Encyclopedia of World Cultures Volume III - South Asia - D,E,F doc

... thatlifecontinuesbe-yondthegrave,inalandwhereeach of theuyushasitsindi-vidualabode.Whenonedies,hisorhersoulistakentothedomain of theuyuwhowasthecause of death.Anindividualenjoysthesamestatusandlife-stylethatheorshehadwhilealive.Forthisreasonthedeceasedisprovidedwithfood,drink,possessions,andothertoolsandprovisionstoensurecomfortintheafterlife.BibliographyChowdhury,J.N.(1971).AComparativeStudy of AdiReli-gion.Shillong:North-EastFrontierAgency.Duff-Sutherland-Dunbar,G.(1905).AborandGalong.Memoirs of theRoyalAsiaticSociety of Bengal,5(extranumber).Calcutta.Ffirer-Haimendorf,Christophvon(1954)."ReligiousBeliefsandRitualPractices of theMinyongAbors of Assam,India."Anthropos49:58 8-6 04. Encyclopedia of World Cultures Volume III SOUTH AsiA AnavilBrahman7AhirETHNONYMS:Gahra,Gaolan,Gaoli,Gerala,Goala,Golkar,Mahakul,RawatTheAhirareacaste of cowherds,milkers,andcattlebreederswidelydispersedacrosstheGangeticPlain,espe-ciallyinthemoreeasternlypart(Bihar,Bengal,andeasternMadhyaPradesh).TheAhiirmustnumberwelloveramilliontoday:theynumbered750,000in ... thatlifecontinuesbe-yondthegrave,inalandwhereeach of theuyushasitsindi-vidualabode.Whenonedies,hisorhersoulistakentothedomain of theuyuwhowasthecause of death.Anindividualenjoysthesamestatusandlife-stylethatheorshehadwhilealive.Forthisreasonthedeceasedisprovidedwithfood,drink,possessions,andothertoolsandprovisionstoensurecomfortintheafterlife.BibliographyChowdhury,J.N.(1971).AComparativeStudy of AdiReli-gion.Shillong:North-EastFrontierAgency.Duff-Sutherland-Dunbar,G.(1905).AborandGalong.Memoirs of theRoyalAsiaticSociety of Bengal,5(extranumber).Calcutta.Ffirer-Haimendorf,Christophvon(1954)."ReligiousBeliefsandRitualPractices of theMinyongAbors of Assam,India."Anthropos49:58 8-6 04. Encyclopedia of World Cultures Volume III SOUTH AsiA AnavilBrahman7AhirETHNONYMS:Gahra,Gaolan,Gaoli,Gerala,Goala,Golkar,Mahakul,RawatTheAhirareacaste of cowherds,milkers,andcattlebreederswidelydispersedacrosstheGangeticPlain,espe-ciallyinthemoreeasternlypart(Bihar,Bengal,andeasternMadhyaPradesh).TheAhiirmustnumberwelloveramilliontoday:theynumbered750,000in ... Thus,"Abor"suggestsonewhodoesnotsubmitallegiance(i.e.,onewhoishostile,barbarous,orsavage).ThealternativeviewconnectsthewordwithAbo,theprimordialmaninAbormythology.Thefinal-ristakentobesimilartofinal-rrintribaldesignationssuchasAorr,Simirr,andYim-chungrr,whichmeans"man."Inthe1960s,theAborbegancallingthemselvesAdisbecause of thenegativeconnotations of theirformername(seeAdiintheAppendix).Location.AborcommunitiesinIndiaareconcentratedonthebanks of theSiangandYamnerivers.Theirterritory,totalingsome20,000squarekilometers,hastheIndia-Tibetborderasitsnorthernboundary,Pasighatasitssouthernboundary,andGallongcountryandtheSiyomriverasitswesternboundary.Theregion'sgeographiccoordinatesare28°and29°N,by95°and96"E.Demography.Accordingtothe1971censustherewere4,733Abor.AUnitedBibleSocietiessurveysuggestsatotalAdi-speakingpopulation of 84,026in1982.LinguisticAffiliation.TheAborspeakAdi(alsocalledMiri,Abor,Arbor,orMishing),alanguage of theTibeto-BurmanStockbelongingtotheSino-TibetanPhylum.HistoryandCulturalRelationsTheAborsimmigratedtotheirIndianhomelandfromthenorthcrossingtheHimalayasintotheAssamValley.Eventu-allytheyretreatedintothehighlandregionsthattheycur-rentlyoccupy.Thecause of thismigrationisunknown,al-thoughnaturalcausesandpoliticalupheavalhavebeensug.gestedaspossiblecatalysts.Itisalsonotknownwhethertheymigratedasasolidbodyatasinglepointinhistory,orinsmallersubgroupsoveraperiod of severalhundredyears.Be-tween1847and1862,theBritishgovernmenttriedunsuc-cessfullytoconquerall of Aborterritory.Followingthefailure of severalmilitaryendeavors,atreatywasreachedthatguar-anteedlimitedBritishhegemonyanduninhibitedtradeandcommunicationonthefrontier.Inspite of occasionaltreatyviolations,anuneasypeacewasmaintained.AfterthefinalBritishmilitaryactionagainsttheAbor(inresponsetothemurder of theassistantpoliticalofficerandacompanion)in1912,thehillsnorth of Assamweredividedintowestern,central,andeasternsectionsforadministrativepurposes.Thelast of thesewerecollectivelygiventhename of SadiyaFron-tierTract.In1948,theTirapFrontierTractwasdividedintotheMishmiHillsDistrictandtheAborHillsDistrict.Finally,in1954,thename of theAborHillsDistrictwaschangedtotheSiangFrontierDivision.Sincethistime,theAborhaveundergoneconsiderableacculturation,whichhasresultedinanumber of changesinthenature of villagelife,thelocaleconomy,socialstructure,andpoliticalorganization.SettlementsVillagesareusuallybuiltonhilltops(thoughintheplains,Abortendtofollowthelocalpractice of buildingvillagesonlevelland).Preferenceisgiventothoselocationsthataffordaccesstoariverbyaslopinginclineononesideandthepro-tection of averysteepdeclineontheotherside.Housesarebuiltonelevatedplatforms.Theyarearrangedinrowsex-tendingfromthetoptothebottom of thehill,andarecon-structedsothattherearside of thehousefacesthehillitself.Publicbuildingsinatypicalvillageincludethemoshup(bach-elors'dormitory),therasheng(singlefemales'dormitory),andgranaries.Inoldervillages,stonewallswithwoodenrein-forcementsarefound.Majorbuildingmaterialsarebamboo,wood,thatchinggrass,andcane.EconomySubsistenceandCommercialActivities.Themajorsub-sistenceactivitiesarehunting,fishing,gathering,agriculture,andbarter of surpluscropsforbasicnecessitiesandluxuries.Slash-and-burn(orjhum)agricultureisthenorm.Forestandundergrowtharecut,dried,andburned,afterwhichseedsareplanted.Soilfertilityismaintainedforaperiod of onetothreeyearsusingthismethod.Agriculturallandisgradedac-cordingtolatentfertility,andcropsareassignedaccordingly.36AborFiirer-Haimendorf,Christophvon(1962).TheApaTanisandTheirNeighbours.London:Routledge&KeganPaul.Lal,Parmanand,andBimanKumarDasGupta(1979).LowerSiangPeople.Calcutta:Government of India.Roy,Sachin(1960).Aspects of Padam-MinyongCulture.Shillong:Notth-EastFrontierAgency.Simoons,FrederickJ.,andElizabethS.Simoons(1968).ACeremonialOx of India:TheMithaninNature,Culture,andHistory.Madison:University of WisconsinPress.Srivastava,L.R.N.(1962).TheGallongs.Shillong:North-EastFrontierAgency.HUGHRPAGE,JRAgariaETHNONYMS:Agariya,AghariaAlthoughtheAgariaarenotahomogeneousgroup,itisbelievedtheywereoriginallyaDravidian-speakingbranch of theGondtribe.Asaseparatecaste,however,theydodistin-guishthemselvesfromothersbytheirprofessionasironsmelters.Theirpopulationwas17,548in1971,andtheywerewidelydispersedacrosscentralIndiaontheMaikalrangeinMandla,Raipur,andBilaspurdistricts of MadhyaPradesh.Thereareothercastes of AgariasamongtheLoharsaswell.TheAgaria'snamecomesfromeithertheHindugod of fireAgni,ortheirtribaldemonwhowasborninflame,Agyasur.TheAgarialiveintheirownsection of avillageortown,orsometimestheyhavetheirownhamletoutside of atown.Sometravelfromtowntotownworkingtheirtradeaswell.Asalreadyindicated,thetraditionaloccupation of theAgariaisironsmelting.TheygettheirorefromtheMaikalrange,pre.ferringstones of adarkreddishcolor.Oreandcharcoalareplacedinfurnacesthatareblastedbyapair of bellowsworkedbythesmelters'feetandchanneledtothefurnacethroughbambootubes,aprocessthatiskeptupforhours.Theclayin-sulation of thekilnisbrokenupandthemoltenslagandcharcoalaretakenandhammered.Theyproduceplowshares,mattocks,axes,andsickles.Traditionallybothmenandwomen(inBilaspurmenonly)collecttheoreandmakethecharcoalforthefurnaces.Atduskthewomencleanandpreparethekilnsforthenextday'swork,bycleaningandbreakingupthepieces of oreandroastingtheminanordinaryfire;thetuyeres(cylindricalclayventsfordeliveringairtoafurnace)arerolledbyhandandmadebythewomenaswell.Duringsmeltingoperationsthewomenworkthebellows,andthemenhammerandfashiontheoreonanvils.Theconstruction of anewfurnaceisanim-portanteventinvolvingthewholefamily:themendigtheholesforthepostsanddotheheavywork,thewomenplasterthewalls,andthechildrenbringwaterandclayfromtheriver;uponcompletion,amantra(prayer)isrecitedoverthefur-nacetoensureitsproductiveness.TherearetwoendogamoussubcastesamongtheAgaria,thePathariaandtheKhuntias.Thesetwosubgroupsdonotevensharewaterwitheachother.TheexogamousdivisionsusuallyhavethesamenamesastheGonds,suchasSonureni,Dhurua,Tekam,Markam,Uika,Purtai,Marai,tonameafew.SomenamessuchasAhindwar,Ranchirai,andRattoriaare of HindioriginandareanindicationthatsomenorthernHinduspossiblyhavebeenincorporatedintothetribe.Indi-vidualsbelongingtoasectionarebelievedtoconstitutealineagewithacommonancestorandarethereforeexoga-mous.Descentistracedpatrilineally.Marriagesareusuallyar-rangedbythefather.Whenaboy'sfatherdecidestoarrangeamarriage,emissariesaresenttothegirl'sfatherandifac-ceptedpresentswillfollow.ContrarytoHindumarriagecus-toms,marriageispermittedduringthemonsoonswhenironsmeltingispostponedandthereisnowork.Abride-priceisgenerallypaidafewdaysbeforetheceremony.AswiththeGonds,firstcousinsarepermittedtomarry.Widowmarriageisacceptedandisexpectedwithone'slatehusband'syoungerbrother,particularlyifheisabachelor.Divorceisallowedforeitherpartyincases of adultery,extravagance,ormistreat-ment.Ifawomanleavesherhusbandwithoutbeingdivorced,theothermanbycustomisobligatedtopayapricetothehusband.Evenamongthewidelydispersedsubgroups of theAgariatheretraditionallyhasbeendiscrimination:amongtheAsur,marriagewassanctionedbycustomwiththeChokh,althoughbothgroupsrefusedtomarrywiththeHinduLoharsubgroup,owingtotheirlowerstatus.ThefamilygodisDulhaDeo,towhomofferings of goats,fowl,coconuts,andcakesaremade.TheyalsosharetheGonddeity of theforest,BuraDeo.Lohasur,theirondemon,istheirprofessionaldeity,whomtheybelieveinhabitsthesmeltingkilns.DuringPhagunandontheday of DasahiatheAgariamakeofferings of fowlasasign of devotiontotheirsmeltingimplements.Traditionally,villagesorcererswerere-cruitedduringtimes of sicknesstodeterminethedeitywhohadbeenoffended,towhomanatonementwouldthenbeoffered.BibliographyElwin,Verrier(1942).TheAgaria.Oxford:HumphreyMil-ford,OxfordUniversityPress.Russell,R.V.,andHiraLal(1916)."Agaria."InTheTribesandCastes of theCentralProvinces of India,byR.V.RussellandHiraLal.Vol.2, 3-8 .Nagpur:GovernmentPrintingPress.Reprint.1969.Oosterhout:AnthropologicalPublications.JAYDiMAGGIOAbor5SociopoliticalOrganizationSocialOrganization.Theprimaryallegiance of anindivid-ualistohisorherfamily.Thecohesion of largergroupswithinthesociety,suchassubclans,clans,andmoieties,canalsobeoccasionedbydisputesandconflictsthatthreatenoneormore of theconstituentmembers of theselargergroups.AmongtheAbor'sprimaryinstitutionsmustbein-cludedjhumagriculture,thenuclearfamily,themoshup,andtherasheng.Theanticipatedsecondaryinstitutions(i.e.,corereligiousbeliefs,ritualcults,andfolklorecorpus)alsoobtainamongtheAbor.Traditionally,socialstatuswasachievedthroughtheaccumulation of wealth.Today,educationandoccupationarealsoviewedassigns of status.PoliticalOrganization.Eachvillageisanautonomousunitwhoseaffairsareadministeredbyacouncil(kebang).Councilmembershipconsists of clanrepresentativesandin-dividualvillagemembers.Everyaspect of villagelifeisgov-ernedbythekebang.Thisincludesthemediation of localdis-putes.Groups of villagesareorganizedintobangos,whicharegovernedbyabangocouncil.Disputesbetweenbangosaremediatedbyabogumbokang(atemporaryinterbangocouncilmadeup of bangoeldersfromthesamegroup).SocialControl.Sources of conflictwithinAborsocietyin-cludemaritalandfamilialdisputes,divorce,theft,assault,andinheritancedisputes.Theresolution of conflictandtheregulation of behaviorwithin...

... herfourgrandpar-entalclansincommonwithhis.Polygynyisallowedthoughnotcommon,andthecustom of adelphicpolyandry,orthesexualaccessbyanunmarriedmantohisbrother'swife-whichwasoftenpracticedbyatleastnon-MuslimpeasantJat,inordertopreventfurtherfragmentation of land-hasde-clinedinrecentdecades.AmongallJat,widowremarriageispermitted;eitherlevirateisrequiredorawidowisnotallowedtoremarryoutsidethemaximallineage,especiallywhenshehaschildrenbyherlatehusband.Thepractice of femalein-fanticide,alsoknownamongthepeasants,hasdroppedsharply.Awoman'srelationshipwithherhusband'skinisor-ganizedaccordingtoabasicpattern of avoidancewithseniorsand of jokingwiththoseyoungerthanthehusband.Brothersshareacommondutytowardtheirsistersandtheirchildren.DomesticUnit.MostJatpeasanthouseholdsconsist of linealjointfamilies,withtheparentsandonemarriedson;manyunitsarenuclearandsomearecollateral-joint,withtwomarriedbrothersandtheiroffspringlivingtogether.AmongnomadicJatthenuclearfamilyandthelinealjointfamilyarethemostcommondomesticunits.Inheritance.Amongthosewithland,allsonsinheritequalsharesinterms of bothquantityandquality.Formerly,aman'swivessharedequallyonbehalf of theirsons,irrespec-tive of thenumber of sonseachhad.Althoughintheoryin-heritance of landfollowsastrictlyagnaticprincipleanddaughtersandsistersdonotinherit,daughters'sonshavebeenobserveddefactotobeamongtheinheritorsinmanycases.SociopoliticalOrganizationSocialandPoliticalOrganization.AllJataredividedintopatricians;amongthesedentarycommunities,each of thesehasahereditaryheadman.Byandlarge,thevillagesinwhichJatfarmerslive,togetherwithnon-Jat,areunderthejurisdic-tion of aclancouncil,andthiscouncil, of whicheveryclanheadmanisamember,isthedecision-makingunitatthecommunitylevel.TraditionallyinthesevillagesJatfarmerswereintegratedaspatronsintothepatron-clientsystemprev-alentinthearea.Theirclientsweremembers of variousserv-icecastes;however,thissystemhaslargelybrokendowntoday.WealthyJatlandownershaveenteredlocal,regional,andevennationalpoliticssincethebeginning of thiscentury,andinmanyareastheyarestillactiveasinfluentialrepresen-tatives of farmersandruralfolkingeneral.Amongthepasto-ralJat of theIndusDelta,theclansareorganizedonthehier-archicalprinciple of age,withtheoldestman of theoldestlineagebeingatthehead of thepyramid,followedbytheeldestmen of theyoungerlineages.Institutionalizedauthor-ityoverthisentiregrouprestsnotwithaJatbutwithaKarmati-Baluch.Conflict.Afrequentsource of conflictwithintheminimallineageisland;suchconflictsoftentakeplacebetweenag-naticcollaterals,sincetheirlandsusuallybordereachother.Factionalconflictisfairlycommonatabroaderlevel.ReligionandExpressiveCultureReligiousBeliefsandCeremonies.AJatcanbeHindu,Muslim,orSikh,andin1931over50percent of theentireSikhpopulationwasconstitutedbyJat.Manyceremonies,es-peciallythoseaccompanyingtherites of passage,arecommontoallJat,irrespective of religiousdenomination.AmongHinduJatthereareinadditionnumerouslocalormorewidelyprevalentreligiousbeliefsandobservances.Thesein-cludeknowledge of certainbutbynomeansallmajormytho-logicalfigures(godsandgoddesses) of theSanskritctradi-tionandthecelebration of severalfestivals,bothseasonalandannual,both of theall-IndianHinduGreatTraditionand of thelocalizedLittleTradition.TheMuslimJatpopula-tionshaveastrongtradition of veneratingalargenumber of localsaints(pir).AlthoughmostareofficiallySunni,theyhavealargenumber of Shiatraditions,andonegroup of JatareIsmaelis.TillrecentlySikhJat,thoughveryconscious of theirdistinctreligiousidentity,werenotverymeticulousintheirobservance of theprecepts of Sikhism.Most of them110Jainlivesbutseekingtoadheretotheprinciple of ahimsain ... herfourgrandpar-entalclansincommonwithhis.Polygynyisallowedthoughnotcommon,andthecustom of adelphicpolyandry,orthesexualaccessbyanunmarriedmantohisbrother'swife-whichwasoftenpracticedbyatleastnon-MuslimpeasantJat,inordertopreventfurtherfragmentation of land-hasde-clinedinrecentdecades.AmongallJat,widowremarriageispermitted;eitherlevirateisrequiredorawidowisnotallowedtoremarryoutsidethemaximallineage,especiallywhenshehaschildrenbyherlatehusband.Thepractice of femalein-fanticide,alsoknownamongthepeasants,hasdroppedsharply.Awoman'srelationshipwithherhusband'skinisor-ganizedaccordingtoabasicpattern of avoidancewithseniorsand of jokingwiththoseyoungerthanthehusband.Brothersshareacommondutytowardtheirsistersandtheirchildren.DomesticUnit.MostJatpeasanthouseholdsconsist of linealjointfamilies,withtheparentsandonemarriedson;manyunitsarenuclearandsomearecollateral-joint,withtwomarriedbrothersandtheiroffspringlivingtogether.AmongnomadicJatthenuclearfamilyandthelinealjointfamilyarethemostcommondomesticunits.Inheritance.Amongthosewithland,allsonsinheritequalsharesinterms of bothquantityandquality.Formerly,aman'swivessharedequallyonbehalf of theirsons,irrespec-tive of thenumber of sonseachhad.Althoughintheoryin-heritance of landfollowsastrictlyagnaticprincipleanddaughtersandsistersdonotinherit,daughters'sonshavebeenobserveddefactotobeamongtheinheritorsinmanycases.SociopoliticalOrganizationSocialandPoliticalOrganization.AllJataredividedintopatricians;amongthesedentarycommunities,each of thesehasahereditaryheadman.Byandlarge,thevillagesinwhichJatfarmerslive,togetherwithnon-Jat,areunderthejurisdic-tion of aclancouncil,andthiscouncil, of whicheveryclanheadmanisamember,isthedecision-makingunitatthecommunitylevel.TraditionallyinthesevillagesJatfarmerswereintegratedaspatronsintothepatron-clientsystemprev-alentinthearea.Theirclientsweremembers of variousserv-icecastes;however,thissystemhaslargelybrokendowntoday.WealthyJatlandownershaveenteredlocal,regional,andevennationalpoliticssincethebeginning of thiscentury,andinmanyareastheyarestillactiveasinfluentialrepresen-tatives of farmersandruralfolkingeneral.Amongthepasto-ralJat of theIndusDelta,theclansareorganizedonthehier-archicalprinciple of age,withtheoldestman of theoldestlineagebeingatthehead of thepyramid,followedbytheeldestmen of theyoungerlineages.Institutionalizedauthor-ityoverthisentiregrouprestsnotwithaJatbutwithaKarmati-Baluch.Conflict.Afrequentsource of conflictwithintheminimallineageisland;suchconflictsoftentakeplacebetweenag-naticcollaterals,sincetheirlandsusuallybordereachother.Factionalconflictisfairlycommonatabroaderlevel.ReligionandExpressiveCultureReligiousBeliefsandCeremonies.AJatcanbeHindu,Muslim,orSikh,andin1931over50percent of theentireSikhpopulationwasconstitutedbyJat.Manyceremonies,es-peciallythoseaccompanyingtherites of passage,arecommontoallJat,irrespective of religiousdenomination.AmongHinduJatthereareinadditionnumerouslocalormorewidelyprevalentreligiousbeliefsandobservances.Thesein-cludeknowledge of certainbutbynomeansallmajormytho-logicalfigures(godsandgoddesses) of theSanskritctradi-tionandthecelebration of severalfestivals,bothseasonalandannual,both of theall-IndianHinduGreatTraditionand of thelocalizedLittleTradition.TheMuslimJatpopula-tionshaveastrongtradition of veneratingalargenumber of localsaints(pir).AlthoughmostareofficiallySunni,theyhavealargenumber of Shiatraditions,andonegroup of JatareIsmaelis.TillrecentlySikhJat,thoughveryconscious of theirdistinctreligiousidentity,werenotverymeticulousintheirobservance of theprecepts of Sikhism.Most of them110Jainlivesbutseekingtoadheretotheprinciple of ahimsain ... asmanywaysaspossible.Thelaitysupportthewanderingascetics,providingthemwithfoodandshelter,theasceticsinturnprovidereligiousandmoralguidance.LayJainsincludesome of India'sleadingindustrialists,jewelers,andbankers,concentratedparticularlyinthecities of Bombay,Ahme-dabad,andDelhi.Becausesomanyarebusinesspeople,theJainsareone of thefewreligiousgroups(alongwiththeParsisandJews)whoaremorenumerousincitiesthaninruralareas.ThroughoutwesternIndiaJainsaretobefoundineveryurbancenter,howeversmall,workingasmerchants,traders,wholesalers,andmoneylenders.Assooftenhappensinreligioussects,theJainsarenostrangerstoschism.Themostbasicandwidelyknownsplitwithintheircommunity of believers,datingbacktothefourthcenturyB.C.,separatesthe'sky-clad"(Digambaras)fromthe"white-clad"(Svetambaras);thenamesrefertothefactthatthehighestorder of Digambaramonksgonakedtoannouncetheircompleteindifferencetotheirbodies,whileSvetambaramonksandnunsalwayswearsimplewhiteclothing.Thesetwosectsdifferintheirattitudestowardscripture,theirviews of theuniverse,andtheirattitudestowardwomen(theDig-ambarasbelievethatnowomanhaseverachievedliberation).Anothermajorsectariandivision,foundparticularlyamongtheSvetambarasanddatingbacktofifteenth-centuryGu-jarat,rejectsallforms of idolatry.Whilemurti-pujaka(idol-worshiping)layandasceticSvetambarasbuildandvisittem-plesinwhichidols of thetirthankarasareinstalled,theSvetambaraSthanakavasisect-likecertainProtestantChristiansects-holdsthatsuchforms of worshipmaymis-leadthebelieverintothinkingthatidols,famoustemples,andthelikearesources of somemysteriouspower.InsteadlayandasceticSthanakavasisprefertomeditateinbarehalls.Today,layJains-mostly of Gujaratiorigin-aretobefoundineastAfrica,GreatBritain,andNorthAmerica,wheretheyhavemigratedoverthelastcenturyinsearch of businessandtradingopportunities.Templeshavebeenestab-lishedinseveral of thesecountriesandtheJains...

