Encyclopedia of World Cultures Volume III - South Asia - H pps

... thehouses of theiraudiences;therefore,maintainingareputationforhonestyisnecessaryfortheirprofession.Becausethehijrahouseholdisbothaneconomicandadomesticgroup,pressurestoconformaregreat.Seriousconflictsareinhibitedbythegeographicalmobilitypermittedwithinthecommunity.Anyhijrawhocannotgetalonginonehouseholdcanmovetoanotherforawhile;apersonwhogetsareputationforquarrelsomeness,however,willbeunwel-comeatanyhijrahouse.Thenationalnetwork of hijrascanworkasablacklistaswellasanoutletfordiffusingthedisrup-tiveeffects of conflict.ReligionandExpressiveCultureReligiousBeliefs.Thepower of thehijrasasasexuallyam-biguouscategorycanonlybeunderstoodinthereligiouscon-text of Hinduism.InHindumythology,ritual,andart,thepower of thecombinedman/woman,orandrogyne,isafre-quentandsignificanttheme.BahucharaMata,themainob-ject of hijraveneration,isspecificallyassociatedwithtrans-vestismandtransgenderism.Allhijrahouseholdscontainashrinetothegoddessthatisusedindailyprayer.HijrasalsoidentifywithShiva,acentral,sexuallyambivalentfigureinHinduism,whocombinesinhimself,asdothehijras,botheroticismandasceticism.One of themostpopularforms of ShivaisArdhanarisvara,orhalf-man/half-woman,whichrep-resentsShivaunitedwithhisshakti(femalecreativepower).Thehijrasidentifywiththisform of ShivaandoftenworshipatShivatemples.Thereligiousmeaning of thehijraroleisex-pressedinstorieslinkinghijraswiththemajorfigures of theHinduGreatTradition,suchasArjuna(wholivesforayearasaeunuchintheepic,theMahabharata),Shiva,BuhucharaMata(themothergoddess),andKrishna,all of whomareas-sociatedwithsexualambivalence.Ceremonies.Thecentralceremony of hijralife-andtheonethatdefinesthemasagroup-istheemasculationopera-tioninwhichallorpart of themalegenitalsareremoved.Thisoperationisviewedasarebirth;thenewhijracreatedbyit ... thehouses of theiraudiences;therefore,maintainingareputationforhonestyisnecessaryfortheirprofession.Becausethehijrahouseholdisbothaneconomicandadomesticgroup,pressurestoconformaregreat.Seriousconflictsareinhibitedbythegeographicalmobilitypermittedwithinthecommunity.Anyhijrawhocannotgetalonginonehouseholdcanmovetoanotherforawhile;apersonwhogetsareputationforquarrelsomeness,however,willbeunwel-comeatanyhijrahouse.Thenationalnetwork of hijrascanworkasablacklistaswellasanoutletfordiffusingthedisrup-tiveeffects of conflict.ReligionandExpressiveCultureReligiousBeliefs.Thepower of thehijrasasasexuallyam-biguouscategorycanonlybeunderstoodinthereligiouscon-text of Hinduism.InHindumythology,ritual,andart,thepower of thecombinedman/woman,orandrogyne,isafre-quentandsignificanttheme.BahucharaMata,themainob-ject of hijraveneration,isspecificallyassociatedwithtrans-vestismandtransgenderism.Allhijrahouseholdscontainashrinetothegoddessthatisusedindailyprayer.HijrasalsoidentifywithShiva,acentral,sexuallyambivalentfigureinHinduism,whocombinesinhimself,asdothehijras,botheroticismandasceticism.One of themostpopularforms of ShivaisArdhanarisvara,orhalf-man/half-woman,whichrep-resentsShivaunitedwithhisshakti(femalecreativepower).Thehijrasidentifywiththisform of ShivaandoftenworshipatShivatemples.Thereligiousmeaning of thehijraroleisex-pressedinstorieslinkinghijraswiththemajorfigures of theHinduGreatTradition,suchasArjuna(wholivesforayearasaeunuchintheepic,theMahabharata),Shiva,BuhucharaMata(themothergoddess),andKrishna,all of whomareas-sociatedwithsexualambivalence.Ceremonies.Thecentralceremony of hijralife-andtheonethatdefinesthemasagroup-istheemasculationopera-tioninwhichallorpart of themalegenitalsareremoved.Thisoperationisviewedasarebirth;thenewhijracreatedbyit ... foursuchfamilies,eachfamilyconstitutingaunit.Thereisaper-vasiveemphasisonsexualegalitarianismandwomensome-timesformindependentcommensalunits,thoughtheseal-waysarepart of awidercampaggregate.Manyencampmentsconsistonly of asinglefamily,andsuchfamiliesmayresideasseparateandisolatedunitsforlongperiods.KinshipTerminology.Thekinshipterminology of theHillPandaramis of theDravidiantypecommonthroughout south India,thoughthereismuchvaguenessandvariabilityHillTribes101KrishnaIyer,L.A.(1937)."Malapantiram."InTheTravan-coreTribesandCastes.Vol.1,9 6-1 16.Trivandrum:Govern-mentPress.Morris,Brian(1981)."HillGodsandEcstaticCults:NotesontheReligion of aHuntingandGatheringPeople."ManinIndia61:20 3-2 36.Morris,Brian(1986).ForestTraders:ASocio-EconomicStudy of theHillPandaram.L.S.E.MonographsinSocialAnthro-pology,no.55.London:AthlonePress.Mukherjee,B.