discuss the origin and development of insurgency in the region. The fourth unit is unit 11, which is titled as Land relation in Norteast India . This unit will discuss the land holding pattern and the agrarian structure. The fifth unit is unit 12, which is titled as Economic problems in Northeast India. This unit will discuss about unemployment, infrastructure and industrialisation in the northeastern region. The sixth unit is unit 13. This unit is titled as Development in Northeast India This unit will discuss about the initiatives underken by various agencies like the Norteastern Council, The Ministery of Development of Northeastern Region (MDONER) and Lookeast policy to accelerate the development process in the region. While going through this block, you may also notice some text boxes, which have been included to help you know some of the difficult terms and concepts. You will also read about some relevant ideas and concepts in “LET US KNOW” along with the text. We have kept “CHECK YOUR PROGRESS” questions in each unit. These have been designed to self-check your progress of study. The hints for the answers to these questions are given at the end of the unit. We strongly advise you to answer the questions immediately after you finish reading the section in which these questions occur. We have also included a few books in the “FURTHER READINGS” which will be helpful for your further consultation. The books referred to in the preparation of the units have been added at the end of the block. UNIT 8: ETHNIC IDENTITY IN NORTH-EAST INDIA UNIT STRUCTURE 8.1 Learning Objectives 8.2 Introduction 8.3 Ethnic and Ethnicity 8.3.1 Meaning and Characteristics of Ethnic groups 8.3.2 Meaning and Characteristics of Ethnicity 8.3.3 Approaches to the study of Ethnicity 8.3.4 Ethnic Identity 8.4 Inter Community Relation within North East Region of India 8.4.1 Assam in Pre British Era 8.4.1.1 Tribal and Foreign Relations 8.4.2 British Era 8.4.2.1 The relationship with immigrant communities 8.4.2.2 The Relationship between Nagas and Kukis 8.4.3 Independence Era 8.4.3.1 The Relationship between Nagas and Kukis 8.5 The changing Nature of Inter Community Relation among North East Region of India 8.6 Ethnic Conflict in North East India 8.6.1 Government Policy 8.6.2 Foreign Policy Imperatives 8.7 Let us sum up 8.8 Further Reading 8.9 Answer to check your progress 8.10 Model questions 8.1 LEARNING OBJECTIVES After going through this unit you will be able to – • know about the Meaning and Characteristics of Ethnicity. • explain the scenario of inter-community relations in North-east India. Sociology of Northeast India 117 Unit 8 Ethnic Identity in North-East India • understand the causes of the changing nature of inter-community relationship among the ethnic groups of North-east India. • know about the root causes of ethnic conflict in North-east India. 8.2 INTRODUCTION The North-eastern region represents India’s most complex landscape with multi-lingual, multi-cultural, multi-ethnic and multi-religious societal context. It is a land of lovely woods and trees, of clustering fruits and of groves dense with trees and sounds of silence. The North-eastern region of India is a splendidly vibrant region which is situated in the eastern part of the sub-Himalayan zone. The region compromises of lofty mountainous terrain and moderately high hills and river-fed valleys. At present the eight states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, Meghalaya and Sikkim are regarded as constituting the North-east India. Surrounded by five Countries, this region is connected with the rest of India through a narrow thirty kilometer corridor located in northern Bengal. Different ethnic groups inhabiting this region have been pressing either for the creation of separate states on the basis of their lingo-cultural identities or for special constitutional safeguards of their respective identities. “What is your ethnicity?” This is a question that is fairly important in many parts of the world. The United States, like many countries, finds this question to be substantial enough to include on the national census. It is a question we are all familiar with, but do we know what is really being asked here? An ethnic group is a population with shared genetic and cultural traits, making them distinct from other populations because of these traits. If you think that sounds somewhat vague, you are right. Ethnicity is important to us, but that does not necessarily mean that it is easy to define. Let us learn more about the concept in the subsequent sections. 8.3 ETHNIC AND ETHNICITY 8.3.1 Meaning and Characteristics of Ethnic group Ethnic group is a group whose members have same or all of the following characteristics. 