... Conflict.Thereisnosolidevidence of warfareintheNilgirisinvolvingtheKotasandothertribes.Theyclaim,however,thattheritualdrum,e-rtabatk,wasoriginallyusedinbattle.ReligionandExpressiveCultureReligiousBeliefs.KotasconsiderthemselvesHindusandnoKotashavegoneonrecordasconvertingtoanyotherreli-gion,althoughoneortwomarriageshavereportedlyoccurredbetweenKotasandChristians.ThemajorKotadeitiesareA.ypo.r(fathergod)andAmno-r(mothergoddess).A-yWo-r,alsocalledKamati-cvaraorKamatra-yainsomevillages,isidentifiedwiththeHindugodShiva.Somevillageshavea"big"and'small"A-ypio.r(Doda.yno-randKuna-yno-r),butthereisonlyoneversion of thegoddess.Kana.tra-yaisadeityintheform of astoneandisfoundonlyinTicga.r.Generally,Kotadeitieshavenoanthropomorphicrepresentation,al-thoughonceayearfaces of silverornamentsarepastedontothefront of theA-yno-randAmno-rtemples.TodaytemplesfortheHindudeitiesKrishna,Rangarama,Munisvara,Badrakaliamman,andMariammanhavealsobeenerectedbytheKotas,eachinresponsetoaparticularneedorsupernat-uraleventinthevillage.ReligiousPractitioners.ForceremoniesrelatingtotheirindigenousdeitiestheKotashavetwotypes of priest.Themundika-no-n,theprimarypriest,leadstheKotasinallim-portantcommunityactivities.Theotherpriest,thete-rkaran,actsasavehiclethroughwhichgod(soym)communicateswiththepeople.Thete-rka-raneffectssuchcommunicationbybecomingpossessedandrespondingtoquestions,whichareusuallyposedbymaleelders.Possessionoccursinestab-lishedspatiotemporalcontextsforwhichinstrumentalmusi-cians(kolvar)playparticulartunes(kol)andrhythms(dak).Thedeity"chooses"thete.rka-raninitiallythroughcausinghimtobepossessedandspeakingthroughhim.Thenthemundika-no-nisnamedbythedeityviathete-rka-ran.Al-thoughthereisaspecialte-rka-ranfamily(kuyt)insomevil-lages,thete-rka-ranmayalsobelongtoadifferentfamily.Themundika-no-ncanonlycomefromthemundika.no-nfamily.Koli131saur,whicharegenerallyconsideredbenevolentthesacredcentersatAllahabad,Bandakpur,Mata.ForacculturatedKolslivinginmulticasteBrahmanpriestworshipsthedeitiesbelongingtpantheonfortheKolsandofficiatesatritualscoilife-cycleceremonies.TheKolscelebratefERamanavmi,Dassara,Rakhi,Holi,Diwali,Janm,ShabariJayanti.Arts.TheKolshavenoperformingorgraph-ever,theyhavearichrepertory of triballegendDeathandAfterlife.TheKolsusuallycremaburialisforpersonswhohavedied of snakebitecasetheperiod of pollutionendsonthethirteeninthesecondcaseitlaststhreedays.SeealsoBhuiya;Bondo;Kond;MundaBibliographyCrooke,William(1896).TheTribesandCastesWesternProvincesandOudh.Vol.3.Calcutta:IPress.DasGupta,BimanKumar(1978)."TheKolXNow."Paperpresentedatseminar,TribalCust,heldinCalcutta(sponsoredbytheAnthropolc of India.)Griffiths,W.G.(1946).TheKolTribes of CRoyalAsiaticSocietyMonographSeries,vol.RoyalAsiaticSociety of Bengal.Guha,B.S.(1946).IntroductiontoTheKolTriaIndia,byW.G.Griffiths.RoyalAsiaticSocietySeries,vol.2.Calcutta:RoyalAsiaticSocietyoHasan,Amir(1972).TheKols of Patha.AllalMahal.Jagannathan,R.(1964).Census of India19Pradesh.DistrictCensusHandbook.Jabalpur.Bemiment of India.Jha,J.C.(1964).TheKolInsurrection of Chotacutta:Thacker,Spink.Risley,HerbertH.(1915).ThePeople of India.2byWilliamCrooke.London:Thacker&Co.ReDelhi:OrientalBooksReprintCorp.,Mamoharlal.Russell,R.V.,andHiraLal(1916)."Kol."InTVCastes of theCentralProvinces of India.Vol.3,50don:Macmillan&Co.Reprint.1969.OosterhtpologicalPublications.Lt.KolsvisitandMaiharevillagestheotheHinduinectedwithFstivallikeKoliETHNONYMS:HillKolis,SeaKolis,SonKolissshtami,andThename"Koli"(fromwhichisderivedtheEnglishwordcoolie)isexplainedinadozenways,amongwhichthemostplausibleisthatitcomesfromtheSanskritwordkula,icarts;how-meaning"clan."TheKolinumberedonly336,000personsinS.1911,buttheirnumberswereestimatedat1.5millioninBombayStatealonein1969.TheKoliconstituteatribewithatethedead;manybranchesandtwomainsubdivisions:theHillKolis;l.InthefirstandtheSeaKolisorSonKolis.Themostpopularexplana-thday,whiletionfortheorigin of theterm"Son"isthatturmeric,whichisverysacredtoDhandoba,thefamilygod,isson-"golden"or"yellow"incolor.TheSonKolisrepresentthehighestgroup of themanysubgroups,andtheDhorKoliaregenerallycon-sideredthelowest.TheSonKolistraditionallyinhabittheareainandaroundBombay,whichliesbetween18°and19"Nand72°and730E,onthewestcoast of India.TheHill of theNorth-KolisarefoundinMadhyaPradeshandincludetheSuraivansi,GovernmentMalhar,Bhilaophod,Singade,Magadeo(whoarefurthersub-dividedintotheBhasor"pure"KolisandtheAkaramaseor"impure"Kolis),Dshatreiga,Naiks,Nimar(soldiers),the ... inthepast.Theirtraditionforsorceryremainsbutpersonalfearisnowlittlefeltbyneighboringtribespeople.TodaythequestionariseastowhethertheKurumbasaredescendedfromancientNilgiriancestorswhowereprimarilygatherersorfromfarmorerecentfarmingimmigrants.Theirlanguagebelongstothe South DravidianSubfamily.Ingen-eralthegroupshaveaclanorganizationthatisexogamousandpatrilineal.Thetribespracticeendogamy.Cross-cousinmarriagesfrequentlyoccur.Traditionallythereareanumber of officeswithinthetribeincludingthevillageheadman(maniagara)andpriest(mannugara).Theheadmanandas-sistantheadman'sofficesarehereditaryinthemaleline,whileeitheramaleorafemalemaybeapriestorsorcerer.Traditionalreligiousbeliefsinvolveanancestorcultwithanemphasisonpollutionandpurity,whichparallelsothersuchbeliefsupheldinHinduismgenerally.TodayyoungpeopleareembracingbothHinduismandChristianityinadditiontothetraditionalbeliefs.SeealsoIrula;NayakaBibliographyKapp,DieterB.(1978a)."PiluKurumbaRiddles:Specimens of a South DravidianTribalLanguage."Bulletin of theSchool of OrientalandAfricanStudies41:51 2-5 22.London:Univer-sity of London.Kapp,DeiterB.(1978b)."ChildbirthandName-GivingamongtheAluKurumbas of South India."InAspects of Tri-balLifein South Asia. Vol.1,StrategyandSurvival.Proceed-ings of anInternationalSeminarheldinBeme,1977.EditedbyRupertRMoserandMohanK.Gautam,16 7-1 80.Bern:StudiaEthnologicaBernensia1.Kapp,DieterB.(1978c)."DieKindheits-undjugendritenderAlu-Kurumbas(Siidindien)."ZeitschriftfurEthnologie103:27 9-2 89.KappDieterB.(1980)."DieOrdinationdesPriestersbeidenAlu-Kurumbas(Sfidindien)."Anthropos75:43 3-4 46.Kapp,DieterB.(1982)."TheConcept of YamaintheReli-gion of a South IndianTribe."Journal of theAmericanOrien-talSociety102:51 7-5 21.Kapp,DieterB.(1985)."TheKurumbas'Relationshiptothe'Megalithic'Cult of theNilgiriHills (South India)."Anthro-pos80:49 3-5 34.Kapp,DieterB.,andPaulHockings(1989)."TheKurumbaTribes."InBlueMountains:TheEthnographyandBiogeo-graphy of a South IndianRegion,editedbyPaulHockings,23 2-2 48.NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress.Misra,Rajalakshmi(1989)."TheMulluKurumbas."InBlueMountains:TheEthnographyandBiogeography of a South In-dianRegion,editedbyPaulHockings,30 4-3 59.NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress.SARAJ.DICK126Khasi.ReligiousPractitioners.Thepropitiation of thespiritsiscarriedoutbythelyngdoh(priest)orbyoldmenknowledge-ableintheart of necromancy.Otherpractitionersincludethesoh-bleiandsoh-blah(malefunctionarieswithlimitedsacer-dotalfunctions),thekasoh-blei,alsocalledka-soh-slaorka-lyngdoh(femalepriestswhomustbepresentattheoffering of allsacrifices),andthenongkhan(diviners).Thelyngdoh-whoisalwaysappointedfromaspecialpriestlyclan,whoholdshisofficeforlife,andwhomaybeone of severalwithinastate-isthechieffunctionary of thecommunalcults.Healsohascertaindutiesinconjunctionwithmaritallawsandhouseholdexorcism.Insomestates,thelyngdohsubsumestheresponsibilities of siem(chief)andruleswiththeassis-tance of acouncil of elders.Theduty of performingfamilyceremoniesisthesoleresponsibility of thehead of thefamilyorclanwhousuallyfulfillsthemthroughtheagency of thekni(maternaluncle).Femalepriestsmustassistatallsacrificesand,infact,aretheonlyfunctionariesinpossession of fullsacerdotalauthority.Thelyngdohexerciseshisdutiesasap-pointedagent of thekasoh-blei(femalepriest).ItisbelievedthatthissystemisanarchaicsurvivalfromaperiodinKhasihistorywhenthefemalepriestactedasherownagentintheoffering of sacrifice.Insomestates(e.g.,Nongkrem),thereisahighpriestesswhofunctionssacerdotallyandashead of state.Shedelegatestemporalresponsibilitiestoasonornephewwhothenexercisesthemasasiem.Theadoption of Christianitybyalargesegment of Khasisocietyhasresultedinimportantchanges.Thesacerdotalfunction of theyoung-estdaughter(responsible,intraditionalKhasiculture,forconductingburialservicesonbehalf of herparentsandforactingaschiefpractitioner of thefamilycult)hasbeenthreatenedbyChristianteachingandpractice(i.e.,theyoungestdaughter,ifaChristian,islesslikelytofulfillherpriestlyresponsibilitiestoherfamily).Ceremonies.Dancingandmusicareimportantparts of Khasiritual,andtheNongkremDance(part of thepom-blangorgoat-killingceremony)isthemajorfestivalontheKhasicalendar.ItisdedicatedtoKaleiSynshar,fortheruling of theKhasi.Itspurposeistoensuresubstantialcropyieldandgoodfortuneforthestate.Itisheldinlatespring(usuallyinMay).Anumber of stateandcommunalritualsarealsoper-formed,inadditiontomanyceremoniesassociatedwiththehumanlifecycle(birth,marriage,death,etc.).Arts.Examples of decorativeartincludemetalgongs(withanimalengravings),implements of warfare(arrows,spears,bows,andshields),andmemorialslabs(withengravings).Toalimitedextentwoodwork,jewelry,andotherindustrialman-ufacturesmaybesoclassified.Musicisanimportantpart of Khasireligiousceremonies(bothcommunalandclan-related),huntingexpeditions,andathleticevents(e.g.,arch-erycontests).Musicalformsincludeextemporaneousversethatissaidtoresemble,informandcontent, ... inthepast.Theirtraditionforsorceryremainsbutpersonalfearisnowlittlefeltbyneighboringtribespeople.TodaythequestionariseastowhethertheKurumbasaredescendedfromancientNilgiriancestorswhowereprimarilygatherersorfromfarmorerecentfarmingimmigrants.Theirlanguagebelongstothe South DravidianSubfamily.Ingen-eralthegroupshaveaclanorganizationthatisexogamousandpatrilineal.Thetribespracticeendogamy.Cross-cousinmarriagesfrequentlyoccur.Traditionallythereareanumber of officeswithinthetribeincludingthevillageheadman(maniagara)andpriest(mannugara).Theheadmanandas-sistantheadman'sofficesarehereditaryinthemaleline,whileeitheramaleorafemalemaybeapriestorsorcerer.Traditionalreligiousbeliefsinvolveanancestorcultwithanemphasisonpollutionandpurity,whichparallelsothersuchbeliefsupheldinHinduismgenerally.TodayyoungpeopleareembracingbothHinduismandChristianityinadditiontothetraditionalbeliefs.SeealsoIrula;NayakaBibliographyKapp,DieterB.(1978a)."PiluKurumbaRiddles:Specimens of a South DravidianTribalLanguage."Bulletin of theSchool of OrientalandAfricanStudies41:51 2-5 22.London:Univer-sity of London.Kapp,DeiterB.(1978b)."ChildbirthandName-GivingamongtheAluKurumbas of South India."InAspects of Tri-balLifein South Asia. Vol.1,StrategyandSurvival.Proceed-ings of anInternationalSeminarheldinBeme,1977.EditedbyRupertRMoserandMohanK.Gautam,16 7-1 80.Bern:StudiaEthnologicaBernensia1.Kapp,DieterB.(1978c)."DieKindheits-undjugendritenderAlu-Kurumbas(Siidindien)."ZeitschriftfurEthnologie103:27 9-2 89.KappDieterB.(1980)."DieOrdinationdesPriestersbeidenAlu-Kurumbas(Sfidindien)."Anthropos75:43 3-4 46.Kapp,DieterB.(1982)."TheConcept of YamaintheReli-gion of a South IndianTribe."Journal of theAmericanOrien-talSociety102:51 7-5 21.Kapp,DieterB.(1985)."TheKurumbas'Relationshiptothe'Megalithic'Cult of theNilgiriHills (South India)."Anthro-pos80:49 3-5 34.Kapp,DieterB.,andPaulHockings(1989)."TheKurumbaTribes."InBlueMountains:TheEthnographyandBiogeo-graphy of a South IndianRegion,editedbyPaulHockings,23 2-2 48.NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress.Misra,Rajalakshmi(1989)."TheMulluKurumbas."InBlueMountains:TheEthnographyandBiogeography of a South In-dianRegion,editedbyPaulHockings,30 4-3 59.NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress.SARAJ.DICK126Khasi.ReligiousPractitioners.Thepropitiation of thespiritsiscarriedoutbythelyngdoh(priest)orbyoldmenknowledge-ableintheart of necromancy.Otherpractitionersincludethesoh-bleiandsoh-blah(malefunctionarieswithlimitedsacer-dotalfunctions),thekasoh-blei,alsocalledka-soh-slaorka-lyngdoh(femalepriestswhomustbepresentattheoffering of allsacrifices),andthenongkhan(diviners).Thelyngdoh-whoisalwaysappointedfromaspecialpriestlyclan,whoholdshisofficeforlife,andwhomaybeone of severalwithinastate-isthechieffunctionary of thecommunalcults.Healsohascertaindutiesinconjunctionwithmaritallawsandhouseholdexorcism.Insomestates,thelyngdohsubsumestheresponsibilities of siem(chief)andruleswiththeassis-tance of acouncil of elders.Theduty of performingfamilyceremoniesisthesoleresponsibility of thehead of thefamilyorclanwhousuallyfulfillsthemthroughtheagency of thekni(maternaluncle).Femalepriestsmustassistatallsacrificesand,infact,aretheonlyfunctionariesinpossession of fullsacerdotalauthority.Thelyngdohexerciseshisdutiesasap-pointedagent of thekasoh-blei(femalepriest).ItisbelievedthatthissystemisanarchaicsurvivalfromaperiodinKhasihistorywhenthefemalepriestactedasherownagentintheoffering of sacrifice.Insomestates(e.g.,Nongkrem),thereisahighpriestesswhofunctionssacerdotallyandashead of state.Shedelegatestemporalresponsibilitiestoasonornephewwhothenexercisesthemasasiem.Theadoption of Christianitybyalargesegment of Khasisocietyhasresultedinimportantchanges.Thesacerdotalfunction of theyoung-estdaughter(responsible,intraditionalKhasiculture,forconductingburialservicesonbehalf of herparentsandforactingaschiefpractitioner of thefamilycult)hasbeenthreatenedbyChristianteachingandpractice(i.e.,theyoungestdaughter,ifaChristian,islesslikelytofulfillherpriestlyresponsibilitiestoherfamily).Ceremonies.Dancingandmusicareimportantparts of Khasiritual,andtheNongkremDance(part of thepom-blangorgoat-killingceremony)isthemajorfestivalontheKhasicalendar.ItisdedicatedtoKaleiSynshar,fortheruling of theKhasi.Itspurposeistoensuresubstantialcropyieldandgoodfortuneforthestate.Itisheldinlatespring(usuallyinMay).Anumber of stateandcommunalritualsarealsoper-formed,inadditiontomanyceremoniesassociatedwiththehumanlifecycle(birth,marriage,death,etc.).Arts.Examples of decorativeartincludemetalgongs(withanimalengravings),implements of warfare(arrows,spears,bows,andshields),andmemorialslabs(withengravings).Toalimitedextentwoodwork,jewelry,andotherindustrialman-ufacturesmaybesoclassified.Musicisanimportantpart of Khasireligiousceremonies(bothcommunalandclan-related),huntingexpeditions,andathleticevents(e.g.,arch-erycontests).Musicalformsincludeextemporaneousversethatissaidtoresemble,informandcontent,...

... Oriya215Boysandgirlsmarryafterpuberty,boysusuallyat1 6-2 0years.Thisfollowsaperiodinwhichbothsexessleepinayouthdormitory(dhumkuria).Boysarebrandedonthearmbeforebeingadmittedtothisinstitution.Thedormitorypro-videsapool of agriculturallaborthatcanbehiredwhennec-essary.MostOraonsarefarmers,andinthepasttheyprac-ticedshiftingcultivation.Hunting,formerly of majorimportance,hasbeenreducedduringthepresentcenturytothestatus of aceremonialevent;thereisevenawomen'shuntingceremony,heldeverytwelveyears.Althoughasmallminority of thetribeareChristians,thegreatmajorityfollowaHinduform of worship.Theirmainde-itiesarelocal,non-Sanskriticones,suchasChandi,Chau-thia,DadgoBurhia,GaonDeoti,andJairBudhi,namesonedoesnotencounterelsewhereinIndia.Aremarkablefeature of Oraonsocietyisthatitisone of theveryfewonearth(alongwiththeneighboringMundasandMarias)thatpracticeshumansacrifice(calledotangaororkabyOraons).Althoughextremelyrare,evidencesuggeststhephenomenonismostprevalentinRanchiDistrict,Bihar.Duringthenineteenthcentury,Britishofficialsreportedamuchbroaderincidence,occurringamongtheMunda,Oraon,Gond,Kond,andSantaltribes.Policerecordsshowthatevenaslateasthe1980stherewereacouple of sacrificesayearamongtheMunda,Maria,andOraontribes,andperhapsslightlymoreifoneassumesthatnotallcasesreachedpoliceattention.Thesesacrificesare of courseillegalandaretreatedashomicideunderSection302 of theIndianPenalCode.Detection of culpritsismadeverydifficultbythefactthatsomevillagersbelievethesacri-ficesareessentialforthefertility of theirfields,andhencetheyarenotforthcomingwithanyinformation.Thehumansacrificesusuallyoccurinremoteplacesaroundthebegin-ning of thesowingseasonandtheassociatedfestival of Sar-hul.Thereasonspolicecandistinguishthesesacrificesfromotherforms of murderareseveral:(1)thetiming,tocoincidewiththesowingceremony;(2)thevictimisoftenanorphanorahomelessperson,someonewhowillnotbemissed;(3)usuallynopersonalanimositiescanaccountforthekill-ing;(4)thevictim'sthroatiscutwithaknife;(5)signs of puja(worship)arenormallyfoundnearthecorpse;and(6)part of onelittlefingerhasbeencutoffandismissing.Thislastitemispresumablyapart of thehumanofferingthatthesacrificer(otanga)willburyinhisfield.Sometimesblood of thesacrificialvictimismixedwithseedgrainbeforeitissown.Inearliercenturiestheentirebodywasprobablycutupandparceledouttothevariousfieldsaroundavillage.Thedanger of detectionnowmakesthistoodifficult.Thesacrificeisnor-mallyofferedtoavindictivegoddessthoughttocontrolthefertility of thesoil.Ifahumanvictimcannotbecaughtintimeforthesowingceremony,itissaidthathair,sputum,orsomeotherhumanbodilyleavingsaremixedwithhen'sbloodasatokenofferingtothisgoddess.SeealsoMundaBibliographyHermanns,Matthias(1973).DieOraon.Diereligios-magischeWeltanschanungderPrimitivstammeIndiens,no.3.Wiesbaden:FranzSteinerVerlag.Roy,SaratChandra(1915).TheOraon of ChotaNagpur.Calcutta:BrahmoMissionPress.Roy,SaratChandra(1928).OraonReligionandCustom.Ranchi:ManinIndiaOffice.Russell,R.V.,andHiraLal(1916).'Oraon."InTheTribesandCastes of theCentralProvinces of India,editedbyRV.RussellandHiraLal.Vol.4,29 9-3 21.London:Macmillan.Reprint.1969.Oosterhout:AnthropologicalPublications.Sachchidananda(1963)."SomeRecentEvidence of HumanSacrifice."InAnthropologyontheMarch:RecentStudies of In-dianBeliefs,Attitudes,andSocialInstitutions,editedbyL.K.BalaRatnam,34 4-3 51.Madras:TheBookCentre.Sachchidananda(1964).CultureChangeinTribalBihar:MundaandOraon.Calcutta:BooklandPrivateLimited.PAULHOCKINGSOriyaETHNONYMS:Odia,Odiya;adjective:Odissi,Orissi(OrissaninEnglish)OrientationIdentification.InOrissaStateinIndia,theOriyaconsti-tutetheregionalethnicgroup,speakingtheOriyalanguageandprofessingtheHindureligion,tobedistinguishedfromanOriya-speakingagriculturalcastecalledOdiafoundincentralcoastalOrissa.SomeOriyaliveintheadjoiningstates.TheOriyalanguageandethnicgrouparepresumablyderivedfromthegreatUdraorOdrapeopleknownsinceBuddhistandpre-BuddhistMahabharataepictimes.Location.Thestate of Orissaislocatedbetween17°49'and22034'Nand81029'and87029'E,covering155,707squarekilometersalongthenortheasternseaboard of India.Thelargemajority of theOriyaliveinthecoastaldistrictsandalongtheMahanadiandBrahmanirivers.OrissafallsinthetropicalzonewithmonsoonrainsfromJune-JulytoSeptember-October.WesternOrissaisafflictedwithrecur-ringdrought.Demography.Thelastnationalcensusin1981recordsthepopulation of Orissaas26,370,271persons,withapopu-lationdensity of 169personspersquarekilometerascom-paredto216forIndiaasawhole. Of thetotalpopulation of Orissa,84.11percentspeakOriya.Althoughrural,Orissa'surbancenterswith5,000ormorepersonsrosefromcontain-ing8.4percent of thepopulationin1971(81towns)to11.79percentin1981(108towns).Most of theninety-threeScheduledCastes,whichconstitute15.1percent of Orissa'spopulation,speakOriya. Of the23.1percent of Orissa'spop-ulationcategorizedasScheduledTribes,manyspeakOriyaasOriya217Trade.Invillages,peddlingandweeklymarketsweretheusualcommercialchannels.Since World War11rationshopshavesoldscarceessentialcommodities.Division of Labor.Menplow,sow,andcarrygoodswithapolebalancedontheshoulder,whereaswomencarrythingsontheirhead,weed,andtransplantthefields.Harvestingisdonebybothsexes.Whilemenfishandhunt,womenper-formhouseholdchoresandtendbabies.Traditionally,amonghigher-casteandhigher-classfamilies,womendidnotworkoutsidehome.Nowadaysmenandsomewomenareen-gagedinsalariedservice,butonlylower-casteandlower-classwomenundertakewagelabor.LandTenure.BeforeIndependencelandunderagricul-turehadincreasedsubstantially.However,because of thehighrate of populationgrowthandsubdivision of landhold-ings,thenumber of marginalfarmersandthelandlessin,creasedsharplythereafter.FollowingIndependencesomelandabovethestatutoryceilingorfromthecommonpropertyresourceswasdistributedamongthelandless,weakersections of society.Large-scaleindustrialandirrigation-cum-powerprojectsdisplacedpeopleandaddedtotheranks of thelandless.All of thishasresultedinvariouscategories of ten-ancyandcontractualleaseoflandforsubsistencecultivation.KinshipKinGroupsandDescent.Traditionallyandcurrently,threepatterns of familyorganizationhaveobtained:(1)themultihouseholdcompoundswheretheseparatefamilies of thesons of thecommonfatherarehousedasanextendedfamily;(2)jointfamilieswithallthebrotherslivingtogether,withacommonkitchen,withorwithouttheparentsliving(morecommoninvillagesthantowns);(3)severalfamiliesbelongingtoapatrilineageamongwhomkinobligationscon-tinue,residinginneighboringvillages.Descentispatrilineal.KinshipTerminology.Thesocialemphasisonseniorityinageanddifferentiationbysexandgenerationareobserved.KinshipterminologyfollowstheHawaiiansystem.Fictiveorritualkintermsareusedwidelyandareexpressedinrespectandaffectionandalsoinmeetingappropriatekinobligations.MarriageandFamilyMarriage.Althoughpolygynywaspracticedearlier,mostmarriagestodayaremonogamous.Mostmarriagesevennowarealsoarrangedbyparents,thoughsomearebasedonthemutualchoice of themarriagepartners.OnlyinwesternOrissaandsouthernOrissaiscousinmarriagepracticed.Marriagepartnersmustnotbelongtothesamegotra(mythi-calpatrilinealdescentgroup).Bride-priceamongthelowerandmiddlecasteshasbeenreplacedbyamorecostlydowryforthebridegroomamongallclassesandcastes.Aftermar-riage,residenceispatrilocal,withthebrideassumingthegotra of thehusband.Nowadaysresidencetendstobeneo-localneartheplace of work.TheHindumarriagewasideallyforthislifeandbeyond,butsince1956divorcehasbeenper-mittedunderlegalprocedures.DomesticUnit.Livinginafamilyisconsiderednormalandproper.Mostfamiliestodayinbothvillagesandtownsarenuclear,thoughsomearejointfamilies.Membersworkingandlivingoutsideusuallyvisittheresidualfamilyandshrinesoccasionally.Oftenlandiscultivatedjointlybysharingthefarmexpenses.Recentlytherehasbeenatendencytoreducethesize of theruralhouseholdthroughfamilyplanning.Inheritance.Traditionallyonlysonsinheritedlandandotherimmovableproperties.Theeldestsonwasgivenanad-ditionalshare(jyesthansha).Since1956thewidowanddaughtershavebeenlegalcosharersinallproperty.Socialization.Parents,grandparents,andsiblingscareforinfantsandchildrenandprovideinformal-and,recently,formal-educationbeforeschool.Education of girlsisstillnotcommonbeyondprimaryschool.Physicalpunishmenttodisciplineachildiscommon,thoughinfantsareusuallysparedandcuddled.Respectforseniorsinallsituationsandthevalue of educationareemphasized,especiallyamongthehigherclasses.SociopoliticalOrganizationOrissaisastateintheRepublic of India,whichhasanelectedpresident.Thegovernoristhehead of OrissaState,andthechiefministeristheelectedhead of thegovernment of Orissa.SocialOrganization.TraditionalOriyasocietyishierarchi-callyorganizedprimarilyonthebasis of caste(andsubcaste)andoccupationsandsecondarilyonthebasis of socialclass.Thehighestcastes,Brahman,arepriestsandteachers of theGreatTradition.Belowthemindescendingorder of statusare:theKshatriya,warriorsandrulers;theVaisya,ortraders;andtheSudra,orskilledandunskilledworkersandserviceholders.Theoccupationsinvolvingmanualandmenialworkarelowinstatus,andpollutingoccupationslikeskinningdeadanimalsormakingshoesareassociatedwiththelowestcastes,theUn-touchables.Ascriptivestatusinthecastesystemissometimescheckednowbyacquiredstatusintheclasssystem.InruralOrissapatron-clientrelationshipsarecommonandsocialmo-bilityisdifficultPoliticalOrganization.Orissaisdividedintothirteendis-tricts(tilla),andeachdistrictisdividedintosubdivisions(tahsils)foradministrativepurposes,intopolicestations(thana)forlaw-and-orderpurposes,andintocommunitydevelopmentblocs(blok)fordevelopmentpurposes.Therearevillage-clustercommittees(panchayatjwithelectedmem-bersandahead(sarpanch)forthelowestlevel of self.administrationanddevelopment.Thecommunitydevelop-mentblochasapanchayatsamitiorcouncil of panchayatsheadedbythechairman,withallthesarpanchasmembers.Eachcasteorpopuloussubcasteinagroup of adjacentvil-lagesalsohadajatipanchayatforenforcingvaluesandinsti-tutionaldiscipline.Thetraditionalgrampanchayat,consist-ing of theleaders of severalimportantcastesinavillage,wasformaintainingharmonyandtheritualcycle.SocialControlandConflict.WarfarebetweenadjacentprincedomsandvillagescametoastopunderBritishrule.Thepolicestations(thana)maintainlawandorderintheruralareas.ReligionandExpressiveCultureHinduism of varioussectsisacentralandunifyingforceinOriyasociety.TheoverwhelminglyimportantVaishnavasecthavetheirsupremedeity,Jagannatha,wholordsitoverthere-216ut ... Jtheirmothertongue.With34.23percentliteracyin1981comparedto26.18percentin1971,OrissatrailsbehindmanyIndianstates,especiallyinfemaleliteracy.linguisticAffiliation.OriyabelongstotheIndo-AryanBranch of theIndo-EuropeanFamily of languages.ItsclosestaffinitiesarewithBengali(Bangla),Assamese(Asamiya),Maithili,Bhojpuri,andMagahi(Magadhi).TheOriyaspo-keninCuttackandPuridistrictsistakenasstandardOriya.TheOriyalanguagehasadistinctivescript,traceabletosixth-centuryinscriptions.Ithasthirteenvowelsandthirty-sixcon-sonants(linguistically,spokenOriyahassixvowels,twosemivowels,andtwenty-nineconsonants).HistoryandCulturalRelationsOrissahasbeeninhabitedsinceprehistorictimes,andPaleo-lithic,Mesolithic,Neolithic,andChalcolithicculturalre.mainsabound.BythefourthcenturyB.C.therewasacentral-izedstateinOrissa,thoughthehillareasoftennurturedindependentprincedomsmostlyevolvingout of tribalpoli-ties.In261B.C.,Orissa,thenknownasKalinga,wascon-queredbytheEmperorAshokaafterabloodyKalingawar,leadingtotheconversion of thekingintoanonviolentBud-dhistwhospreadBuddhismin Asia. Intheearlysecondcen-turyB.C.EmperorKharavela,aJainbyreligionandagreatconqueror,hadthefamousqueen'scave-palace,Rani-gumpha,cutintothemountainnearBhubaneswar,withex-quisitesculpturesdepictingdancersandmusicians.BotheasternandwesternOrissahadfamousBuddhistmonaster-ies,universities,andcreativesavants.Startinginthefirstcen-turyA.D.,accordingtoPlinyandothers,therewasextensivemaritimetradeandculturalrelationsbetweenOrissa(Ka-linga,Kling)andSoutheastAsiancountriesfromMyanmar(Burma)toIndonesia.OrissawasruledunderseveralHindudynastiesuntil1568,whenitwasannexedbytheMuslimkingdom of Bengal.In1590,OrissacameundertheMogulempire,untiltheMarathasseizeditin1742.In1803itcameunderBritishrule.Asearlyas1817theagriculturistmilitia(Paik) of OrissarevoltedagainsttheBritishinone of thefirstregionalanticolonialmovements.In1936Orissawasde-claredaprovince of BritishIndia,andtheprincelystateswithanOriyapopulationweremergedintoOrissain194 8-1 949.The cultures andlanguages of south India,westernIndia,andnorthernIndia-andalsothose of thetribalpeoples-haveenrichedtheculturalmosaicandthevocabulary of theOriya.SettlementsIn1981,88.21percent of thepeople of Orissalivedinvilages.In1971,51,417villages of Orissarangedinpopulationfromlessthan500persons(71.9percent),50 0-9 00persons(18.8percent),1,00 0-1 ,999persons(7.5percent),tomorethan2,000persons(1.78percent).TheOriyavillagesfallintotwomajortypes:linearandclustered.Thelinearsettle-mentpatternisfoundmostlyin ... PuriandGanjamdistricts,withhousesalmostinacontinuouschainonbothsides of theinterveningvillagepathandwithkitchengardensattheback of thehouses.Cultivatedfieldssurroundthesettlement.Intheclusterpatterneachhousehasacompoundwithfruittreesandakitchengarden.TheScheduledCastesliveinlin.earorclusterhamletsslightlyawayfromthemain-settlement,withtheirownwatertanksor,today,theirownwells.Inthefloodedcoastalareasonefindssomedispersedhouses,eachsurroundedbyfieldsforcultivation.IntraditionalOrissa,twostyles of houses(ghara)werecommon.Theagriculturistsandhighercasteshadhouses of arectangulargroundplanwithroomsalongallthesides(khanja-ghara),leavinganopenspace(agana)inthecenter.Mudwallswithagabledroof of thatchmade of paddystalksorjunglegrass(moredurable)werecommon.Themoreaffluenthaddouble-ceilinghouses(atughara)withtheinnerceiling of mudplastersupportedbywoodenorbambooplanks.Thisconstructionmadeitfire-proofandinsulatedagainstthesummerheatandwinterchill.Theentranceroomwasusuallyacowshed,ascattlewerethewealth of thepeople.Menmetvillagersandguestsonthewidefrontveranda.Poorerpeoplehadhouseswithmudwallsandstraw-thatchedgableroofs,withoutenclosedcourtyardsordoubleceilings.Thesmokefromthekitchenescapedunderthegabledroof.TheOriyahad,incommonwitheast-ernIndia,awoodenhuskinglever(dhenki)inthecourtyardfordehuskingpaddyriceormakingriceflour.Nowadayshouseswithlargewindowsanddoors,roofs of concrete(tiledorwithcorrugatedironorasbestossheets),walls of brickandmortar,andcementfloorsarebecomingcommoneveninre-motevillages.Inthetraditionalhouse,thenortheasterncor-ner of thekitchenformedthesacredsite of theancestralspir-its(ishana)forfamilyworship.EconomySubsistenceandCommercialActivities.Subsistencecul-tivation of paddyisubiquitousasriceisthestaplefood.Double-cropping,sometimeseventriple-croppinginirrigatedfields,andsingle-croppingindrought-affectedorrain-fedareasareallcommon.Large-scalefarmingwithheavyagricul-turalmachineryisstilluncommon.Plowingwithtwobullocksortwobuffaloisusual,withawoodenplow.Onlyrecentlyhaveironplowsbeencomingintouse.Cashcropslikesugar-cane,jute,betelleavesonraisedmounds,coconutsandarecanuts(betelnuts)aregrownincoastalOrissa,andpulsesandoilseedsindrought-proneareas.Recentlycoffee,cocoa,car-damom,pineapples,andbananashavealsobeenraisedonacommercialscale.Fisharecaughtintrapsandnetsfromvil-lagetanks,streams,rivers,coastalswamps,andalsointhefloodedpaddyfields.Fishingboatswithoutboardmotorsandtrawlersarenowadaysusedatsea.Thedomesticanimalsin-cludecows,goats,cats,chickens,ducks,andwaterbuffaloamongthelowestcastes,aswellaspigsanddogsamongtheurbanmiddleclass.IndustrialArts.Mostlargevillageshadcastes of artisanswhoservedtheagriculturaleconomyinformertimes.Car-penters,wheelwrights,andblacksmithswereabsolutelynec-essary.Somevillageshadpotterswithpotterywheelsandweaverswithcottagelooms(cottonwasformerlygrownandyamspun).Today,industrialproductsaredisplacingthevil-lageproductsexceptforthewoodenplowandcartwheels.Somecottageindustries,especiallythehandloomedtextiles(includingtheweaving of ikat,cottontextilesthataretiedanddyed),areproducingforexport.Brassandbell-metalutensilsandstatuesandsilverandgoldfiligreeornamentshaveawideclientele.214OkkaligaOkkaligaETHNONYMS:GangadikiraOkkalu,thepeasantcaste,Vokkaliga,WokkaligaTheOkkaligasarethedominantlandowningandculti-vatingcasteinthemulticastepopulation of southernKarnatakaStateinsouthwesternpeninsularIndia.Amongthehundreds of villagesinwhichOkkaligasliveisRampura(population1,523,735 of whomareOkkaligas,ca.1955),whichisthefocus of thisentryandwhichdisplaysmany of thefeaturestypical of OkkaligavillagesinIndia.Thevillage of RampuraislocatedontheMysore-Hogurbusroadabout32kilometersfromMysore.Thevillageisacluster of housesandhutswiththatchedortiledroofs;nar-row,unevenwindingstreetsrunningbetweentherows of houses.Surroundingthevillagearenumerousplotsownedbyindividuallandowners.Rampuraisaninterdependentunit,largelyself-sufficient,havingitsownvillageassembly(panchayat),watch,ward,officials,andservants.Inthemulticastevillage of Rampuratherelationship of castesap-pearstobedeterminedmorebytheeconomicpositions of thevariousmembersthanbytradition.Asagricultureisthepri-maryway of lifethepeasantsarethedominantcaste.Thehe-reditaryheadman(patel)andhereditaryaccountant(shan-borg)arebothpeasants.Theheadman'sresponsibilityistorepresentthevillagetothegovernmentandviceversa.Theaccountantkeepsaregister of howmuchlandeachhead of afamilyorjointfamilyhasandtheamount of taxontheland.Theelders of thedominantcastearespokespersonsforthevillageandowetheirpowernottolegalrightsderivedfromthestatebuttothedominantlocalposition of theircaste.Theelders of thedominantpeasantcasteinRampuraadmin-isterjusticenotonlytomembers of theirowncastegroupbutalsotoallpersons of othercasteswhoseektheirintervention.Agriculturedominatesvillagelife.Thecultivation of riceisthemainactivityinthevillage.Meticulousattentiontoandirrigation of thericeisnecessarythroughouttheperiod of cul-tivation,therainyseasonfromJunetoJanuary.Theconclu-sion of theharvestismarkedbythefestival of Sankranti.Dur-ingthedryseasonothersocialactivitiessuchasweddingsoccur.Each of theseventeencasteslivinginRampurahasadis-tinctivetraditionwithstrongtieswiththesamecasteinvil-lagesnearby.Thevillagehasaverticalunity of manycasteswhereaseachcastehasahorizontalunitythroughalliancesbeyondthevillage.OthermajorcastesandtheirtraditionaloccupationsincludetheKuruba(shepherd),theMusalman(artisanandtrader),Holeya(servantandlaborer),andtheMadiga(Harijans).Althoughpaddyandmilletgrainwereprincipallyusedintrade,moneyisusedmorefrequentlytoday.Maintenance of casteseparationwasachievedthroughideas of purityandpollution.Beliefsandbehaviorsincludingdiet,occupation,andritualdistinguishhigherfromlowercastes.Twoexamples of thisaretherulesgoverningtheac-ceptance of waterorcookedfoodbetweencastesandtherule of casteendogamy.Atonetimeitwascustomaryfortwofamilies,onebe-longingtoanuppercasteandtheothertoanUntouchablecaste,tobelinkedinamaster-servantrelationship(jajmani).Independencehasbegunaprocess of socialchangeinwhichmany of thetraditionalformsandordershavebeenreplaced.TheregionallanguageisKannadaandtheprincipalreli-gionisHindu.TheprincipaltemplesinRampuraarethetem-ples of Rama,Basava,HattiMad,andKabbalaDurgadaMan.Theseareendowedwithagriculturalland.Thekingroupisagnaticwithpreferenceforcross-cousinmarriage.TraditionallytheOkkaligasliveinjointfamilieswiththewifejoiningthehome of herhusband'sfamily.SinceIndependencethejointfamilieshavetendedtobecomesmaller.Thereisafairlystrictsexualdivision of laborwithfewwomenworkingoutsidethehome.Boysworkonthelandearly,whilegirlsworkinandaroundthehouse.AnOkkaligaisburiedonhisorherancestralland;andthelandisanim-portantpart of one'slifefromanearlyage.BibliographyBanerjee,Bhavani(1966).MarriageandKinship of theGan-gadikaraVokkaligas of Mysore.DeccanCollegeDissertationSeries,no.27.Poona:DeccanCollege.Nanjundayya,H.V.,andL.K.AnanthakrishnaIyer(1930).'GangadikiraOkkalu."TheMysoreTribesandCastes3:17 5- 185.Mysore:MysoreUniversity.Srinivas,M.N.(1963)."TheSocialStructure of aMysoreVillage."InIndia'sVillages,editedbyM.N.Srinivas,2 1-3 5.Bombay: Asia PublishingHouse.Srinivas,M.N.(1976).TheRememberedVillage.Berkeley:University of CaliforniaPress.SARAJ.DICKOraonETHNONYMS:Dhangad,Dhangar,Dhanka("farmworker"),Kisan,Kuda,Kurukh,Kurunkh,Orao,UraonTheOraonsareone of thelargesttribesin South Asia, numbering1,702,663personsatthe1971census.Abouthalf of themliveinBihar,mainlyontheChotaNagpurPlateau;theremainderareinMadhyaPradesh,Orissa,andWestBengal.TheyspeakaDravidianlanguageknownasKurukh.OraonsarecloselyrelatedtotheneighboringMundatribe,andtheheadman of anOraonvillageiscalledmunda.AlthoughtherearenosubcastesamongtheOraons,theKudas('navvies")andKisans("cultivators"),havingtheirdistinctoccupations,tendtomarryamongthemselves.Be-yondthis,Oraonsobservevillageandclanexogamy.Thepat-rilinealextendedfamilyistheidealresidentialunit,butnu-clearfamiliesarenearlyascommon.Ontheaverageafamilycontainsfivetosevencoresidentmembers....

