^ s^ ^ ^S5 <rii30NYS01^ '^Aa3AINn-3WV^ ^OFCALIFO/?^ ^OFCALIFO/?^ .^MEllNIVERS//, vvlOSANCEl5j> 4? (—1 >-"- =0 CJ ^^„. "^...•§' ^.r:'. v!? <rn3'}Nvsoi^'^ '^Aa]AiNn-3WV y CD u_ CALIFO% .^OF-CALIFOP ^• ?7 ^ ' iiiJ'JNV^Ul' A\AfUNIVER5-//,'/- '? i S ^ J^' ^OFCAIIFO/?^ — < V' ?3 <:::; «-£:-• 'i^^Ayvaaii-^^^ AWEUNIVFR'T//. ^ g1<i? CO .^MEUMIVERS/a vvlO'^AvrFir. *^PCAllFO/?;l^ ^.OF-CAi^Fn;,.., ^tllBRARYQ^ ^illBRARYQ-c \V\E UNIVERi/A vj<lOSANCElfj> 'Jr \ cxrT^ 8 ^viy M s^ ^. s^ ^Aa3,MN(l-3WV^ %dllV3J0>^ ^OFCAtlFO/?^ o ^AdiAlNH 3\\V .VlOSANCElfXy. AMFUNIVERS//, o %a3AIN(13\\V '^«!/0JllV3JO'<^ '^<!/0JllV3 JO"^ v>;lOSANCElfj> ^.OFCAIIFO/?^ .>;,OFCAllFOfi>iA ,\WEUNIVER57a >5^ •^. "^/^ajAiNn-jwv^ "^o-mnw^ '^ommy^' <rji]ONvsoi^^ ^ILIBRARYQ^^ AMEUNIVER% .vWSANCElfj> ^IIIBRARYO/^ •^(i/ojnvDjo^^ <rii30Nvsoi^ "^iieAiNfi-juv^ \s)i\mi^^ ^0FCAIIF0%. ^WEUNIVERi-/^ vvlOSANCElfj> ^.OFCAllFOff^ ^riijoNVsoi^"^ ^/^a3AiNn-3WV^ ^>&Aava8ii#^ .>;lOSANCElfj> -<^A^IIBRARY(9/^ ^^^LIBRARYQ/: AME UNIVERS"//, o %S3AINf)3UV ^.!/0JnV3J0^ '^.'/OJIIVJJO^' <Q130NVS01^^ .vWSANCElfx> ^OFCALIF0% ^•OF CALIFO/?^ ^^\AEUMIVERy/4 '^AJ13AINn-3W^' ^vSlLIBRARYQ^ . ^WE UNIVERV/, .VWSANCEI/J> ^^ILIBRARYO^ 3 1 rr" ^ >^\ § 1 ir-^ ^ THE NAGA TRIBES OF MANIPUR MACMILLAN AND CO., Limited LONDON . BOMBAY . CALCUTTA MELBOURNE THE MACMILLAN COMPANY NEW YORK . BOSTON . CHICAGO ATLANTA . SAN FRANCISCO THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Ltd. TORONTO TANGKHUL KHULLAKPAS CLOTH. Sec p. 22. Frontispiece. THE NAGA tribes OF MANIPUR T. C. HODSON Late Assistant Political Agent in Manipur and Superintendent ofthe State. Felltnv of the Royal Anthropological Institute and Member of the Folklore Society PUBLISHED UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF THE GOVERNMENT OP EASTERN BENGAL AND ASSAM BY MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED ST. MARTIN'S STREET, LONDON 1911 Richard Clav and Sons, LuuTEn, BREAD STREET HILL, E.C., AND BUNGAY, SUFFOLK, DS M\ PREFACE I DESIRE to tender my sincere thanks to the President and Council of the Folklore Society for their courtesy in lending me the blocks from which the illustrations on pages 64, 120, 126, and 186 have been reproduced and in permitting me to make copious extracts from the paper on Head-hunting, published in FolMoo-e for June, 1909. I should also like to express my gratitude to Lieut.-Colonel J. Shakespear, CLE., D.S.O., Political Agent in Manipur, who read the manuscript through and made many valuable sug- gestions to me. The notes to which the initials J. S. are appended are by Colonel Shakespear, and form a remarkable addition to the book, the material for which was collected —without any idea of publication—ten years ago. T. C. HODSON. East London College, University of London. 88()D41 — CONTENTS SECTION I. PAGK - Habitat and Geographical Distribution 1 Appearance > 5 Physical and General Characteristics 6 Origin^~T~X 8 jyfinities -^ 17 Dress 21 Coiffure 27 Tattooing 30 Ornaments 31 Weapons 35 SECTION II. -DOMESTIC LIFE. ' Occupation ._ / 39 '" =cHouses and Villages . 41 — Furniture and Household Utensils and Implements .... 44 Manufactures 45 Agriculture 50 Crops 55 Hunting"7'~'X. ^® Fishing,,,-—t 58 Food and Drink 59 Games 62 SECTION III.—LAWS AND CUSTOMS. ^-^^^Tnternal Structure —|^^^ 70 C^^^Tribat OrganisaUoft -r"^ 80 <^^ Marriage__,.) 87 Adoption 98 inheritance 98 _-—taws Regarding Land 105 Other Laws . 