118 Sociology of Northeast India Ethnic Identity in North-East India Unit 8 Share a sense of common right. Claim a common and distinctive history and destiny. Possess one or more dimensions of collective cultural individuality. Feel a sense of unique solidarity. So, an Ethnic group is defined as “any hereditary group with shared values, style of life and symbol of identity and consciousness of kind”. The word ‘Ethnic’ became popular in the post war period and during1960s and 1970s, when Regionalism Movements in Western Europe and the Black Movement in the United States became prominent. However, the English term ‘ethnic’ was in usage since the middles ages and in the New Testament it was employed as a synonym of ‘gentile’, implying the non-Christian and non-Jewish pagans. Different scholars are using it to mean ‘a group of people with shared characteristics’, however, the use of this term in the modern sense has been varied. For some this would indicate the immigrant community or the minority within a larger social structure while for some others it would encompass every community with a common culture and history, as Everett C. Hughes (1970) declares “we are all ethnic”. The term ‘ethnic’ is a derivative of the Greek term ‘ethnos’. Ethnos in classical Greek described the undifferentiated groups of animals and warriors and also as Aristotle used it to mean the foreign and barbarian nations. From being used to denote the ‘non- structured, tribal, peripheral people’ in classical Greek it came to be used specifically for the non- Christian and non-Hebrews during the Middles ages. It was used for indicating religious otherness. However, its application changed even when the meaning continued to be the same. During the times of the Ottoman empire when the orthodox Christians became the most prominent religious other, the term ‘ethnos’ came to be employed by the Greeks to refer to themselves. Sociology of Northeast India 119 Unit 8 Ethnic Identity in North-East India Later, during the emergence of modern nationalism among the Greeks in the early nineteenth century, the term ethnos came to be seen as a ‘quintessentially self-realising, self-defining entity’.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Forgotten Saga of Rangpur's Ahoms
    High Technology Letters ISSN NO : 1006-6748 The Forgotten Saga of Rangpur’s Ahoms - An Ethnographic Approach Barnali Chetia, PhD, Assistant Professor, Indian Institute of Information Technology, Vadodara, India. Department of Linguistics Abstract- Mong Dun Shun Kham, which in Assamese means xunor-xophura (casket of gold), was the name given to the Ahom kingdom by its people, the Ahoms. The advent of the Ahoms in Assam was an event of great significance for Indian history. They were an offshoot of the great Tai (Thai) or Shan race, which spreads from the eastward borders of Assam to the extreme interiors of China. Slowly they brought the whole valley under their rule. Even the Mughals were defeated and their ambitions of eastward extensions were nipped in the bud. Rangpur, currently known as Sivasagar, was that capital of the Ahom Kingdom which witnessed the most glorious period of its regime. Rangpur or present day sivasagar has many remnants from Ahom Kingdom, which ruled the state closely for six centuries. An ethnographic approach has been attempted to trace the history of indigenous culture and traditions of Rangpur's Ahoms through its remnants in the form of language, rites and rituals, religion, archaeology, and sacred sagas. Key Words- Rangpur, Ahoms, Culture, Traditions, Ethnography, Language, Indigenous I. Introduction “Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair! Nothing beside remains. Round the decay of that colossal Wreck, boundless and bare, the lone and level sands stretch far away.” -P.B Shelley Rangpur or present day Sivasagar was one of the most prominent capitals of the Ahom Kingdom.
    [Show full text]
  • The TAI AHOM Movement in Northeast India: a Study of All Assam TAI AHOM Student Union
    IOSR Journal Of Humanities And Social Science (IOSR-JHSS) Volume 23, Issue 7, Ver. 10 (July. 2018) PP 45-50 e-ISSN: 2279-0837, p-ISSN: 2279-0845. www.iosrjournals.org The TAI AHOM Movement in Northeast India: A Study of All Assam TAI AHOM Student Union Bornali Hati Boruah Research Scholar Dept. of Political science Assam University, Diphu campus, India Corresponding Author: Bornali Hati Boruah Abstract: The Ahoms, one of the foremost ethnic communities in the North East India are a branch of the Tai or Shan people. The Tai Ahoms entered the Brahmaputra valley from the east in the early part of the thirteenth century and their arrival heralded a new age for the people of the region. The ethnic group Tai Ahoms of Assam has been asserting their ethnic identity more than a century old today. The Ahoms who once ruled over Assam seek to maintain their distinct identity within the larger Assamese society. The Tai Ahoms of Assam faced a lot of problem after independence in different aspects. Moreover, though once Tai Ahoms ancestors were ruling race but today they have been squarely backward .They have been recognized as one of the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category. As a measure to solve their multifold and multifaceted demands, the ethnic group Tai Ahoms has been struggling through their organizations. In present time, All Tai Ahom Student Union (ATASU) has been very much concerned about the various problems of Tai Ahoms community. While struggling for the overall development of the Tai Ahom community, rightly or wrongly the All Tai Ahom Student Union has been raising political issues and thus got involved in the politics of the state despite being a non-political organization.