(1954).TheMalapandaram of Travancore:TheirSocio-EconomicLife.Bulletin of theDepartment of An-thropology,no.3.Calcutta.BRIANMORRISHillTribesETHNONYM:ScheduledTribesThisinexacttermwaslongappliedbyBritishandAmericantravelersandcolonialauthoritiestotheindige-nousinhabitants of uplandareasin South andSoutheast Asia (andsometimesinotherparts of the world) .Althoughitwouldseemclearenoughwhata'hilltribe"is,thetermfindslittlefavoramongmodemanthropologists.First of all,itseemstohavetones of racialinferiority;thusthetermhasneverbeenapplied,forexample,totheHighlandclans of Scotland,eventhoughtheydofittheusualmold of hilltribes.Second,Westernwritershavebeeninconsistentintheiridentification of hilltribes,usuallydefiningthemassomehowinoppositiontoothersocialcategories.IntheIn-diansubcontinenttribesorhilltribeshavelongbeende-pictedasdistinctfromcastes;inSoutheast Asia theyhaveoftenbeenpresentedasdistinctfromrice-cultivatingpeas-antsintheplainsandalluvialvalleys.TheNilgiriHills of south India,totakeaspecificexample,arehometoseveralsmall,moreorlessindigenousgroups,mostnotablytheTodas,Kotas,Kurumbas,andBadagas(alldealtwithelse-whereinthis volume) .BritishwritersandadministratorsthereduringthenineteenthcenturyalwaysidentifiedtheTodas,Kotas,andKurumbasashilltribesoraboriginaltribes;whereastheBadagas,whohadcomeuptotheNilgiriHillsfromtheMysorePlainsafewcenturiesbefore,wereusuallywrittenabout,eveninlegislation,asbeingsome-thingotherthanhilltribes.Yettheyhadlivedwithinafewmiles of theKotasandTodasforcenturies,andtheywereataverysimilarlevel of economicdevelopmenttotheKotas.TheNilgiricaseleadstotheconclusionthathilltribesaresimplytheindigenouscommunitiesthatliveaboveaneleva-tion of 1,000meters.Intraditionalsocietieslikethose of IndiaandThailandonecanstillfinddiscreteculturalunitsconventionallycalledtribes.Thesetendtobeendogamoussocialunits,occupyingadistinguishableruralterritory,bearingatribalnameandadis-tinctmaterialculture,andoftenspeakingtheirownlanguage.Butthesamefeaturescharacterizemanydominantcastesin South Asia aswell(e.g.,theRajputs).Inthisregiontheoldcategorieswillnotsimplydisappearasanthropologistsdevelopmoreusefulways of categorizinghumansocieties.ThisisbecausethelegalformulationinIndiasoonafterindependence of twobroadsocialcategories,ScheduledTribesandScheduledCastes,hasbynowtouchedhundreds of millions of peoplewhotherebyhavebecomeeli-gibleforspecialtreatmentbyvariousbranches of thegovern.ment,inanefforttoamelioratethesocioeconomicbackward-ness of thesegroupings.SovaluedhavethesegovernmentbenefitsbecomethattheIndianauthoritiestodayfindthem-selvesunabletoabandonthegranting of specialbenefits,twogenerationsaftertheywerefirstinstituted.ThereareevengroupsliketheBadagas,whowerenevercalledhilltribesnortreatedasScheduledTribes,whononethelesstodayareclam-oringforclassificationasScheduledTribesforthemostobvi-ous of reasons.TheBadagasactuallybecameaScheduledTribein1991.Althoughmany of theearlieraccountsdepictedhilltribesas'animists,"orbelieversinspiritentitieswhodidnotfollowone of thegreat South Asianreligions(e.g.,theHillPandaram),subsequentresearchhasdescribedhilltribesthatareHindu,Buddhist,Muslim,andevenChristian(theMizos,Garos).Alongwiththesedifferencesinbelief,thehilltribesshowagreatvariety of economicadaptations:whileagricultureispreeminentamongmost,therearesomewhoarepastoralists(suchastheTodas),somewhoareartisans(Kotas),andsomewhoareitinerantpeddlers,magicians,andentertainers.Morethan500namedtribescanstillberecognizedinthecountries of South Asia. Detailsabouttribaldemographyareelusive.Mostnationalcensuseshave...

... 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 AnthropologyHerbert H. 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 John H. 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 ... seentwoprimeministersandan"heirapparent'killed;Pakistanhashangedonepresidentandseenanotherdieinaplanecrash;Bangladeshhaslosttwopresi-dentstoassassination;andinSriLankaaswellasBhutanoneprimeministerhasbeenassassinated.Thegrimmodelforall of theseacts of desperationwasnodoubttheshockingassas-sination of MahatmaGandhiin1948,aneventthatshowedextremists of allsortsthatifapersonwerewillingtodie,heorshecouldprobablytakeamajornationalleaderalongwithhim.Thiswasstilljustastruein1991.TheNations of South Asia Althoughthefocus of this volume isthedistinctculturalgroups of South Asia, itisnecessarytoprovidesomebasicin-formationaboutthenationsinwhichthesepeoplelive.Thesenationsareshownonmap1,withcapitalcitiesalsoindicated.Bangladesh(People'sRepublic of Bangladesh),formerlytheEasternProvince of Pakistan,becameanindependentna-tionin1971.Itoccupiesaterritory of some144,000squarekilometersandisborderedonthewest,north,andeastbyIndiaandbyMyanmar(formerlyBurma)onthesoutheast.In1990thepopulationwasestimatedat118,000,000.Dhaka(formerlyDacca)isthecapitalcity,withChittagong,Khulna,Rajshahi,andBarisalbeingothermajorurbancenters.TheofficiallanguageisBangla(Bengali),with98percent of thepopulationbeingethnicBengalisand87percentMuslims.Bangladeshisamongthepoorestnationsinthe world withanannualpercapitaincome of U.S.$113in1986.In1988,1989,1991,andonmanyotheroccasionsBangladeshhassufferedtheeffects of monsoonsandcyclonesthathavekilledtens of thousandsandleftmillionshomeless.Bhutan(Kingdom of Bhutan)islocatedintheeasternHimalayanMountainsandisborderedbyIndiaonthe south andwest,Sikkimonthewest,andChina(Tibet)onthenorth.Itoccupies47,000squarekilometers,inthreedistinctregions of ... 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...