106 Decision of Disputes 109 War 113 Head-hunting 115 viii CONTENTS SECTION IV.—RELIGION. _^,- —__^^ PAOB ,. Popular Beliefs >^ 123 C__ Origiif and'l^atiire of Deities 125 Creation 127 Natural Phenomena 128 Dreams and Omens 129" Treatment of Sickness 135 Ancestor Worship 138 Nature Worship . 138 Rites and Sacrifices 139 Priesthood -^_, 140/ iBirth Ceremonies .~\ 142 Naming Ceremonies 143 Toga Virilis 144 Marriage 145 Death Ceremonies 146 General Ideas About Death 158 The Future Life .... 160 Genna 164 Stone Monuments 186 SECTION v.—FOLK TALES 192 Appendix 199 Index 201 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 1 Tangkhul Khullakpa's Cloth . Frontispiece 2 Map 3 Mao Nagas 4 The Maikel Stone .... 5 Marring Naga 6 Tangkhul Naga 7 Kabui Girls 8 Chirc Naga 9 Kabui Nagas, Dancing Costume 10 Boy "Putting the Stonk" . 11 Tangkhul Naga. ^ . 12 Maikel Khullakpa and his Son 13 Mao Naga in the Warrior's Dress 14 Monolith near Maram 15 Flat Stone near Maram 16 Stone Circle at Uilong 17 Plan of 16 LIST OF AUTHORITIES CITED Allen, Grant, "The Attis of Caius Valerius Catullus." 1892. "L'Ann^e Sociologique." Vols. I-X. Edited by M. E. Durkheim. 1898- 1907. Banerji, Babu Nithor Nath, MSS. Notes. Boulger, D., "Short History of China." 1893. Brown, Dr. R. (Politiccd. Agent in ifanipui-), " Selections from the Records of the Government of India, Foreign Department," No. LXXVIII. 1870. Burne, Miss C. S., Presidential Address, /^o^Hore, XXI. 1. 1910. Butler, Major J., "Travels and Adventures in the Province of Assam." 1855. " Clodd, E. , Tom Tit Tot. " 1 898. Crawley, E. A., " The Mystic Rose." 1902. " The Idea of the Soul." 1909. Dalton, Capt. E. T. (Principal Assistant Agent to the Governor General), " Selections from the Records of the Bengal Government," No. XXIII. 1855. Das, Sarat Chandra, C.I.E., " .Journey to Lhasa and Central Tibet." 1904. Davis, A. W., " Assam Census Report," Vol. I., pp. 237-251. 1891. Durkheim, E., "La Prohibition de L'Inceste." L. A. S., Vol. I. 1898. Elias, N., " History of the Shans." 1876. " Farnell, Dr. L. R. , Transactions of the Third International Congress on the History of Religions." Vol. II. 1908. "Cults of the Greek States," Vol. V. 1909. Forbes, Capt. C. J. F. S., " British Burma." 1878. Frazer, Dr. James, "The Golden Bough." 2nd ed. 1900. "The Early History of the Kingship." 1905. " Totemism and Exogamy." 1910. Fuller, Sir Bampfylde, K.C.S.I. (late Lieutenant-Governor of Eastern Bengal and Assam), " Studies of Indian Life and Sentiment." 1910. Gait, E. A., CLE. (late Ghief Secretary to the Government of Assam), "History of Assam." 1906. Gomme, Sir G. L., "The Village Community." 1890. "Folklore as a Historical Science." 1908. Grierson, Dr. A., CLE. (Director of the Linguistic Survey of India), "Report of the Linguistic Survey of India." Vol. III. Parts ii. and iii. 1903. Gurdon, Colonel P. R. T. {Commissioner of the Assam Valley and Superin- tendent of Ethnography, Assam), " The Khasis." 1907. Harrison, Miss J., "Prolegomena to Greek Religion." 1903. xii LIST OF AUTHORITIES CITED Hartland, S., "Primitive Paternity." 1909. "The Cult of Executed Criminals at Palermo," Folklore, XXI., 2., pp. 168 et -seq. Henderson, Colonel G. F. R., C.B., "The Science of War." 1908. Henry, V., " La Magie dans L'Inde Antique." 