Anthropology

“[I]ndigenous people in India also feel the claustrophobic confines of their identity which has been imposed on them by others, be it the colonial administrator, the colonial anthropologist.” – Santali poet, scholar and translator Ivy Imogene Hansdak in “Is tribal identity relevant in today’s world?”, Inaugural Speech, National Conference “Tribes In Transition-II: Reaffirming Indigenous Identity Through Narrative” (2017)
https://indiantribalheritage.org/?p=23032

A hill in Kanyakumari district named after Tiruvalluvar: Revered as ancient king among the Kaani of Kanyakumari district – Tamil Nadu

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It is interesting to learn that a hill in Kanyakumari district is named after Tiruvalluvar  Heard of a hill dedicated to Tiruvalluvar? The Kanyakumari Historical and Cultural Research Centre recently brought to light the existence of Valluvan Kal Potrai in Koovaikkadu hamlet, Surulodu panchayat, Kalkulam taluk, Kanyakumari district. The author, along with two others, went … Read more

International collaboration by Indian ethnologists from Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and other States

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Ajeet Tiwari, Friday, 24 August 2012, dailypioneer.com Ranchi Global intelligentsia will savour the taste of Indian tribal literature, culture, rituals and the tribal way of life in digital form at the ethnographic museum of University of Zurich, Switzerland. Ganesh Murmu, a JRF scholar and Ethnologist, Tribal and Regional Language Department, Ranchi University has been invited by the … Read more

Video | Gumla’s Jharkhand Tribal Museum: An interactive approach to the culture, music and art of 32 tribes – Jharkhand

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Date Visited: 13 March 2024 […] Ranchi Jesuits are now [2012] working on a revamp of Gumla’s Jharkhand Tribal Museum, spending Rs 1 crore on a cultural corridor, a boutique store and a hall depicting evolution of tribal groups of the state. Jesuits led by Belgian priest Father P.P. Vaneffel had set up the museum … Read more

Folklore and songs of the Toto community: The Anthropological Survey of India supports efforts to keep a rare Tibeto-Burman language alive – West Bengal

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When scientists of the Anthropological Survey of India (AnSI) set out to conduct a study on language of the primitive Toto tribe, whose population has dwindled to 1,536, they did not realise that the language is more endangered than the tribe itself. During their study they recorded the vocabulary, folklore, and even some songs in … Read more

A legendary history: Hill tribes known from the Mahabharata days – Odisha

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The state has the third largest population of Scheduled Tribes in India. […] Prehistoric Acheulian tools dating to Lower Paleolithic era have been discovered in various places in the region, implying an early settlement by humans. Kalinga has been mentioned in ancient texts like Mahabharata, Vayu Purana and Mahagovinda Suttanta. The Sabar people of Odisha … Read more