Overview for Naga Tribes of North East India
"When you go home, tell them of us, that for their tomorrow, we gave our today," reads and epitaph in the Second World War Cemetery of Kohima-the Capital of Nagaland. This state is the home of the brave and daring, yet simple and innocent, Naga tribes. Lapped in the eastern frontiers of the Himalayan mountain range Nagaland is marked by an unhurried pace of life, calm and serene environs and fresh, unpolluted air, which make a welcome change for a jaded city dweller. The Nagas belong to the Indo-Mongoloid family. The major Naga tribes are the Angami, Ao, Chakesang, Chang, Khemiangan, Konyak, Lotha, Phom, Pochury, Rengma, Sangtam, Sema, Yimchunger Zeliang. Each tribe has their own languages and cultural features. They are living in the present Nagaland, Hills of Manipur (Senapati, Tamenglong, Ukhrul, Chandel districts), in the North Cachar, Mikir Hills Lakhimpur, Nowgaon, Sibsagar in Assam, in the North-East of Arunachal Pradesh, in the Somra-tract and its contiguous parts of Mayanmar. As the Naga seek to renewed their sense of self-respect in a modern world, they are embracing the past to shape the future. Nagas attempt to deal with the concerns of a modern society, a consensus has grown that the solkutions to many of the present problems lies in the abandoned traditions of the pat. The present study emphasizes this by giving ethnographic details.
Shibani Roy (Author)
Shibani Roy was born and brought up at Delhi. Her schooling had been at the Lady Irwin School and Post-School studies from Miranda House. She received her B.Sc. (Hons.) Degree in Anthropology in 1967 and Master Degree from the same Discipline specializing in SocialAnthropology. After a year of research work in the field of "Consanguinity among Muslims of North India", she joined department of Anthropology as a Ph.D. student in 1970 and was awarded the Ph.D. Degree in 1976. She was a part-time lecturer in Lady Irwin college, New Delhi, teaching post graduate classes during 1972-73. She was the recipient of senior research fellowship of C.S.I.R. for her project entitled "Changes in value Orientation of contemporary Muslims" carried out amongst the Bohras of Bombay. Her articles in Hindustan Times and Youth Times equally provoked the social scientists and laymen and made them have a new perspective towards this minority community. From 1976 to 1978 she had been actively engaged in a project on female fertility financed by World Health Organization. The entire work had been centred around Rajput Women of Rajasthan. At present she is holding the post of Assistant Anthropologist (Cultural) with the Anthropological Survey of India, Government of India. She has participated in national and international seminars and has a few publication to her credit in the field of Muslim women. Dr. Shibani roy has further stepped into the secluded privacy of the Muslims by marrying a Muslim fellow anthropologist and has a daughter.
S.H.M. Rizvi (Author)
Syed Hasan Mujtaba Rizvi, Ph.D. (Delhi) trained in Physical Anthropology at Universities of Saugar and Delhi has received training in Method and Techniques in Human Cytrogenetics and DNA Polymorphism, remains engaged in anthropological research since 1969. A fervent advocate of holistic tradition in Anthropological Research, he has blended the physical aspect of Man in such a fashion that the fusion has become the hallmark of his more than three decades of research. He has been closely associated with Dr. Shibani Roy and has been co-author too of many treatises, they as a team, wrote in the span of more than three decades. His book on Mina- A Ruling Tribe of Rajasthan was the pioneer study in Social Biology of the largest tribe of Rajasthan. Currently he is associated with Anthropological Survey of India, Government of India and posted in Central Regional Centre.
Bagchee