... thefourmajorDravidianlanguages of south India.Theycanbeconsideredacasteandareendogamous.Location.KeralaStateliesatthesouthernmostextremity of thepeninsulabetween8'18'and12°48'Nandbetween74°52'and77'22'Eandstretchesalongtheshores of theSherpa257sitytuitionandperhapsahotlycontestedplaceinamedicalcollege,whileaBrahmangirlfromapoorfamily,whohasmuchhigherexaminationmarksthanhe,maybedeniedadmission.BibliographyBiteille,Andre(1969)."TheFuture of theBackwardClasses."InCastes:OldandNew,EssaysinSocialStructureandSocialStratification,editedbyAndreBiteille,10 3-1 45.Bombay: Asia PublishingHouse.Ghurye,G.S.(1963).TheScheduledTribes.3rded.Bombay:PopularPrakashan.Mahar,J.Michael,ed.(1972).TheUntouchablesinContem-poraryIndia.Tucson:University of ArizonaPress.PAULHOCKINGSSheikhETHNONYM:ShaikhTheSheikhsareSunniMuslims,widespreadinnorthernandcentralIndiaaswellasPakistanandall of Bangladesh. Of thefourmainMuslimgroupsin South Asia, theSheikhsranksecond,belowtheSayyidsbutabovethePathansandMoguls.WhileintheorythereisnocastehierarchyinIslam,inpracticepeoplefromthesefourgroupsdonotusuallymarryoneanother;however,insomeareasintermarriagemayoccur,withSheikhsinparticularmarryingSayyids.Whilethelattergroupsare"Ashraf" (of foreign,MiddleEasternori-gin),theSheikhsareultimately of localHinduorigin,al-thoughtheirancestorsmayhaveconvertedtoIslammanycenturiesago.Sheikhsareengagedinawidevariety of urbanandagriculturaloccupations.Mentakethetitle"Sheikh"or"Mohammed"beforetheirnames,andwomenhave"Bibi"aftertheirnames.SeealsoMogul;Muslim;Pathan;SayyidSherpaETHNONYM:SharpaOrientationIdentification.TheSherpasareone of theBhotia,theTibetan-relatedethnicgroupsinhabitingseveralhighvalleysinnortheasternNepal.TheypracticetheNyingmapa,or.old"version of TibetanBuddhism.Thename'Sherpa,"Ti-betansharpa,means"easterner,"referringtotheiroriginintheeasternTibetanregion of Khams.Location.Themainpresenthomeland of theSherpasisSolu-Khumbuinthenorthernpart of theSagarmathaDis-trictineasternNepal.ThemainvalleyssettledbySherpasaretheKhumbu,Pharak,Shorong(NepaliSolu),Arun,andRolwaling.TherearealsopermanentSherpasettlementsintheNepalicapital,Kathmandu,andintheIndianhilltowns of Darijeeling,Kalimpong,Siliguri,andothers.MostSherpavillagesinNepalareatelevationsbetween2,400and3,600meters,onthesouthernslopes of theHimalayanrange,con-centratedaroundthebase of theEverestmassif.Demography.Anestimate of Sherpapopulationplacesthematabout20,000or25,000,mostlylivingintheSolu-Khumbuarea,butwithcolonies of severalthousandeachinKathmanduandDarjeeling.Theythusconstitutelessthan1percent of thetotalpopulation of Nepal.Itappearsthatpop-ulationinSolu-Khumbuisremainingstableor,ifanything,declining,partlyduetoout-migrationtothetowns.inguisticAffiliation.TheSherpalanguageisadialect of Tibetan,andthusitisapart of theTibeto-BurmanFamily of languages,towhichmany of theotherlanguages of Nepalalsobelong.AllSherpas speakNepali,theofficiallanguage of Nepal.WhilethereisnoSherpawritingsystem,manySherpasareliterateinTibetan,Nepali,andinsomecasesHindiandEnglishaswell.HistoryandCulturalRelationsThepresent-daySherpasarethedescendants of asmallgroup of familieswhoemigratedfromtheKhamsregion of TibetacrosstheHimalayanrangeinthemiddle of thesixteenthcenturyundertheleadership of agreatlama,orreligiouspre-ceptor.Thevalleysintowhichtheymovedappeartohavebeensparselysettledatthetime of theirarrival.Theylivedbyraisingfieldcropsintheclearedforestlandandherdinglive-stock,includingyaks,cows,andyak-cowcrossbreeds,prizedfortheirexcellentmilk,inthehigherpastures.Duringthenineteenthcentury,undertheaegis of theBritishRajinIndiaandtheRanadynastyinNepal,someSherpastookadvantage of theirlocationneartheNanapaLa,or"InsidePass"be-tweenTibetandNepal,toestablishthemselvesasintermedi-ariesintraderouteslinkingChinaandtheIndiansubconti-nent,usingtheyakasatransportanimalideallysuitedtoalpinecaravans.Theintroduction of theIrishpotatointotheregioninthemiddle of thenineteenthcenturyaddedprosper-itytotheregion:thisallowedfordensersettlementsinthehighvillages of Khumbuabovethetreelinebutnearthepassandtheyakpastures.Thepotatoisnowthemainstaplecrop of theSherpas;beforeitsintroduction,theysubsistedongrain,especiallybarley,anddairyproducts.Intheyearsfol-lowingtheopening of Nepaltothewest,aftertherestoration of theShahamonarchyin1952,mountaineeringandtourismbecamemajorindustries.SherpasfromDarjeelinghadal-readyestablishedareputationasableassistantsonBritishsurveyingandmountaineeringexpeditionsbythebeginning of thecentury.Theconquest of MountEverest(inNepali,Sagarmatha;inSherpa,Chomolungma)in1953byaBritishteamrelyingonSherpaportersandguides-withaSherpaSherpa259ried,andreceivedtheirshares of theinheritance,parentsaresupposedtobehousedbytheyoungestson.Inheritance.Landandherdsaredividedequallyamongallmaleheirs,whoarealsosupposedtobegivennewlybuiltoracquiredhousesonthefinalization of theirmarriages.Monksandnunsreceivetheirsharesupontheirordination.Femaleheirsreceiveafairdivision of movablepropertyatmarriage,includinganimals,jewelry,copperware,andcash.Familieswithoutmaleheirsmaytakeinanadoptiveson-in-lawasheir.Theyoungestbrotherinheritstheparents'house,whiletheoldestbrothergenerallyinheritsofficesortitles.Socialization.Childrearingishandledmainlybymothersandbyoldersistersifthereareany.Fathersarenurturanttochildren,butSherpalifeentailslongandfrequentpaternalabsence ... of thePathanstoIslamwerealsocalled"Sayyids"iftheycamefromthewest,and'Sheikhs"iftheycamefromtheeast;hence,doubtless,manyPathansfalselyclaimSayyidorigin.InAfghanistantheSayyidscontrolmuch of thecommerce,astheirholycharac-ETHNONYMS:Adivasis,BackwardClassesTheIndianconstitution(1949)createdbroadcategories of underprivilegedgroupsintheRepublic of Indiathatweretobetheobject of specialadministrativeandwelfareefforts.Threecategorieswerenamed,thoughnotclearlydefined:ScheduledCastes,ScheduledTribes,andotherBackwardClasses.Veryroughly,thesewerecomprisedrespectively of (1)UntouchablesorHarijans;(2)virtuallyallAdivasisortribes;and(3)othereconomicallydisadvantagedgroupsnotincludedin(1)or(2).In1981Indiahadanestimated105millionScheduledCastemembersand52millionpeopleinScheduledTribes.Thecategory of otherBackwardClasses,alwaysnebulousandfluctuating,isdifficulttoenumerate.Butwhichcastesandtribesweretobesingledoutforthisspecialattention,attheexpense(literallyandfiguratively) of theremainder of thepopulation?Thisburningandeconomi-callyimportantquestionwassolvedformillions of concernedpeoplebythepublication of listsorschedules(whichhavebeenrevisedseveraltimes)thatlistedbynamethosecastesandtribesthatweretobeeligible.TheselistswerecreatedatthenationallevelforScheduledTribesandCastes,andattheprovinciallevelforotherBackwardClasses.TribalandHarijanwelfaredepartmentsweresetupineachstatetoad-ministerthebenefitsthatweremadeavailable.Overthefirstfortyyears of operationtheyhavenodoubtdonemuchtooutlawthepractice of Untouchability,raiseeducationalstan-dards,andprovidepublichealthfacilities.Theframers of theIndianconstitutionthoughtthatthesebenefitsshouldbeprovidedfortwentyyears;but,asitturnedout,thoseeligiblehavefoughttenaciouslytoretaintheirspecialbenefits-andhencetheir"backwardstatus"-rightuptothepresent.Thegreatweaknessinthewholeconcept of specialprivilegesforselectcategories of thepopulation,especiallytoday,isthatnomeanstestisrequired of anindividualbeneficiary.Thus,aScheduledCasteyouth,forexample,whosefatherisaverywealthytimbermerchant,willstillbeeligibleforfreeuniver-.Sadhu251SadhuSYNONYMS:Baba,Jogi,Mahatma,Muni,Sant,Sanyasi,Swami,Tapasi,Tapsawi,Yati,YogiOrientationIdentification.Thetermsadhuisappliedindividuallytoanyone of themillions of mendicantasceticsinformallyaffil-iatedwiththedisparateHindureligiousorders of India.Most of thesewanderingholypersonsaremale,butwomen(calledsadhvin,feminine of sadhu)arealsorepresentedintheirranks.AtonetimeonlyBrahmanswereabletobeadmittedtotheseasceticorders.Later,admissionwasgrantedtomem-bers of anycaste.Sadhusareexpectedtoadoptasceticprac-tices,observecertainreligiousregulations,andteachorren-derservicetothoseinneed.Theirasceticpracticesincludethedeparturefromfamilyandhome,theapplication of bod-ilymarkingsoftenassociatedwithaparticularsect,thewear-ing of attireassociatedwithaparticularsect(orbeingpar-tiallyortotallynaked),thegrowth of haironlyonfiveimportantbodilyparts(thehead,upperjaw,chin,armpits,andpubicregion)orthecompleteshaving of thebody,theadoption of amendicantorsedentarylife-style,andthede-pendenceonthegoodness of othersfordailysurvival.Theirreligiousdutiesincludeacts of self-purification,worship,par-ticipationinreligiousdiscourses,thestudy of sacredlitera-ture,andthemaking of pilgrimages.Theconsolation of thoseindistress,preachingandteaching of religioustenets,thegranting of assistancetothepoor,andtheopening of schoolsandhospitalsareexamples of theservicesthatsadhusareex-pectedtorendertothelargersociety.SadhusarefoundthroughoutIndiaandNepalandarenotconfinedtoanypar-ticulargeographicallocale.Itisbelievedthattherearesome5millionormoreasceticsaffiliatedwithseveralthousand"schools"orsects of sadhuslivinginvariousparts of South Asia. Asmendicants,theydonotformdistinctcommunities.HistoryandCulturalRelationsTherearethreemajorHindureligiousorders:theVaishnava,theShaiva,andtheShakta. Of these,theShaivasectseemstohavethelargestnumber of devotees.Thesehavespawnednumeroussubdivisions.ItisbelievedbysomethatShaivismrepresentstheoriginalreligiousfaith of India,alreadyinplacebeforethearrival of theAryans.Theordersaremuchsplin-tered,theresultbeingthecurrentexistence of numerous.sects."Someareorthodoxwhileothersarereformistorradi-cal.Theroots of Hinduasceticismmaybetracedtothefour-folddivision of lifeoutlinedinVedicliterature.Thesestagesare:brahmacarin(thelife of thepupil);grhastha(thelife of thehouseholder,whichincludesmarriage,procreation,andthepractice of acraft);vanaprastha(thelife of theforesther-mit,resortedtowhenthetransitorynature of worldlypleas-uresisrealized);andsannyasin(thelife of thewanderingbeg-garwhohasrenouncedallworldlyties).Onemayclaimtobeanasceticwithouthavingpassedthroughall of theaforemen-tionedstages of life.Inmoderntimessomeasceticshavecho-sentocontinueinthemaritalstate.Thisrepresentsadepar-turefromearlierpractice.SettlementsSadhusliveeitherinmonasteries(calledasrama,matha,ormandira),iftheyhaveelectedtoleadasedentarylife-style,oratpilgrimageshrinesastemporaryresidents.Eachsectusu-allymaintainsatleastone of thesereligiouscenters.Themo-nasticlife-styleisaustere,emphasisbeingplacedontheculti-vation of self-controlanddiscipline.Thedailyroutineincludesexercisesintendedtopurifythephysicalbody,ele-vatementalcapacity(e.g.,throughthereading of sacredliter-ature),andenhanceecstaticexperiences(e.g.,throughcor-porateprayer).Provisionisalsomadesothatthelaypatrons of themonastery(whoprovideitschiefmeans of supportthroughbhetapuja,"honorificofferings")mayreceivethebenefit of thespiritualcounsel of theresidentascetics(bymeans of preachingandteaching).Monasterieshaveastheirorganizingconceptthetradition(sampradaya)associatedwithaparticularteacher(acarya)whofirstcodifiedthebeliefsystem of theorder.Monasticaffiliationisusuallyindicatedbythesymbolsappliedtospecificbodilyparts,clothingcolor,andadditionalitemsintheascetic'spossession(e.g.,rosary,waterpot,andstaff).EconomySadhusarealmosttotallydependentonthealms of othersforsubsistence.Inaddition,theymayalsosupportthemselvesbyengaginginany of thefollowingactivities:begging,servingasspiritualmentorstopersonaldisciples,interpretingdreams,tellingfortunes,readingpalms,astrology,manufacturingam-ulets,performingexorcisms,castingspells,singing,conjuring,juggling,tattooing,orsellingmedicinalherbsandpotions.Sadhusareparticularlywellknownforthemanufacture of thekavacha(talismanoramulet),whichprovidesthebearerwithprotectionfromevilforcesorguaranteesthepresence of ben-eficentones.MarriageandFamilyTherenunciation of familylifeandthemarriedstatearechar-acteristic of theasceticlife.Ithasbeensuggestedthatmaritalbreakdownis,infact,one of themotivatingfactorsintheadoption of mendicantlifebysomesadhus.Somemayneverhavebeenmarried.Anindividualasceticmay,athisdiscre-tion,choosediscipleswhoserveapprenticeshipsunderhim.Alternately,youngchildren(orphans,runaways,andothers)maybededicatedtotheservice of anorder.Afteraperiod of training(whichmaylastweeks,months,oryears),theyaresentouttofulfilltheirsocioreligiousdutieswithinthecon-text of thelargersociety.YetathirdroutetosocializationasasadhuinvolvesfollowingtheVedicprogression of lifestages.Animportantpart of theinitiationprocessisthechanging of thenatalname.Thismayinvolvetheaddition of suffixestoitorthecompletealteration of thename.Ingeneral,thenewnameidentifiestheplace of theinitiatewithintheorderandasavotary of aparticulargod.ReligionandExpressiveCultureGeneralizationswithregardtothereligiousbeliefs of sadhusarenoteasilymadeduetotheheterogeneouscharacter of Hinduasceticism.Theirworshipisdirectedtodiversegods of primaryandsecondaryimportanceintheHindupantheon. Of thevarioussadhureligiousrituals,that of thedhuni(sa-262SikhBibliographyBarrier,N.Gerald(1970).TheSikhsandTheirLiterature.NewDelhi:Manohar.Barrier,N.Gerald,andVanDusenbery,eds.(1990).TheSikhDiaspora.NewDelhi:Chanakya.McLeod,W.H.(1990).TheSikhs.NewYork:ColumbiaUni-versityPress.McLeod,W.H.(1990).WhoIsaSikh.Oxford:OxfordUni-versityPress.O'Connell,Joseph,etal.,eds.(1988).SikhHistoryandReli-gionintheTwentiethCentury. South Asia Series.Toronto:University of TorontoPress.N.GERALDBARRIERmasses of snowandicemovedownwardslowlyintheform of glaciersandgreatavalanches.Theavalanchesareanever-presentsource of dangerinnorthernSikkim.Thecontinuouscreakingandgroaning of themovingiceandtheroar of ava-lanchescombinetocreateasense of instabilityandappre-hension.TheSikkimesetribesregardKanchenjungaastheseat of anall-powerfulgod.Theoutstandingfeature of thephysicallandscapeintheSikkimHimalayasisthevariety of temperaturezonesandvegetation.Onthelowestlevel,lessthan300metersabovesealevel,tropicalgrowthflourishes.Fromthebottomvalleys,onemovesnorthtothesubtropicalzonethatfinallyleadstothealpineregion.TheofficiallanguageisEnglish,thoughcomparativelyfewspeakit;SikkimeseandGurkhaliaretheprimarylan-guages.Existinglanguagedivisionsdonotaffecttheoverallpoliticalstability of Sikkimbecausethepeoplearebondedto-getherbywhattheycall"afeeling of kinship."SettlementsNearly50,000peopleareconcentratednearthekingdom'sprincipalurbancenterandcapital,Gangtok.Thecapitalisimportantcommerciallyaswellasadministratively.Gangtokisthecenterpoint of thestate'spoliticalandeconomiccore.SikkimeseETHNONYMS:noneOrientationTheSikkimeseliveintheHimalayankingdom of Sikkim,withapopulation of 316,385in1981.Tibet,Nepal,India,andBhutanalltouchtheborders of thiskingdom.TheSikki-meseliveinvillages of woodenbuildingsthathugtheHima-layanslopes.TheSikkimeseeasilytraversepassesthatgiveac-cesstotheTibetanChumbiValley.ThecountryoccupiesacommandingpositionoverthehistoricKalimpong-Lhasatraderoute.IndiaandTibethavefrequentlyintervenedinSikkim'sinternalaffairs.TheBritishIndiangovernmentpar-ticularlyputpressureupontheSikkimeseforaccesstocentral Asia. Sikkimisthepoliticalcore of thelargerformerking-dom,andmorerecentlytheSikkimesefeelverystronglyaboutkeepingtheLhasaroutebetweenIndiaandChinaundertheircontrol.Sikkim'slocationfavorsadynamicroleininternationalrelationsbetweenthetwogreatpowers of Asia, IndiaandChina.Themountainousenvironment of Sikkimisgenerallyin-hospitable.Thereareadversesurfacefeaturesthatseriouslyimpedehumandevelopmentoverlargeareas;cultivatedlandamountstoonlyasmallproportion of thetotalarea of thekingdom.Theharshclimatedamageseconomicdevelop-ment.TheSikkimeseliveinanenclosedbasinnearly65ki-lometerswide,placedbetweentwodeeplydissectednorth- south transverseridgesstretchingfor125kilometers.Ahugemountainmasssome19kilometers south of themainchain of theHimalayascalledtheKanchenjungarangeconstitutesadistinctivephysicalunit of Sikkim.Therangereceivesheavydischargesfromthemonsoon,anditiscoveredwithsnowandiceasmuchasahundredormoremetersthick.TheseEconomyAgriculturehastraditionallybeenthemajorfeature of Sik-kim'seconomy.Farminghasbeeninfluencedbythenature of theterrainandbythediversity of climaticconditions.InSikkimeseagricultureattentionisdividedamongstaplecerealcrops,commercialspecialtycrops,animals,andanimalprod-ucts.Riceandcornleadinhectaresplanted,butcardamom,citrusfruits,apples,andpineapplesentertradechannelsandsoarebetterknown.Potatoesarethemajorcashcrop.Sheep,goats,cattle,yaks,andmulesareabundant.Theanimalssupportthepopulationinthehighmountainvalleys.Thepastoralindustriesfurnishwool,skins,hides,andsurpluscommodities.Aboutone-third of Sikkim's7,096squarekilometers of mountainousterritoryisforested.Forestsareconsideredone of thekingdom'sgreatestassets.Therearevaluableplanta-tions of sal(Shorearobusta,acommontimbertreethatisasource of inexpensivebuildingmaterials),sisal(asource of cordage),andbamboo.Sincethe1960sSikkim'sminingcor-porationhasbeeninstrumentalinsponsoringsystematicmineraldevelopment.Copper,lead,andzincareminedinlargequantities.InSikkim'sforeststherearerawmaterialsformanufacture of paperpulp,matches,furniture,packingboxes,andteachests.Sikkim'sdevelopmenthasbeense-verelysloweddownbythelack of powersupplies.AmajorstrategicroadwasbuiltbytheIndianarmyengi-neersandIndia'sBorderRoadDevelopmentBoard.Thisroadis240kilometerslongandiscalledtheNorthSikkimHighway.ThehighwaythatconnectsGangtokwiththenorthernborderareaswascompletedin1962byIndia.Con-structionworkontheroadstartedin1958,butseveralfactorsslowedtheproject.Besidestheengineeringproblems,one of themaindifficultieswassupplyingfoodforsuchalargelaborforce:therewereabout6,000workersduringpeakperiods.Sora269bringsSoraintoconflictwiththeForestryDepartrm.ent,inwhomownership of nonirrigatedlandisvested.Sora-atmostkinds of animals,eitherdomesticanimalssacrificedforritesorhuntedwildanimals.TheSoradietisbasedonawaterygruelorporridge,withagarnish of vegetablesormeatwhenavailable.Theyusefewspicesandnooil,sincecookingisdoneonlybyboiling.Theydrinkpalmwineandnevermilk.TeaisusedbyChristians,whohavegivenupalcohol.IndustrialArts.Soramanufacturemosteverydayarticlesthemselvesout of trees,leaves,stones,andearth.Housesarebuiltentirelybyworkparties of friendsandrelatives.Peoplemaketheirowntools,bowsandarrows,andotherobjects.Al.thoughSorausestore-boughtaluminumdishesinthehouse,theystitchtogetherlargeleaveswithsplinters of bambootoformbowlsforuseoutdoors.Trade.Othernecessitiesareboughtinneighboringtownsorinweeklymarkets(hat)heldatsiteswheretheplainsmeetthehills.Here,merchantsfromtheplainssellclothing,ironaxeheadsandplowtips,salt,chilies,andjewelry.RecentlytheSorahavegivenupmakingtheirownpotteryandmatsandsonowtheybuythesetoo.ThelocalPanopopulationalsotravelsaroundSoravillagessellingsoap,tobacco,andothersmallarticles.Individualtradersbuilduplong-termre-lationswithparticularSoravillagesandcustomers.Themostimportantcommoditiessoldinthiswayarebuffaloforsacri-fice,sincethesecansupposedlynotbebredintheSorahills.Inreturn,theSorasellvariousmilletsandforestproduceliketamarind,whichisingreatdemandamongcasteHindusforcurries.Thequantitiessoldareenormousandthepricesre-ceivedarelow.Theneedtokeepsellingcontributestotheec-ologicaldegradation of theSorahills,sincecultivationisnotsimplyforsubsistence.Division of Labor.Poorerpeopleworkforhireinthefields,buttheegalitarianethos of reciprocalworkparties(onsir)isstrong.Themostimportantspecializedoccupationisthat of theshaman.Therearealsohereditarylineages of vil-lageheads,deputyheads,pyrelighters,andpriests of thevil-lagedeity(kidtung).All of thesearemaleexceptfortheocca-sionalvillagehead.Thespecialistlineages of potters,basketweavers,andblacksmithshavelargelyabandonedtheircraftandtheircustomersnowbuyinthemarket.Buttherelationsbetweentheselineagesandtherest of thepopulationarestillstronglyexpressedduringrites.Althoughtheyperformcon-ventionaltasks,men'sandwomen'srolesarenotasstrictlydividedasinmanyIndiansocietiesandthereisnotask ... astradeandlightmining.Marginalemploymentisavailableformanyintea,rubber,andcoconutprocessing.IndustrialArts.TheclassicalSinhaleseachievedremark-ablefeatsinirrigationengineering,butthetechnologywaslostinthecollapse of thedryzonecivilizationsandSinhalesetodayshowlittleinterestinengineering,mathematics,orsci-ence,preferringliberalartssubjects."Hands-on"technicalworkisstigmatizedbylinkagestolow-casteoccupations,serve.ingtoinhibitchildren'shobbies,vocationaleducation,andtechnologicalliteracy,whileWesternimportshaveallbutwipedouttraditionalartsandcrafts.EffortstoindustrializeSriLankahavemetwithlittlesuccess,andthecountryshowsone of thelowestrates of industrialgrowth of any South Asiancountrysinceitsindependence.Severeandgrowingunemploymentandlandlessness,particularlyamongruralyouth,hascontributedtotheJVPyouthmilitancy.Trade.Apartfromtheprevalence of subsistenceagricul-ture,theSriLankanruraleconomyisalmostcompletelycash-based,withbarterandreciprocityrestrictedtokin-grouptransactions.Villageboutiquesinvolvevillagersindebtthatfrequentlyresultsinanimpecuniousfarmerbecominglittlemorethanatenantonhisownland;villageshopownersarethusabletoamasslargelandholdings.Shopsintownselladditionalconsumeritems,andweeklyvillagemarketspro-videmarginaleconomicnichesforitineranttradersandvil-lagecash-cropagriculturalists.Transportisprovidedbybull-ockcarts,tractorspullingflatbedtrailers,oldautomobiles,andlighttrucks.Internaltrade,foreigninvestment,tourism,andeconomicgrowthareallcasualties of theTamilrebellionandtheJVPinsurgency.Division of Labor.TraditionalSinhalesesocietyismale-dominatedandpatriarchal,withastrongdivision of laborbysexandatendencytostigmatizefemaleroles(womenareconsideredtoberituallyimpureattimesowingtothe"pollu-tion" of puberty,childbirth,andmenstruation).Menarere-sponsiblefortheprovision of food,clothing,shelter,andothernecessities,whilewomenpreparefoodandcareforchil-dren.Traditionally,afamilyloststatusifitpermitteditswomentoengageinextradomesticeconomicroles,suchasmenialagriculturallabororcash-cropmarketing.Menandwomenledseparatelivesasidefromtheconvergencebroughtaboutbytheirmutualobligations.Theentry of womenintohighereducationandtheprofessionsisbeginningtoalterthispattern.LandTenure.Traditionallythedescendants of thevillagefounderownedinheritable(butnotmarketable)shares(panku) of thevillagepaddylands.Theactualholdingsweresensitivelyadjustedtosuitwateravailabilityandtoreducein-equitiesinwaterdistribution;whenholdingswerereducedbelowtheeconomiclevel,agroup of villagershivedoffintothewilderness,constructedanewtank,andfoundedanewvillage.BritishreformsthatdefinedallwildernessasCrownlandandeliminatedmultipleclaimstoexistingplots of landseriouslyerodedthissystemand,aslandcameonthemarket,anewclass of ricelandinvestors(calledmudalalis)acquiredsubstantialholdingsbutleftthefarmingtoclientsholdingthelandsbyaform of traditionalsharecroppingtenancy(andetenure).Populationincreasehasledtosevereandstillgrowinglandlessness.KinshipKinGroupsandDescent.Thelargestkingroupisthe"microcaste"(pavula),anendogamousandcorporatebilat-eralkingroupthatrepresentstheconvergence of severalfam-ilies'bilateralkindreds.Pavulamemberssharepaddylands,oftendwelltogetherinahamlet,andcooperateinagricul-ture,trade,andpolitics.Apavula'smembersshareauniquestatuswithinthecaste;thegroup'sinternalequalityissym-bolizedthroughlife-cycleritesandcommunalfeasts.Descentisfullybilateralinpractice,butnoncorporateagnaticdescentlineslinkingfamilieswitharistocrats of theBuddhistking.domsmaybemaintainedforstatuspurposes.KinshipTerminology.TheSinhalese,includingMoors,useDravidianterms,whichareassociatedwithsymmetricalcross-cousinmarriage.260SherpaLiturgicalchantingisanartmasteredbymanylaypeopleaswellasby-monksandlamas.Medicine.Indigenouscuresincludeherbalmedicines,shamanicexorcism,thereading of exorcismtextsbylamas,andtheuse of amuletsandmedicinesmadeorblessedbyhighreligiousfigures.Morerecently,Westernmedicinehasbeenwidelysought.DeathandAfterlife.Funeralsarethelongestandmostelaboratelife-cycleceremonies;thebodyiscremated,andthesoul of thedeceasedisencouraged,throughritualactionandinstruction,toseekanadvantageousrebirth.Rebirthisbe-lievedtooccurforty-ninedaysafterdeath;ideallytheentireseven-weekperiodisoccupiedwitharichcycle of ceremoniesandthechanting of funerarytextsfromtheBuddhisttradi-tion.Althoughrelativesandlamasdothebesttheycantoin-fluencefuturerebirthinafavorablebody,itisgenerallyagreedthatthemaindeterminingfactoristheworking of karma,theprinciplebywhichmeritoriousandnonmerito-riousbehaviorsareappropriatelyrewardedorpunishedincountlessfuturelives.SeealsoNepaliBibliographyFirer-Haimendorf,Christophvon(1964).TheSherpas of Nepal:BuddhistHighlanders.Berkeley:University of Califor-niaPress.Jerstad,LutherG.(1969).Mani-Rimdu,SherpaDanceDrama.Seattle:University of WashingtonPress.Oppitz,Michael(1968).GeschichteundSozialordnungderSherpa.InnsbruickandMunich:UniversititVerlagWagner.Ortner,SherryB.(1978).SherpasthroughtheirRituals.Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress.Paul,RobertA.(1982).TheTibetanSymbolic World: Psycho-analyticExplorations.Chicago:University of ChicagoPress.ROBERTA.PAULSidiETHNONYM:HabshiTheSidi,whoarealsoknownasHabshi,aredescendants of Africansoriginallycomingfromthehinterlands of theEastAfricancoast.Theterm'Sidi"issupposedtoderivefromSayyid,'Habshi"fromtheArabictermforAbyssinia,"Habash."Inthepast,BlackslavesstemmingfromthecoastalstripfromEthiopiatoMozambiquewerecarriedbyArabslavetraderstodifferentparts of theMuslim world, in-cludingIndia.Here,theirpresenceisrecordedsincetheearlyestablishment of MuslimruleduringtheSultanate of Delhi(thirteenth-sixteenthcenturies).Africanslavescontinuedtobeimportedtothewesternstates of Indiauntilthelatenine.teenthcentury,thoughneverinlargenumbers.Theyweremainlyemployedbylocalrulersassoldiers,bodyguards,anddomesticservants.Todaysmallgroups of SidiliveinthewestIndiancoastalstates of Karnataka,Maharashtra,andGujarataswellasinSindhinPakistan.InKarnatakatheybelongtoreligiousgroups(Hindu,Muslim,andChristian).InGujarattheypresentlyformone of thelowerMuslimcastes of domes-ticservantsandreligiousmendicantsorfakirs.Thesociallife of theSidicasteinGujaratiscloselyre-latedtothecult of Muslimsaints.Atthecenter of acluster of relatedSidisaintsisthepatronsaint of theSidi,BavaGor,alongwithhisyoungerbrother,BavaHabash,andhissister,MaiMishra.Accordingtomyth,thesaintwasoriginallyanAbyssinianmilitarycommanderwhowassentbyorder of theProphettofightagainstafemaledemoninHindustan;butitwashissisterwhoeventuallydestroyedthefemaledemon.TheSidibelievethemselvestobedescendedfromtheSidisoldiersandtheirwiveswhoaccompaniedBavaGorduringhismissionandwhohadbecomesaintsinthecourse of time.Theshrines of theseSidisaintsformahorizontalnetworkconnectingthegeographicallydiffusedSidicasteinGujarat.Atthesametime,thesaintsrelatetheSiditohigher-rankingsaints of theSayyidandtheirrepresentativesatthetop of theregionalhierarchy of Muslimcastes.Thisritualrelationisfur-theremphasizedbyoneof...

