“Adivasi [Adibasi] – which is derived from Sanskrit – is applied to the dark-skinned or Austro-Asiatic indigenous groups of India (usually those from Eastern India). It is a commonly-used term in Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal and Odisha. It is also used by the local Mongoloid tribes of North Eastern India for the migrant workers who were brought in as indentured labourers to work in tea plantations during the colonial period. ‘Tribal’ is a very broad term in the English language, as we all know, and includes all the different indigenous groups of India.” – Santali poet, scholar and translator Ivy Imogene Hansdak (email dated 27 March 2020)
https://indiantribalheritage.org/?p=23032
At a time when the outrage over the video showing Andaman’s Jarawa tribals being made to dance in front of tourists is yet to die down, the Orissa SC/ST department is parading people from aborigine tribes for visitors at a state-organised tribal fair that kicked off here on January 26. About 250 tribals, many of … Read more
Deccan Herald, Chamarajanagar, Mar 21, 2012 MP R Dhruvanarayan stressed the Centre that soligas living in the forest area coming under Chamarajanagar Lok Sabha constituency limits should be included in the list of adivasi tribe and provide all the benefits due to them. […] Those groups belonging to jenu kuruba and koragas have been included … Read more
“Tribology”, a CD that captures the life, customs, rituals and music of tribal India A RECORDING is in progress. But, suddenly, some members of the group are worried and talk animatedly among themselves. Something is wrong. The fuss is about a missing morsing. Immediately, a boy finds a foot of bamboo and carves three tuning … Read more
In Ranchi, trained social worker Praveer Peter’s project was the discussion of identity issues with Sarna tribal youth from rural backgrounds who had come to the city to study further. Between rural and urban cultures, and tribal and mainstream religious cultures he found this group confused and alienated. Using films and songs on migration, displacement of adivasis … Read more
Amutha Kannan, The Hindu, COIMBATORE, July 28, 2011 On the one hand, the languages spoken by tribal people have only an oral script and due to the non-literary nature there is no documentation of the grammar of the language. On the other, since there is very negligible number of people speaking these languages, they are not even … Read more