    [Show full text]
  • Tai Ahom Tradition and Culture Vis- a -Vis Thai Culture: an In-Depth Analysis
    13TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON THAI STUDIES GLOBALIZED THAILAND? CONNECTIVITY, CONFLICT AND CONUNDRUMS OF THAI STUDIES 15-18 JULY 2017, CHIANG MAI, THAILAND Tai Ahom Tradition and Culture vis- a -vis Thai Culture: an In-depth Analysis Gogoi, Hironmoni Borgohain Namrup College, Dibrugarh University Assam India -------------------------------------------------------------- Abstract The Study is an attempt to understand some of the basic Tai traits and traditions interweaved in the lives of the Tai Ahom people in Assam, India and trying to relate them to the Thai culture which forms the essence of life in Thailand. The Tai Ahoms living in India and the Thais living in Thailand and all other Tai communities are the inheritors of the ancient Tai Culture and Civilization which could make an impress on world civilization almost five thousand years ago and persists till date. Because of migration to different parts of the world, occasioned by varied factors, they have been influenced by various social, cultural and religious factors in their new places of habitation - wherein they had adapted and assimilated themselves. Though they still carry with them their Tai cultural legacies, which are deeply embedded in their psyche and their way of life, they are not very aware of the underlying cultural and philosophical significances. Therefore, studies which attempt to identify and probe into these basic traits appear to be an urgent necessity for Tai/ Thai culture to be rediscovered, interpreted, understood, and analyzed to keep them alive, vibrant, and universal for contribution to the world of knowledge. The Methodology will be the Qualitative Approach and focus basically on the Primary Sources like religious rituals of birth, death, marriage, work culture, monuments, music and dance, manuscripts, interviews etc.
    [Show full text]
  • Identity Politics and Social Exclusion in India's North-East
    Identity Politics and Social Exclusion in India’s North-East: The Case for Re-distributive Justice N.K.Das• Abstract: This paper examines how various brands of identity politics since the colonial days have served to create the basis of exclusion of groups, resulting in various forms of rifts, often envisaged in binary terms: majority-minority; sons of the soil’-immigrants; local-outsiders; tribal-non-tribal; hills-plains; inter-tribal; and intra-tribal. Given the strategic and sensitive border areas, low level of development, immense cultural diversity, and participatory democratic processes, social exclusion has resulted in perceptions of marginalization, deprivation, and identity losses, all adding to the strong basis of brands of separatist movements in the garb of regionalism, sub-nationalism, and ethnic politics, most often verging on extremism and secession. It is argued that local people’s anxiety for preservation of culture and language, often appearing as ‘narcissist self-awareness’, and their demand of autonomy, cannot be seen unilaterally as dysfunctional for a healthy civil society. Their aspirations should be seen rather as prerequisites for distributive justice, which no nation state can neglect. Colonial Impact and genesis of early ethnic consciousness: Northeast India is a politically vital and strategically vulnerable region of India. Surrounded by five countries, it is connected with the rest of India through a narrow, thirty-kilometre corridor. North-East India, then called Assam, is divided into Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura. Diversities in terms of Mongoloid ethnic origins, linguistic variation and religious pluralism characterise the region. This ethnic-linguistic-ecological historical heritage characterizes the pervasiveness of the ethnic populations and Tibeto-Burman languages in northeast.