... ContentsProjectStaffviContributorsviiPrefacexiiiIntroductionxixMaps1. South Asia xxviii2.CulturalRegions of South Asia xxix3.MajorLanguages of South Asia xxx4.DominantReligiousGroups of South Asia xxxi5.CulturalGroups of South Asia xxxii Cultures of South Asia 1Appendix:AdditionalCastes,CasteClusters,andTribes309Bibliography342EthnonymIndextoAppendix349Glossary363Filmography367Index372Bibliography373Directory of Distributors373EthnonymIndex375Introductionxxipopulationin1990 ... features of ordinarylifeinthesubcontinent.Withoutclaiminganyfa-vorites,wewillsimplypointtothework of AhmadAli,MulkRajAnand,BankimChandraChatterjee,NiradC.Chaud-huri,AnitaDesai,RuthPrawerJhabvala,HanifKureishi,ManoharMalgonkar,KamalaMarkandaya,VedMehta,W.D.Merchant,RohintonMistry,RK.Narayan,RajaRao,SalmanRushdie,KushwantSingh,andRabindranathTagore(theirmanybooksarenotlistedinthefollowingbibliogra-phy). Of BritishliteraturedealingwiththeoldIndiathereisamassiveamount:mostoutstandingsurelyareRudyardKipling'sshortstories,E.M.Forster'sAPassagetoIndia(1924),andLeonardWoolf'sVillageintheJungle(1913).AfineintroductiontoIndianreligionsandphilosophywaseditedbydeBary(1958),anewedition of whichwasre-centlyprepared.Verysimilarinitscoverage of HinduismandBuddhism,andlikethepreceding volume featuringmanytranslationsfromtheclassics,isRadhakrishnanandMoore(1957).AnothersuccinctintroductiontoIndianphilosophyisBishop(1975).Aconcisedictionary of HinduismisStutleyandStutley(1977);Garrett(187 1-1 873),thoughold,mayalsoberecommended.Thenaturalhistory of thesubcontinenthasbeenstudiedinincredibledetail,andsothereare,forexample,excellenthandbooksontheflora of eachregion(most of themnowquiteold,however).Asuperbnewencyclopedicsurveythatcoversflora,fauna,geography,geology,andclimatologyinasingle volume iseditedbyHawkins(1986).Alsoveryusefulforitsbotanical,zoological,andhistoricalinformation(al-thoughnotforitsout -of- dateeconomicdata)isWatt(1908),whichisaone -volume abridgment of ADictionary of theEconomicProducts of Indiathathewrotein188 5-1 893.Amodem encyclopedia that ... IntroductionxxviiWilliams,L.F.Rushbrook,ed.(1975).AHandbookfo'rTravellersinIndia,Pakistan,Nepal,Bangladesh&SriLanka(Ceylon).22nded.London:JohnMurray.Yule,Henry,andA.C.Burnell(1903).Hobson-Jobson,AGlossary of ColoquialAnglo-IndianWordsandPhrases,and of KindredTerms,Etymological,Historical,Geographical,andDiscursive.Rev.ed.London:JohnMurray.Reprint.1968.NewYork.HumanitiesPress;numerousreissues.PAULHOCKINGSPrefacexviitheproject,andnotjustfortheirownvolumesbutalsofortheprojectasawhole.TimothyO'Leary,TerenceHays,andPaulHockingsdeservespecialthanksfortheircommentsonthisprefaceandtheglossary,asdoesMelvinEmber,presi-dent of theHumanRelationsAreaFiles.Members of the of- ficeandtechnicalstaffalsomustbethankedforsoquicklyandcarefullyattendingtothemanytasksaproject of thissizeinevitablygenerates.TheyareErlindaMaramba,AbrahamMaramba,VictoriaCrocco,NancyGratton,andDouglasBlack.AtMacmillanandG.K.Hall,the encyclopedia hasbenefitedfromthewiseandcarefuleditorialmanagement of EllyDickason,ElizabethKubik,andElizabethHolthaus,andtheeditorialandproductionmanagement of AraSalibian.Finally,IwouldliketothankMelvinEmberandtheboard of directors of theHumanRelationsAreaFilesfortheiradministrativeandintellectualsupportforthisproject.DAVIDLEVINSONReferencesMurdock,GeorgePeter(1967).EthnographicAtlas.Pitts-burgh,Penn.,University of PittsburghPress.Murdock,GeorgePeter(1983).Outline of World Cultures. 6threv.ed.NewHaven,Conn.,HumanRelationsAreaFiles. ENCYCLOPEDIA OF WORLD CULTURES DavidLevinsonEditorinChiefNorthAmericaOceania South Asia Europe(Central,Western,andSoutheasternEurope)EastandSoutheast Asia SovietUnion(EasternEuropeandRussia)andChina South AmericaMiddleAmericaandtheCaribbeanAfricaandtheMiddleEastBibliographyThe Encyclopedia of World Cultures waspreparedundertheauspicesandwiththesupport of theHumanRelationsAreaFilesatYaleUniversity.HRAF,theforemostinternationalresearchorganizationinthefield of cul-turalanthropology,isanot-for-profitconsortium of twenty-threesponsor-ingmembersand300participatingmemberinstitutionsintwenty-fivecoun-tries.TheHRAFarchive,establishedin1949,containsnearlyonemillionpages of informationonthe cultures of the world. xContributorsTrilokiNathMadanInstitute of EconomicGrowthUniversity of DelhiDelhiIndiaL.K.MahapatraSambalpurUniversitySambalpur,OrissaIndiaClarenceMaloneyLouisBerger,International,Inc.NewDelhiIndiaJoanP.MencherDepartment of AnthropologyHerbertH.LehmanCollegeCityUniversity of NewYorkBronx,NewYorkUnitedStatesW.D.MerchantDepartment of SocialandBehavioralSciences South SuburbanCollege South Holland,IllinoisUnitedStatesPromodeKumarMisraDepartment of AnthropologyNorth-EasternHillUniversityShillong,MeghalayaIndiaBrianMorrisDepartment of SocialAnthropologyGoldsmiths'CollegeUniversity of LondonLondonUnitedKingdomNilsFinnMunch-PetersenLouisBerger,International,Inc.NewDelhiIndiaSerenaNandaDepartment of AnthropologyJohnJayCollege of CriminalJusticeCityUniversity of NewYorkNewYork,NewYorkUnitedStatesWilliamA.NobleDepartment of GeographyUniversity of MissouriColumbia,MissouriUnitedStatesPandit of KashmirOriyaDivehi;TamilNambudiriBrahman;NayarBania;Castes,Hindu;Maratha;ParsiPeripateticsHillPandaramDivehiHijraIruLaProjectStaffEditorialBoardResearchSaraJ.DickJayDiMaggioAlliyaS.ElahiSarwatS.ElahiNancyE.GrattonLeShonKimbleSaidehMoayed-SanandajiHughR.Page,Jr.AngelitoPalmaEditorialandProductionEllyDickasonEvaKitsosAbrahamMarambaVictoriaCroccoElizabethHolthausAraSalibianLindaA.BennettMemphisStateUniversityEuropeFernandoCamaraBarbachanoInstitutoNacionaldeAntropologiaeHistoria,MexicoCityMiddleAmericaandtheCaribbeanNormaJ.DiamondUniversity of MichiganChinaPaulFriedrichUniversity of ChicagoSovietUnionTerenceE.HaysRhodeIslandCollegeOceaniaCartographyRobertSullivanRhodeIslandCollegePaulHockingsUniversity of IllinoisatChicago South andSoutheast Asia RobertV.KemperSouthernMethodistUniversityMiddleAmericaandtheCaribbeanKazukoMatsuzawaNationalMuseum of Ethnology,OsakaEast Asia JohnH.MiddletonYaleUniversityAfricaTimothyJ.O'LearyHumanRelationsAreaFilesNorthAmericaAmalRassamQueensCollegeandtheGraduateCenter of theCityUniversity of NewYorkMiddleEastJohannesWilbertUniversity of CaliforniaatLosAngeles South AmericaviContributorsxiAlfredPach III Department of MedicalEducationUniversity of IllinoisatChicagoChicago,IllinoisUnitedStatesHughR.Page,Jr.Department of ReligiousStudiesCaliforniaStateUniversitySacramento,CaliforniaUnitedStatesVishvajitPandyaWestminsterCollegeFulton,MissouriUnitedStatesRobertParkinInstitutfurEthnologieFreieUniversititzuBerlinBerlinGermanyRobertPaulDepartment of AnthropologyEmoryUniversityAtlanta,GeorgiaUnitedStatesBryanPfaffenbergerDepartment of AnthropologyUniversity of VirginiaCharlottesville,VirginiaUnitedStatesMohammedHabiburRahmanDepartment of SociologyUniversity of DhakaDhakaBangladeshAparnaRaoInstitutfurV6lkerkundeUniversititzuKolnKolnGermanySankarKumarRoyDepartment of AnthropologyGauhatiUniversityGuwahati,AssamIndiaGhanshyamShahCentreforSocialStudies South GujaratUniversitySurat,GujaratIndiaNepaliAbor;Baiga;Bondo;Burusho;Khasi;Lakher;Nagas;Purum;SadhuAndamaneseMundaSherpaSinhalese;Tamil of SriLankaChakmaJatGaroGujaratiMEASUREMENTCONVERSIONS1992bytheHumanRelationsAreaFiles,Inc.Firstpublishedin1991byG.K.Hall&Co.1633Broadway,NewYork,NY10019,6785Allrightsreserved.Allrightsreserved.Nopart of thisbookmaybereproducedinanyformorbyanymeans,electronicormechanical,includingphotocopying,recording,orbyanyinformationstorageorretrievalsystemwithoutpermissioninwritingfromthepublisher.10Library of CongressCataloginginPublicationData(Revisedfor volume 3) Encyclopedia of world cultures. Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindexes.Filmography:v.1,p.40 7-4 15.Contents:v.1.NorthAmerica/TimothyJ.O'Leary,DavidLevinson, volume editors v.3. South Asia /PaulHockings, volume editor.1.Ethnology Encyclopedias.I.Levinson,David,194 7- GN307.E531991306'.039 0-4 9123ISBN 0-8 161 1-8 0 8-6 (alk.paper)ISBN 0-8 168 8-8 40-X(set:alk.paper)ISBN 0-8 161 1-8 1 2-4 (v.3:alk.paper)Thepaperusedinthispublicationmeetstheminimumrequirements of AmericanNationalStandardforInformationSciences-Permanence of PaperforPrintedLibraryMaterials.ANSIZ39.4 8-1 984.aTmMANUFACTUREDINTHEUNITEDSTATES OF AMERICAWhenYouKnowMufltplyByToFindLENGTHInches2.54centimetersfeet30centimetersyards0.9metersmiles1.6kilometersmillimeters0.04inchescentimeters0.4Inchesmeters3.3feetmeters1.1yardskilometers0.6milesAREAsquarefeet0.09squaremeterssquareyards0.8squaremeterssquaremiles2.6squarekibmetersacres0.4hectareshectares2.5acressquaremeters1.2squareyardssquarekilometers0.4squaremilesTEMPERATUREOC - (F - 32)x.555F-("Cx1.8)+32xxclimatictype,whichischaracterizedbytheaveragetempera-ture of thecoldestmonthfallingsomewherebetween180and -3 °C(64.40and26.6°F),whilethat of thewarmestmonthisover100C(500F).Thedryseasonisstillinthewinterandsummersarebothhotandwet,thewarmestmonthhavinganaveragetemperature of about22°C(71.6°F)andthewettestmonthbeingatleasttentimesasrainyasthedriestoneinwinter.PoliticalHistoryTheyears194 7-1 948sawanimmensepoliticalupheavalinthesubcontinentthatlaidtheessentialframeworkforthemodempoliticalscene.Uptothatdatesometwo-fifths of theareahadbeenruledbynearly600kingsandprinces,thelarg-est of whoseterritories,NepalandHyderabad,wereequalinextenttoseveralEuropeannations.Atthesametimethere-mainingthree-fifthswasruledbyoneking,namelyGeorgeVI,aconstitutionalmonarchwhowasbothking of Englandandemperor of India.Hisruleembracednotonly"non-princely"IndiabutalsoBurmaandCeylon(nowknownasMyanmarandSriLankarespectively),aswellasMauritius.Bytheterms of theindependenceagreements of thatperiod,Indiaabsorbedall of theprincelystatesexceptNepalandBhutanintoitspolity,butitwassplitintothreenewunits:theIndianrepublic,WestPakistan,andEastPakistan.SriLankaandMyanmar(thencalledCeylonandBurma)alsobecameindependentrepublicsin1948.Thetwoparts of Pa-kistan,1,400kilometersapartfromeachother,formedasin-glerepublic,butfromitsearlyyearsPakistan'snationalinteg-ritywasinperil,andin1971itsplitupaltogether,EastPakistanbecomingtheindependentnation of Bangladesh.Todaytherefore South Asia containstwokingdoms(NepalandBhutan),threesecularrepublics(Bangladesh,India,andSriLanka),andtwoIslamicrepublics(PakistanandtheMaldives).Threeoutlyingarchipelagoes-theAndaman,Nicobar,andLakshadweepislands-areallad-ministeredbyIndia.Inadditionthis volume dealswiththeRepublic of Mauritius,whichis3,500kilometerssouthwest of Colombobuthasasizable South Asianpopulation.Itbe-cameindependentin1968.Itisnoteasytosummarizethepoliticalsystems of thesestates,fortheyhavevariedgreatly,butitiscertainthatthestatesthemselvesareviableentities.Withtheexception of BangladeshbreakingawayfromPakistan,thepoliticalunitstodayarepreciselythosesetupatindependence.SincethattimeIndiaandSriLankahaverunparliamentarydemocra-cies;Pakistan,Bangladesh,andtheMaldiveshavebeenIs-lamicdemocraciesalternatingwithmilitarydictatorships of aformcommonintheMiddleEast.Nepal'skingshiphasbeenmuchconstrainedbyparliamentarygovernment,whichhascreatedadefactoconstitutionalmonarchy.SocialistrhetoricandIslamicorthodoxyhavebeenprominentguidelinesformany of thesegovernmentsthroughtheyears.Regrettably,though,anotherprocedureforpoliti-calchangehasbeenaddedtothe"Westministersystem":as-sassination.Ifoneincludessuspiciousaircrashesinthesce-nario,thenIndiahas...

... hemustlearntoreadtheclassicalArabiclanguage)caneventuallybecometheworshipleader(mullahorimam) of alocalmosqueifsochosenbythecongregation.Furtherstudy of theQuranand of Muslimlaw(thesharia)mayqualifyamantobeareligiousleaderwithawiderfollowing,greaterstature,andsometimessignificantpoliticalinfluence.Bengali29Roland,Joan(1989).JewsinBritishIndia.Waltham,Mass.:BrandeisUniversityPress.Strizower,Schifra(1971)."VerbalInteractionamongtheBeneIsrael."InternationalJournal of theSociology of Language13:7 1-8 5.Weil,ShalvaJ.(1988)."TheInfluence of CasteIdeologyinIsrael."InCulturalTransition,editedbyM.Gottesman,15 0- 161.Jerusalem:MagnesPress.SHALVAJ.WEILBengaliETHNONYMS:Bangali,Bangladeshi(formerlyBengalee,Baboo)OrientationIdentification.TheBengalipeoplespeaktheBengali(Bangla)languageandliveintheBengalregion of theIndiansubcontinentlocatedinnortheastern South Asia, andmostfolloweithertheHinduortheMuslimfaith.TheBengalre.gionisdividedpoliticallybetweenthenation of BangladeshandtheIndianstate of WestBengal.BengalisthemselvesrefertotheirregionasBangladesh,meaningsimply'theBen-galihomeland,"atermadoptedbythepeople of easternBengalwhentheywonsovereignindependenceforthenation of Bangladeshin1971.ThenativeethnictermforthemselvesisBangli -of which"Bengali"isananglicization.However,Bengaliswhoarecitizens of BangladeshwillalsomostreadilycallthemselvesBangladeshi.Location.Lyingatthenorth of theBay of Bengalandroughlybetween22"and26°Nand86°and93°E,theBengalregionconsistslargely of avastalluvial,deltaicplain,builtupbytheGangesRiverandwateredalsobytheBrahma-putraRiversystemoriginatingintheeasternHimalayaMountains.Asinmuch of South Asia, monsoonwindsbringarainyseasonthatcanlastfromApriltomid-November.Bengal'stotalareaisapproximately233,000squarekilo-meters, of whichabout38percent(justunder89,000squarekilometers)isinIndia,theremaining62percent(144,000squarekilometers)constitutingthenation of Bangladesh.Demography.Accordingtothelastavailable(1981)cen-suses,India'sWestBengalcontainedsome47millionpeople(35percent)andBangladesh86millionpeople(65percent)claimingtobeprimaryspeakers of theBengalilanguage,withthetotal of around133millionconstitutingthe"cope"ethnicBengalipopulation.Tothistotalmustbeaddedatleastan-other7millionBengalispeakerslivinginadjacentornearbystates of India-Assam,3million;Bihar,2million;Tripura,1.4million;Orissa,378,000;Meghalaya,120,000;andNaga-land,27,000-formingakind of "Bengalidiaspora"that,al-thoughconcentratedinnortheastern South Asia, isactuallyworldwide,withlargenumbers of Bengalislivingasimmi-grantsintheUnitedStates,UnitedKingdom,andCanada.Insum,Bengaliscomprisedapopulation of about140mil-lionin1981,onewhichcanbeexpectedtohavegrownbyatleast25percentbythetimedatafrom1991censusesbe-comesavailable.Bengalispeakersmakeup85percent of thepopulation of WestBengal,whichotherwiseishometoanadditional9millionnon-Bengalipeople.Most of thesearefromotherparts of India,livinginthemetropolis of Calcutta,thestatecapital,buttherearesignificantnumbers of non-Bengalipeoplelocallyclassedas'tribals"inruralWestBengalaswell.Bangladeshisfarmorehomogeneous;allbut1percent of itspeopleidentifythemselvesasBengali.Most of theremaining900,000consist of non-Bengaliethnicgroupsalsolocallydesignatedas"tribal,"andthemajority of thesearespeakers of Tibeto-Burmanandotherminoritylanguages,oftenlivinginborderareas of thecountry.Somespeakers of dialects of Hindi-UrduremaininBangladeshaswell.OverallpopulationdensitiesinWestBengalwererecordedat615peoplepersquarekilometerin1981,rangingfrom466insomeruralareasto56,462inurbanlocalities(especiallyCal-cutta).InBangladeshoveralldensitiesreached624personspersquarekilometerby1981,risingto2,179intheurbanareas(especiallyDhaka,thenation'scapital),butalsoregis-teringaquitehigh693personspersquarekilometerinpart of thecountryside.LinguisticAffiliation.Likemost of thelanguages of northern South Asia, BengalibelongstotheIndo-Iranian(sometimesalsocalledIndo-Aryan)Branch of theIndo-EuropeanFamily.DescendedfromancientSanskrit,Bengalicontainsforty-sevensounds:elevenvowels,twenty-fivecon-sonants,foursemivowels,andseven"breathsounds"(includ-ingsibilantsandaspirates).Itsscript,alsoSanskrit-derived,containsfifty-sevenlettersymbols.TheBengalilanguageisassociatedwithalongliterarytradition,prideinwhichisamajorfactorinBengaliethnicandnationalidentity.ABen-gali,RabindranathTagore,wasthefirstAsiantoreceivetheNobelPrizeforliterature(in1913).Theliterarylanguagewithwhicheducatedspeakersarefamiliaris,however,quitedistinctfromtheurbanandruralspeech of thelesswelledu-cated.Theeasterndialects of Bengali,notablythosespokenintheSylhetandChittagongdistricts of Bangladesh,differquitenoticeablyfromthoseheardinWestBengal.HistoryandCulturalRelationsBengalismentionedasadistinctregion of South Asia insome of theearliestHindutexts,andthroughoutthefirstmil-lenniumAD.itwasgovernedbyasuccession of BuddhistandHindurulers.Islamicarmiesarrivedintheregioninthelatetwelfthandearlythirteenthcenturies,andgradualMuslimconquest-culminatinginMughalruleafter1576-setthestageforwidespreadconversion of thelocalpopulationtoIslam,especiallyineasternBengal.Notlongthereafter,Euro-peancontactwith,andcompetitionforpoweron,theIndiansubcontinentbegan,andtheBritishperiod of India'shistoryisusuallydatedfromEngland'stakeover of theadministra-tion of Bengalin1757.Lastinguntil1947,BritishrulehadaprofoundimpactonBengalicultureandsociety,especiallywiththeintroduction of Englishasthemedium of highered-ucationafter1835.HindusrespondedmorerapidlythandidMuslimstoopportunitiesprovidedbyEnglisheducation,and56Burushoherhusbanddivorceher.Childrenremainwiththemother(untiltheyreachtheage of 10)ifadivorceisgranted.Duringthistime,thehusbandisrequiredtoprovidechildsupport.Widowsmustwaitthreemonthsandsevendaysafterthedeath of aspousebeforeremarrying.Thewaitforawidoweristwomonthsandsevendays.Polygynyisnotprohibited.DomesticUnit.Smallextendedfamilies(theprocreatedfamily of oneindividualintheseniorgenerationandthose of atleasttwointhenextgeneration)withlimitedpolygynyarethenorm.Inheritance.Thefather of afamilyownsall of thefamilyproperty.Hemaychoosetodividehispropertyamonghisoff-springbeforehisdeathoritmaybedividedafterhedies.Uponhisdeath,hisestateisdividedequallyamonghissons.Sonsmaychoosetoworkanylandinheritedtogether(i.e.,asagroup)ortheymaydivideitamongthemselves.Sonsbysec-ondwivesinheritagrandson'sshare.Theyoungestsoninher-itsthefamilydwelling.Provisionisusuallymadesothattheeldestsoninheritsthebestland.Adaughterisnotpermittedtoinheritproperty.Shemaybeallowedtheuse of certainpropertyduringherlifetime.Unmarrieddaughtersmustbecaredfor(includingtheprovision of adowry)bytheestate of adeceasedfather.Apricottrees(andtheirproduce)areoftenwilledtodaughters.Socialization.Thesocialization of childrenisaresponsi-bilitysharedbybothparents,withthebulk of itbeingas-sumedbythemother.Siblingsalsoshareinthistask.In1934,apublicschoolsystemwasdonatedandputintoplacebytheAgaKhan,thusplacingpart of theburdenforchildrearingonteachers.SociopoliticalOrganizationBurushosocietycontainsfiveclasses:theThamo(royalfam-ily);theUyongko/Akabirting(thosewhomayoccupyoffices of state);theBar/Bare/Sis(landcultivators);theShadarsho(servants);andtheBaldakuyo/Tsilgalasho(bearers of bur-densfortheThamoandUyongko).TheBericho(Indianblacksmithsandmusicians),whomaintaintheirowncus-tomsandspeaktheirownlanguage(Kumaki),arealsoanim-portantpart of Burushosocialstructure.AgeandgenderstratificationdonotobtainamongtheBurusho.Thehead of stateisthemir,whoseauthorityinallmat-tersisabsolute.Heisassistedinthedispatch of hisdutiesbyagrandvizier.Mirsareresponsibleforthedistribution of jus-ticeaswellasthemaintenance of localcustomsandtribalfes-tivals.Avillagearbob(chief)andchowkidar(sergeantatarms)areappointedforeachvillage.Khalifasareappointedbythemirtopresideatimportantoccasionsinthelife of theindividualandthecommunity.IthasbeennotedthatatonetimeretainerstocertainvillagerswerepaidbytheBritishgov-emmentforoccasionalservicesandthatcertainofficialswithinavillagewerechargedwiththecare of visitors.Thethreat of deportation(forthepurpose of engaginginpublicservicetothemirorforthecompletion of publicworks)andtheimposition of finesaretheprimarymeans of maintainingsocialcontrol.ExternalrelationsbetweentheBurushoandotherpeopleshavebeenstable.Intervillageri-valryischannelednonviolentlyintopolomatches.Althoughtheattitudes of theBurushotowardtheirneighborsinNagirarelessthanfriendly,armedconflictisfarfromnormal.BothHunzaandNagirsupportedthemilitaryactionthatledtotheannexation of theregiontoPakistan.ReligionandExpressiveCultureReligiousBeliefsandPractices.TheBurushohavebeenMuslimformorethan300years.Theyareadherents of theIs-mailisect(headedbytheAgaKhan)andhavemadesuchmodificationsinreligiousbeliefandpracticeastorenderthissystem of Islamicbeliefpracticablewithintheirsocialanden-vironmentalsetting.NosystematizedeschatologicalsystemexistsamongtheBurusho.Itisgenerallybelievedthatatsomepointinthefuturethelivingandthedeadwillbere-united.Bitaiyo(maleandfemaleprognosticators)foretellthefuturebyinhalingthesmoke of burningjunipertwigs.NoprofessionalpriesthoodexistsamongtheBurusho.Themirappointsseveralliteratemenaskhalifastoofficiateatburials,weddings,andnamingceremonies.Theseindividualsdonotperformthesedutiesonafull-timebasis.Religiousceremonyplayslittlepartinthedailylife of theBurusho.Ritualprayerandfastingarepracticedbysome.Whilelittleisknown of pre-Islamicreligiouspractices,itisbelievedthatatonetimesacrificewasofferedtotheboyo(divinitiesthoughttooccupyaplaceabovethefortatHini).Thecommunalweddingcere-monyheldon21Decemberisalsoanimportantpart of theBurushoritualcycle.Arts.Embroideryandwoodcarvingmaybenotedasexam-ples of Burushovisualart.Dancingandmusic(bothbeingimportantcomponents of Burushoceremoniallife)areat-tested.Thesamecanbesaid of dramaticart,performancesbeingsponsoredoncertainspecialoccasions.Burushooralliteraturecontainsfolklore(indigenousandborrowed),anec-dotes,andsongs.Medicine.Avariety of naturalsubstances(roots,herbs,andberries)isusedformedicinalpurposes.Accesstoscientificmed-icineisalsoavailable.ThebeliefisstillheldbysomeBurushothatsupernaturalsplayamajorroleinthecause of humanill-ness.Indigenousmedicalpractitionersarelacking.BibliographyClark,J.(1963)."HunzaintheHimalayas:StoriedShangri-LaUndergoesScrutiny."NaturalHistory72:3 8-4 5.Lorimer,DavidL.(193 5-1 938).TheBurushaskiLanguage.3vols.InstituttetforSammenlignendeKulturforskning,SerieB:Skifter,29, 1-3 .Oslo:H.Aschehoug&Co.(W.Nygaard):Cambridge:HarvardUniversityPress.Lorimer,E.0.(1938)."TheBurusho of Hunza."Antiquity12: 5-1 5.Lorimer,E.0.(1939).LanguageHuntingintheKarakoram.London:GeorgeAllen&Unwin.O'Leary,TimothyJ.(1965)."BurushoCulturalSummary."NewHaven,Conn.:HumanRelationsAreaFiles.Tobe,JohnH.(1960).AdventuresinaLand of Paradise.Emmaus,Pa.:RodaleBooks.HUGHRPAGE,JRBengali31Trade.Asnotedabove,periodiclocalmarketsdottheBengalcountryside,andtheseinturnarelinkedtoperma-nent,dailymarketsinlargerprovincialtownsandultimatelytomajorurbancommercialcenters.Manypeasantsengageinpettymarketingtosupplementtheirprimaryoccupation,butlarge-scaleaccumulationandtransportation of majorcrops,especiallyriceandjute,andartisanproductsaretypicallycar-riedoutbywholesalerswhomovefrommarkettomarket.Aselsewherein South Asia, someHinducastegroupsspecializeincertainkinds of tradeandcommercialtransactions(e.g.,thoserelatedtogoldandotherjewelryorspecificconsump-tionitemsotherthanrice).BecauseBengalpossessesalaby-rinthinenetwork of rivers,providingboattransportationtoandbetweenriversidecentersisamajoractivityformany.Commerceisoverwhelminglymale-dominated,sinceadultwomenareusuallyrequiredtolimittheiractivitiestotheirhomesteadsandimmediatesurroundingsandthusarenotpermittedtoengageinsignificanttradingactivity.Division of Labor.Thedivision of laborbybothgenderandoccupationalspecializationishighlymarkedthroughout South Asia, includingBengal,particularlysointheruralareas.Regardless of aruralfamily'soccupationalspecialty,menengageinactivitiesthattakeplaceoutsidethehome,whilewomenarelimitedtothosethatcanbeperformedwithinitsconfines.Thus,forexample,inrice-farmingfami-liesmenperformalltheworkinthefields-plowing,plant-ing,weeding,andharvesting-andoncethecropisbroughtintothehomesteadwomentakeupthetasks of threshing,drying,andhuskingthecrop.Asimilarkind of intra-(versusextra-)homesteaddivision of laborbygenderoccursinfami-lieswithnonagriculturaloccupationalspecializations.Notsurprisingly,domesticandchild-rearingtasksfallwithinthewomen'sdomainaswell.Thedegreetowhichwomenareper-mittedtoworkoutsidethehomeis,however,relatedtotheeconomicandsocialstatus of thefamily.Apoororlandlessfarmer'swifemayspendpart of herdayprocessingagricul-turalgoodsinawealthierhousehold,forexample,tosupple-mentherfamily'smeagerincome,andamongthelower-rankedservicecastes(seebelow)thetabooonwomenworkingoutsidethehomeisconsiderablylessstrict.In ... areprominentingovernmentservice,financialserv-ices,andpolitics.IndustrialArts.AnyneedsthatBrahmansandChhetrisexperienceforcraftandindustrialproductsaremetbylower-rankedartisancastes,suchasblacksmiths,tailors,andleatherworkers.Trade.InruralareasBrahmansandChhetristypicallyrelyonothers,suchasNewarshopkeepers,fortheircommercialrequirements.Division of Labor.OnlyBrahmanmalesmayactaspriests,butmuch of thedailyhouseholdpuja(worship)isdonebywomen.Theday-to-dayagropastoralactivities of BrahmanandChhetrifamiliesaresharedbetweenmenandwomen.Bothsexesworkinthefields,butoverallwomenspendmorehoursperdayinagriculturalanddomesticlaborthanmen.Theyperformmost of thechildcare,preparationandcooking of food,andweedingandtending of crops.Mendotheplowingandmaintaintheterracewalls.Bothareactiveatharvesttime.LandTenure.BrahmansandChhetrisareoftenlandown.ers.Fieldsareoftenterracedandmostlyhavebeenfraction-atedintosmallplotsthroughinheritanceovergenerations.Large-scaleabsenteelandlordismisnotcommoninthehills of Nepal.KinshipKinGroupsandDescent.BrahmansandChhetrisaremembers of twokinds of clans,thethaT(indicatedasasur-name)andthegotra;theformerisexogamousifarelationcanbetraced,butthelatterisstrictlyexogamous.Descentandinheritancefollowthemalelineexclusively.KinshipTerminology.Allfirstcousinsareaddressedbysiblingterms.Siblingsaredesignatedaseitherolderoryoungerbrothersorsisters:thereisnogenerictermforbrotherorsister.Unrelatedpersons,includingstrangers,arealsooftenaddressedbykinshipterms.MarriageandFamilyMarriage.Mostmarriagesaremonogamous,butpoly-gynousunionsweretraditionallyfrequentandarestillocca-sionallyfound.Secondandsubsequentwivesareoftenmem-bers of otherethnicgroups,suchastheGurungs,Magars,Tamangs,Sherpas,andNewars,butnotlow-casteartisangroups.Withtheexception of Thakuris,theself-proclaimedaristocratsamongtheChhetriswhopracticematrilateralcross-cousinmarriage,cousinmarriageisnotpracticed.Brah-mangirlstraditionallymarriedbytheage of 11,andChhetrigirlsafewyearslater,buteducatedurbandwellersnowmarryintheirlateteensorearlytwenties.Groomsarenormallyafewyearsolderthantheirbrides.Villageexogamyisusuallyobserved,andparentsarrangetheirchildren'smarriageswiththehelp of anintermediary.Anastrologeralsoisconsultedtoensurethatthecouplemakeagoodmatch.Theboy'sfamilypriest,inconsultationwiththebride'sfamily,setsanauspi-ciousdateandtime,basedonthelunarcalendar(severalmonths of theyearareinauspiciousformarriage).Theentireweddingceremonylastsafullday,fromthetimethemembers of thegroom'spartyarriveatthebride'shometilltheyleavethenextdaywiththebride.Themostimportantpart of the34BengaliCeremonies.TheBengaliHindureligiouscalendarisre-pletewithworshipceremonies(puja)devotedtothedeities of boththeGreatandLittleTraditions.Especiallyimportantistheannualfestival(orgajan) of theLordShiva,asarethose of hiscounterpartgoddesses,KaliandDurga.ThegoddessesLakshmi (of wealthandgoodfortune)andSaraswati (of learningandculture)alsohaveannualceremonies.Impor-tantfolkdeitiespropitiatedbyHindusandMuslimsalikein-cludethe"goddesses of thecalamities"-Sitala,goddess of smallpox;Olabibi,goddess of cholera;andManasa,goddess of snakes-all of whomhavetheirannualfestivals.BengaliMuslimscelebratethemajorfestivals of Islam:theIdal-Fitr,whichmarkstheend of theMuslimmonth of fasting(Rama-dan);theIdal-Adha,or"feast of thesacrifice,"coterminouswiththeannualpilgrimage(haj)toMeccaandcommemorat-ingthestory of theprophetIbrahim'swillingnesstosacrificehissonatGod'scommand.EventhoughBengaliMuslimsareSunnis,theyalsoobservethefestival of Muharram,usu-allyassociatedmoreprominentlywiththeShiadivision of Islam,inwhichthedeath of Hussain,grandson of theProphetMohammedandmartyr of thefaith,ismourned.Bengalisalsocelebratethewell-knownHindurite of springcalledHoli;formembers of allreligiousfaiths,theannualnewyearceremonyonthefirstday of theHindu(andBen-gali)month of Baisakh,comingbetweenAprilandMayandmarkingtheonset of spring,isajoyousoccasion.Arts.UrbanBengalieliteculturehasproducedone of South Asia& apos;sfinestliterarytraditions,includingnotonlythenovel,shortstory,andpoetrybutdramaandfilmaswell.Some