... landorwater.Thefourdivisions of landrepre-sentthefourOngeeclans.Eachsection of theislandisfurthersubdividedintosections of landassociatedwithalineage.Theselanddivisions,knownasmegeyabarrotas,areidentifiedwithaperson'smatrilineageand,dependingonwhethertheterritoryisintheforestoronthecoast,witheithertheturtlehunters(eahambelakwe)orthepighunters(ehansakwe).Ongeesprefertohuntandgatherintheirownmegeyabarrotabuttherearenorestrictionsonhuntinginsomeoneelse'smegeyabarrota.Ifonedoeshuntinanother'smegeyabarrotaoneisobligedtoofferandsharefirstwiththeownersanyre-sourcetaken.Aperson'sidentitywithamegeyabarrotaplaysacrucialroleinOngeeritualsandceremonies;forexample,consummation of amarriagemustoccurinthewife'smegeya-barrota,andadeadperson'sbonesmustbekeptintheberate(circularhut) of adescendant'smegeyabarrota.KinshipKinGroupsandDescent.Thepresentsmallsize of thepopulationandthelimitedinformationavailableontheNorthernandMiddleAndamansmakesitdifficulttocreateacomprehensivepicture of Andamanesekinship.Earliereth-nographicaccountspresentthebasictribaldivisionasthe"sept,"butRadcliffe-Brown'sobservationsleadustobelievethatgroupscametogethertoensurefriendlyrelations.Onthebasis of Ongeeethnographicmaterialandearlydescrip-tions of theAndamanese,itisbeyondadoubtthattheAnda-manesehavebilateraldescentgroups.KinshipTerminology.Thekinshipsystemiscognaticandterminology,onthewhole,specifiesclassificatoryrela-tions.Prefixesareaffixedtoclassificatoryterms of referencethatalsoemphasizeseniorandjunioragedifferentials.MarriageandFamilyMarriage.Marriageisarrangedbytheelderswithintheprescribedgroup,thatis,betweenturtlehuntersandpighunters.Aman'spatrilinealrelativestakegiftsanddemandadaughterfromaman'smatrilinealgroup.AmongtheOngees,populationdeclineoftenmakesitimpossibleforayoungmantomarryhisclassificatorycrosscousin,andconsequentlyhesometimesmustmarryamucholderwomanwhoishismoth-er'sclassificatorycrosscousin.Monogamyisastrictrule.Anoldermanorwomanwhohaslostaspousereceivespriorityformarriage.Leviratemarriageisacceptable.Marriageisahighlyvaluedstatus.BothManandRadcliffe-Brownimplythatresidenceisambilocal,butsome of Radcliffe-Brown'sremarksindicateatendencytowardsvirilocalresidence.AmongtheOngeesanewlymarriedcouplestayswiththewife'smatrilinealrelativesatleastuntilachildisbom.Afterachildisbornthecouplemaymovetolivewiththehusband'ssiblingsandtheirfamilies.Divorceisrareandisconsideredimmoralafterthebirth of achild.DomesticUnit.Thenuclearfamilyisthemajorgrouparoundwhichallactivitiesrevolve.Thenuclearfamilyin-cludesamarriedcouple'sownchildrenaswellasanyadoptedchildren.Inheritance.Menandwomeninheritrightsandobliga-tionsprimarilyfromtheirmatrilineallineage.Toolsandca-noesmaybeinheritedfromthefather'sside.Socialization.Customarilychildrenaregiveninadoption.Theresponsibility of earlysocialization of thechildrestswiththechild'smatrilinealrelatives.Onceayoungboyisreadyforinitiationhistrainingandeducationbecometheresponsibil-ity of hisfatherandhispaternalrelatives.Afteragirl'sfirstmenstruationsheisevenmorecloselyalignedwithhermatri-linealrelatives.Children of bothsexesaretaughtabouttheforestwhiletheyaccompanytheireldersonvarioushuntingandgatheringactivities.Throughplayandthemaking of toycanoes,bowsandarrows,shelters,andsmallnets,childrenareintroducedtothebasicrequisiteskills.SociopoliticalOrganizationSocialandPoliticalOrganization.Traditionallyspeakers of adialectresidedasanindependentandautonomousgroupinaspecificpart of theislands.Eachlocalgroupwasfurtherdividedup,especiallyintheNorthernandtheMiddleAnda-mans,intotwentytofiftypeoplewho,dependingonthesea-son,livedeitheratthecoastorintheforest.Marriagealli-ancesandadoptionsbetweencoastalandforestdwellerscontrolledconflict;thosesocialcontrolsweresupplementedbythedictates of theelders.SocialControl.TheAndamanesevaluesystemisthebasicmeansformaintainingsocialcontrol.Directconfrontationisavoided,and"goingaway"-thatis,leavingthesourceandscene of conflictforashorttime-isencouraged.Usuallyapersonexpressesresentmentbybreakingordestroyingsomepiece of propertyatthecampsiteandthenstayinginthefor-estforafewdays.Whiletheoffendedpersonisgone,othercampmatesfixupthedestroyedpropertyandwaitforthatperson,whoistakenbackwithoutrecriminations.Conflict.Occasionallyneighboringgroupswouldhaveaconflict of interests;however,hostilityneverescalatedbe-yondthelevel of avoidance.Whenproblemsbetweengroupswouldarise,women,throughinformalchannels of negotia-tion,wereinstrumentalintheresolution of tension.Resolu-tionwasusuallymarkedbyafeastinwhichthegroupsincon-flictwouldparticipate.Betweenneighboringgroupswithdifferentidentitiesthatweremarkedbydifferentspokendia-lects,thepeacemakingceremonyconsisted of asequence of 4AborMajorcropsincluderice,fivevarieties of Job'stears,fourtypes of fingermillet,foxtailmillet,maize,andnamdung(Perillaocimoides,theseed of whichiseatenwholeorground).Greenvegetablesgrownincludemustard,countrybean,pumpkins,whitegourds,smallonions,soybeans,flatbeans,eggplants,bittergourds,frenchbeans,smallmustardplants,potatoes,tomatoes,andenge(Colocasiaantiquorum).Fruitsgrownincludejackfruit,oranges,papayas,bananas,andpineapples.Condimentcropsarelimitedtochilies,gin-ger,andsugarcane.Cottonisthemostimportant of thesev-eralfibercropsgrown.Finally,tobaccoisalsoraised.Gayals,dogs,pigs,goats,andchickensarethemostimportant of theanimalsdomesticatedbytheAbor.TheAbordonothaveacurrency of theirownwithanyitem of value(i.e.,havingapracticalordecorativeuse)beingusedasmoney.MetalitemsarevaluedbytheAbor,andthemetalcauldron(danki)im-portedfromTibetisparticularlytreasured.IndustrialArts.Bamboo,wood,cane,clay,stone,glass,metal,cotton,andwoolareusedasrawmaterials.Manufac-tureditemsincludeyarn,wovencloth,personalattire(e.g.,fordaily,ceremonial,andmilitaryuse),ornaments(e.g.,forear,neck,waist,andwrist),householdfurniture,baskets,utensilsforthepreparationandstorage of food(e.g.,bamboocontainers,woodengourds,andmetalpots),andimplements of