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

The social significance of an individual’s name: The Oram community – Jharkhand

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Name of the Individual […] The selection of individual’s name bears relevant social significance in the Oram community. Generally the main purpose of name selection for an individual is to point out the particular person who is being granted specific social position in the contemporary society. Oram vs Gotra (clan): crises in the use of … Read more

“A book that fills a gaping hole in the literature on Adivasis”: A Rogue and Peasant Slave by Shashank Kela

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The Nine Per CentBy Stan Thekaekara An incisive account of adivasi survival, from colonial risings to contemporary insurgencies IS IT an anthropological study by an academic, a textbook by a historian, a political polemic by an activist or a novel? Shashank Kela’s A Rogue and Peasant Slave is all of this and more. In his … Read more

ePaper | “Great relevance for the human welfare”: Traditional knowledge of ethnic people & sustainable utilization of plant resources – Himalayan region

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The present investigation aimed at documenting medicinally important species of trees usedby Tharu tribe in the Himalayan Terai region of India. Out of 204 tree species belonging to 143 genera and 50 families reported in this study, uses of 148 species have been recorded from this region for the first time. Over all, more than … Read more

Audio | Celebrating the wisdom of the world’s indigenous cultures: Milton K. Wong Lecture by Wade Davis – Canada

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This lecture was recorded for broadcast on Ideas on CBC Radio One. Listen to the full episode (54:00) >> Every culture tries to answer a fundamental question: What does it mean to be human and alive?  In the Milton K. Wong Lecture, anthropologist Wade Davis explores some of the diversity of human culture, and considers what … Read more

Video | Schooling the World – a documentary on the world’s last sustainable indigenous cultures

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SCHOOLING THE WORLD takes a challenging, sometimes funny, ultimately deeply troubling look at the role played by modern education in the destruction of the world’s last sustainable indigenous cultures.  The controversial award-winning documentary film, “Schooling the World: the White Man’s Last Burden,” by Emmy and Writers Guild award winning film and television writer/director Carol Black … Read more