of India'sbestclassicalmusiciansandgreatestexpo-nents of thedancehavebeenBengalis.BengalishavealsomademajorcontributionstoIndianand world cinema.RuralBengalhasanoldandwell-developedfolkliterature,includ-ingnarrativepoetry(puthi),drawnfromhistory,myth,andlegend,aswellasaverypopularitineranttheater(calledjatra).Thereisalsoastrongtradition of religiousfolkmusic,particularlyassociatedwiththemoredevotionalandmysticalpractices of popularHinduism(e.g.,worship of thegoddessKaliandtheLordKrishna)and of popularIslam(e.g.,thede-votionalgatherings of thevariousSufiorders).Terra-cottatempleandmosquearchitecturethroughoutBengalismuchadmired,andthereisafolktradition of painting,seeninHindureligiousscrollsandintheflowery,andoftenobscure,religioussymbols(alipana)commonlydaubedinwhitericepasteonthewallsandfloors of homesteadsbyHinduvillagewomen.Finally,despiteindustrializationandthespread of commerciallymanufacturedproductsthroughouttheregion,theBengaliruraleconomystilldependsontheservices of tra-ditionalcraftspeople-weavers,potters,carpenters,black-smiths,metalworkers,andthelike-whosewaresoftenrepre-sentahighquality of bothtechniqueandaestheticdesign.Medicine.AlthoughmodemscientificmedicinehaslongbeenknownandacceptedinBengal,thehomeopathic,allo-pathic,andtheHinduAyurvedicandMuslimUnanimedicaltraditionscontinuetoexistasalternatives.Therealsore-mainsahost of folkbeliefsandcuringpracticesamongboththeurbanimmigrantpoorandthepeasantryasawhole.Folkhealers(ojhaorfakir)arecommonlycalledupontotreateverythingfromtemporaryillnessesandchronicdiseasestobonefracturesandsnakebite,aswellastocounteractethno-psychiatricafflictionsresultingfromsorceryandghostpos-session.Folkcuringpracticesstresstheuse of magicalverses(mantras),oftencombinedwithindigenousmedicinalcon-coctions.Traditionalhealersalsoprovideamuletsforprotec-tionagainstdevilryandsorcery,thewearing of whichisubiq-uitousnotonlyamongthepeasantryandtheurbanpoorbutalsoamongtheBengalimiddleclassesaswell.DeathandAfterlife.BengaliHindus, of course,acceptthedoctrine of samsara,orthetransmigration of soulsfromoneearthlylifetoanother.Funerarycremations,practicedbynearlyallHinducastes,arethoughttoreleasetheindividual'sspiritualessenceorsoulfromitstransitoryphysicalbody.Bearingtheinfluence(karma) of alltheactions of itsjustter-minatedearthlyembodiment,thesoulthenisreincarnatedintoanewworldlyformandway of lifeshapedbythosepastactions.Normallyaman'seldestsoncarriesoutthefuneraryrites,lightingthefuneralpyreafterfirstplacingaburningstickinthemouth of thedeceased.Muslimbeliefsrequirethatatdeaththepersonberituallybathed,shrouded,andburiedinacoffinwiththeheadfacingtheholycity of Mecca,afterwhichtherefollowsafuneraryprayerceremonyideallyledbyeitherarelativeorarecognizedleader of thelocalMus-limcommunity.Thedeadarethoughttoenteranindefinitetransitionalstate-duringwhichthewickedbegintoexperi-encepunishmentandthevirtuousto ... theculturalheritage.Yetthevibrantchange(tambourine)dance of thevillagersinfront of thecommu-nityhallisverycommonaftertheday'stoilandparticularlyonfestiveoccasions.Medicine.People,crops,andcattlearebelievedtobepro-tectedfromdiseasesbythevillagetutelarydeity.Thepropiti-ation of otherdeitiesalsoisthoughttohelpprotectpeoplefromdiseases.Themenhavegreatinclinationforfolkdoctorsandtheirmedicine.Mostdiseasesareduetomalnutritionandunsanitaryconditions.Modernmethods of treatment,22BaigaComparativeNotesonthePlainsBhuiyas.Ranchi:ManinIndiaOffice.Russell,R.V.,andHiraLal(1916).'Baiga."TheTribesandCastes of theCentralProvinces of India.Vol.2,7 7-9 2.Lon-don:OxfordUniversityPress.Reprint.1969.Oosterhout:AnthropologicalPublications.HUGHR.PAGE,JRBaluchiETHNONYMS:Baloch,BaluchOrientationIdentification.TheBaluchiarepredominantlySunniMuslim,seminomadicpastoralists,whosehomelandsstrad-dletheIran-Pakistanborderaswellasincludingasmallpor-tion of southernAfghanistan.Location.Baluchistanisthename of thewesternmostprovince of Pakistan,aswellas of thetransnationalterritory of thetraditionalBaluchihomeland.Thislargerregionwascarvedupbytheimperialpowersconcernedmorewithease of administrationthanwithrecognition of theterritoriallimits of theinhabitants.ThetraditionalBaluchiterritoryextendsfromthesoutheasternportion of theIranianPlateauacrosstheKirmanDeserttothewesternborders of SindandthePunjab,andfromtheGumalRiverinthenortheasttotheArabianSeainthe south. Thisisalargelyinhospitableland,much of itbarrendesertorharshmountainousterrain.Ba-luchiterritoryliesoutsidethemonsoonbelt,andannualrain-fallisverylow,notexceeding16centimeters.Throughouttheregion,wintersareharshandcold,andsummersareveryhot.Inthemountains,therainscomeinOctoberandMarch,whileinthelowlandstheycomeinJulyandAugust.Demography.PopulationfiguresfortheBaluchiaresomewhatsuspect,inpartbecause of theunreliability of census-takingproceduresacrossthethreemajorpoliticalunitsthatnowcontrolBaluchiterritory,andpartlybecausethecriteriaforascribingBaluchiidentityarenottightlyde-fined.Onthestrength of linguisticcriteria,thereareanesti-mated5millionor...

... adivinerhasidentifiedwhatistobedone.Thereareallmanner of privatecuringrituals,andtheseareheldbywhomeverknowshow,notbyprofessionals;theytendtoinvolvesacrificestointrudingspirits,soulrecall-ing,andtheleaving of miniatureimages of wealthoutsidethevillageforthespirits.Therearefewdefiniteseasonalcalen-dricalceremonies,butvillageritesmustbeheldbeforeclear-ing,planting,andharvesting.Allsorts of means(suchasob-servingcracksinheatedeggshells,thebileductsinpiglivers,orhowadyingfowlcrossesitslegs)areusedfordiviningthesource of troublesandtheauspiciousness of plans.Arts.Withminorexceptions,allChinartisnonrepresen-tative,andmanyChinusedtofindithardeventorecognizeadrawnorpaintedhumanfigure,thoughphotographswereclearenoughtothem.Floral-geometricdecorationisfoundintheweavingandinthememorialpostsmentionedearlier.Some of thedesignfiguresconventionallystandforthings-forexample,forvariouskinds of possessionsbelongingtoapersonbeingcommemorated-butnoneisiconic.DiseaseandCuring.Thefirstrecourseinthetreatment of diseasesandeven of woundsistheuse of mediumswhoar-rangefortheplacation of thespiritsresponsible,whomightotherwisepreventrecovery.Alongsidethisthereisawideva-riety of quiteidiosyncratictreatment,chiefly of anherbalna-ture,whichismainlypassedonfrommotherstodaughtersanddaughters-in-law.DeathandAfterlife.Thedeadareburied,andintheSouthernChinhillsthereissecondaryreburial of thebonesinasmalljar.Ingeneraltheblanket-wrappedcorpseisin-terredinastone-linedchamberinoneside of averticalpit.Thosewhohavediedaviolentdeathandwhothereforearelikelytohavebecomedangerousghostsareburiedinasepa-rategravesite,remotefromthevillageandsurroundingtrails.Therange of memorialconstructionsisconsiderable,butamongthemshouldbementioned-inadditiontothecom-memorativeposts-thestoneplatformsinandaroundthevillage,onwhichpeoplecanrestandonwhich,somesay,thespirit of thedeceasedmaysometimescomeandrest;andtheclusters of miniaturehousesontallstilts,inwhichperi-odicofferings of foodandminiaturefurnishingsareplacedforthespirit of thedeceased.Aninterestingfeature of thestoneplatforms(inthecase of deceasedmales),behindwhichthememorialpostsareraised,istheline of smallstonesthatmayalsobepresent,eachrepresentingeitherahumanvictim of thedeceasedor,equivalently,anotherman'swifeseducedbythedeceased.Modemmemorialstoneshavewrittenonthemlists of thedeceased'spossessionsinlife,ofteninastonishingdetail,downtotheoddenameledtincuporpair of woolensocks.SeealsoMizoBibliographyCarey,B.S.,andH.P.Tuck(1896).TheChinHills.2vols.Rangoon:GovernmentPress.Lehman,F.K.(1963).TheStructure of ChinSociety.Urbana:University of IllinoisPress.Lehman,F.K.(1970)."OnChinandKachinMarriageCy-cles."Man,n.s.5:11 8-1 25.Lehman,F.K.(1989)."InternalInflationaryPressuresinthePrestigeEconomy of theFeast -of- MeritComplex."InUpland-LowlandContrastsinMainlandSoutheast Asia, ed-itedbySusanB.Russell,8 9-1 02.NorthernIllinoisUniver-sityCenterforSoutheast Asia StudiesOccasionalPaper.DeKalb.Parry,N.E.(1932).TheLakhers.London:Macmillan.Shakespear,John(1912).TheLusheiKukiClans.London:Macmillan.CochinJew71dianSociety,editedbyMiltonB.SingerandBernardS.Cohn,39 7-4 11.Chicago:Aldine.Patterson,MaureenL.P.(1970)."ChangingPatterns of Oc-cupationamongChitpavanBrahmans."IndianEconomicandSocialHistoryReview7:37 5-3 96.Patterson,MaureenL. ... kinds of goods)insurroundingvillages.Thereweresmithswhomadethetraditionalsilver-amalgam(lateralumi-num)jewelry-suchasthebracelets,belts,earrings,rings,andnecklaceshungwithimportedbeadsandsilverrupeecoins-aswellasbrasshairpinsandotheritems,butthosear-tisanswereevenfewerinnumberthantheonesmentionedabove.indeed,thetradeinthelatteritemswasakintothelong-distancetradeinheirloomgoods,suchasthegreatgongsfromMyanmar(Burma),brassvesselsfromIndia,andothersorts of itemsthatsignifiedatleastanominalclaimuponthegoods of thevaaiplainscountry.Trade.All of thesemoreexpensiveitemsconstitutedthebasis of theprestigeeconomy of thesehillsandpassednotonlybysalebutbycirculation of myriadceremonialpaymentsandfines(especiallymarriage-prices,blood-moneypayments,andcompensationpaymentsfordefamation of status).Pres-tigegoodsandgayals-especiallyimportantfortheiruseinsacrificesassociatedwiththe"meritfeasts"bywhichsocialrankwasattainedorvalidated-werethetraditionalwealth of thesepeople.Furthermore,thedisplayorannouncement of theentirearray of whatonecurrentlyownedorhadownedinlife-symbolicallyindicatedoncarvedmemorialpostserectedforprestigiousdead-wasthedefinitivesign of one'ssocialandceremonialrank.Morespecifically,thepossession of asupposedlyuniqueobjectfromtheoutside world, likelytopossessaunique"personal"name of itsown,wasespeciallyimportant.Theideabehindtheprestigeeconomyisthatprosperityinthis world dependsuponthesacrificialexchange of goodswithinhabitants of theLand of theDead,andonlyifonehadconductedfeasts of meritwouldoneandone'sdescendantshavewealthandwell-being.Thus,too,thecon-tinuity of lineagebetweenthedeadandtbelivingwasimpor-tant;itwasespeciallyimportantforanyonetobememorial-izedafterhisorherdeath.Memorialservicewasdonenotonlybythedisplay of wealthandbyitsfigurationonmemor-ialpostsandstonesbutalsointhecomposition of songs(vahia)commemoratingaman'sgreatnessontheoccasion of one of hisfeasts.Sogreatlywerewealthandpossessionstiedupwithaperson'ssocialpositionthatamongthemosthei-noustraditionaloffencesinthissocietyweretheft,bastardy,andthesupposedpossession of "evileye"(hnam,theuncon-sciousandheritableabilitytocauseharmbylookingenvi-ouslyuponanother'sprosperity,orevensomeone'sconsump-tion of agoodmeal).Allthesesituationsmeantthatpropertyhadfailedtopassbymeans of expectedformalexchanges:ithadpassedinsteadbyarbitraryexpropriation,orthroughachildbornout of wedlockwithoutbenefit of marriage-price,orbymisfortunecausedbymurderousenvy of possessionstowhichonehadnolegitimateclaim.Division of Labor.Thefewclasses of part-timecraftspe-cialistarementionedabove.Womendomore of thedomestictasksandallthetraditionalweaving.Theyarealsoalmostex-clusivelythespiritmediumsbecausemalespiritfamiliarschoosethem.Menalonecutdowntheforestsandworkassmiths.Thereappeartobenofemalehuntersorwarriorsex-ceptinlegends,probablybecausenowomancanholdinherownnameafeast of celebrationforthekilling of amajorani-mal,orafeast of celebration of ahumantrophyheadorthat of atiger.(Inall of thesecasesthepointistotametheangryspirit of thedeceasedanimalorpersonandsendittoserveoneandone'sforebearsintheLand of theDead.)Awomancan,however,holdadomesticfeast of meritinthename of herdeceasedhusband,inwhichdomesticanimalsaresimi-larlysacrificedonbehalf of theLand of theDead.Neverthe-less,onlymencanbevillagepriests,whoaremostlyap-pointedbychiefsandheadmenbecausetheyhavememorizedtherequiredchantsandformulasandknowtheritualse-quences.Priestsserveasmasters of ceremonyatthefeasts of meritandcelebrationandatthevariouskinds of rite of placation-bothcyclicalandsporadic-addressedtothevar-iousspiritowners of theface of theland,greatandsmall.Al-mostallothertasksandactivitiescanbeundertakenbyeithersex;therehaveevenbeenhistoricalinstances of importantfemalechiefs,whoattainedofficethroughbeingwidowed.Therearefewifanyexploitablenaturalresourcesinthesehillsandvirtuallynomodernindustry,atleastnothingmadeforexport.Asidefromthesalaries of teachersandgovern-mentservants of allsortsandtheincomes of merchantsandshopkeepers,themainsource of moneyisthewages of Chinwhoworkontheoutside-preeminentlyinMyanmar,inthearmedforces.LandTenure.Thisaspect of Chincultureishighlyvaria-ble.Avillagehascompleteownership of itstract,andeventherighttohuntinitmustberequestedfromthevillage;however,itispossibletorentlandsinanothervillage'stractonanindividualoracommunalbasis.Villagetractbound-ariesarepreciselyindicatedbylandmarks.Frequentlyagivenhillsidetract,oreventhewholevillagetract,willbeownedbyachieforotherhereditaryaristocrat.Theright of achieftotheduesandservices of hisvillagersinfactderivesfromhisownership of theland,whiletheultimateownershipbyavil-lage of itslandasawholederivesfromtheheritablepactmadebytheancestralfounders of thevillagewiththespiritowners of theland.Theparamountrightisownership,sinceCoorg73tegratedintoKeralasociety,theywereinfluencedbymanyHindupracticesandbeliefs(e.g.,theemphasisuponpurity of descent,theweddingcustomsandcanopy,andthe"asceti-cism"associatedwithPassoverpreparations).Reportedly,theCochinJewshaveneversufferedfromanti-Semitismatthehands of theirHinduneighbors.ReligiousPractitioners.TheCochinJewsneverhadanyrabbis,butseveralmenservedasshochetim(ritualslaugh-terers)andhazanim(cantors)bothfortheirowncommuni-tiesandforanothercommunity of IndianJews,theBeneIs-raelinBombay.Ceremonies.Boththe'White"andthe"Black"Jewsper-formtheirceremoniesseparatelyintheirownsynagoguesandhomes.However,theceremoniesaresimilaranddistinctlyCochini,reflectingbothlocalHinduandChristianinflu-ences.Bothgroupsbuildamanara,oraperion,forthewed-ding,usuallyatthegroom'shouse.Afteraritualbaththebridereceivesatali,anIndianpendant,inimitation of localNayarpractice.Thegroomandbridedressintraditionalwed-dingdress.Thegroomentersthesynagogueonawhitecarpet-acustomapparentlyobservedby'Black"andnot'White"Jews-andsitsnearthepodiumuntilthebride'spro-cessionarrives.Thegroomhimself-andnotarabbi,asinotherJewishcommunities-actuallyannounceshisbetrothalandmarriagetohisbride.Arts.Dailyprayerswerechantedaccordingtotheshinglicustom,auniqueversion of thestandardJewishprayers.Inaddition,theCochinJewshavealargenumber of folksongsthattheysingregularly.Somearesungatweddings,somearelullabies,andsomespecificallyrecallthereturntoZion.In1984theCochinJewsinIsraelstagedahugepageantrelatinginsonganddancethestory of theiremigrationfromIndiaandtheirintegrationintoIsraelisociety.DeathandAfterlife.TheCochinJewsbelieveinanafter-life,influencedbothbyJewishandHindubeliefs.TheirdeadareburiedinJewishcemeteries.SeealsoBeneIsraelBibliographyKatz,Nathan,andEllenGoldberg(1989).'AsceticismandCasteinthePassoverObservances of theCochinJews."Jour-nal of theAmericanAcademy of Religion62:5 3-8 2.Mandelbaum,DavidG.(1975).'SocialStratificationamongtheJews of CochininIndiaandinIsrael."JewishJournal of Sociology17:16 5-2 10.Velayudhan,P.A.,etal.(1971).Commemorative Volume: CochinSynagogue,QuatercentenaryCelebration.Cochin:KeralaHistoricalAssociation.Weil,ShalvaJ.(1982).'SymmetrybetweenChristianandJewsinIndia:theCnaniteChristianandtheCochinJews of Kerala."ContributionstoIndianSociology16:17 5-1 96.Weil,ShalvaJ.(1984).FromCochintoEretzIsrael(inHe-brew).Jerusalem:KumuBerina.SHALVAJ.WEILCoorgETHNONYMS:Coorgi,KodaraCoorgisatiny,isolated,mountainousdistrictin south- westIndia,boundedontheeastbythehighMysorePlateau,averaginganelevation of 1,000meters,andonthewestbyamountainousfrontier3 0-5 0kilometersfromthewesterncoast.Itsgreatestlength,northto south, isabout100kilome-ters,anditsgreatestbreadth,easttowest,is65kilometers.TheWesternGhatmountainrangerunsfromnorthto south anditsmanyspursstrikeoutinalldirectionsthroughthesmallprovince,nowadistrict of KarnatakaState.Themainrivers,theKveriandLaksmanatirtha,areshallowandunnavigable.TheCoorgyearisdividedintothreeseasons-cold,hot,andrainy-withamarkedvariationinrainfallinthevariousregions.Theaverageyearlytemperaturerangesfrom10'to27'C.Coorgisprimarilyanagriculturalcountrywithcoffeeandricebeingthemainproducts.Coorgcontainsdensefor-ests of bamboo,sandalwood,andcardamom.Faunaincludeselephants,tigers,panthers,boars,anddeer.Theearlyhistory of CoorgcanbetracedbacktotheninthcenturyA.D.andconsists of asuccession of feudalrulersleadinguptothedynasty of theLingayatrajasbeginninginthe1600s.Thelastsurvivors of thedynastywerethebrothers,Doddavirarajendra(died1809)andLingarajendra(died1820).Theheirtothethrone,adaughter,Devammaji,was10atthetime of herfather'sdeathandthethronewasthere-foreusurpedbyanuncle.Theuncle,Lingarajendra,wassuc-ceededbyhissonChikkavirarajendra(ViraRajaII)whowaspoorlyacceptedbyhissubjects.Thisledtotheeventualan-nexation of CoorgbytheBritishin1834.Theannexationledtoanumber of economic,political,andsocialreforms,one of themostprominentbeingtheabolition of slavery.Therearethreelevels of territorialgroup;thevillageisthesmallestandthemostimportant.Villages,whicharemul-ticaste,containanumber of ancestralestates,eachcomprised of amainhouse of stoneandwoodandnearbyservants'huts of mudandbamboo.Thenad,consisting of severalvillages,isthenextlargergroup.Inthe1931census94percent of thepopulation of Coorglivedinsuchvillages.TraditionallyCoorgwasdividedintothirty-fivenadsandtwelvekombus,whichservejudicialpurposes.Everyvillagehasacouncil of eldersthatispresidedoverbyaheadmanwhosepositionishereditary.TherearetwotownsinCoorg:Mercara,(orMadikeri)withapopulation of 7,112;andVirarajpet,with4,106per-sons(as of 1931).Mercaraliesinthenorth-centralportion of theregion.Virarajpetisthemostimportantcommercialcentertoday. Of thetotal1931population of 163,327,89percentwereHindus,8percentMuslims,and2percentChristians.Thenumber of Kodaguspeakerswaslistedas72,085inthe1971census.TheprimarylanguagesspokeninCoorgareKodagu,Kannada(Dravidianlanguage),Hindi,andEnglish.CoorgsconsiderthemselvestobeKshatriyas,whocon-stitutethecaste of rulersandsoldiersinthetraditionalhier-archyandrankbelowonlyBrahmans.TodayCoorgsaresome of theprominentmilitaryleadersinIndia.Therearemore60Chakmadren.TheyaretaughtBuddhistideologyatanearlyage.Re-spectfor ... kinds of goods)insurroundingvillages.Thereweresmithswhomadethetraditionalsilver-amalgam(lateralumi-num)jewelry-suchasthebracelets,belts,earrings,rings,andnecklaceshungwithimportedbeadsandsilverrupeecoins-aswellasbrasshairpinsandotheritems,butthosear-tisanswereevenfewerinnumberthantheonesmentionedabove.indeed,thetradeinthelatteritemswasakintothelong-distancetradeinheirloomgoods,suchasthegreatgongsfromMyanmar(Burma),brassvesselsfromIndia,andothersorts of itemsthatsignifiedatleastanominalclaimuponthegoods of thevaaiplainscountry.Trade.All of thesemoreexpensiveitemsconstitutedthebasis of theprestigeeconomy of thesehillsandpassednotonlybysalebutbycirculation of myriadceremonialpaymentsandfines(especiallymarriage-prices,blood-moneypayments,andcompensationpaymentsfordefamation of status).Pres-tigegoodsandgayals-especiallyimportantfortheiruseinsacrificesassociatedwiththe"meritfeasts"bywhichsocialrankwasattainedorvalidated-werethetraditionalwealth of thesepeople.Furthermore,thedisplayorannouncement of theentirearray of whatonecurrentlyownedorhadownedinlife-symbolicallyindicatedoncarvedmemorialpostserectedforprestigiousdead-wasthedefinitivesign of one'ssocialandceremonialrank.Morespecifically,thepossession of asupposedlyuniqueobjectfromtheoutside world, likelytopossessaunique"personal"name of itsown,wasespeciallyimportant.Theideabehindtheprestigeeconomyisthatprosperityinthis world dependsuponthesacrificialexchange of goodswithinhabitants of theLand of theDead,andonlyifonehadconductedfeasts of meritwouldoneandone'sdescendantshavewealthandwell-being.Thus,too,thecon-tinuity of lineagebetweenthedeadandtbelivingwasimpor-tant;itwasespeciallyimportantforanyonetobememorial-izedafterhisorherdeath.Memorialservicewasdonenotonlybythedisplay of wealthandbyitsfigurationonmemor-ialpostsandstonesbutalsointhecomposition of songs(vahia)commemoratingaman'sgreatnessontheoccasion of one of hisfeasts.Sogreatlywerewealthandpossessionstiedupwithaperson'ssocialpositionthatamongthemosthei-noustraditionaloffencesinthissocietyweretheft,bastardy,andthesupposedpossession of "evileye"(hnam,theuncon-sciousandheritableabilitytocauseharmbylookingenvi-ouslyuponanother'sprosperity,orevensomeone'sconsump-tion of agoodmeal).Allthesesituationsmeantthatpropertyhadfailedtopassbymeans of expectedformalexchanges:ithadpassedinsteadbyarbitraryexpropriation,orthroughachildbornout of wedlockwithoutbenefit of marriage-price,orbymisfortunecausedbymurderousenvy of possessionstowhichonehadnolegitimateclaim.Division of Labor.Thefewclasses of part-timecraftspe-cialistarementionedabove.Womendomore of thedomestictasksandallthetraditionalweaving.Theyarealsoalmostex-clusivelythespiritmediumsbecausemalespiritfamiliarschoosethem.Menalonecutdowntheforestsandworkassmiths.Thereappeartobenofemalehuntersorwarriorsex-ceptinlegends,probablybecausenowomancanholdinherownnameafeast of celebrationforthekilling of amajorani-mal,orafeast of celebration of ahumantrophyheadorthat of atiger.(Inall of thesecasesthepointistotametheangryspirit of thedeceasedanimalorpersonandsendittoserveoneandone'sforebearsintheLand of theDead.)Awomancan,however,holdadomesticfeast of meritinthename of herdeceasedhusband,inwhichdomesticanimalsaresimi-larlysacrificedonbehalf of theLand of theDead.Neverthe-less,onlymencanbevillagepriests,whoaremostlyap-pointedbychiefsandheadmenbecausetheyhavememorizedtherequiredchantsandformulasandknowtheritualse-quences.Priestsserveasmasters of ceremonyatthefeasts of meritandcelebrationandatthevariouskinds of rite of placation-bothcyclicalandsporadic-addressedtothevar-iousspiritowners of theface of theland,greatandsmall.Al-mostallothertasksandactivitiescanbeundertakenbyeithersex;therehaveevenbeenhistoricalinstances of importantfemalechiefs,whoattainedofficethroughbeingwidowed.Therearefewifanyexploitablenaturalresourcesinthesehillsandvirtuallynomodernindustry,atleastnothingmadeforexport.Asidefromthesalaries of teachersandgovern-mentservants of allsortsandtheincomes of merchantsandshopkeepers,themainsource of moneyisthewages of Chinwhoworkontheoutside-preeminentlyinMyanmar,inthearmedforces.LandTenure.Thisaspect of Chincultureishighlyvaria-ble.Avillagehascompleteownership of itstract,andeventherighttohuntinitmustberequestedfromthevillage;however,itispossibletorentlandsinanothervillage'stractonanindividualoracommunalbasis.Villagetractbound-ariesarepreciselyindicatedbylandmarks.Frequentlyagivenhillsidetract,oreventhewholevillagetract,willbeownedbyachieforotherhereditaryaristocrat.Theright of achieftotheduesandservices of hisvillagersinfactderivesfromhisownership of theland,whiletheultimateownershipbyavil-lage of itslandasawholederivesfromtheheritablepactmadebytheancestralfounders of thevillagewiththespiritowners of theland.Theparamountrightisownership,sinceCoorg73tegratedintoKeralasociety,theywereinfluencedbymanyHindupracticesandbeliefs(e.g.,theemphasisuponpurity of descent,theweddingcustomsandcanopy,andthe"asceti-cism"associatedwithPassoverpreparations).Reportedly,theCochinJewshaveneversufferedfromanti-Semitismatthehands of theirHinduneighbors.ReligiousPractitioners.TheCochinJewsneverhadanyrabbis,butseveralmenservedasshochetim(ritualslaugh-terers)andhazanim(cantors)bothfortheirowncommuni-tiesandforanothercommunity of IndianJews,theBeneIs-raelinBombay.Ceremonies.Boththe'White"andthe"Black"Jewsper-formtheirceremoniesseparatelyintheirownsynagoguesandhomes.However,theceremoniesaresimilaranddistinctlyCochini,reflectingbothlocalHinduandChristianinflu-ences.Bothgroupsbuildamanara,oraperion,forthewed-ding,usuallyatthegroom'shouse.Afteraritualbaththebridereceivesatali,anIndianpendant,inimitation of localNayarpractice.Thegroomandbridedressintraditionalwed-dingdress.Thegroomentersthesynagogueonawhitecarpet-acustomapparentlyobservedby'Black"andnot'White"Jews-andsitsnearthepodiumuntilthebride'spro-cessionarrives.Thegroomhimself-andnotarabbi,asinotherJewishcommunities-actuallyannounceshisbetrothalandmarriagetohisbride.Arts.Dailyprayerswerechantedaccordingtotheshinglicustom,auniqueversion of thestandardJewishprayers.Inaddition,theCochinJewshavealargenumber of folksongsthattheysingregularly.Somearesungatweddings,somearelullabies,andsomespecificallyrecallthereturntoZion.In1984theCochinJewsinIsraelstagedahugepageantrelatinginsonganddancethestory of theiremigrationfromIndiaandtheirintegrationintoIsraelisociety.DeathandAfterlife.TheCochinJewsbelieveinanafter-life,influencedbothbyJewishandHindubeliefs.TheirdeadareburiedinJewishcemeteries.SeealsoBeneIsraelBibliographyKatz,Nathan,andEllenGoldberg(1989).'AsceticismandCasteinthePassoverObservances of theCochinJews."Jour-nal of theAmericanAcademy of Religion62:5 3-8 2.Mandelbaum,DavidG.(1975).'SocialStratificationamongtheJews of CochininIndiaandinIsrael."JewishJournal of Sociology17:16 5-2 10.Velayudhan,P.A.,etal.(1971).Commemorative Volume: CochinSynagogue,QuatercentenaryCelebration.Cochin:KeralaHistoricalAssociation.Weil,ShalvaJ.(1982).'SymmetrybetweenChristianandJewsinIndia:theCnaniteChristianandtheCochinJews of Kerala."ContributionstoIndianSociology16:17 5-1 96.Weil,ShalvaJ.(1984).FromCochintoEretzIsrael(inHe-brew).Jerusalem:KumuBerina.SHALVAJ.WEILCoorgETHNONYMS:Coorgi,KodaraCoorgisatiny,isolated,mountainousdistrictin south- westIndia,boundedontheeastbythehighMysorePlateau,averaginganelevation of 1,000meters,andonthewestbyamountainousfrontier3 0-5 0kilometersfromthewesterncoast.Itsgreatestlength,northto south, isabout100kilome-ters,anditsgreatestbreadth,easttowest,is65kilometers.TheWesternGhatmountainrangerunsfromnorthto south anditsmanyspursstrikeoutinalldirectionsthroughthesmallprovince,nowadistrict of KarnatakaState.Themainrivers,theKveriandLaksmanatirtha,areshallowandunnavigable.TheCoorgyearisdividedintothreeseasons-cold,hot,andrainy-withamarkedvariationinrainfallinthevariousregions.Theaverageyearlytemperaturerangesfrom10'to27'C.Coorgisprimarilyanagriculturalcountrywithcoffeeandricebeingthemainproducts.Coorgcontainsdensefor-ests of bamboo,sandalwood,andcardamom.Faunaincludeselephants,tigers,panthers,boars,anddeer.Theearlyhistory of CoorgcanbetracedbacktotheninthcenturyA.D.andconsists of asuccession of feudalrulersleadinguptothedynasty of theLingayatrajasbeginninginthe1600s.Thelastsurvivors of thedynastywerethebrothers,Doddavirarajendra(died1809)andLingarajendra(died1820).Theheirtothethrone,adaughter,Devammaji,was10atthetime of herfather'sdeathandthethronewasthere-foreusurpedbyanuncle.Theuncle,Lingarajendra,wassuc-ceededbyhissonChikkavirarajendra(ViraRajaII)whowaspoorlyacceptedbyhissubjects.Thisledtotheeventualan-nexation of CoorgbytheBritishin1834.Theannexationledtoanumber of economic,political,andsocialreforms,one of themostprominentbeingtheabolition of slavery.Therearethreelevels of territorialgroup;thevillageisthesmallestandthemostimportant.Villages,whicharemul-ticaste,containanumber of ancestralestates,eachcomprised of amainhouse of stoneandwoodandnearbyservants'huts of mudandbamboo.Thenad,consisting of severalvillages,isthenextlargergroup.Inthe1931census94percent of thepopulation of Coorglivedinsuchvillages.TraditionallyCoorgwasdividedintothirty-fivenadsandtwelvekombus,whichservejudicialpurposes.Everyvillagehasacouncil of eldersthatispresidedoverbyaheadmanwhosepositionishereditary.TherearetwotownsinCoorg:Mercara,(orMadikeri)withapopulation of 7,112;andVirarajpet,with4,106per-sons(as of 1931).Mercaraliesinthenorth-centralportion of theregion.Virarajpetisthemostimportantcommercialcentertoday. Of thetotal1931population of 163,327,89percentwereHindus,8percentMuslims,and2percentChristians.Thenumber of Kodaguspeakerswaslistedas72,085inthe1971census.TheprimarylanguagesspokeninCoorgareKodagu,Kannada(Dravidianlanguage),Hindi,andEnglish.CoorgsconsiderthemselvestobeKshatriyas,whocon-stitutethecaste of rulersandsoldiersinthetraditionalhier-archyandrankbelowonlyBrahmans.TodayCoorgsaresome of theprominentmilitaryleadersinIndia.Therearemore60Chakmadren.TheyaretaughtBuddhistideologyatanearlyage.Re-spectfor...