war(e.g.,bows,arrows,swords,shields,helmets,spikedwristlets,andbamboospikesorpanjis).Trade.SurplusgoodsarebarteredbytheAborinex-changeforvariousnecessitiesandluxuryitems.Marketrela-tionshipsexistamongtheAborthemselvesandtraderouteslinkthemwithmarketsinNayiLube(Tibet),Along,Pangin,andPasighat(thelatterthreebeinginSiangFrontierDivi-sion).Forexample,rawhidesandchiliesaretradedbytheBorisinTibetforrocksalt,woolencloth,rawwool,Tibetanswordsandvessels,earornaments,andbrassbangles.Theyexchangesalt,iron,andsomeutensilsforotheritemswithneighboringgroups.Withtheestablishment of Along,Pasi-ghat,andPanginasadministrativecenters,Abortradersfromthroughouttheregioncometothesetownstobartertheirgoods.Inadditiontobarter,currencyisalsousedasame-dium of exchange.Division of Labor.Whilesometaskssuchaschildcareandcookingaresharedinsomecasesbymenandwomen,gender-baseddemarcation of responsibilitiesisfollowedinothers.Forexample,weavingistheprovince of women,whilethecuttingandburning of treesandbrushforjhumisamaletask.Generallyspeaking,womenassumeprimaryresponsibil-ityforcooking,maintenance of domesticanimals,andtheseeding,weeding,andharvesting of jhumfields.LandTenure.Eachvillagehasitsownterritorialbound-aries.Withinthese,thelandbelongstothefamiliesinhabit-ingthevillage.Royhassuggestedthatclanownership of landobtainsinsomeoldervillages,thoughthisisnotthegeneralnorm.LalandGuptasuggestedthatinMinyongvillages,thedominantclan(s)is(are)themajoritylandholder(s).Theo-reticallyalllandbelongstothevillage.However,thefamiliesthatconstituteavillagehavetherighttocultivatethelandthattheyclaimastheirown.Kinship,MarriageandFamilyKinGroupsandDescent.Descentispatrilineal.Each of theconstituentAborgroupstracesitsdescentfromasinglemythicalancestorandiscomposed of anumber of clans.Theseclansaredividedintovarioussubclans(groups of fami-liesthatarethebasicAborsocialunit).Clanexogamy,strictlyadheredtoatonetime,hasbecomelessthenormfortheAborduetopopulationincreaseanddispersion.Sub-clans,however,haveremainedstrictlyexogamous.Largerdi-visionsmayexistbetweentheclanandgrouplevels(e.g.,amongtheMinyong,whoaredividedintotwomoieties).Marriage.Monogamousunionsarethenorm,thoughpolygynyisalsopracticed.Divorceisfrequentandeasilyob-tainable.Premaritalsexualexplorationisencouraged.Free-dom of choiceinmateselectionisthenorm,butparentallyarrangedmarriagesalsooccur.Postmaritalresidencedoesnotfallneatlyintoanycategory,butitseemstobebilocal(thenewlymarriedcouplesettlingwiththeparents of eitherthebrideorthegroom)inthebeginning of theunionandneo-localafterthebirth of thefirstchild.Insomecases,theyoungestson of afamilymayremaininthehome of hisfatheralongwithhiswifeandchildren.DomesticUnit.Thetypicalunitismadeup of ahusbandandwife,togetherwiththeirchildren.However,anumber of variationsinbasicMinyongfamilycompositionhavebeennoted.Absoluteauthorityresideswiththemalehead of thehousehold.Jointfamiliesarerarebecausetheallegiance of maleandfemaleoffspringistransferred,firsttothemaleandfemaledormitories,thentotheirownfamilies,asthelifecycleprogresses.WhilemonogamousunionsaretheAbornorm,polygynousarrangementsareknown.Consequently,householdswithcowivesarenotrare.Inheritance.Theinheritance of allpropertydescendsthroughthemaleline.Sonsshareequallyintherealproperty(land) of theirfather'sestate.Thesameistrue of thefamilyhouse,thoughtheyoungestsoninheritshisfather'shouseifhehaschosennottoestablishhisownresidenceaftermar-riage.Thecare of thefather'swidowistheresponsibility of theyoungestson.Allotherpropertyownedbythefather-suchasbeadsinheritedfromhisfather,implementsusedinhuntingandwarfare,andclothingwovenforhimbyhiswife-isdividedequallyamonghissons.Some of hispersonaleffects(thoughnone of realvalue)areusedtodecoratehisgrave.Ornamentsthatawomanbringswithherintoamar-riageandthosegiventoherbyherhusbandremainhersandareinheritedbyherdaughtersanddaughters-in-law.Socialization.Thechiefagents of socializationareachild'sparents,themoshup(men'sdormitory),andtherasheng(women'sdormitory).Inthehome,gender-specificrolesandresponsibilitiesareintroducedbytheparents,andchildrenspendtheirdaysengagedinhouseholdandsubsis-tenceactivities.Afterachildisabletocrawl,itisplacedunderthecare of itseldersiblings.Oncethechildhasreachedadolescence,responsibilityforsocializationshiftstothemoshupandrasheng,wherechildrenspendeveningsaftertheirround of dailydomesticchoresisover.Thedormitoriesserveasthetraininggroundformenandwomenuntiltheyaremarriedandareabletoestablishtheirownhouseholds.Andamanese9havebeenimplemented.Todaytheremainingfourtribalgroupsareundershegovernment-controlledinstitutioncalledAndamanAsimJanJatiVikasSamiti.Governmentplanners,administrators,andsocialworkersfaceadilemmaindeterminingwhatkinds of changesinthetraditionalworldview of theremainingtribalgroups,especiallytheOngees,shouldbeeffected.TheJarwasandtheSentinelesehaveremainedlargelyoutsidetheframework of structuredandprolongedwelfareactivities.TheGreatAndamanese,who of thefourgroupshavehadthelongestperiod of contactwithoutsiders,arethemostdependentonoutsidersandtheirgoods;theyalsoarethesmallestgroup,withpracticallynomemory of theirownlanguageandtraditions.SettlementsAndamanesesettlementpatternsarebasedonseasonalchanges.Duringtherelativelydryseason(fromOctobertoFebruary)simplethatchedlean-tohutsaresetupinacircularformationclosetothecoastalareabyfourfamiliesormore.Allhutsfacethecentralcampgroundcreatedbythesur-roundinghuts.Usuallytheseparatehutsfortheunmarriedmenandnewlymarriedcouplesdonotformapart of thehutssurroundingthecampground.Duringthemonths of MaytoSeptember,theAndamanesemovefromthecoasttothefor-estwherepigsarehuntedandhoney,fruit,andtubersarecol-lected.Violentrainstorms,whichoccurfromMaytoSeptem-ber,makeitimpossiblefortheAndamanesetohuntturtles,dugongs,orfishfromtheircanoes.Themovefromthecoasttotheforestismarkedbyachangeinsettlementpattern:thoughcampsaresetupintheforestastheyareatthecoast,onlyfour ... 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...