    [Show full text]
  • Revivalism in Northeastern India In
    B. Terwiel Recreating the past; Revivalism in Northeastern India In: Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde 152 (1996), no: 2, Leiden, 275-292 This PDF-file was downloaded from http://www.kitlv-journals.nl Downloaded from Brill.com09/28/2021 12:30:10PM via free access BJ. TERWIEL Recreating the Past Revivalism in Northeastern India Introduction In this article I would like to introduce the problems of reviving a ritual once it has disappeared without a trace, posing the modern actors an inter- esting set of dilemmas. The paper centres upon the example of the Ahom, an ethnic group in Northeast India which over the past centuries has lost trace almost completely of the culture of its Southeast Asian forebears. During the past fifteen years I have witnessed and personally played a minor, essentially indirect, role in the blossoming of a revivalist movement among the people of Ahom descent. It is a movement that has taken root in the face of what seem to be almost overwhelming odds. Tai-speaking peoples Tai-speaking peoples form the most numerous and most widely spread peoples in Mainland Southeast Asia. They first became recognizable as such in the first millennium A.D. in what is now Kuangsi Province in Southern China. In the middle of the eleventh century they became embroiled in a long and fierce war with the Chinese, which ended in a resounding defeat of the Tais. Hereupon many Tais suddenly began migrating southwards and south-westwards into the region of Mainland Southeast Asia. They fanned out rapidly, and within a few hundred years had conquered most of the valley regions where they are now found: in northern Vietnam, in Laos, in all of Thailand, in Northern Myanmar, in the Chinese province of Yunnan, and in Northeastern India.
    [Show full text]
  • Download Pdf File
    International Journal of Interdisciplinary Research in Science Society and Culture(IJIRSSC) Vol: 3, Issue:1, (June Issue), 2017 ISSN: (P) 2395-4345, (O) 2455-2909 Impact Factor: 1.585 Religion and Social Change among the Ethnic Communities of Assam Juri Saikia Assistant professor, Department of History D.D.R. College, Chabua, Dibrugarh, Assam ____________________________________________________________________________________________ ABSTRACT : Every ethnic group of Assam have some individual cultural characteristics. But in the age of globalisation it is impossible to remain within the boundary of own culture. On the other hand the greater Assamese culture is formed by the contributions of all the ethnic communities. Various socio- cultural processes like acculturation, assimilation, progressive absorption, fusion, aryanisation, sanskritisation etc. has influenced upon almost all ethnic communities. Religion is one of the important organs of society. It brings new elements to society and culture and a society is depended in large scale on religion in the maintaining of social norms and value. In the present scenario, religion and social change has become a common feature of every society. This is seen in the societies of the ethnic communities of Assam also. Keywords: Chaturbarna , Deka chhangs ,Neo-Vaishnavite, Society, Thaans. ___________ _______________________________________________________________________________ I. Introduction: The kings of Kamrupa established the Brahmanas in different parts of the country. Thus Vedic culture spread in ancient Assam. To assimilate the non- Aryans, the Aryans had to change their own cultural outlook. As a result Vedic culture took a new form with both Aryan and non-Aryan elements. Fetishism, animism, cult of fertility, human sacrifice, ancestor worship etc. as elsewhere in India, passed on to Hinduism, and moulded its character which became manifest in new local forms.[1] There were Saivism, Sakti worship, Tantrik Buddhism, Sun worship in the society of the ancient Assam.
    [Show full text]
  • The Samugurias: Assamese-Speaking Mising People
    Running Head: THE SAMUGARIAS: ASSAMESE-SPEAKING MISING PEOPLE 7 ICLEHI 2017-009 Rupanjali Morang Saha The Samugurias: Assamese-Speaking Mising People Rupanjali Morang Saha North Lakhimpur College, Assam, India [email protected] Abstract Assam is situated in the Eastern part of India (Bharat). The great river of Assam names Brahmaputra is also known as Tsangpo (Purifier) in China flows through the green plains of this end. There are many tribes in Assamese Society. The Mising are second largest tribes in Assam of the Brahmaputra Valley which from anthropological and linguistical point of view belongs to the Tibeto-Burmese and Indo-Mongoloid people. In Assam the Misings are divided into many different clans, viz. (i) Ayengia, (ii) Bebezia, (iii) Bihia, (iv) Bonkual, (v) Chamua, (vi) Chayengia, (vii) Dambukial, (viii) Delu, (ix) Moyengia, (x) Pagro, (xi) Samuguria and (xii) Temera. Again the Misings are linguistically divided into two broad groups; (i) Mising speaking and (ii) Assamese Speaking. The Assamese speaking Misings are Bihia, Bonkual, Chamua, Samuguria and Temera. Here it will be discussed on the Assamese speaking Mising society of Samugurians only. Samugurians are those living only in the two districts of Assam; Lakhimpur and Dhemaji. There are no sufficient research works on the Samugurian people till today in scientific method. So it will be a unique work. The aim of this paper is to highlight the socio-cultural life of the Samugurians; which are Assamese speaking Misings. It is an honest trial to study the process of assimilation of this society in the time being. At present the influence of globalization is leading to the extinction of this very small population of the Samugurias.