... oldcultureiscomprised of threemainlayers:theTamil-Malayalamsubstratumwithitsmanysubtleroots;oldSinhalacultureandlanguage,whichisthedominantelement;andthephase of Arabicin-fluence.ButtheMaldivesweretouchedbyeveryculturalwindthatpassedovertheIndianOcean.SinceindependencetherehasagainbeeninfluencefromSriLanka,throughitsteachersbroughtovertosetupmodemeducationwithteach-ing of English.UnusuallyrapidchangehasoccurredinDivehicultureinthepasttwenty-fiveyears.SettlementsThe201inhabitedislandsarethelargerorbestfishingis-lands.Housesaremade of localvegetationandthatchorcoralstones,sometimeswithimportedironortileroofs.Peo-pledesirepleasanthouses,andtheyoftenarrangethemonstreetswiththeplotsmarkedbystickfences.Theislandisthesocialandadministrativeunit.Everybodyhasofficialregistra-tiononhisorherislandandcannotchangeittoanotheris-landwithouttwelveyears'residence.Eachislandcomprisesaninsularsocialcommunity,inwhichitsland,people,andproductsarepreferredtothose of otherislands.Theislandsaregroupedintonineteenadministrativeatolls.Maleistheonlycity,withsomemultistoriedbuildings of coralstoneneatlywhitewashedandmostlybuiltalongthestraightsandystreets.Ithasapiousair,withthirty-fivemosquesandmanytombs.Nearbyistheairportisland of Hulule,witharunwayextendingonthereef.Some60"uninhabited"islandsarenowbuiltupasprofitabletouristresorts,whichespeciallyat-tractEuropeansinwinter,butthegovernmenttriestomini-mizetheirculturalinfluence.EconomySubsistenceandCommercialActivities.Themaintradi-tionaleconomicactivitiesaretradingandfishing.Bonitosandlargertunaareamainstay of theeconomy,caughtbypole-and-lineortrolling-linefromsailboatsormotorizedwoodenboats.ThefamousMaldivesfishispreparedbyboil-ing,drying,andsmoking.Amanmaximizeswealthbyacquir-ingfishingboatsbecausetheownergetsalargershare of fishthanthefishingcrew.Aboatownermightalsoobtaintherightfromthestatetoleaseuninhabitedislands,mainlyforcollectingcoconuts.Therearethreekinds of milletsgrownandtarointhe south. Somehomeshavebreadfruit,mango,papaya,andbananatrees,butfewvegetablesareeaten.Seatradehasalwaysbeenavitalsource of income,andnowthereisamodemshippingindustry;profitsfromitandtourismac-cruemostlytoafewprominentfamiliesinMale.Incomepercapitafromforeignaidisrelativelyhigh.IndustrialArts.Themoststrikingtraditionalcraftisbuildingwoodenboats,bothsmallandlargeoneswithlateensails,whichcanfishinthedeepseaandcarrygoodstothecontinents.Sailinglongdistanceswithoutbenefit of mapsandchartsisaremarkabletraditionalskill.Maldivesropetwistedfromcoconutcoirwasalwaysindemandbyforeignnavies.Theislandersalsomakefineproductssuchasmatswovenfromlocalreedsandlacquerworkonturnedwood.Cottonweaving,silverwork,stonecutting,andbrassworkhavemostlydiedout.Trade.FormanycenturiestheMaldiveswerefamousasthemainsource of cowrieshells,usedasmoneyinBengalandAfrica.Divehisareskilledinrapidcounting,necessaryforhandlingcowries,coconuts,orfish.Thetraditionalmethodwastocountbytwosto96andmarkeachunit of 192bylaying2coconutsontheside;theytherebycouldcountrap-idlytomanythousands.Thebasenumberwas12,whichClarenceMaloneyfindssignificantinMaldiveshistory.WhatismorepeculiaristhatIndo-Aryanwordsfor25,50,75,100,and1,000areappliedrespectivelyto24,48,72,96,and960,asthedecimalsystemhasbeenreplacingtheduodecimal.Weightsandmeasuresarebasedonmultiples of 4and12.Themainimportshavebeenrice,wheatflour,cottontextiles,kerosene,metalproducts,tobacco,salt,andcondiments.Nowthewholecountryisaduty-freeentrepot,contrastingwiththecontrolledeconomies of other South Asiancoun-tries,andthereismodembanking.Division of Labor.Menfish,whilewomenprepareanddrythefish.Mengrowmillets,whilewomencultivaterootcrops.Menconductinterislandandoverseastrade,climbcoconuttrees,andaretheartisansincotton,silver,lacquer,andstonework,whilewomenweavematsanddoembroidery.Womendothetediousjob of twistingcoirintosmallropes,whichmenthentwistintothickropesfortheirboats.How-ever,thesesexrolesarenotabsolutelyfixed;therearecases of theseactivitiesbeingdonebytheothersex.Womendomost of thehouseworkandchildcare,butmenmayalsodoit.Boatcrewsandleaders of Islamicritualandlaw,however,areallmales.LandTenure.Alllandbelongstothestate,whichleasesuninhabitedislandsorparts of islandstoprominentpeopleforcollection of produce,aspart of itssystem of control.AllhouseholdsintheMaldives,exceptonMale,canclaimtherighttoaplot of landforahouseandgardenintheirisland of registration.InFueMulakuinthe south, residentshavetherighttocultivateasmuchtarolandastheywish.KinshipKinGroupsandDescent.TheDivehikinshipsysteminoriginisacombination of DravidianandArabwithelements of NorthIndiankinshipderivedfromSriLanka.Althoughthesethreesystemsaresharplyatvariance,theyareresolvedinDivehiculture.TheDravidiansystemisbasedonpreferredcross-cousinmarriage,andamaleclassifiesallfemalesasei-thersister(unmarriageable)orfemalecrosscousin(marriage-able).Thematrilinealvariant of theDravidiansystemoccursEuropeansin South Asia 79Maloney,Clarence(1984).-Divehi."InMuslimPeoples:A World EthnographicSurvey,Vol.1,23 2-2 36.Rev.ed.,editedbyRichardWeekes.Westport,Conn.:GreenwoodPress.Maloney,Clarence(1980).People of theMaldiveIslands.Ma-dras:OrientLongman.Ottovar,Annagrethe,andNilsFinnMunch-Petersen(1980).Maldiverneoet0samfundidetIndiskeOcean(TheMaldivianIslandcommunityintheIndianOcean).Copen-hagen:Kunstindustrimuseet.CLARENCEMALONEYANDNILSFINNMUNCH-PETERSENMunch-Petersen,NilsFinn(1982).'Maldives:History,DailyLife,andArtHandicraft."BulletinduC.E.M.O.I.(Brussels).1:7 4-1 03.Europeansin South Asia ETHNONYMS:Ferangi(fromMemsahib;child:ChhotaSahib"Franks"),Sahib(fem.:Whiletheimpact of Europeonthe South Asiansubcon-tinenthasbeenimmeasurableanddatesbacklongbeforeVascodaGama'sexploratoryvisitin1498,thenumber of Eu-ropeansresidentintheareanowismerelyafewtens of thou-sands.(Theymoveaboutsomuchthatacloseestimateisdif-ficult.)Butevenintheheyday of Britishimperialismtherewereonlyabout167,000Europeansinall of South Asia (1931census).LeavingasidefromthisdiscussiontheAnglo-IndiansandLuso-Indians of the South Asianmainland,andtheBurghers of SriLanka,whoareallinfactlocalpeople of part-Europeanancestry,wecanidentifythefollowingcategories of Europeansasbeingresidentin South Asia today.(1)Diplomatsandjournalists.Foundonlyinthecapitalcitiesandotherconsularposts.(2)Developmentworkers,etc.Technicalspecialistsfromthe World HealthOrganization,otherUnitedNationsagen-cies,theU.S.PeaceCorps,etc.areregularlyencounteredinmost South Asiancountries.Students of anthropology,lin-guistics,andsomeothersubjectsmaybefoundalmostany-where,thoughneveringreatnumbers.SometeaandcoffeeplantationsinIndiastillhaveEuropeanmanagersandindeedareownedbyBritishcompanies.(3)RetiredBritishresidents.Asmallnumber of veryeld-erlypeoplewhoretiredinIndiaorSriLankaataboutthetime of independencearestillthere.(Most,however,leftthesub-continenttoretireinBritain,theChannelIslands,Cyprus,orAustralia.)(4)Christianmissionaries.Whilethe South Asianchurchesareessentiallyself-governing,severalhundredEuro-peanandAmericanmissionariesandCatholicpriestsandnunsmaystillbeencounteredintheregion.Theyarestill of someimportanceineducation,aswellasinfunnelingWest-emaidtotheirparishioners.(5)Religiousseekers.Atanygiventimetherearesomethousands of Australian,European,orAmericanpeople,usu-allyfairlyyoung,whoarewanderingaroundIndia,Nepal,andelsewhereinsearch of religiousenlightenmentwithinthebroadtradition of Hinduspirituality.Some of thesepeoplehavebeenlooselyclassedas"hippies."Frenchpeoplearepar-ticularlyattractedtoPondicherryandthenearbyreligiouscenter of Auroville,whileothershavebeenespeciallyat-tractedtospecificashrams,toRishikeshandotherHima-layansites,ortotheTheosophicalCenterinMadrasCity.(6)Tourists.Theregionhasanenormoustouristpoten-tial,whichhasbeenslowlydevelopedsinceindependence,andin1991India,SriLanka,Nepal,andtheMaldiveshaveathrivingtouristindustry.Unlikethereligiousseekersmen-tionedabove,whomaystayformanymonths,ordinaryWest-erntouristsusuallyvisitforjusttwoorthreeweeks.Thegreatmajority of thesetouristsarefromwesternEuropeandAustralasia.(Many of India'stourists,ontheotherhand,arenon-Europeansfromother South Asiancountries.)80Europeansin South Asia TheBritishImpactTheculturalandpoliticalimpact of theBritishoverthepasttwocenturiesin South Asia hasbeenvastandextremelyper-vasive.Numeroushistories of the"Britishperiod"testifytothis,anditisaninfluencereferredtointheIntroductiontothis volume. Spacedoesnotpermitevenabriefreview of theadministrative,legal,religious,educational,publichealth,military,agricultural,industrial,sporting,andcommunica-tionaldevelopmentsthatoccurredduringtheperiod of Brit-ishadministration of most of thesubcontinent.Wemayinsteadhighlightthecontribution of EuropeansfromIndiatothearts.Bestknown of courseistheliterarycontribution of RudyardKipling(186 5-1 936),one of twoIndian-bomwriterstoreceivetheNobelPrizeforLiterature(theotherwasRabindranathTagore). Of numerousprofes-sionalartiststoworkinIndia,themostoutstandingwastheAnglo-GermanpainterJohnZoffany,whoworkedtherefrom1783to1790.Theartisticimpact of theBritishonIndianar-chitecturewasvast,andwelldocumented:witnessonlytheofficialbuildings of NewDelhi.Lessrecognizedduringthepresentcenturyhasbeentheimpact of thisrelativelysmallethnicgroupontheBritishfilmindustry.JulieChristie,VivienLeigh,MargaretLockwood,MerleOberon,andsev-eralotheractors,aswellasthedirectorLindsayAnderson,wereallbornandatleastpartlybroughtupinBritishIndia.Onemightwonderwhethertheubiquity of schoolplaysandamateurdramaticsocietiesinthaterahadsomethingtodowiththesecareers.SeealsoAnglo-Indian;French of India;IndianChristianBibliographyBallhatchet,Kenneth(1980).Race,SexandClassundertheRaj:ImperialAttitudesandPoliciesandTheirCritics,179 3- 1905.NewYork:St.Martin'sPress.Barr,Pat(1976).TheMemsahibs:TheWomen of VictorianIndia.London:Secker&Warburg.Hervey,H.J.A.(1913).TheEuropeaninIndia.London:StanleyPaul&Co.Hockings,Paul(1989).'BritishSocietyintheCompany,Crown,andCongressEras."BlueMountains:TheEthnogra-phyandBiogeography of a South IndianRegion,editedbyPaulEdwardHockings,33 4-3 59.NewDelhi:OxfordUniversityPress.Kincaid,Dennis(1938).BritishSocialLifeinIndia,160 8- 1937.London:GeorgeRoutledge&Sons.Moorhouse,Geoffrey(1983).IndiaBritannica.NewYork:Harper&Row.French of IndiaETHNONYMS:FrenchTamils,Pondicheriens,Pondicherry(name of townandterritory)Therewere12,864FrenchnationalsresidinginIndiain1988.NearlyallareintheUnionTerritory of PondicherryinsoutheasternIndia(11,726in1988),withmuchsmallernumbersinKaraikal(695individuals),Mahe(50),Yanam(46),and342elsewhereinIndia.(Thesewerecoastalpock-etsbelongingtotheformerFrenchEmpire.)Whilelegallystillcitizens of FranceandresidentaliensinIndia,theyareethnicallyIndian,about90percentbeingethnicTamils.Al-mostunaccountably,theyvoteintheFrenchconstituency of Nice.Theyformasmallminority,accountingforlessthan3percent of thepresentpopulation of Pondicherry.TheFrenchinIndiaareanartifact of theFrenchpres-encethere,whichbeganin1673withtheestablishment of FrenchIndiaandcontinueduntil1962whentheFrenchter-ritorywasformallytransferredtoIndia.TheFrenchpresencewasalwayssmallandminorcomparedwiththeBritishpres-enceandtheFrenchinIndiaweregenerallyignored.Today,themajority of theseFrenchareHindusorChristians of localormixedfamilyorigin,andlessthan50percent of themspeakFrench.Atthesametime,however,FrenchistaughtinschoolsattendedbyFrenchIndianchildrenandadultFrenchclassesarewellattended,reflectinganinterestinmaintainingtiesandanallegiancetoFranceorinfindingjobswithFrenchcompanies.TheFrenchIndiansarethewealthiestgroupinPondicherry(asidefromthoserunningtheAurobindoAshram),derivingmuch of theirincomefrompension(some20percentareretirees),socialsecurity,welfare,andotherprogramsoftheFrenchgovernment.TheyarealsoentitledtoemigratetoFrance,althoughfewdosoandtheFrenchgov-ernmentdoesnotencouragethepractice.SeealsoEuropeansin South Asia; TamilBibliographyGlachant,Roger(1965).Histoiredel'IndedesFranqais.Paris:LibrairiePlon.Miles,WilliamF.S.(1990)."CitizenswithoutSoil:TheFrench of India(Pondicherry)."EthnicandRacialStudies13:25 2-2 73.Ramasamy,A.(1987).History of Pondicherry.NewDelhi:SterlingPublishers.Scholberg,Henry,andEmmanuelDivien(1973).Biblio-graphiedesFrangaisdansl'Inde.Pondicherry:HistoricalSoci-ety of Pondicherry.Nilsson,Sten(1968).EuropeanArchitectureinIndia,175 0- 1850.London:FaberandFaber.Trevelyan,Raleigh(1987).TheGoldenOriole.NewYork:Vi-kingPenguin.PAULHOCKINGSDivehi75DardETHNONYMS:noneAlthoughthisnameappearsintheanthropologicalliter-ature,itseemsthatthereisnodiscreteculturalgroupidentifi-ableasDards.ItistruethatPlinyandPtolemyinancienttimesbothreferredtosuchapeopleinhabitingatract of theupperIndusValleyinwhatistodayPakistan,andinthatareapeoplelivingontheleftbank of theInduswerecalledDards.TheDards,basedondescriptions of theGilgitareaaround1870,aredescribedasahunting,herding,andfarmingpeoplewith:large,extendedfamiliesandsomepolygyny;sometrans-humance;noextensivecerealagriculture;villages of from400to1,000inhabitants;patrilocalpostmaritalresidence;andnolocalizedclansbutlineagesorsibsspreadingbeyondasinglecommunity.Whileall of thismayhavebeentrueforthein-habitants of Gilgit,thereisstillsomequestionastowhetherthoselabeledDardsare,infact,adistinctculturalentity.Itismoreappropriatetospeak of the'Dardicbranch,"atermusedbylinguiststodesignateasmallgroup of languages of theIndo-AryanSubfamilyspokeninandnearthenorth of Pakistan. Of these,Kashmiriisthemostimportant.ThereisalsoaterritorythereknownasDardistan,whichincludesGilgitValley,Hunza,Chitral,Yasin,Nagar,Panyal,Kohis-tan,theAstoreValley,andpart of theupperIndusValleybe-tweenBunjiandBatera.SeealsoKashmiri;KohistaniBibliographyBiddulph,John(1880).Tribes of theHindooKoosh.Calcutta:Superintendent of GovernmentPrinting.Leitner,GotliebWilliam(1877).TheLanguagesandRaces of Dardistan.Lahore:GovernmentCentralBookDepot.PAULHOCKINGSDivehiETHNONYMS:Divehin,Dives,MaldiviansOrientationIdentification.DivehisarethosewhospeakDivehi,thelanguage of theRepublic of theMaldives.TheyoccupyalltheMaldivesandalsotheisland of Maliku(Minicoyonthemaps)tothenorth,whichbelongstoIndia.ThepeoplecallthemselvesDivehi(fromdive-si,meaning"island-er"),andtheircountryisDivehiRAjje(kingdom).Thename'Mal-dives"isprobablyfrommdild-dfv("garland-islands"inIndianlanguages),referringtothedoublechain of atollsthatap-pearslikeagarlandornecklace.ThewordatolisDivehi,origi-nallyspelledwithone1.Thecountrywasanexus of IndianOceanshipping,andithasremainedmostlyindependentsinceancienttimes.Location.TheMaldivesstretchfrom002'Sto7°0'N,withMinicoyat8°2'.Longitudeisabout730E.Thereareabout1,200islands, of which201arepermanentlyinhabited.Theislandsarelowandflat,mostlylessthanakilometerlongwithonly9aslongas2kilometers,ringingcoralatolls.Totallandareaisonlyabout280squarekilometers,andnowhereisthelandmorethan2metersabovesealevel.TheMaldivesextendfor867kilometersnorthto south andclaimthesur-roundingoceanasnationalterritory.Malikuisthelargestis-land,16.5kilometerslongandlying140kilometersnorth of theMaldivesproper,butitispoliticallycutofffromotherparts of thearchipelago.Demography.As of 1991therewere228,000Divehis-220,000Maldiviansandroughly8,000onMaliku.Thefirstcensuswasin1911aspart of theCeyloncensus,anditshowed72,237Divehison217inhabitedislands.Populationwaspreviouslykeptincheckbyepidemics,faminebecause of stormsthatinterruptedimports of food,andcerebralmalaria,butduringrecentdecadesthepopulationhasbeenshootinguprapidly.The1990censusshowedacrudebirthrate of 43per1,000andagrowthrate of 3.5percentayear.Thegovern-menthastakenlittleinitiativeonfamilyplanningbecause of themomentum of Islamictradition.Malehas57,000people,aquarter of allDivehis,thoughitisonly1.6kilometerslongandthethingroundwaterlenshasbecomepolluted,sothegovernmenttriestocurbmigrationthere.Lifeexpectancyisabout62yearsformalesand60forfemales.LinguisticAffiliation.DivehiisderivedfromtheoldSinhala of SriLanka,andsoitisclassifiableasanIndo-Aryanlanguage,althoughattheveryend of ... oldcultureiscomprised of threemainlayers:theTamil-Malayalamsubstratumwithitsmanysubtleroots;oldSinhalacultureandlanguage,whichisthedominantelement;andthephase of Arabicin-fluence.ButtheMaldivesweretouchedbyeveryculturalwindthatpassedovertheIndianOcean.SinceindependencetherehasagainbeeninfluencefromSriLanka,throughitsteachersbroughtovertosetupmodemeducationwithteach-ing of English.UnusuallyrapidchangehasoccurredinDivehicultureinthepasttwenty-fiveyears.SettlementsThe201inhabitedislandsarethelargerorbestfishingis-lands.Housesaremade of localvegetationandthatchorcoralstones,sometimeswithimportedironortileroofs.Peo-pledesirepleasanthouses,andtheyoftenarrangethemonstreetswiththeplotsmarkedbystickfences.Theislandisthesocialandadministrativeunit.Everybodyhasofficialregistra-tiononhisorherislandandcannotchangeittoanotheris-landwithouttwelveyears'residence.Eachislandcomprisesaninsularsocialcommunity,inwhichitsland,people,andproductsarepreferredtothose of otherislands.Theislandsaregroupedintonineteenadministrativeatolls.Maleistheonlycity,withsomemultistoriedbuildings of coralstoneneatlywhitewashedandmostlybuiltalongthestraightsandystreets.Ithasapiousair,withthirty-fivemosquesandmanytombs.Nearbyistheairportisland of Hulule,witharunwayextendingonthereef.Some60"uninhabited"islandsarenowbuiltupasprofitabletouristresorts,whichespeciallyat-tractEuropeansinwinter,butthegovernmenttriestomini-mizetheirculturalinfluence.EconomySubsistenceandCommercialActivities.Themaintradi-tionaleconomicactivitiesaretradingandfishing.Bonitosandlargertunaareamainstay of theeconomy,caughtbypole-and-lineortrolling-linefromsailboatsormotorizedwoodenboats.ThefamousMaldivesfishispreparedbyboil-ing,drying,andsmoking.Amanmaximizeswealthbyacquir-ingfishingboatsbecausetheownergetsalargershare of fishthanthefishingcrew.Aboatownermightalsoobtaintherightfromthestatetoleaseuninhabitedislands,mainlyforcollectingcoconuts.Therearethreekinds of milletsgrownandtarointhe south. Somehomeshavebreadfruit,mango,papaya,andbananatrees,butfewvegetablesareeaten.Seatradehasalwaysbeenavitalsource of income,andnowthereisamodemshippingindustry;profitsfromitandtourismac-cruemostlytoafewprominentfamiliesinMale.Incomepercapitafromforeignaidisrelativelyhigh.IndustrialArts.Themoststrikingtraditionalcraftisbuildingwoodenboats,bothsmallandlargeoneswithlateensails,whichcanfishinthedeepseaandcarrygoodstothecontinents.Sailinglongdistanceswithoutbenefit of mapsandchartsisaremarkabletraditionalskill.Maldivesropetwistedfromcoconutcoirwasalwaysindemandbyforeignnavies.Theislandersalsomakefineproductssuchasmatswovenfromlocalreedsandlacquerworkonturnedwood.Cottonweaving,silverwork,stonecutting,andbrassworkhavemostlydiedout.Trade.FormanycenturiestheMaldiveswerefamousasthemainsource of cowrieshells,usedasmoneyinBengalandAfrica.Divehisareskilledinrapidcounting,necessaryforhandlingcowries,coconuts,orfish.Thetraditionalmethodwastocountbytwosto96andmarkeachunit of 192bylaying2coconutsontheside;theytherebycouldcountrap-idlytomanythousands.Thebasenumberwas12,whichClarenceMaloneyfindssignificantinMaldiveshistory.WhatismorepeculiaristhatIndo-Aryanwordsfor25,50,75,100,and1,000areappliedrespectivelyto24,48,72,96,and960,asthedecimalsystemhasbeenreplacingtheduodecimal.Weightsandmeasuresarebasedonmultiples of 4and12.Themainimportshavebeenrice,wheatflour,cottontextiles,kerosene,metalproducts,tobacco,salt,andcondiments.Nowthewholecountryisaduty-freeentrepot,contrastingwiththecontrolledeconomies of other South Asiancoun-tries,andthereismodembanking.Division of Labor.Menfish,whilewomenprepareanddrythefish.Mengrowmillets,whilewomencultivaterootcrops.Menconductinterislandandoverseastrade,climbcoconuttrees,andaretheartisansincotton,silver,lacquer,andstonework,whilewomenweavematsanddoembroidery.Womendothetediousjob of twistingcoirintosmallropes,whichmenthentwistintothickropesfortheirboats.How-ever,thesesexrolesarenotabsolutelyfixed;therearecases of theseactivitiesbeingdonebytheothersex.Womendomost of thehouseworkandchildcare,butmenmayalsodoit.Boatcrewsandleaders of Islamicritualandlaw,however,areallmales.LandTenure.Alllandbelongstothestate,whichleasesuninhabitedislandsorparts of islandstoprominentpeopleforcollection of produce,aspart of itssystem of control.AllhouseholdsintheMaldives,exceptonMale,canclaimtherighttoaplot of landforahouseandgardenintheirisland of registration.InFueMulakuinthe south, residentshavetherighttocultivateasmuchtarolandastheywish.KinshipKinGroupsandDescent.TheDivehikinshipsysteminoriginisacombination of DravidianandArabwithelements of NorthIndiankinshipderivedfromSriLanka.Althoughthesethreesystemsaresharplyatvariance,theyareresolvedinDivehiculture.TheDravidiansystemisbasedonpreferredcross-cousinmarriage,andamaleclassifiesallfemalesasei-thersister(unmarriageable)orfemalecrosscousin(marriage-able).Thematrilinealvariant of theDravidiansystemoccursEuropeansin South Asia 79Maloney,Clarence(1984).-Divehi."InMuslimPeoples:A World EthnographicSurvey,Vol.1,23 2-2 36.Rev.ed.,editedbyRichardWeekes.Westport,Conn.:GreenwoodPress.Maloney,Clarence(1980).People of theMaldiveIslands.Ma-dras:OrientLongman.Ottovar,Annagrethe,andNilsFinnMunch-Petersen(1980).Maldiverneoet0samfundidetIndiskeOcean(TheMaldivianIslandcommunityintheIndianOcean).Copen-hagen:Kunstindustrimuseet.CLARENCEMALONEYANDNILSFINNMUNCH-PETERSENMunch-Petersen,NilsFinn(1982).'Maldives:History,DailyLife,andArtHandicraft."BulletinduC.E.M.O.I.(Brussels).1:7 4-1 03.Europeansin South Asia ETHNONYMS:Ferangi(fromMemsahib;child:ChhotaSahib"Franks"),Sahib(fem.:Whiletheimpact of Europeonthe South Asiansubcon-tinenthasbeenimmeasurableanddatesbacklongbeforeVascodaGama'sexploratoryvisitin1498,thenumber of Eu-ropeansresidentintheareanowismerelyafewtens of thou-sands.(Theymoveaboutsomuchthatacloseestimateisdif-ficult.)Butevenintheheyday of Britishimperialismtherewereonlyabout167,000Europeansinall of South Asia (1931census).LeavingasidefromthisdiscussiontheAnglo-IndiansandLuso-Indians of the South Asianmainland,andtheBurghers of SriLanka,whoareallinfactlocalpeople of part-Europeanancestry,wecanidentifythefollowingcategories of Europeansasbeingresidentin South Asia today.(1)Diplomatsandjournalists.Foundonlyinthecapitalcitiesandotherconsularposts.(2)Developmentworkers,etc.Technicalspecialistsfromthe World HealthOrganization,otherUnitedNationsagen-cies,theU.S.PeaceCorps,etc.areregularlyencounteredinmost South Asiancountries.Students of anthropology,lin-guistics,andsomeothersubjectsmaybefoundalmostany-where,thoughneveringreatnumbers.SometeaandcoffeeplantationsinIndiastillhaveEuropeanmanagersandindeedareownedbyBritishcompanies.(3)RetiredBritishresidents.Asmallnumber of veryeld-erlypeoplewhoretiredinIndiaorSriLankaataboutthetime of independencearestillthere.(Most,however,leftthesub-continenttoretireinBritain,theChannelIslands,Cyprus,orAustralia.)(4)Christianmissionaries.Whilethe South Asianchurchesareessentiallyself-governing,severalhundredEuro-peanandAmericanmissionariesandCatholicpriestsandnunsmaystillbeencounteredintheregion.Theyarestill of someimportanceineducation,aswellasinfunnelingWest-emaidtotheirparishioners.(5)Religiousseekers.Atanygiventimetherearesomethousands of Australian,European,orAmericanpeople,usu-allyfairlyyoung,whoarewanderingaroundIndia,Nepal,andelsewhereinsearch of religiousenlightenmentwithinthebroadtradition of Hinduspirituality.Some of thesepeoplehavebeenlooselyclassedas"hippies."Frenchpeoplearepar-ticularlyattractedtoPondicherryandthenearbyreligiouscenter of Auroville,whileothershavebeenespeciallyat-tractedtospecificashrams,toRishikeshandotherHima-layansites,ortotheTheosophicalCenterinMadrasCity.(6)Tourists.Theregionhasanenormoustouristpoten-tial,whichhasbeenslowlydevelopedsinceindependence,andin1991India,SriLanka,Nepal,andtheMaldiveshaveathrivingtouristindustry.Unlikethereligiousseekersmen-tionedabove,whomaystayformanymonths,ordinaryWest-erntouristsusuallyvisitforjusttwoorthreeweeks.Thegreatmajority of thesetouristsarefromwesternEuropeandAustralasia.