... receivetheirreward-betweentime of deathandaneventualDay of Destruction,uponwhichthe world willcometoanend.TherewillthenbeaDay of Judgment,whereuponallbeingswillberestoredtolife,andhumanswillbebroughtbeforeGod(Allah)tohavetheirlifetimedeeds-whichhavebeenrecordedbyAllah'sangelsinaGreatBook-reviewedandcounted.Shouldone'sgooddeedsoutbalancetheevilonehasdone,ResurrectionDaywillleadtoeverlastinglifeinHeaven;ifviceversa,theoutcomeisapurifying,remedialperiodinHell,whereupon,purged of itspastiniquities,thesoulmayqualifyforentryintoParadise.SeealsoBaul;BengaliShakta;BengaliVaishnavaBibliographyAziz,K.M.Ashraful(1979).KinshipinBangladesh.Mono-graphSeries,no.1.Dhaka:InternationalCentreforDiar-rhoealDiseaseResearch.Bertocci,PeterJ.(1980)."Models of Solidarity,Structures of Power:ThePolitics of CommunityinRuralBangladesh."InIdeologyandInterest:TheDialectics of Politics,PoliticalAn-thropologyYearbookno.1,editedbyMyronJ.Aronoff,9 7- 125.NewBrunswick,N.J.:TransactionBooks.Chaudhuri,Nirad(1951).TheAutobiography of anUnkownIndian.London:Macmillan.Davis,Marvin(1983).RankandRivalry:ThePolitics of In-equalityinRuralWestBengal.Cambridge:CambridgeUni-versityPress.Inden,RonaldB.,andRalphW.Nicholas(1977).KinshipinBengaliCulture.Chicago:University of ChicagoPress.Islam,A.K.M.Aminul(1974).ABangladeshVillage:Politi-calConflictandCohesion.Cambridge,Mass.:Schenkman.Reprint.1990.ProspectHeights,Ill.:WavelandPress.20Baigater.Thegarhisaunitbasedonresidence.ItisbelievedthatoriginallyeveryBaigamanwasattachedtoaspecificjungleorhillandwasrequiredtosecurematesforhisdaughtersfromotherjunglesorhills,therebypreventingincest.Thesegarharenottotemic.ElwinsuggeststhattheBaigakinshipsystememphasizesclassificationoverotherconcerns.Descentispatrilineal.KinshipTerminology.Iroquoiskinshipterminologyisemployedforfirstcousins.MarriageandFamilyMarriage.Premaritalrelationsbetweenmenandwomenarecommonandsociallysanctioned.Formalengagementtakesplaceatanyage,thoughfrequentlyafterpuberty.Theengagementprocessininitiatedbythemale.Theconsent of hisdesiredspouseandherparents(alongwithpayment of thebride-price)arerequiredbeforethebetrothalmaytakeplace.Thechiefactorsintheceremonyarethedosi(twooldmenwhoarerelatedtothebrideandgroomandperformthegreaterpart of thereligiousceremonies)andthesuasin(youngunmarriedsistersorcousins of thebrideandgroom).Theceremonytakesplaceoverseveraldaysandincludesfeasting,thetaking of omens,theanointingandbathing of thebridalpair,anumber of ceremonialprocessions,thecon-struction of abooth(marua),thetying of thebridalpair'sclothesinaceremonialknot,andthegiving of gifts(bythebridegroom'sfathertothebride'spaternalgrandmother,hermother,herbrother,thedosi,andthesuasin).Thecouplespendtheirfirstnighttogetherinthejungleandperformthebenichodnaceremony,part of whichincludestheceremonialbathing of oneanother.Theceremonydescribedabovemaybeperformedonlyonceinlife.Alesselaborateceremony(havingnosocialstigmaattachedtoit)calledthehaldi-paniorchuri-pairanamarriagemaybeperformedmorethanonce.Thelatterceremonyisroughlyequivalenttomarriageinaregistryoffice.Itmayprecedethemoreelaborateformde-scribedabove.Itsusedependsonthepreference of thepartiesinvolved.Divorceisallowedandpolygamyispracticedtoasomewhatlimitedextent.Postmaritalresidenceispatrilocal.Baiganormsalsopermitthemarriage of agrandparenttoagrandchild.DomesticUnit.Thesizeandcomposition of thetypicaldomesticunitvary.Thereisevidence of nuclearandextendedfamilystructure(e.g.,father,mother,elderson,elderson'swife,youngerson,andyoungerson'swife,formingaresiden-tialunit).Inheritance.Thepractice of shiftingcultivationandthenomadictradition of theBaigahavecontributedtoaratherambiguousstancetowardpropertyandinheritance.Thecor-pus of Baigapossessionsincludesaxes,cookingutensils,vari-ousornaments,andcash.Thehomeandall of itscontentsbelongtothemalehead of thefamily.Aftermarriage,every-thingthatawifeearnsbelongstoherhusband.Ifsherunsawayfromordivorcesherhusband,sheforfeitsclaimtoany-thingthatherpresenthusbandhasgivenher.However,what-everpossessionsshehasbroughtwithherintotheunionfromherparents'homeremainwithher.Awidowisable,insomeinstances,toretainaportion of herdeceasedhusband'sprop-erty.Suchpropertywouldremaininthewidow'spossessionshouldshechoosetoremarry.Theearnings of sonsanddaughtersalsobelongtotheirfather.Shouldafatherapprove of hisson'schoice of amate,thenhemayelecttogiveacer-tainamount of hispersonalproperty(e.g.,cookingutensils,axes,andcloth)tohissonifthesonhaselectedtoestablishaseparatehousehold.Otherwise,theearnings of thesonandthose of hiswifebelongtotheson'sfather.Themalehead of