    [Show full text]
  • Ethnic Reconstruction and Demand for Scheduled Tribe Status: a Study of Ahoms in Assam Sikkim University
    Ethnic Reconstruction and Demand for Scheduled Tribe Status: A study of Ahoms in Assam A Dissertation Submitted To Sikkim University In Partial Fulfilment of the Requirement for the Degree of Master of Philosophy By Hare Krishna Doley Department of Sociology School of Social Sciences February, 2019 Scanned by CamScanner Scanned by CamScanner Scanned by CamScanner Dedicated to My Father Late Akan Ch. Doley ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS In preparation of this dissertation a great amount of encouragement, guidance, suggestions and support of every kind was received during the course of my work. It has been a period of intense learning for me during the entire course of my study. Writing this dissertation has had a big impact on me. I would like to reflect on the people who have supported and helped me so much throughout the compilation of this dissertation. I would like to acknowledge my indebtedness and render my warmest thanks to my supervisor, Shankar Narayan Bagh, without which this work would not have been a reality. His friendly and sincere guidance, encouragement, inspiration and expert advice have been invaluable throughout all stages of the work. I am very much grateful to him for his constant effort to push me up and the kind of believe he had in me throughout the journey to complete this work. I, wholeheartedly express my gratitude to all the faculty members of the Department of Sociology, Dr. Shandhya Thapa, Dr. Swati Akshay Sachdeva, Dr, Indira Khangembam, Miss Sona Rai and Mr. Binod Bhattarai for their constant cooperation and encouragement in completing my research work. I also thank all other non-teaching staff members of the department.
    [Show full text]
  • Changes and Continuities Among Mishing Community: a Study on Luhitmukh Village of Sonitpur District
    IF : 4.547 | IC Value 80.26 VolumVOLeUME-6, : 3 | Iss uISSUE-6,e : 11 | N ovembJUNE-2017er 2014 • ISSN • ISSN No N o2277 2277 - -8160 8179 Original Research Paper Education Changes and continuities among Mishing community: a study on luhitmukh village of Sonitpur district Priyanka Tamuli Rajiv Gandhi University Northeast represents religious diverse region, along a with various indigenous religions major religions are also ABSTRACT practiced by communities living in this region. Today, religious change in varied forms of taking place amongst the communities in Northeast India. These changes are taking place among the followers are well-established religious as well as small communities that have been following their traditional beliefs. In this study I intent to explore the religious changes that have occurred among the Mishings living in Assam, who have migrated from hills and settled down in the valley in the past. KEYWORDS : globalization, mishing, change, continuity,sanskritization. Northeast represents religious diverse region, along a with various bless their seeds. Porag, it is important fest during the spring. This is indigenous religions major religions are also practiced by celebrating after good harvest. Long preparation is required for the communities living in this region. Today, religious change in varied celebration of the festival hence it is not an annual celebration, it forms of taking place amongst the communities in Northeast India. celebrated in a year or once in two or three later. It has three days These changes are taking place among the followers are well- celebration where all the neighboring village member, kinship, established religious as well as small communities that have been relatives are invited and is accompanied by singing, dancing, following their traditional beliefs.
