This presentation covers characteristics of tribal community and describes naga tribe and their culture, social life and other features.

1. SOCIOLOGY
TRIBAL COMMUNITY
BY:
SK Musfikar Rahman – 1502295086
Suravi Sasmita Senapati – 1502295095
Swati Swaroopa Jethi- 1502295097
Satarupa Mohanty – 1502295108
Gargee Mishra-1502295109
Swapnajit Behura-1502295125
Presentation on

2. INTRODUCTION
 `

3. FEATURES OF A TRIBE
 Each caste has a distinct name of its own through which it is distinguished from others.
 Tribes generally occupy common geographical areas.
 Members of one tribe speak the same language. Each tribe has its own dialect, if not the script.
 Each tribe has prescribed patterns of behaviour and festivals and deities to worship.
 Each tribe has the practice of marrying members within their own tribe.

4.  Political organisation: All tribes have their own political organisation. They
have councils of elders which control members.
 As regards the nature of work, against 73 per cent national average, 91 per cent
tribal workers are engaged in agriculture. About 3 per cent tribals are engaged
in manufacturing (against 11% of general population) and 5 per cent in
servicing (tertiary) sectors (against 16% average of general population). About
1 per cent tribals are engaged in forestry and food-gathering.
 Most of them live in isolated terrains; the main sources of their livelihood are
agriculture and gathering of forest produce.
 They do not cultivate for profit; they still largely rely on barter system.
 They spend a greater part of their earnings on social and religious ceremonies

5. Structure and features of a Tribal Society
1. History: A tribal society is a primitive society which lived in early period of human history but can be found in large number of groups in all countries
including India. There has not been any change of tribes in their belief, life style and religion which prevent them from mixing with any outsider or educated
community whom they greatly dislike.
2. Economic structure: Tribal people live within nature and absolutely clean environment and this determines their economic activity which consists of
hunting small animals and look for food like roots and wild fruits.
They have their own social functions and festivals where they sing and dance in characteristic body movements in the same dress by girls, the males playing on
musical gadget like drums, metallic gongs, flutes etc.
They hardly have any transaction because nobody has any currency or coins and do not have any knowledge and experience of organizing market.
3. Social Life: The life style of tribal society is primitive, and depends entirely on their characteristic ways of non-monetary transacted life. The families live
within themselves, without knowing about their neighbours in the country who are educated, developed, move in cars, have modern dress etc whom they hate and
consider them enemy. The domestic division of labor depends only on age and sex.

6. Problems of tribal communities
 Land Alienation: Forest land and its resources provide the best means of livelihood for the tribal
people and many tribes including the women engage in agriculture, food gathering and hunting
they are heavily dependent on the products of the forest. Therefore when outsiders exploit the
tribe's land and its resources the natural life cycle of tribal ecology and tribal life is greatly disturbed.
 Poverty and Indebtedness: Majority tribes live under poverty line. The tribes follow many simple
occupations based on simple technology. Most of the occupation falls into the primary occupations
such as hunting, gathering, and agriculture. Hence there per capita income is very meager much
lesser than the Indian average. Most of them live under abject poverty and are in debt in the hands
of local moneylenders and Zamindars. Indebtedness is almost inevitable since heavy interest is to be
paid to these moneylenders.
 Health and Nutrition: Malnutrition is common and has affected the general health of the tribal
children as it lowers the ability to resist infection, leads to chronic illness and sometimes leads to
brain impairment. The ecological imbalance like cutting of trees have increased the distances
between villages and the forest areas thus forcing tribal women to walk longer distances in search of
forest produce and firewood.
 Education: Educationally the tribal population is at different levels of development but overall the
formal education has made very little impact on tribal groups. There are many reasons for low level
of education among the tribal people: Formal education is not considered necessary to discharge
their social obligations. Superstitions and myths play an important role in rejecting education.

7.  The Tribal groups in India have distinct cultural patterns. They form the indigenous group are also
called ‘upajati’ in some regions of India.
 A large chunk of Indians belong to Tribal group (Tribal community) – Adivasis, as they are called,
they occupy distinct regions, especially in the hilly and forested areas.
 Scheduled Tribes in India form the largest proportion of the total population in Lakshadweep and
Mizoram followed by Nagaland and Meghalaya.
 The list of names of Important tribal groups and Communities) are:
 Abors: Arunachal Pradesh
 Aptanis: Arunachal Pradesh
 Badagas: Nilgiri (TN)
 Baiga: Madhya Pradesh
 Bhils: Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan,
some in Gujarat and Maharashtra
 Bhot: Himachal Pradesh
 Bhotias: Garhwal and Kumaon regions of U. P.
 Chakma: Tripura
 Chenchus: Andhra Pradesh, Orissa
 Gaddis: Himachal Pradesh
 Garos: Meghalaya
 Gonds: Madhya Pradesh. Also in Bihar, Orissa and A.P.
 Gujjars: Himachal Pradesh
 Jarawas: Little Andamans
 Khas: Jaunsar-Babar area in U.P.
 Khasis: Assam, Meghalaya
 Kol: Madhya Pradesh
 Kotas: Nilgiri (Tamil Nadu)
 Kuki: Manipur
 Lepchas: Sikkim
 Lushais: Mizoram
 Murias: Bastar (Madhya Pradesh)
 Mikirs: Assam
 Mundas: Bihar, Orissa, West Bengal
 Nagas (Angami, Sema, Ao, Tangkul, Lahora):
Nagaland, some in Assam and NEFA region.
 Oarons (also called Kurukh): Bihar, Orissa and West Bengal.
 Onges: Andaman and Nicobar islands
 Santals: Birbhum region in Bengal, Hazaribagh, Purnea in Bihar, Orissa
 Sentinelese: Sentinel Island, Andaman and Nicobar
 Shompens: Andaman and Nicobar
 Todas: Nilgiri (Tamil Nadu)
 Uralis: Kerala
 Warlis: Maharashtra
TRIBAL GROUPS IN INDIA