householdisempowered,duringhislifetime,toapportionallpropertyaccordingtohisdiscretion.Whenamandies,hispropertyisinheritedbyhissonorsons.Provisionismadeforstepsonstoreceiveasmallerportion.Asonwhoremainswithhisfatherandmaintainshimuntilthetime of thefather'sdeathwillreceiveaslightlylargerportion of thefather'sprop-erty.Widowsaregenerallymaintainedontheestates of theirdeceasedhusbandsuntilsuchtimeastheyareremarried,andeachwidowisentitledtoashareinherhusband'sestateequaltoason'sshare.Frequentlydaughtersalsoreceiveasmallportion of adeceasedfather'sproperty.Ifamanissurvivedonlybynephewsandgrandsons,hispropertyisequallydi-videdamongthem.Shouldhebesurvivedonlybyanadoptedson,thenthatadoptedsonreceivesall of theadoptivefa-ther'sproperty.Socialization.Childrearingissharedequallybybothpar-ents.Achildissuckledbythemotherforthreeyears,thenweaned.Fromthatpointon,childrenareallowedagreatdeal of freedom,sexualandotherwise.Astherearenochildren'sdormitories,childrenareallowedtoexploreandexperimentfreelywithintheirhouseholdsandwithinthelargersociety.SociopoliticalOrganizationSocialOrganization.Ashasalreadybeennotedabove,theBaigaaredividedintoseveralendogamousjat,whicharethemselvessubdividedintoexogamousgarhandgoti.Socialrelationshipsbetweenthedifferentjataregovernedbyaseries of detailedandrathercomplicatedregulations.Few,ifany,casteprejudicesareheldbytheBaiga,thoughsomehavebeenknowntoavoiduntouchablesandthosewhoconsumebeef(out of fear of offendingtheirHinduneighbors).PoliticalOrganization.Baigavillagesappeartobegov-ernedautonomously,withleadershipbeingexercisedbythevillageheadman(mukkadam).Othervillageofficialsincludethelandlord(malguzar)andwatchman(katwar).Legaldis-putesandtribaloffensesarehandledbythepanch,agroupcomposed of keyvillagememberswhoconvenewithaquo-rum of five.SocialControl.TraditionalBaigajurisprudencegovernstriballifetoagreaterextentthanregulationsestablishedbynationalauthorities.Thisjurisprudenceisconcernedchieflywiththemaintenance of tribalintegrityandprestige.Controlismaintainedbytribalexcommunication,fines,andimpris-onment.Thesemattersaredecidedbybothinformalproce-dures(i.e.,bynonstructuredconsultation of variouscommu-nitymembers)andformalprocedures(i.e.,bythevillagepanch).Tribalconsensus,obtainedbybothformalandinfor-malstructures,regulatessocialbehavior.Conflict.ChristianmissionariesandHinduculturehavehadminimaldirectinfluenceontheBaiga.Materialculture,however,hasbeenaffectedbyHinduinfluence.TheBaigaarealmostcompletelydependentonneighboringpeoplesforthemanufacture of thegoodsthattheyconsume,andtheirrela-tionswiththesepeoples(aswell ... receivetheirreward-betweentime of deathandaneventualDay of Destruction,uponwhichthe world willcometoanend.TherewillthenbeaDay of Judgment,whereuponallbeingswillberestoredtolife,andhumanswillbebroughtbeforeGod(Allah)tohavetheirlifetimedeeds-whichhavebeenrecordedbyAllah'sangelsinaGreatBook-reviewedandcounted.Shouldone'sgooddeedsoutbalancetheevilonehasdone,ResurrectionDaywillleadtoeverlastinglifeinHeaven;ifviceversa,theoutcomeisapurifying,remedialperiodinHell,whereupon,purged of itspastiniquities,thesoulmayqualifyforentryintoParadise.SeealsoBaul;BengaliShakta;BengaliVaishnavaBibliographyAziz,K.M.Ashraful(1979).KinshipinBangladesh.Mono-graphSeries,no.1.Dhaka:InternationalCentreforDiar-rhoealDiseaseResearch.Bertocci,PeterJ.(1980)."Models of Solidarity,Structures of Power:ThePolitics of CommunityinRuralBangladesh."InIdeologyandInterest:TheDialectics of Politics,PoliticalAn-thropologyYearbookno.1,editedbyMyronJ.Aronoff,9 7- 125.NewBrunswick,N.J.:TransactionBooks.Chaudhuri,Nirad(1951).TheAutobiography of anUnkownIndian.London:Macmillan.Davis,Marvin(1983).RankandRivalry:ThePolitics of In-equalityinRuralWestBengal.Cambridge:CambridgeUni-versityPress.Inden,RonaldB.,andRalphW.Nicholas(1977).KinshipinBengaliCulture.Chicago:University of ChicagoPress.Islam,A.K.M.Aminul(1974).ABangladeshVillage:Politi-calConflictandCohesion.Cambridge,Mass.:Schenkman.Reprint.1990.ProspectHeights,Ill.:WavelandPress.20Baigater.Thegarhisaunitbasedonresidence.ItisbelievedthatoriginallyeveryBaigamanwasattachedtoaspecificjungleorhillandwasrequiredtosecurematesforhisdaughtersfromotherjunglesorhills,therebypreventingincest.Thesegarharenottotemic.ElwinsuggeststhattheBaigakinshipsystememphasizesclassificationoverotherconcerns.Descentispatrilineal.KinshipTerminology.Iroquoiskinshipterminologyisemployedforfirstcousins.MarriageandFamilyMarriage.Premaritalrelationsbetweenmenandwomenarecommonandsociallysanctioned.Formalengagementtakesplaceatanyage,thoughfrequentlyafterpuberty.Theengagementprocessininitiatedbythemale.Theconsent of