    [Show full text]
  • SWBTS Style Template
    The Impact of Christian Missions and Colonization in Northeast India and Its Role in the Tribal Nation-Building Movement A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of the Roy Fish School of Evangelism and Missions Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Ministry by Albert Yanger December 2017 Copyright © 2017 Albert Yanger All rights reserved. Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary has permission to reproduce and disseminate this document in any form by any means for purposes chosen by the Seminary, including, without limitation, preservation, or instruction. APPROVAL SHEET THE IMPACT OF CHRISTIAN MISSIONS AND COLONIZATION IN NORTHEAST INDIA AND ITS ROLE IN THE TRIBAL NATION-BUILDING MOVEMENT Albert Yanger John Massey, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Missions, Advisor Matt Queen, Ph.D., L.R. Scarborough Chair of Evangelism (“Chair of Fire”), Associate Professor of Evangelism, and Associate Dean for Doctoral Programs Date Dedicated to my wife, Bano and daughter Amy, who have encouraged and stood by me throughout my studies. Also, to my professors at SWBTS and the brothers and sisters in Christ at FCBC. Abstract The Impact of Christian Missions and Colonization in Northeast India and Its Role in the Tribal Nation-Building Movement Christian missions had a huge impact in the Northeastern region of India. This impact, combined with western (British) colonization, produced a synergy that changed the entire landscape of the Northeast. This dissertation focuses on the social and political aspects of that change. The primary catalyst was the translation of the Bible into local languages, and a highly successful education program that every mission and denomination implemented from the very beginning.
    [Show full text]
  • Chatthip Nartsupha Ranoo Wichasin * the STATE of KNOWLEDGE of AHOM HISTORY
    TAl CULTURE Vol. III, No. 1 article ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Chatthip Nartsupha Ranoo Wichasin * THE STATE OF KNOWLEDGE OF AHOM HISTORY This article discusses five topics: 1. The importance of the knowledge of Ahom history; 2. The state of knowledge of Ahom history at present: the English and the Assamese schools; 3. The state of knowledge of Ahom history at present: the Tai school; 4. The knowledge of Ahom history from reading the Ahom Buranji and other Ahom documents in the Tai language; 5. A direction for the study of Ahom history in the future. I. The importance of the knowledge of Ahom history At present there are about 2 million Ahom people. They are the largest group of population in the Upper Assam region of India, which in total has approximately 7 million people.1 The Tai Ahom people migrated from Muang Mao north of the Shall state in the 13th century. They crossed over the Patkal mountain range to settle in the Brahmnaputra river valley.2 A study of this group of people is important in at least three ways: 1. This group of Tai people did not have much contact with other Tai groups over a long period. Therefore their historical documents reflect many archaic elements of the Tai tribe, which have been lost or obscured among other Tai groups. They belong to a Tai society and culture which does not have Buddhism. They retain beliefs in natural and ancestral spirits. Their class * A paper submitted to the 'International Seminar on Tais of North East India and Their Relation to Other Tais of Southeast Asia and China', organized by Ban Ok Pub Lik Muang Tai (Eastern Tai Literary Association), February 7-8, 1995, Dispur, Assam, India.
    [Show full text]
  • Identity Politics and Social Exclusion in India's North-East
    Identity Politics and Social Exclusion in India’s North-East: The Case for Re-distributive Justice N.K.Das• Abstract: This paper examines how various brands of identity politics since the colonial days have served to create the basis of exclusion of groups, resulting in various forms of rifts, often envisaged in binary terms: majority-minority; ‘sons of the soil’-immigrants; local-outsiders; tribal-non-tribal; hills-plains; inter-tribal; and intra-tribal. Given the strategic and sensitive border areas, low level of development, immense cultural diversity, and participatory democratic processes, social exclusion has resulted in perceptions of marginalization, deprivation, and identity losses. All of these adding to the strong basis of brands of separatist movements in the garb of regionalism, sub- nationalism, and ethnic politics, most often verging on extremism and secession. It is argued that local people’s anxiety for preservation of culture and language, often appearing as ‘narcissist self-awareness’, and their demand of autonomy, cannot be seen unilaterally as dysfunctional for a healthy civil society. Their aspirations should be seen rather as prerequisites for distributive justice, which no nation state should neglect. Colonial Impact and Genesis of Early Ethnic Consciousness: North-East India is a politically vital and strategically vulnerable region of India. Surrounded by five countries, it is connected with the rest of India through a thirty kilometre narrow corridor. North-East India, then called Assam, is divided into Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura. Diversities in terms of Mongoloid ethnic origins, linguistic variation and religious pluralism characterise the region. This ethnic-linguistic-ecological historical heritage characterizes the pervasiveness of the ethnic populations and Tibeto-Burman languages in northeast.
    [Show full text]