(Many of India'stourists,ontheotherhand,arenon-Europeansfromother South Asiancountries.)80Europeansin South Asia TheBritishImpactTheculturalandpoliticalimpact of theBritishoverthepasttwocenturiesin South Asia hasbeenvastandextremelyper-vasive.Numeroushistories of the"Britishperiod"testifytothis,anditisaninfluencereferredtointheIntroductiontothis volume. Spacedoesnotpermitevenabriefreview of theadministrative,legal,religious,educational,publichealth,military,agricultural,industrial,sporting,andcommunica-tionaldevelopmentsthatoccurredduringtheperiod of Brit-ishadministration of most of thesubcontinent.Wemayinsteadhighlightthecontribution of EuropeansfromIndiatothearts.Bestknown of courseistheliterarycontribution of RudyardKipling(186 5-1 936),one of twoIndian-bomwriterstoreceivetheNobelPrizeforLiterature(theotherwasRabindranathTagore). Of numerousprofes-sionalartiststoworkinIndia,themostoutstandingwastheAnglo-GermanpainterJohnZoffany,whoworkedtherefrom1783to1790.Theartisticimpact of theBritishonIndianar-chitecturewasvast,andwelldocumented:witnessonlytheofficialbuildings of NewDelhi.Lessrecognizedduringthepresentcenturyhasbeentheimpact of thisrelativelysmallethnicgroupontheBritishfilmindustry.JulieChristie,VivienLeigh,MargaretLockwood,MerleOberon,andsev-eralotheractors,aswellasthedirectorLindsayAnderson,wereallbornandatleastpartlybroughtupinBritishIndia.Onemightwonderwhethertheubiquity of schoolplaysandamateurdramaticsocietiesinthaterahadsomethingtodowiththesecareers.SeealsoAnglo-Indian;French of India;IndianChristianBibliographyBallhatchet,Kenneth(1980).Race,SexandClassundertheRaj:ImperialAttitudesandPoliciesandTheirCritics,179 3- 1905.NewYork:St.Martin'sPress.Barr,Pat(1976).TheMemsahibs:TheWomen of VictorianIndia.London:Secker&Warburg.Hervey,H.J.A.(1913).TheEuropeaninIndia.London:StanleyPaul&Co.Hockings,Paul(1989).'BritishSocietyintheCompany,Crown,andCongressEras."BlueMountains:TheEthnogra-phyandBiogeography of a South IndianRegion,editedbyPaulEdwardHockings,33 4-3 59.NewDelhi:OxfordUniversityPress.Kincaid,Dennis(1938).BritishSocialLifeinIndia,160 8- 1937.London:GeorgeRoutledge&Sons.Moorhouse,Geoffrey(1983).IndiaBritannica.NewYork:Harper&Row.French of IndiaETHNONYMS:FrenchTamils,Pondicheriens,Pondicherry(name of townandterritory)Therewere12,864FrenchnationalsresidinginIndiain1988.NearlyallareintheUnionTerritory of PondicherryinsoutheasternIndia(11,726in1988),withmuchsmallernumbersinKaraikal(695individuals),Mahe(50),Yanam(46),and342elsewhereinIndia.(Thesewerecoastalpock-etsbelongingtotheformerFrenchEmpire.)Whilelegallystillcitizens of FranceandresidentaliensinIndia,theyareethnicallyIndian,about90percentbeingethnicTamils.Al-mostunaccountably,theyvoteintheFrenchconstituency of Nice.Theyformasmallminority,accountingforlessthan3percent of thepresentpopulation of Pondicherry.TheFrenchinIndiaareanartifact of theFrenchpres-encethere,whichbeganin1673withtheestablishment of FrenchIndiaandcontinueduntil1962whentheFrenchter-ritorywasformallytransferredtoIndia.TheFrenchpresencewasalwayssmallandminorcomparedwiththeBritishpres-enceandtheFrenchinIndiaweregenerallyignored.Today,themajority of theseFrenchareHindusorChristians of localormixedfamilyorigin,andlessthan50percent of themspeakFrench.Atthesametime,however,FrenchistaughtinschoolsattendedbyFrenchIndianchildrenandadultFrenchclassesarewellattended,reflectinganinterestinmaintainingtiesandanallegiancetoFranceorinfindingjobswithFrenchcompanies.TheFrenchIndiansarethewealthiestgroupinPondicherry(asidefromthoserunningtheAurobindoAshram),derivingmuch of theirincomefrompension(some20percentareretirees),socialsecurity,welfare,andotherprogramsoftheFrenchgovernment.TheyarealsoentitledtoemigratetoFrance,althoughfewdosoandtheFrenchgov-ernmentdoesnotencouragethepractice.SeealsoEuropeansin South Asia; TamilBibliographyGlachant,Roger(1965).Histoiredel'IndedesFranqais.Paris:LibrairiePlon.Miles,WilliamF.S.(1990)."CitizenswithoutSoil:TheFrench of India(Pondicherry)."EthnicandRacialStudies13:25 2-2 73.Ramasamy,A.(1987).History of Pondicherry.NewDelhi:SterlingPublishers.Scholberg,Henry,andEmmanuelDivien(1973).Biblio-graphiedesFrangaisdansl'Inde.Pondicherry:HistoricalSoci-ety of Pondicherry.Nilsson,Sten(1968).EuropeanArchitectureinIndia,175 0- 1850.London:FaberandFaber.Trevelyan,Raleigh(1987).TheGoldenOriole.NewYork:Vi-kingPenguin.PAULHOCKINGSDivehi75DardETHNONYMS:noneAlthoughthisnameappearsintheanthropologicalliter-ature,itseemsthatthereisnodiscreteculturalgroupidentifi-ableasDards.ItistruethatPlinyandPtolemyinancienttimesbothreferredtosuchapeopleinhabitingatract of theupperIndusValleyinwhatistodayPakistan,andinthatareapeoplelivingontheleftbank of theInduswerecalledDards.TheDards,basedondescriptions of theGilgitareaaround1870,aredescribedasahunting,herding,andfarmingpeoplewith:large,extendedfamiliesandsomepolygyny;sometrans-humance;noextensivecerealagriculture;villages of from400to1,000inhabitants;patrilocalpostmaritalresidence;andnolocalizedclansbutlineagesorsibsspreadingbeyondasinglecommunity.Whileall of thismayhavebeentrueforthein-habitants of Gilgit,thereisstillsomequestionastowhetherthoselabeledDardsare,infact,adistinctculturalentity.Itismoreappropriatetospeak of the'Dardicbranch,"atermusedbylinguiststodesignateasmallgroup of languages of theIndo-AryanSubfamilyspokeninandnearthenorth of Pakistan. Of these,Kashmiriisthemostimportant.ThereisalsoaterritorythereknownasDardistan,whichincludesGilgitValley,Hunza,Chitral,Yasin,Nagar,Panyal,Kohis-tan,theAstoreValley,andpart of theupperIndusValleybe-tweenBunjiandBatera.SeealsoKashmiri;KohistaniBibliographyBiddulph,John(1880).Tribes of theHindooKoosh.Calcutta:Superintendent of GovernmentPrinting.Leitner,GotliebWilliam(1877).TheLanguagesandRaces of Dardistan.Lahore:GovernmentCentralBookDepot.PAULHOCKINGSDivehiETHNONYMS:Divehin,Dives,MaldiviansOrientationIdentification.DivehisarethosewhospeakDivehi,thelanguage of theRepublic of theMaldives.TheyoccupyalltheMaldivesandalsotheisland of Maliku(Minicoyonthemaps)tothenorth,whichbelongstoIndia.ThepeoplecallthemselvesDivehi(fromdive-si,meaning"island-er"),andtheircountryisDivehiRAjje(kingdom).Thename'Mal-dives"isprobablyfrommdild-dfv("garland-islands"inIndianlanguages),referringtothedoublechain of atollsthatap-pearslikeagarlandornecklace.ThewordatolisDivehi,origi-nallyspelledwithone1.Thecountrywasanexus of IndianOceanshipping,andithasremainedmostlyindependentsinceancienttimes.Location.TheMaldivesstretchfrom002'Sto7°0'N,withMinicoyat8°2'.Longitudeisabout730E.Thereareabout1,200islands, of which201arepermanentlyinhabited.Theislandsarelowandflat,mostlylessthanakilometerlongwithonly9aslongas2kilometers,ringingcoralatolls.Totallandareaisonlyabout280squarekilometers,andnowhereisthelandmorethan2metersabovesealevel.TheMaldivesextendfor867kilometersnorthto south andclaimthesur-roundingoceanasnationalterritory.Malikuisthelargestis-land,16.5kilometerslongandlying140kilometersnorth of theMaldivesproper,butitispoliticallycutofffromotherparts of thearchipelago.Demography.As of 1991therewere228,000Divehis-220,000Maldiviansandroughly8,000onMaliku.Thefirstcensuswasin1911aspart of theCeyloncensus,anditshowed72,237Divehison217inhabitedislands.Populationwaspreviouslykeptincheckbyepidemics,faminebecause of stormsthatinterruptedimports of food,andcerebralmalaria,butduringrecentdecadesthepopulationhasbeenshootinguprapidly.The1990censusshowedacrudebirthrate of 43per1,000andagrowthrate of 3.5percentayear.Thegovern-menthastakenlittleinitiativeonfamilyplanningbecause of themomentum of Islamictradition.Malehas57,000people,aquarter of allDivehis,thoughitisonly1.6kilometerslongandthethingroundwaterlenshasbecomepolluted,sothegovernmenttriestocurbmigrationthere.Lifeexpectancyisabout62yearsformalesand60forfemales.LinguisticAffiliation.DivehiisderivedfromtheoldSinhala of SriLanka,andsoitisclassifiableasanIndo-Aryanlanguage,althoughattheveryend of ... oldcultureiscomprised of threemainlayers:theTamil-Malayalamsubstratumwithitsmanysubtleroots;oldSinhalacultureandlanguage,whichisthedominantelement;andthephase of Arabicin-fluence.ButtheMaldivesweretouchedbyeveryculturalwindthatpassedovertheIndianOcean.SinceindependencetherehasagainbeeninfluencefromSriLanka,throughitsteachersbroughtovertosetupmodemeducationwithteach-ing of English.UnusuallyrapidchangehasoccurredinDivehicultureinthepasttwenty-fiveyears.SettlementsThe201inhabitedislandsarethelargerorbestfishingis-lands.Housesaremade of localvegetationandthatchorcoralstones,sometimeswithimportedironortileroofs.Peo-pledesirepleasanthouses,andtheyoftenarrangethemonstreetswiththeplotsmarkedbystickfences.Theislandisthesocialandadministrativeunit.Everybodyhasofficialregistra-tiononhisorherislandandcannotchangeittoanotheris-landwithouttwelveyears'residence.Eachislandcomprisesaninsularsocialcommunity,inwhichitsland,people,andproductsarepreferredtothose of otherislands.Theislandsaregroupedintonineteenadministrativeatolls.Maleistheonlycity,withsomemultistoriedbuildings of coralstoneneatlywhitewashedandmostlybuiltalongthestraightsandystreets.Ithasapiousair,withthirty-fivemosquesandmanytombs.Nearbyistheairportisland of Hulule,witharunwayextendingonthereef.Some60"uninhabited"islandsarenowbuiltupasprofitabletouristresorts,whichespeciallyat-tractEuropeansinwinter,butthegovernmenttriestomini-mizetheirculturalinfluence.EconomySubsistenceandCommercialActivities.Themaintradi-tionaleconomicactivitiesaretradingandfishing.Bonitosandlargertunaareamainstay of theeconomy,caughtbypole-and-lineortrolling-linefromsailboatsormotorizedwoodenboats.ThefamousMaldivesfishispreparedbyboil-ing,drying,andsmoking.Amanmaximizeswealthbyacquir-ingfishingboatsbecausetheownergetsalargershare of fishthanthefishingcrew.Aboatownermightalsoobtaintherightfromthestatetoleaseuninhabitedislands,mainlyforcollectingcoconuts.Therearethreekinds of milletsgrownandtarointhe south. Somehomeshavebreadfruit,mango,papaya,andbananatrees,butfewvegetablesareeaten.Seatradehasalwaysbeenavitalsource of income,andnowthereisamodemshippingindustry;profitsfromitandtourismac-cruemostlytoafewprominentfamiliesinMale.Incomepercapitafromforeignaidisrelativelyhigh.IndustrialArts.Themoststrikingtraditionalcraftisbuildingwoodenboats,bothsmallandlargeoneswithlateensails,whichcanfishinthedeepseaandcarrygoodstothecontinents.Sailinglongdistanceswithoutbenefit of mapsandchartsisaremarkabletraditionalskill.Maldivesropetwistedfromcoconutcoirwasalwaysindemandbyforeignnavies.Theislandersalsomakefineproductssuchasmatswovenfromlocalreedsandlacquerworkonturnedwood.Cottonweaving,silverwork,stonecutting,andbrassworkhavemostlydiedout.Trade.FormanycenturiestheMaldiveswerefamousasthemainsource of cowrieshells,usedasmoneyinBengalandAfrica.Divehisareskilledinrapidcounting,necessaryforhandlingcowries,coconuts,orfish.Thetraditionalmethodwastocountbytwosto96andmarkeachunit of 192bylaying2coconutsontheside;theytherebycouldcountrap-idlytomanythousands.Thebasenumberwas12,whichClarenceMaloneyfindssignificantinMaldiveshistory.WhatismorepeculiaristhatIndo-Aryanwordsfor25,50,75,100,and1,000areappliedrespectivelyto24,48,72,96,and960,asthedecimalsystemhasbeenreplacingtheduodecimal.Weightsandmeasuresarebasedonmultiples of 4and12.Themainimportshavebeenrice,wheatflour,cottontextiles,kerosene,metalproducts,tobacco,salt,andcondiments.Nowthewholecountryisaduty-freeentrepot,contrastingwiththecontrolledeconomies of other South Asiancoun-tries,andthereismodembanking.Division of Labor.Menfish,whilewomenprepareanddrythefish.Mengrowmillets,whilewomencultivaterootcrops.Menconductinterislandandoverseastrade,climbcoconuttrees,andaretheartisansincotton,silver,lacquer,andstonework,whilewomenweavematsanddoembroidery.Womendothetediousjob of twistingcoirintosmallropes,whichmenthentwistintothickropesfortheirboats.How-ever,thesesexrolesarenotabsolutelyfixed;therearecases of theseactivitiesbeingdonebytheothersex.Womendomost of thehouseworkandchildcare,butmenmayalsodoit.Boatcrewsandleaders of Islamicritualandlaw,however,areallmales.LandTenure.Alllandbelongstothestate,whichleasesuninhabitedislandsorparts of islandstoprominentpeopleforcollection of produce,aspart of itssystem of control.AllhouseholdsintheMaldives,exceptonMale,canclaimtherighttoaplot of landforahouseandgardenintheirisland of registration.InFueMulakuinthe south, residentshavetherighttocultivateasmuchtarolandastheywish.KinshipKinGroupsandDescent.TheDivehikinshipsysteminoriginisacombination of DravidianandArabwithelements of NorthIndiankinshipderivedfromSriLanka.Althoughthesethreesystemsaresharplyatvariance,theyareresolvedinDivehiculture.TheDravidiansystemisbasedonpreferredcross-cousinmarriage,andamaleclassifiesallfemalesasei-thersister(unmarriageable)orfemalecrosscousin(marriage-able).Thematrilinealvariant of theDravidiansystemoccursEuropeansin South Asia 79Maloney,Clarence(1984).-Divehi."InMuslimPeoples:A World EthnographicSurvey,Vol.1,23 2-2 36.Rev.ed.,editedbyRichardWeekes.Westport,Conn.:GreenwoodPress.Maloney,Clarence(1980).People of theMaldiveIslands.Ma-dras:OrientLongman.Ottovar,Annagrethe,andNilsFinnMunch-Petersen(1980).Maldiverneoet0samfundidetIndiskeOcean(TheMaldivianIslandcommunityintheIndianOcean).Copen-hagen:Kunstindustrimuseet.CLARENCEMALONEYANDNILSFINNMUNCH-PETERSENMunch-Petersen,NilsFinn(1982).'Maldives:History,DailyLife,andArtHandicraft."BulletinduC.E.M.O.I.(Brussels).1:7 4-1 03.Europeansin South Asia ETHNONYMS:Ferangi(fromMemsahib;child:ChhotaSahib"Franks"),Sahib(fem.:Whiletheimpact of Europeonthe South Asiansubcon-tinenthasbeenimmeasurableanddatesbacklongbeforeVascodaGama'sexploratoryvisitin1498,thenumber of Eu-ropeansresidentintheareanowismerelyafewtens of thou-sands.(Theymoveaboutsomuchthatacloseestimateisdif-ficult.)Butevenintheheyday of Britishimperialismtherewereonlyabout167,000Europeansinall of South Asia (1931census).LeavingasidefromthisdiscussiontheAnglo-IndiansandLuso-Indians of the South Asianmainland,andtheBurghers of SriLanka,whoareallinfactlocalpeople of part-Europeanancestry,wecanidentifythefollowingcategories of Europeansasbeingresidentin South Asia today.(1)Diplomatsandjournalists.Foundonlyinthecapitalcitiesandotherconsularposts.(2)Developmentworkers,etc.Technicalspecialistsfromthe World HealthOrganization,otherUnitedNationsagen-cies,theU.S.PeaceCorps,etc.areregularlyencounteredinmost South Asiancountries.Students of anthropology,lin-guistics,andsomeothersubjectsmaybefoundalmostany-where,thoughneveringreatnumbers.SometeaandcoffeeplantationsinIndiastillhaveEuropeanmanagersandindeedareownedbyBritishcompanies.(3)RetiredBritishresidents.Asmallnumber of veryeld-erlypeoplewhoretiredinIndiaorSriLankaataboutthetime of independencearestillthere.(Most,however,leftthesub-continenttoretireinBritain,theChannelIslands,Cyprus,orAustralia.)(4)Christianmissionaries.Whilethe South Asianchurchesareessentiallyself-governing,severalhundredEuro-peanandAmericanmissionariesandCatholicpriestsandnunsmaystillbeencounteredintheregion.Theyarestill of someimportanceineducation,aswellasinfunnelingWest-emaidtotheirparishioners.(5)Religiousseekers.Atanygiventimetherearesomethousands of Australian,European,orAmericanpeople,usu-allyfairlyyoung,whoarewanderingaroundIndia,Nepal,andelsewhereinsearch of religiousenlightenmentwithinthebroadtradition of Hinduspirituality.Some of thesepeoplehavebeenlooselyclassedas"hippies."Frenchpeoplearepar-ticularlyattractedtoPondicherryandthenearbyreligiouscenter of Auroville,whileothershavebeenespeciallyat-tractedtospecificashrams,toRishikeshandotherHima-layansites,ortotheTheosophicalCenterinMadrasCity.(6)Tourists.Theregionhasanenormoustouristpoten-tial,whichhasbeenslowlydevelopedsinceindependence,andin1991India,SriLanka,Nepal,andtheMaldiveshaveathrivingtouristindustry.Unlikethereligiousseekersmen-tionedabove,whomaystayformanymonths,ordinaryWest-erntouristsusuallyvisitforjusttwoorthreeweeks.Thegreatmajority of thesetouristsarefromwesternEuropeandAustralasia.(Many of India'stourists,ontheotherhand,arenon-Europeansfromother South Asiancountries.)80Europeansin South Asia TheBritishImpactTheculturalandpoliticalimpact of theBritishoverthepasttwocenturiesin South Asia hasbeenvastandextremelyper-vasive.Numeroushistories of the"Britishperiod"testifytothis,anditisaninfluencereferredtointheIntroductiontothis volume. Spacedoesnotpermitevenabriefreview of theadministrative,legal,religious,educational,publichealth,military,agricultural,industrial,sporting,andcommunica-tionaldevelopmentsthatoccurredduringtheperiod of Brit-ishadministration of most of thesubcontinent.Wemayinsteadhighlightthecontribution of EuropeansfromIndiatothearts.Bestknown of courseistheliterarycontribution of RudyardKipling(186 5-1 936),one of twoIndian-bomwriterstoreceivetheNobelPrizeforLiterature(theotherwasRabindranathTagore). Of numerousprofes-sionalartiststoworkinIndia,themostoutstandingwastheAnglo-GermanpainterJohnZoffany,whoworkedtherefrom1783to1790.Theartisticimpact of theBritishonIndianar-chitecturewasvast,andwelldocumented:witnessonlytheofficialbuildings of NewDelhi.Lessrecognizedduringthepresentcenturyhasbeentheimpact of thisrelativelysmallethnicgroupontheBritishfilmindustry.JulieChristie,VivienLeigh,MargaretLockwood,MerleOberon,andsev-eralotheractors,aswellasthedirectorLindsayAnderson,wereallbornandatleastpartlybroughtupinBritishIndia.Onemightwonderwhethertheubiquity of schoolplaysandamateurdramaticsocietiesinthaterahadsomethingtodowiththesecareers.SeealsoAnglo-Indian;French of India;IndianChristianBibliographyBallhatchet,Kenneth(1980).Race,SexandClassundertheRaj:ImperialAttitudesandPoliciesandTheirCritics,179 3- 1905.NewYork:St.Martin'sPress.Barr,Pat(1976).TheMemsahibs:TheWomen of VictorianIndia.London:Secker&Warburg.Hervey,H.J.A.(1913).TheEuropeaninIndia.London:StanleyPaul&Co.Hockings,Paul(1989).'BritishSocietyintheCompany,Crown,andCongressEras."BlueMountains:TheEthnogra-phyandBiogeography of a South IndianRegion,editedbyPaulEdwardHockings,33 4-3 59.NewDelhi:OxfordUniversityPress.Kincaid,Dennis(1938).BritishSocialLifeinIndia,160 8- 1937.London:GeorgeRoutledge&Sons.Moorhouse,Geoffrey(1983).IndiaBritannica.NewYork:Harper&Row.French of IndiaETHNONYMS:FrenchTamils,Pondicheriens,Pondicherry(name of townandterritory)Therewere12,864FrenchnationalsresidinginIndiain1988.NearlyallareintheUnionTerritory of PondicherryinsoutheasternIndia(11,726in1988),withmuchsmallernumbersinKaraikal(695individuals),Mahe(50),Yanam(46),and342elsewhereinIndia.(Thesewerecoastalpock-etsbelongingtotheformerFrenchEmpire.)Whilelegallystillcitizens of FranceandresidentaliensinIndia,theyareethnicallyIndian,about90percentbeingethnicTamils.Al-mostunaccountably,theyvoteintheFrenchconstituency of Nice.Theyformasmallminority,accountingforlessthan3percent of thepresentpopulation of Pondicherry.TheFrenchinIndiaareanartifact of theFrenchpres-encethere,whichbeganin1673withtheestablishment of FrenchIndiaandcontinueduntil1962whentheFrenchter-ritorywasformallytransferredtoIndia.TheFrenchpresencewasalwayssmallandminorcomparedwiththeBritishpres-enceandtheFrenchinIndiaweregenerallyignored.Today,themajority of theseFrenchareHindusorChristians of localormixedfamilyorigin,andlessthan50percent of themspeakFrench.Atthesametime,however,FrenchistaughtinschoolsattendedbyFrenchIndianchildrenandadultFrenchclassesarewellattended,reflectinganinterestinmaintainingtiesandanallegiancetoFranceorinfindingjobswithFrenchcompanies.TheFrenchIndiansarethewealthiestgroupinPondicherry(asidefromthoserunningtheAurobindoAshram),derivingmuch of theirincomefrompension(some20percentareretirees),socialsecurity,welfare,andotherprogramsoftheFrenchgovernment.TheyarealsoentitledtoemigratetoFrance,althoughfewdosoandtheFrenchgov-ernmentdoesnotencouragethepractice.SeealsoEuropeansin South Asia; TamilBibliographyGlachant,Roger(1965).Histoiredel'IndedesFranqais.Paris:LibrairiePlon.Miles,WilliamF.S.(1990)."CitizenswithoutSoil:TheFrench of India(Pondicherry)."EthnicandRacialStudies13:25 2-2 73.Ramasamy,A.(1987).History of Pondicherry.NewDelhi:SterlingPublishers.Scholberg,Henry,andEmmanuelDivien(1973).Biblio-graphiedesFrangaisdansl'Inde.Pondicherry:HistoricalSoci-ety of Pondicherry.Nilsson,Sten(1968).EuropeanArchitectureinIndia,175 0- 1850.London:FaberandFaber.Trevelyan,Raleigh(1987).TheGoldenOriole.NewYork:Vi-kingPenguin.PAULHOCKINGSDivehi75DardETHNONYMS:noneAlthoughthisnameappearsintheanthropologicalliter-ature,itseemsthatthereisnodiscreteculturalgroupidentifi-ableasDards.ItistruethatPlinyandPtolemyinancienttimesbothreferredtosuchapeopleinhabitingatract of theupperIndusValleyinwhatistodayPakistan,andinthatareapeoplelivingontheleftbank of theInduswerecalledDards.TheDards,basedondescriptions of theGilgitareaaround1870,aredescribedasahunting,herding,andfarmingpeoplewith:large,extendedfamiliesandsomepolygyny;sometrans-humance;noextensivecerealagriculture;villages of from400to1,000inhabitants;patrilocalpostmaritalresidence;andnolocalizedclansbutlineagesorsibsspreadingbeyondasinglecommunity.Whileall of thismayhavebeentrueforthein-habitants of Gilgit,thereisstillsomequestionastowhetherthoselabeledDardsare,infact,adistinctculturalentity.Itismoreappropriatetospeak of the'Dardicbranch,"atermusedbylinguiststodesignateasmallgroup of languages of theIndo-AryanSubfamilyspokeninandnearthenorth of Pakistan. Of these,Kashmiriisthemostimportant.ThereisalsoaterritorythereknownasDardistan,whichincludesGilgitValley,Hunza,Chitral,Yasin,Nagar,Panyal,Kohis-tan,theAstoreValley,andpart of theupperIndusValleybe-tweenBunjiandBatera.SeealsoKashmiri;KohistaniBibliographyBiddulph,John(1880).Tribes of theHindooKoosh.Calcutta:Superintendent of GovernmentPrinting.Leitner,GotliebWilliam(1877).TheLanguagesandRaces of Dardistan.Lahore:GovernmentCentralBookDepot.PAULHOCKINGSDivehiETHNONYMS:Divehin,Dives,MaldiviansOrientationIdentification.DivehisarethosewhospeakDivehi,thelanguage of theRepublic of theMaldives.TheyoccupyalltheMaldivesandalsotheisland of Maliku(Minicoyonthemaps)tothenorth,whichbelongstoIndia.ThepeoplecallthemselvesDivehi(fromdive-si,meaning"island-er"),andtheircountryisDivehiRAjje(kingdom).Thename'Mal-dives"isprobablyfrommdild-dfv("garland-islands"inIndianlanguages),referringtothedoublechain of atollsthatap-pearslikeagarlandornecklace.ThewordatolisDivehi,origi-nallyspelledwithone1.Thecountrywasanexus of IndianOceanshipping,andithasremainedmostlyindependentsinceancienttimes.Location.TheMaldivesstretchfrom002'Sto7°0'N,withMinicoyat8°2'.Longitudeisabout730E.Thereareabout1,200islands, of which201arepermanentlyinhabited.Theislandsarelowandflat,mostlylessthanakilometerlongwithonly9aslongas2kilometers,ringingcoralatolls.Totallandareaisonlyabout280squarekilometers,andnowhereisthelandmorethan2metersabovesealevel.TheMaldivesextendfor867kilometersnorthto south andclaimthesur-roundingoceanasnationalterritory.Malikuisthelargestis-land,16.5kilometerslongandlying140kilometersnorth of theMaldivesproper,butitispoliticallycutofffromotherparts of thearchipelago.Demography.As of 1991therewere228,000Divehis-220,000Maldiviansandroughly8,000onMaliku.Thefirstcensuswasin1911aspart of theCeyloncensus,anditshowed72,237Divehison217inhabitedislands.Populationwaspreviouslykeptincheckbyepidemics,faminebecause of stormsthatinterruptedimports of food,andcerebralmalaria,butduringrecentdecadesthepopulationhasbeenshootinguprapidly.The1990censusshowedacrudebirthrate of 43per1,000andagrowthrate of 3.5percentayear.Thegovern-menthastakenlittleinitiativeonfamilyplanningbecause of themomentum of Islamictradition.Malehas57,000people,aquarter of allDivehis,thoughitisonly1.6kilometerslongandthethingroundwaterlenshasbecomepolluted,sothegovernmenttriestocurbmigrationthere.Lifeexpectancyisabout62yearsformalesand60forfemales.LinguisticAffiliation.DivehiisderivedfromtheoldSinhala of SriLanka,andsoitisclassifiableasanIndo-Aryanlanguage,althoughattheveryendof...