hisdesiredspouseandherparents(alongwithpayment of thebride-price)arerequiredbeforethebetrothalmaytakeplace.Thechiefactorsintheceremonyarethedosi(twooldmenwhoarerelatedtothebrideandgroomandperformthegreaterpart of thereligiousceremonies)andthesuasin(youngunmarriedsistersorcousins of thebrideandgroom).Theceremonytakesplaceoverseveraldaysandincludesfeasting,thetaking of omens,theanointingandbathing of thebridalpair,anumber of ceremonialprocessions,thecon-struction of abooth(marua),thetying of thebridalpair'sclothesinaceremonialknot,andthegiving of gifts(bythebridegroom'sfathertothebride'spaternalgrandmother,hermother,herbrother,thedosi,andthesuasin).Thecouplespendtheirfirstnighttogetherinthejungleandperformthebenichodnaceremony,part of whichincludestheceremonialbathing of oneanother.Theceremonydescribedabovemaybeperformedonlyonceinlife.Alesselaborateceremony(havingnosocialstigmaattachedtoit)calledthehaldi-paniorchuri-pairanamarriagemaybeperformedmorethanonce.Thelatterceremonyisroughlyequivalenttomarriageinaregistryoffice.Itmayprecedethemoreelaborateformde-scribedabove.Itsusedependsonthepreference of thepartiesinvolved.Divorceisallowedandpolygamyispracticedtoasomewhatlimitedextent.Postmaritalresidenceispatrilocal.Baiganormsalsopermitthemarriage of agrandparenttoagrandchild.DomesticUnit.Thesizeandcomposition of thetypicaldomesticunitvary.Thereisevidence of nuclearandextendedfamilystructure(e.g.,father,mother,elderson,elderson'swife,youngerson,andyoungerson'swife,formingaresiden-tialunit).Inheritance.Thepractice of shiftingcultivationandthenomadictradition of theBaigahavecontributedtoaratherambiguousstancetowardpropertyandinheritance.Thecor-pus of Baigapossessionsincludesaxes,cookingutensils,vari-ousornaments,andcash.Thehomeandall of itscontentsbelongtothemalehead of thefamily.Aftermarriage,every-thingthatawifeearnsbelongstoherhusband.Ifsherunsawayfromordivorcesherhusband,sheforfeitsclaimtoany-thingthatherpresenthusbandhasgivenher.However,what-everpossessionsshehasbroughtwithherintotheunionfromherparents'homeremainwithher.Awidowisable,insomeinstances,toretainaportion of herdeceasedhusband'sprop-erty.Suchpropertywouldremaininthewidow'spossessionshouldshechoosetoremarry.Theearnings of sonsanddaughtersalsobelongtotheirfather.Shouldafatherapprove of hisson'schoice of amate,thenhemayelecttogiveacer-tainamount of hispersonalproperty(e.g.,cookingutensils,axes,andcloth)tohissonifthesonhaselectedtoestablishaseparatehousehold.Otherwise,theearnings of thesonandthose of hiswifebelongtotheson'sfather.Themalehead of householdisempowered,duringhislifetime,toapportionallpropertyaccordingtohisdiscretion.Whenamandies,hispropertyisinheritedbyhissonorsons.Provisionismadeforstepsonstoreceiveasmallerportion.Asonwhoremainswithhisfatherandmaintainshimuntilthetime of thefather'sdeathwillreceiveaslightlylargerportion of thefather'sprop-erty.Widowsaregenerallymaintainedontheestates of theirdeceasedhusbandsuntilsuchtimeastheyareremarried,andeachwidowisentitledtoashareinherhusband'sestateequaltoason'sshare.Frequentlydaughtersalsoreceiveasmallportion of adeceasedfather'sproperty.Ifamanissurvivedonlybynephewsandgrandsons,hispropertyisequallydi-videdamongthem.Shouldhebesurvivedonlybyanadoptedson,thenthatadoptedsonreceivesall of theadoptivefa-ther'sproperty.Socialization.Childrearingissharedequallybybothpar-ents.Achildissuckledbythemotherforthreeyears,thenweaned.Fromthatpointon,childrenareallowedagreatdeal of freedom,sexualandotherwise.Astherearenochildren'sdormitories,childrenareallowedtoexploreandexperimentfreelywithintheirhouseholdsandwithinthelargersociety.SociopoliticalOrganizationSocialOrganization.Ashasalreadybeennotedabove,theBaigaaredividedintoseveralendogamousjat,whicharethemselvessubdividedintoexogamousgarhandgoti.Socialrelationshipsbetweenthedifferentjataregovernedbyaseries of detailedandrathercomplicatedregulations.Few,ifany,casteprejudicesareheldbytheBaiga,thoughsomehavebeenknowntoavoiduntouchablesandthosewhoconsumebeef(out of fear of offendingtheirHinduneighbors).PoliticalOrganization.Baigavillagesappeartobegov-ernedautonomously,withleadershipbeingexercisedbythevillageheadman(mukkadam).Othervillageofficialsincludethelandlord(malguzar)andwatchman(katwar).Legaldis-putesandtribaloffensesarehandledbythepanch,agroupcomposed of keyvillagememberswhoconvenewithaquo-rum of five.SocialControl.TraditionalBaigajurisprudencegovernstriballifetoagreaterextentthanregulationsestablishedbynationalauthorities.Thisjurisprudenceisconcernedchieflywiththemaintenance of tribalintegrityandprestige.Controlismaintainedbytribalexcommunication,fines,andimpris-onment.Thesemattersaredecidedbybothinformalproce-dures(i.e.,bynonstructuredconsultation