8. THE NAGA
TRIBEThe Naga people are an
ethnic group
conglomerating of several
tribes native to the North
Eastern part of India and
north-western Burma. The
tribes have similar cultures
and traditions, and form
the majority ethnic group
in the Indian state
of Nagaland, with
significant population
in Manipur, Arunachal
Pradesh and some small
population in Assam.

9. CULTURE
ART
 The Naga tribes are expert craftsmen. Their dwellings are made of wood and straw and these are
ornately carved and arranged. Weaving of colourful woollen and cotton shawls is a central activity for
women of all Naga tribes. Naga jewellery is an equally important part of identity, with the entire
tribe wearing similar bead jewellery.
FESTIVALS
 The various Naga tribes have their own distinct festivals. To promote inter-tribe interaction, the
Government of Nagaland has organized the annual Hornbill Festival since 2000. Another inter-tribe
festival is Lui Ngai Ni.
FOLK MUSIC AND DANCE
 Folk songs and dances are essential ingredients of the traditional Naga culture. The oral tradition is
kept alive through the media of folk tales and songs.
 Folk dances of the tribes are mostly performed in groups in synchronized fashion, by both men and women,
depending on the type of dance. Dances are usually performed at festivals and religious occasions. War
dances are performed mostly by men and are athletic and martial in style. All dances are accompanied by
songs and war cries by the dancers.

10. SOCIAL LIFE
 The community life of the Nagas has a unique feature. They work in group, eat in
group, sleep in group and wooing in group. There is no individual cultivation,
harvesting, house building.
 Every work should be completed within the stipulated time. A family could not complete
a work in time due to sickness, there the whole community will come to help it.
 The philosophies of the Nagas were very close to communist principle "He who does
not work, neither shall he eat" is a Naga principle too. There is no place for idle man
in the Naga community.

11.  Morungs were the early schools where the youths were moulded and impart them
education, develop personalities,build their character and learn various social
activities, tactics of games and sports, the skill of hunting's, agriculture, buildings
of houses crafts and looms, know each others life and thus begins love at the
dormitory and choose partner of the right kind of would be wife or husband.
 Marriage is both exogamous-i.e. marriage with the same clan is forbidden and
outside marriage was also forbidden in the past. The marriage is arranged
through parents concern in proper negotiation.
 Man folk are valued more, due respect is given to man. The animal butchered
for the feast of merit, marriage or any other feast, the meat are given only to
man share. The status of man in the society is very high. To be born as male
in the society is a great privilege but on the other hand he has a great responsibilities.

12. SOCIETY
The Naga tribes have an egalitarian society. The village is a closely knit unit, consisting of intermarried households of
different clans.
THE VILLAGE
o Villages were divided into a certain number of clan territories or khels..The Naga traditionally live in
villages.
o The village is a well-defined entity with distinct land demarcation from neighbouring villages.
o Each has a dialect, which fosters a strong sense of social solidarity within the village.
o The people of the village are held together by social, economic, political and ritual ties.
o The villages have their own identities, but not in isolation, as there are interdependent relationships
with neighboring villages.

13. THE FAMILY
o The family is the basic unit of the Naga society.
o Marriages are usually monogamous and fidelity to the spouse is considered a high virtue. Marriage
within the same clan is not permitted, as it is considered to be incest.
o The family is the most important institution of social education and social control.
o There is deep respect for parents and elders in the Naga society. Material inheritance, such as land
and cattle, is passed on to the male offspring, with the eldest son receiving the largest share.
STATUS OF WOMEN
o The traditional Naga society was a patriarchal society with a strong warrior tradition values the
birth of boys.
o A Naga woman is traditionally expected to be obedient and humble.
o Her roles are complex and varied: wife, mother, child bearer and rearer, food producer and
household manager.
o She supplements the household income by weaving and selling colourful shawls, an activity done
exclusively by women.
o Women are traditionally not included in the decision-making process of the clan or the village.

14.  Social categorization into ingroup and outgroup is said to be one of the important contributors to
the development of discriminatory intergroup behaviour.
 According to the Social Identity Theory, individuals derive a sense of social identity from their
membership to a group which is one basic reason for social categorization. Individuals then begin to
compare their ingroup with relevant outgroups in their social environment leading to ingroup
biases and intergroup differentiations.
 One distinctive basis for social categorization amongst the Nagas is tribal membership.
 The Naga community is comprised of many tribes that share the same racial identity, have a
common religion, and is considered as an egalitarian society in that there is no class distinction
amongst them.
 It may be mentioned that one distinct characteristic of the Naga society is the strong tribal identity
that members of each tribe share with one another. Since the tribes speak different dialects, have
different traditional cultures and costumes, and occupy different geographical territories, tribal
identity has become a primary social identity for tribe members and social categorization into ‘us’
and ‘them’ is done largely in terms of tribal membership.
Ingroup bias amongst Nagas