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This book examines the question of class formation and social inequality within tribal groups in North-East India. Focussing on the Nagas, it analyses and challenges common perceptions about them as a class-less society with a uniform culture. It looks at the previously neglected themes of class formation and structure, division of work, emerging social milieus and cultural differentiation among the Naga youth – and presents fresh arguments about notions of modernity. Providing a theoretical understanding of inequality, this volume will be useful for scholars and researchers of North-East India, tribal studies, exclusion studies, sociology, social anthropology, political studies, development studies, cultural studies and South Asian studies.
The Nagas of Northeast India, radically different in culture and beliefs from the better-known Hindu peoples of the plains, were renowned in the years before Indian independence for their fierce resistance to British rule and for their practice of head-hunting. Although sharing many social and cultural traits, the thousands of small Naga villages often vary greatly from one another, and the Nagas display both unity and diversity in their dress and ornament. Their vibrant material culture is generously illustrated here in color photographs that display textiles, basketry, jewelry, weapons, metalwork, and carvings. Drawing on a diverse range of historical materials, the authors examine how the notion of tribes came to be applied to the Nagas and point out its subsequent importance in the development of contemporary Naga nationalism.
What is India? Who is an Indian? If for the present the answers seem to be self-evident they were by no means that for the half century that preceded the emergence of independent India in 1947. The imperial overlay on the South Asian sub-continent gave it a dimension of unity that made it one from the Khyber Pass to the Salween River, and by the mid-decade of the twentieth century, the vocabulary and perceptions of the independence movement had created a concept of Indian national identity feeling itself to be coterminous with the limits of British rule. But for many this new nationalism belied the realities, as seen by Straqhey at the turn of the century in the now-familiar passage: ‘There is not, and never was, an India, or even any country of India, possessing- according to European ideas – any sort of unity, physical, political, social or religious: no “Indian nation”, no “people of India” .’ These others challenged the assumptions of nationality and nationhood that the Congress Party came to take for granted, and, as the prospect of the departure of the British became real and then near, so the question of who should be left an Indian, subject to the rule of a government reflecting the native majority, became sharper. Under the leadership of Jinnah the mass of the Muslims of the sub-continent opted out of India, electing for a new nationality, that of Pakistan. Smaller groups raised the same claim as the Muslims, seeking to reject the accident of history that would make them subjects still of a government in Delhi after the British left: some Sikhs called for an independent Sikhistan; in the south, the Justice Party had long been urging the establishment of a separate Dravidian state when the British quit; the idea of a sovereign and united Bengal had been mooted in Calcutta. None of those ideas germinated then, and the India that came into existence upon the departure of the British was shaped by only one partition which created Pakistan. But one even smaller group whose political leadership had not only claimed the right to independence from India on the departure of the British but had also attempted to make its own unilateral declaration of independence, has even now not been reconciled to inclusion in India; and in consequence the Indian Army is, as it has been on and off for not far short of twenty years, engaged in another draconian attempt to crush the resistance of the people concerned, the Nagas. Please note that the terminology in the fields of minority rights and indigenous peoples’ rights has changed over time. MRG strives to reflect these changes as well as respect the right to self-identification on the part of minorities and indigenous peoples. At the same time, after over 50 years’ work, we know that our archive is of considerable interest to activists and researchers. Therefore, we make available as much of our back catalogue as possible, while being aware that the language used may not reflect current thinking on these issues.
This book examines the formation of identity of the Nagas in northeast India in light of the proselytizing efforts by the Americans and the colonization by the British in their search for control over areas inhabited by the Nagas which were perfect for tea plantations. The author explores the westernization of Naga culture, its effect on the Naga Nationalist movement, and how it has led to the formation of modern Naga identity. As a unique indigenous group, the colonization of the Naga people offers fresh insights into our understanding of the processes and effects of colonization in India, as well as its long-term negative effects, particularly with regards to the preservation of traditional beliefs and customs.