1909. Hertz, R., "La representation collective de la Mort," L. A. S., Vol. X. 1907. Hobhouse, L. T., " Morals in Evolution." 1906. Hodson, T. C, " Thado Grammar." 1906. " Genna Amongst the Tribes of Assam." 7. .4. /., Vol. XXXVL " The Meitheis." 1908. "Mortuary Ritual and Eschatological Beliefs among the Hill Tribes of Assam." Archill fiir Religioniiwiiisenichaft, Vol. XII. 1909. "Headhunting among the Hill Tribes of Assam," Folklore, Vol. XX., 2. 1909. Jevons, Dr. F. B., "Plutarch's Romane Questions." 1892. "Introduction to the History of Religion," 3rd ed. 1904. Johnstone, Major-General Sir James, K. C.S.I. {Political Agent in Alanijjur), " My Experiences in Manipur and the Naga Hills." 1896. King, I., "The Development of Religion." 1910. Lang, A., "Custom and Myth." Edition 1901. "Myth, Ritual, and Religion." 1899. Lewin, Colonel T. H. {Political Officer), "The Hill Tracts of Chittagong." 1869. " Wild Races of South-Eastern India." 1870. Ling-Roth, H., "Significance of the Couvade," /. A. I., Vol. XXII., pp. 204-241. Logan, J. N., "Journal of the Indian Archipelago," N.S., Vol. II., p. 82. Lorrain and Savidge, "A Grammar and Dictionary of the Lushai Language." 1898. Lyall, Sir Charles J., K.C.vS.L, CLE. {formerly Chief Commisnioner of Ansam), "TheMikirs." 1908. Maine, Sir Henry S., K.C.S.I., "Ancient Law." 1861, "Early Law and Custom." 1883. Marett, R. R., " The Threshold of Religion." 1909. McCuUoch, Colonel W. {Political Agent at Manipur), "Account of the Valley of Munnipore. Selections from the Records of the Government of India, Foreign Department," No. XXVII, 1859. McLennan, J. F., "Primitive Marriage." 1865, Neufville, Capt. J. B. {D.A.Q.M.G.), "Selections from the Records of the Bengal Government," No. XXIII. 1855. Owen, J., " Notes on the Naga Tribes in Communication with Assam." 1844. Payne, E. J., " History of the New World called America." 1892. " Peal, S. E. , On the Morong as possibly a Relic of Pre-marriage Communism," /. A. /., Vol. XXII. , pp. 244-261. Hlustrated. Pettigrew, Rev. W., " Kathi Kasham, the Soul Departure Feast, as Practised by the Tangkhul Nagas, Manipur, Assam," J. A. S. B. (N. S.), Vol. V,, No. 2, pp. 37-46, 1909. Playfair, Major A. {Deputy Commi<i.-<ioner, Garo Bills), " The Garos." 1909. Risley, Sir Herbert, K.C.I.E., C.S.L {Director of the Cenms of India), " Ethnography of India," 1903, Rivers, Dr. W, H. R., F.R.S., "The Father's Sister in Oceania," Folklore, XXL, 42-59. 1910, LIST OF AUTHORITIES CITED xiii Seligmanii, Dr. C. G., "The Vedda Cult of the Dead." Transactions of the Third International Congress of the History of Religions. Oxford, 1908. Soppitt, C. A., "Account of the Kachcha Nagas." 1885. Shakespear, Colonel J., CLE., D.S.O. {Political Agent in Manipur), "The Kuki-Lushai Clans,"' J.R.A.I., Vol. XXXIX., pp. 371-385. "Journal of the Society of Arts," Vol. XLIII. Tylor, Dr. E. B., " Early History of Mankind." 1865. " Primitive Culture," 4th ed. 1903. "Upper Burma Gazetteer." Edited by Sir George Scott, K.C.I. E., and J. P. Hardiman. 1900. Van Gennep, A., " Rites de Passage," 1909. " La Formation des L6gendes." 1910. Vetch, Major H. {Political Agent, Upper Assam), " Selections from the Records of the Bengal Government," No. XXIII. 1855. Webster, Dr. H., "Primitive Secret Societies." 1908. Westermarck, Dr. E. A., " The History of Human Marriage." 1901. " The Origin and Development of the Moral Ideas." 1906 and 1908.