... Muslimsepts,withthelatterbeingSunniconvertsretainingsome of theirHindupractices.Mostkeepcopies of theQuranintheirhomes;however,likeHindustheyworshipafamilydeity.Brahmanpriestsareconsultedtodeterminealuckytimeforthefirstbathforthemotherafterababyisborn.Id-al-Zuha(Id-al-Adha)andId-al-Fitraretheirtwomostimportantfes-tivals.GujarMuslimsobservesome of theHindufestivals,suchasHoliandNazPanchmi.Theyburytheirdeadaccord-ingtoMuslimcustom;however,theymakefireofferingsandupturnapitcher of waternearthegraveasHindustradition-allydo.GujarsmakeofferingstothedeadonFridays, ... acrop(duringagriculturalseasons)fromdamagebywildanimals,thepeoplebuildtemporarywatchtowers(borang)intreesinthefield.Men'sdormitoriesexistinsomevillages.Theyactasplacesformeetingandrec-reationforthebachelors.EconomySubsistenceandCommercialActivities.Traditionally,theGaroslivinginthehillssubsistbyslash-and-bumcultiva-tion.Theironhoe,chopper,andwoodendiggingstickarees-sentialappliances.Humanhandscontinuetobetheprincipaltool.Veryofteninsomeareasaplotallottedtoafamilyre.mainsunderusedbecause of aninsufficientnumber of work-ersandthelowlevel of technology.Tosurvivetheerraticna-ture of themonsoons,mixedcrops-bothwetanddryvarieties-areplanted.Ashiftingcultivatorplantsawideas-sortment of cropsconsisting of rice(mainlydryvarieties),millet,maize,andmanyrootcrops,vegetables,etc.Inaddi-tiontothesecotton,ginger,andchilipeppersarecommonlyraisedascashcrops.AllcropsareharvestedinOctober.Atpresenttheavailablestrips of lowandflatlandlyingbetweenthehillocksorhillsareusedforpermanentwetcultivation.Thevariety of cropscultivatedislikethat of theneighboringplainspeoples.Suchlandsareownedindividually.Additionalproductionfromsuchplotsplacesthevillagersinabettereconomiccondition.Theexpansion of themodemeconomyandthesteadyincrease of populationarecausingconstantpressureontraditionallyownedplots.Thesameplotisusedalmostcontinuouslyinsomeareas,thusleadingtoadeclineinannualproduction.Thistrendisevidentfromthe1981censusreport,whichestimatedthatabout50percent of theGaropeoplearenowsolelydependentonshiftingcultivationandtherestuseapart of ajhumplotpermanentlyforgrowingarecanuts,oranges,tea(onasmallscale),pineapples,etc.Inthischangingsituationaproducermaynotalwaysbeacon-sumer;andreciprocityandcooperationdonotexistasdomi-nantforcesinthesocioeconomiclife of thispopulation.IndustrialArts.Eachfamilyinatraditionalcontextactsasaself-containedeconomicunit.Modernizationhasbroughtsomechangesinthesocioeconomicsphere of thispopulation.TheGarosresidinginthehillsdidnotweaveclothafewdecadesback;theyusedtoprocurethickclothknownaskanchafromtheplainsGaros.Nowthattheloomhasbeenintroducedinthehillareas,theyweavedokmande(akind of cloth)forcommercialpurposesaswellasfortheirper-sonaluse.Previouslyeachfamilyusedtomakepotteryforitsowndomesticuse,butnowadaystheartisconfinedtoafewfamiliesonlywhoeithersellitorbarterit.Trade.AfewcenturiesagotheGaroswerefamousforheadhunting.Thatpracticeconstrainedtheneighboringpop-ulation of theplainsfromenteringthehills.Butpeoplemustexchangetheirproducetomeettheirrequirements,andbothhillandplainsGarosneededsuchtrade.Hencesometradestartedatborderpointsonaverylimitedscale.Overtime,thesecontactsgrewintoorganizedhutta(weeklymarkets)undertheinitiative of theZamindars,whoweresubjects of theMuslimruler.Initiallycottonwassoldoutrightorex-changedforpigs,cattle,goats,tobacco,andmetallictools.In94Gurungmarriageisstronglydisapproved of, friendlysocialintercoursewithmembers of otherethnicgroupsisusual,andbonds of ritualfriendship(nyel)areforgedbetweenGurungsandmembers of equal-statusethnicgroups.SettlementsGurungvillagesarebuilthighonridgesandconsist of closelyclusteredgroups of whitewashedhouseswithslateroofs.Houses of lineagememberstendtobebuiltalongsideonean-other.WhilemostGurungsremaininruralvillages,sincethemid-1970smanymoreprosperousGurungfamilieshavecho-sentomovetoPokhara,thenearesturbancenter,because of thegreatercomfort of urbanlivingandimprovedaccesstoeducationalfacilitiesandmedicalcare.EconomySubsistenceandCommercialActivities.Themainoccu-pation of Gurungsissubsistenceagriculture.Millet,wheat,barley,maize,potatoes,soybeans,andricearegrown.Somehouseholdsalsomaintainvegetablegardens.Goats,chick-ens,waterbuffalo,andoxenarekeptwithinthevillages.Sheepandwaterbuffaloarestillgrazedonhigh-altitudepas-tures,butdeforestationhascausedareduction of fodderandthusinthelastfiftyyearspastoralismhasbecomealesssig-nificanteconomicactivity.TheruggedterrainonwhichGurungsfarmdoesnotallowmuchagriculturalsurplus.Themostimportantsource of cashincomeforGurungsisserviceintheGurkharegiments of theBritishandIndianarmies.IndustrialArts.Weavingisacommonactivityduringtheslackagriculturalseason.Womenweavecarryingclothsandwoolenblankets,andmenweavecarryingbaskets,winnowingbaskets,andstoragebaskets.Trade.Beginninginthelatenineteenthcentury,GurungsplayedanimportantpartinthesalttradewithTibet.Thisre-lationshipwasdiscontinuedforpoliticalreasonsinthemid-twentiethcentury.Atpresent,someurbanGurungsengageintradewithIndiaandothersareprominentincontractingandtransportationbusinessesaroundPokhara.Division of Labor.Thereislittleformaldivision of laboramongGurungs.Menmaynotweaveclothandwomenmaynotweavebambooorplow.Womengenerallylookafterthehouse,cook,andcareforthephysicalneeds of children.Menandwomenengageinmostagriculturalactivities,aswellaschoppingwoodforfuelandgatheringfodderforlivestock.Livestockinhigh-altitudepasturesismostoftentendedbymen.Metalwork,tailoring,andcarpentryareperformedbynon-GurungservicecasteswholiveinhamletsattachedtoGurungvillages.LandTenure.Whileforestandgrazinglandarecommu-nallyowned,agriculturallandisheldprivately.Rightstolandareequallydistributedamongsons.KinshipKinGroupsandDescent.LineagesinGurungsocietyin-volvelocalizedagnaticgroupslinkedbyaknownancestor.Eachlineageispart of aclan.Clanaffiliationcutsacrosslo-calityandacts ... herdeceasedhusband.Socialization.Theambition of everyGondwomanistobearason.Barrennessinawomanisconsideredacurse.Preg-nancyandbirtharesurroundedwithprotectiveritesagainstmagicspellsandevilinfluences.Childrenaregenerallywel-comeandtreatedwithaffection.Althoughsonsarepreferred,daughtersarewelcometoo.Childrengrowupwithoutmuchrestriction,butthecommunityteachesthemcorrectbehav-ior.Childrenareearlyinvitedtotakeoversometasks,firstplayfully,theninearnest.Boysspontaneouslyseemtoprefermalecompany,whilegirlsseemtogravitatenaturallytowardotherfemales.Thechangetoadulthoodisgradual;thereisnoinitiationceremony.Thefirstmenstruation of agirlisnotspeciallycelebrated,butshedoeslearninadvancewhatpro-hibitionsshehastoobserve.OnlythreeGondsectionsinthe south haveyouthdormitories,andonlytheMuriasusethedormitoryfortheeducation of youthinmarriedandciviclife.TheotherGondsectionshavenodormitorysystem.SociopoliticalOrganizationSocialOrganization.SincetheGondsarespreadoverawidearea,therearemanylocalsubsectionsthathavenoso-cialcontactwitheachother.ThemoreSanskritizedthesesec-tionsare,thehigheristhesocialranktheyclaim.Butthehighestrankisgiventothedescendants of theGondrajasandtheirretainers,theRaj-GondsandKatholias.Amongthesetwosectionswefindthegreatestnumber of Gondswithsubstantiallandholdings.OtherGondsectionsoutside of GondavanaaretheKisans,inthe south of Biharandintheneighboringdistricts of Orissa.TheGondsreachedeventhehillsalongthesouthernbank of theGanges.TheretheyareknownasMajwarsorMajhis(headmen).AkintotheGondsareanumber of othertribes,suchastheBhattras,Koyas,KondaKapus,KondaDeras,andHalbas.TheKhonds of Orissa,anotherimportanttribe,alsomayoriginallyhavebeenGonds.PoliticalOrganization.TheentireGondtribewasneverapoliticalunit.Tribalsolidaritydoesnotextendbeyondtheconfines of asubsection.ThebasicpoliticalunitistheGondvillagecommunity.Itisademocraticorganizationinwhichtheheadmanandotherofficialsarechosenbythevillagers.Eachvillagehasitscouncil,withofficialsliketheheadman,thepriest,thevillagewatchman,andfourorfiveelders.Moreimportantaffairsarediscussedanddecideduponbyallthemen of thecommunity.Avillagehasalsoitsservantcastes,suchastheAhir(cowherds),Agaria(blacksmiths),Dhulia(drummers),andPardhan(bardsandsingers).Atthetowns of Garha-Mandla,Kharla,Deogarh,andChanda,theleadingheadmenmanagedtorisetotherank of rulers(rajas)andtoestablishdynastiesthatlastedforcenturies.ButtheveryfactthattheserajassurroundedthemselveswithHinduofficialsandeagerlyadoptedHinduorMogulmethods of administra-tionprovesthatroyaltywasalientotribaldemocracy.InthepresentpoliticalsituationtheGondsare,despitetheirnum-bers,politicallypowerless,whichispartlybecause of thistri-baldisunitybutalsobecause of theircomparativelack of edu-cationanddrive,andtheirgreatpoverty.ThosefewGondswhoaremembers of thelegislativeassembliesoreventhena-tionalparliament(LokSabha)areeitheralienatedfromtheirtribalcultureoreasilymanipulatedbyotherpoliticians.ConflictandSocialControl.Insettlingdisputesthecourt of firstinstanceisthevillagecouncil(panch),whichispre-sidedoverbytheheadman.Usuallyitstrivestorestorehar-monybetweenthelitigantsratherthantoimplementcus-tomarylaw.Asettlementcommonlyinvolvesafine,orex-communicationinvaryingdegrees.Thosewhooffendagainsttherule of clanexogamyincursupernaturalsanctions.ReligionandExpressiveCultureReligiousBeliefs.Thereligion of theGondsdoesnotdif-fermuchfromthat of thenumerousothertribesincentralIndia.Likethem,theGondsbelieveinahighgodwhomtheycalleitherbyhisHinduname,"Bhagwan,"orbyhistribalname,"BaraDeo,"the"GreatGod."Butheisanotiosedeityandisrarelyworshiped,thoughhisnameisofteninvoked.Heisapersonalgod-eternal,just,merciful,maker of thefertileearthand of man-thoughtheuniverseisconceivedascoex-istingwithhim.IntheGondbeliefsystem,besidesthishighgodtherealsoexistagreatnumber of maleandfemaledeitiesandspiritsthatpersonifyvariousnaturalfeatures.Everyhill,river,lake,tree,androckisinhabitedbyaspirit.Theearth,water,andairareruledbydeitiesthatmustbeveneratedandappeasedwithsacrificesandofferings.Thesedeitiesandspir-itsmaybebenevolent,butoftentheyarecapricious,malevo-lent,andpronetoharminghumanbeings,especiallyindivid-ualswhohavemadethemselvesvulnerablebybreakingarule of thetribalcode.Thedeitiesandspirits,especiallytheances-torspirits,watchoverthestrictobservance of thetribalrulesandpunishoffenders.ReligiousPractitioners.Gondsdistinguishbetweenpriestsandmagicians.Thevillagepriestisappointedbythevillagecouncil;however,hisappointmentisoftenhereditary.Hisresponsibilityistoperformallthesacrificesheldatcer-tainfeastsforthevillagecommunityforwhichhereceivesaspecialremuneration.Sacrificesandreligiousceremoniesonfamilyoccasionsareusuallyperformedbythehead of thefamily.Thedivinersandmagicians,ontheotherhand,areunofficialcharismaticintermediariesbetweenthesupernat-ural world andhumanbeings.TheGonds,liketheothertri-bals of centralIndia,believethatmostdiseasesandmisfor-tunesarecausedbythemachinations of evilspiritsandoffendeddeities.Itisthetask of thesoothsayersanddivinerstofindoutwhichsupernaturalagencieshavecausedthepres-entsicknessormisfortuneandhowtheycanbeappeased.Ifsoothsayersanddivinerscannothelp,magiciansandsha-mansmustbeemployed.Magiciansbelievethatbymagicfor-mulasanddevicestheycanforceaparticulardeityorspirittocarryouttheircommands.Shamansarepersonswhoeasilyfallintotrancesandarethenbelievedtobepossessedbydei-tiesorspiritsthatprophesythroughtheirmouths.Thesefre-quentecstasiesdonotseemtohaveanydetrimentalmentalorphysicaleffectsontheshamans,whomaybemaleorfe-male.Magicmaybe"white"or"black":itiswhiteifitcoun-teractsblackmagicoreffectsacurewhenasicknesshasbeenGaro83thebeginningsilentbarterwaspossiblebecauseeachpartyunderstoodfromlonginvolvementtherespectivevalues of theirgoods.Thisprocesshascontinuedtothepresent,withincreasinginvolvement of tradersfromneighboringareas,andhasnowbecomefullymonetized.Cotton,ginger,anddriedchiliesproducedbytheGarosaresoldtothetraders.TheGarosinturnpurchasepottery,metallictools,andotherindustrialgoodssuchasclothfromthetraders.Division of Labor.Thedivision of laborbetweenmembers of thehouseholdisasfollows:themalesareresponsibleforclearingjungleandsettingfiretothedebrisforshiftingculti-vation,whilewomenareresponsibleforplanting,weeding,andharvesting.Duringthepeak of theagriculturalopera-tionsthemensometimeshelpthewomen.Constructionandrepair of thehousearemaleduties.Menmakebaskets,whilewomencarrycropsfromthefieldandfirewoodfromjungle.Womenlookafterthekitchenandpreparebeer,andmenservethebeertoguests.Womenrearthechildrenandkeepthedomesticanimals.Bothmenandwomensellfirewoodandvegetablesinthemarket.LandTenure.Landforshiftingcultivationisownedbytheclan.Eachvillagehasatraditionallydemarcatedarea of itsowntermedadok.Thisareaissubdividedintoplotsthatareusedforcultivationinacyclicorder.Theplotsaredistrib-utedtothefamilies.Allotment of thegeneralplotsisdonebycommonconsensus of thevillageelders,buttheflatareaforpermanentwetcultivationisownedbyindividuals.KinshipKinGroupsandDescent.TheGarosreckontheirkinshipthroughthemother.Individualsmeasurethedegree of theirrelationshiptooneanotherbythedistance of theirmatrilin-eages.Formen,children of theirsistersorsisters'daughtersareveryimportantkin.Forwomen,children of theirsisters'daughtersareequivalenttothose of theirowndaughters.KinshipTerminology.ThekinshiptermsusedbytheGarosformaset,whichisbroadenoughsothateachGarocanbeassignedaterm.Thetermsarearrangedinasystemthatclassifiesthekin.Thisclassificationisbasedonnineprinciples,asfollows:(1)sex,(2)generation,(3)relativeage,(4)moietymembership,(5)collaterality,(6)inheritance,(7)type of wife,(8)intimacy of relationship,(9)speaker'ssex.MarriageandFamilyMarriage.Descentismatrilineal,residenceuxorilocal.Themother'sbrother'sdaughtertype of cross-cousinmar-riageisthemostwidelyacceptedandprevalentamongthepeople.Itisarigidcustomthatamanmustmarryawomanfromtheoppositechatchi(moiety).Therule of chatchiexogamystipulatesthataman'smother'sfatherwillbeintheoppositechatchiandaman'swife'spotentialhusbandswillbeinhisownchatchi.Aftermarriageamankeepsuphisrela-tionwithhismachong(clan).Hisrelationwithreferencetohiswife'smachongisdesignatedasgachi.Marriageestab-lishesapermanentrelationbetweentwomachong,knownasakim.Aftermarriage,amalemovestotheresidence of hiswife.Inthecase of anokrom(husband of theheiress of prop-erty),marriagedoesnotcreateanewhouseholdbutratheraddsanewleaseonlifetoanoldhousehold.Evenafterthedeathordivorce of aspousetheakimrelationcontinues.Itistheresponsibility of thedeceased'smachongtoprovideare-placementspousetothesurvivingpartner.DomesticUnit.Thehouseholdistheprimaryproductionandconsumptionunit.AGarohouseholdcomprisesparents,unmarriedsonsanddaughters,amarrieddaughter(heiress),andherhusbandandtheirchildren.Inprincipleamarriedgranddaughterandherchildrenshouldbeincluded,butinre.alitygrandparentsrarelysurvivetoseetheirgrandchildrenmarried.Somehouseholdsmay-forshortperiodsonly-includedistantrelativesornonrelatedpersonsforvariousreasons.Inheritance.PropertyamongtheGarosisinheritedinthefemaleline.One of thedaughtersisselectedbytheparentstobetheheiress.Ifthecouplehavenofemalechild,agirlbe-longingtothemachong of thewife(preferablythedaughter of hersister,whetherrealorclassificatory)isadoptedtobeanheiress.Sheisnotconsideredtobetheabsoluteowner of theproperty.Decisionaboutthedisposal of propertyistakenbyherhusband,whoisconsideredtobethehouseholdauthority(nokniskotong).Afterthedeath of thefather-in-lawresponsi-bilitytransferstotheson-in-law.Ifadeadmanissurvivedbyawidow,shestaysinthefamily of herdaughterandissome-timesreferredtoasanadditionalwife(Uk) of herdaughter'shusband.Socialization.Childrenstarthelpingtheirmothertolookaftertheinfantswhentheirmotherisbusywithwork.Todaytherearedifferenteducationalinstitutions-namely,themis-sionschoolsandotherIndianestablishments-thatactasmajoragents of education.SociopoliticalOrganizationSocialOrganization.InGarosocietythemostimportantsocialgroupisthemachong(clan).Amachongisanexoga-mousmatrilinealdescentgroupwhereinaGaroisautomati-callyassignedbybirthtotheunilinealgroup of hismother.Achatchi(moiety)isdividedintomanymachong.Eachmar-riedcouplechoosesonedaughter-or,iftheyhavenone,theyadoptacloserelative of themother-tobeheiress(noknadongipikamechik) of thefamily.Herhusbandtradi-tionallyisselectedfromthelineagegroup of thefatherandisacceptedasthenokrom of thehouse.Heresideswithhiswifeinherparents'house.Hehastotakeontheresponsibility of lookingafterhisparents-in-lawduringtheiroldage,andhiswifeinheritstheproperty.PoliticalOrganization.Traditionally,theGaroswerenotapoliticallyorganizedsociety,andeventodaythereexistsnoclear-cutpoliticalstructure.Chieftainshipinvolvesreligiousfunctionsonly.SocialControl.Thekinshipsystem,thekinshipbond,andtherelatedvaluesystemactasaneffectivemeans of socialcontrol.Formerlythebachelors'dormitorieswereimportantagents of socialcontrol.Conflict.AmongtheGarosmostdisputesariseovertheis-sues of property,inheritance,anddomesticquarrelswithinthefamily.Suchproblemsaretoalargeextentsettledbythemahari(lineage) of theoffendedandtheoffender.Anewsit-uationdevelopswhensomeone'scattlecausedamagetoan-other'scrops.Insuchasituationthenokma(villagehead-man)actsasanintermediaryonly.IfhefailstosettletheGurung95PoliticalOrganization.Until1962theGurungvillagesweregovernedbyhereditaryclanleadersandvillagehead-men.In1962thenationalgovernmentinstitutedanelectoralsystemwherebyvillagesaregroupedtogetherinunits of five,calledpanchayats,anddividedintoneighborhoodsorwardsfromwhichlocalcouncillorsareelected.Theelectoratealsochoosesapradhanpancheanduperpradhan(likeamayorandvicemayor,respectively)toleadthepanchayat.SocialControl.Gossipandfear of witchattackarecom-monmeans of socialcontrol.Thelocalcouncilisabletolevyfinesagainstpanchayatresidents,andforseriouscrimesgov-ernmentpolicemaybecalledin.Conflict.Disputesareoftenresolvedbyelderstrustedbythepartiesinvolved.Ifthisdoesnotprovideasolutionthentheymaybebroughtbeforethevillagecouncilor,asalastre-sort,tothedistrictcourt.ReligionandExpressiveCultureReligiousBeliefs.TheGurungspracticeaform of TibetanBuddhismstronglyinfluencedbythepre-Buddhistreligion of Tibet,andtheyalsoobservemajorHindufestivals,suchasDasain.Theybelieveinsometenets of BuddhismandHindu-ism,suchaskarma,yettheyhaveaset of beliefsaboutanaf-terlifeintheLand of theAncestorsandinlocaldeitiesthatarepeculiarlyGurung.Gurungsbelievetheirlocaletobein-habitedbysupernaturalforestcreaturesandbyavariety of formlesswraithsandspirits.Some of theseexistinand of themselves,whileothersarebelievedtobethespirits of hu-manswhohavediedviolentdeaths.GurungsbelieveinthemajorHindudeitiesandintheBuddhaandbodhisattvas.Particularvillageshavetheirowndeities,whicharefelttobeespeciallypowerfulintheirimmediatesurroundings.ReligiousPractitioners.Practitioners of thepre-BuddhistGurungreligion,calledpanjuandklihbri,areactiveintheperformance of exorcismsandmortuaryrites.Buddhistlamasarealsoimportantinfuneraryrituals,aswellasperformingpurificationritesforinfantsandsomeseasonalagriculturalrituals.WealthierGurungsoccasionallycalllamasintoper-formhouse-blessingceremonies.Brahmanpriestsaresum-monedtocasthoroscopesandperformdivinationsattimes of misfortune.Dammisfromthelocalservicecastesarebelievedtobeparticularlypotentexorcistsandareoftencalledincases of illness.Arts.Gurungsmakenothingthattheywouldidentifyasart.Thegoodsthattheyproduce,suchasbasketsandblan-kets,areusefulandtendtobe of aconventionalplaindesign.Theartistry of Gurungsisexpressedintheirfolkmusicanddanceandespeciallyintheevanescentform of songex-changesbetweenyoungmenandwomen.Medicine.Gurungsoftenemployexorcistsaswellassci-entificdrugswhensufferingfromanillness.Scientificmedi-cineishighlyvalued,butitiscostlyandisnoteasilyavailableinruralareas.Herbsandplantsarealsousedintreatingill-nessandinjury.DeathandAfterlife.Deathis of centralsymbolicimpor-tanceforGurungs.Thefuneraryritual(pae)isthemaincere-monialoccasioninGurungsociety,involvingtwonightsandthreedays of ritualactivity.Itisattendedbykin,villagers,andalargenumber of peoplewhocomefortheconvivialityandspectacle.Buddhistlamasandthepanjuandklihbripriests of thepre-Buddhistreligionmayofficiateatthepae.Deathisbelievedtoinvolvethedissolution of elementsthatmakeupthebody,sothattheearthelementreturnstoearth,airtoair,firetofire,andwatertowater.Thisprocessleavestheplahorsouls(nineformenandsevenforwomen),whichmustbesentthroughtheperformance of thepaetotheLand of theAncestors.Therelifecontinuesmuchasitdoesinthepresent world, andfromtherethespiritcantakeotherrebirths.SeealsoGurkha;NepaliBibliographyMacfarlane,Alan(1976).ResourcesandPopulation:AStudy of theGurungs of Nepal.Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress.Messerschmidt,DonaldA.(1976).TheGurungs of Nepal.Warminister:Aris&Phillips.Pignede,Bernard(1966).LesGurungs:UnePopulationhinalayenneduNepal.TheHague:Mouton.ERNESTINEL.McHUGH82GaroHajong,theKoch,theRabha,theDalau,andtheBanaiswhoresideontheadjacentplains of theneighboringdistrict.Thereremainsanobscurityabouttheorigin of theword"Garo."Theyareknownas"Garos"tooutsiders;buttheGarosalwaysdesignatethemselvesas"Achik"(hillmen).TheGarosaredividedintoninesubtribes:theAwe,Chisak,Matchi-Dual,Matabeng,Ambeng,Ruga-Chibox,Gara-Gan.ching,Atong,andtheMegam.Thesearegeographicsub-tribes,buttheyarealsodialectalandsubculturalgroups.Ac-cordingtotheirbeliefsandreligion,theGarosaredividedintothe"Songsarek"(thosewhofollowindigenousbeliefsandpractices)andtheChristians.Location.ThetwoGaroHillsdistrictsaresituatedbe-tween25°9'and26°1'Nand89°49'and91°2'E,coveringanarea of 8,000squarekilometers.ThedistrictsborderBangla-deshonthe south andwestandAssamonthenorth.Hillscovermost of thedistrict,withsomeadjacentfringes of plainsborderingthemonsoonarea,producingthickvegetationonthehills.Thereareanumber of hillystreamsandrivers;ex-ceptfortheSimsangRiver,whichformsawidefloodplain,noneisnavigable.Demography.Accordingtothecensus of Indiafor1971,Garosnumbered342,474.ChristianGaroswere54.3percent of thetotalGaropopulation;nowtheymaybemorethan60percent of thetotalGaropopulation.LinguisticAffiliation.AccordingtoSirGeorgeGrierson'sclassificationinTheLinguisticSurvey of India,GarobelongstotheBodoSubsection of theBodo-NagaSection,undertheAssam-BurmaGroup of theSino-TibetanorTibeto-BurmanLanguageFamily.HistoryandCulturalRelationsThereremainsnorecord of whentheGarosmigratedandset-tledintheirpresenthabitat.Theirtraditionallore,asre-cordedbyA.Playfair,indicatesthattheymigratedtotheareafromTibet.Thereisevidencethattheareawasinhabitedbystone-usingpeoples-PaleolithicandNeolithicgroups-inthepast.Aftersettlinginthehills,Garosinitiallyhadnocloseandconstantcontactwiththeinhabitants of thead-joiningplains.In177 5-1 776theZamindars of MechparaandKaraibari(atpresentintheGoalparaandDhuburidis.tricts of Assam)ledexpeditionsintotheGarohills.ThefirstcontactwithBritishcolonialistswasin1788,andtheareawasbroughtunderBritishadministrativecontrolintheyear1873.SettlementsThepopulationinaGarovillagemayrangefrom20to1,000persons.Thepopulationdensitytendstodecreaseasonemovestowardtheinteriorareasfromtheurbanareas of thedistricts.Villagesarescatteredanddistantfromoneanotherintheinteriorareas.Thesevillagesaregenerallysituatedonthetop of hillocks.Thehousesarebuilt,togetherwithgrana-ries,firewoodsheds,andpigsties,onpilesaroundtheslope of thehillock,usinglocallyavailablebamboo,wood,grass,etc.Theapproachtotherectangularhouseisalwaysbuiltfacingtheleveledsurface of thetop,whiletherearpart of thehouseremainshorizontaltotheslope.Nowadaysnewpile-typebuildingsusingwoodandironasmajorcomponentsarebeingmadeinsometraditionalvillagesalso.Inaddition,buildingssimilartothose of theneighboringplainsareconstructed.Thevillagesmayremaindistantfromagriculturalfields(hum).Inordertoguard...