of variouscommu-nitymembers)andformalprocedures(i.e.,bythevillagepanch).Tribalconsensus,obtainedbybothformalandinfor-malstructures,regulatessocialbehavior.Conflict.ChristianmissionariesandHinduculturehavehadminimaldirectinfluenceontheBaiga.Materialculture,however,hasbeenaffectedbyHinduinfluence.TheBaigaarealmostcompletelydependentonneighboringpeoplesforthemanufacture of thegoodsthattheyconsume,andtheirrela-tionswiththesepeoples(aswell ... isimpossibletoknowhowmanyBrahmansandChhetrisinhabitthecountry;butprob-ablythetwocastestogetherconstitutethelargestgroupinNepal.Theirpercentage of thepopulationdeclinesfromthewesternhills,wheretheycomprisewelloverhalfthepopula-tion,totheeast,wheretheyareusuallyoneamongmanyminorities.linguisticAffiiation.BrahmansandChhetrisspeakthenationallanguage,Nepali,astheirmothertongue.ThisisanIndo-EuropeanlanguagecloselyrelatedtoHindiandotherNorthIndianlanguages.LikeSanskrit,thelanguagefromwhichitisdescended,NepaliiswrittenintheDevanagariscript,whichisasyllabaryratherthananalphabet.Therate of literacyamongBrahmanmen,whosetraditionalpriestlyrolerequiredthemtoreadsacredHindutexts,iswellabovethenationalaverage.HistoryandCulturalRelationsBrahmansarethoughttohavebegunemigratingtothefarwesternNepalesehillsinthetwelfthcenturyaftertheyweredislodgedbyMusliminvasionsinIndia.IntheNepalhillstheyencounteredtheKhas,people of thesamegeneralback-groundastheBrahmans,whoneverthelessrankedlowinthecasteorderbecause of theirdeviancefromorthodoxcasterules.BoththeKhasandtheprogeny of unions of BrahmanmenandKhaswomen,calledKhatri,weregrantedthestatus of Chhetri.Theexistence of MatwaliChhetris(thosewhodrinkliquor),whodonotwearthesacredthread,isevidencethatnotallKhaswereaccordedChhetristatus.SettlementsBrahmansandChhetrisliveinvillages,hamlets,andisolatedhomesteads.Thewalls of theirsmallhousesareconstructedfromstoneormudbrick,paintedredocheraroundthebase,whitewashedabove,andtoppedwithathatchedroof.Thefloorsandinteriorwallsaremadefromamixture of cowdungandmud,whichdriestoaclean,hardsurface.Thehouses of thoselivingintowns,suchasKathmandu,thecapital,arelargerandaremade of brickandcement.EconomySubsistenceandCommercialActivities.RuralBrahmansandChhetriskeepafewcattleandraisecropsintheirter-racedfields.Brahmansalsoactasfamilypriests,andChhetrisserveinboththeNepalesearmyandtheGorkha(Gurka)bri-gades of theBritishandIndianarmies.Inurbanareasbothcastes...

... chiefnationalistgroup.Thenon-Brahmansthendominatedbysheernumbersandanewfoundsense of theirimportanceinthepreviouslyBrahman-dominatedpoliticalarena.Bythetime of Indianindependence,noBrahmanwasimportantintheCongressparty.LaterChitpavanpoliticalskillwasexertedontheLeftandontheRight,notinthemoderateIndianNationalCon-gress.ImportantSocialistsareS.M.Joshi(b.1904),N.G.Goray(b.1907),andcurrentlyMadhuLimaye(b.1922),al-thoughthesehavenotbeenaswellknownonthenationalstageaswereTilak,Gokhale,orRanade.ChitpavansdominatedtheMarathi-speakingareaad-ministratively,culturally,economically,andeducation-ally-infact,ineveryfieldexceptritualreligion-sincetheirfirstappearanceinwesternIndiainthelateseventeenthcen-turyuntilthedecadesjustbeforeIndianindependence.Thisdominanceeventuallyresultedinastronganti-Brahmanfeel-ingthatsurfacedviolentlyafterthedeath of Gandhiin1948atthehands of aChitpavanBrahman.Riotinganddestruc-tioninBombay,Nagpur,andabeltfromPunetoKolhapurdroveChitpavans(andoftenotherBrahmans)tolargecities,out of governmentservice,andintostillmorenewpursuits.MostChitpavanfamiliesnowhaveatleastonememberwork-inginprofessionallifeinEuropeortheUnitedStates.EconomyTheoccupation of theChitpavansintheiroriginalterritory of theKonkanwasfarming,withsomeincomefromperform-ingritualamongtheirowncaste.However,theyoftenwerethekhots of aKonkanivillage,apositioncombiningthehead-manshipandthefinancialwork of thevillage.Inotherareas of Maharashtra,Brahmanswerethevillageaccountants,butthehead of thevillagewas of aMarathacaste.Thecombina-tion of thetworesponsibilitiesputpowerintothehands of asinglehead,andthereweremanyeffortstoreformthekhotisysteminthenineteenthandtwentiethcenturies.Chit-pavansrarelytookupagriculturalworkaftertheirmigration,nordidtheybecomeritualpriestsexceptwithintheirowncaste.Many,however,becameteachersandrecognizedSan-skritscholars.Some of thebestknownBrahmanscholarsinthesacredcity of VaranasiwereChitpavanmigrants.Fromthenineteenthcenturyontheyhaveenteredtheprofessionsinlargenumbers.Theearlyentrance of theChitpavansintonewoccupationsandpursuitscausedtheRatnagiriDistrictGazetteer of thelatenineteenthcenturytodescribethemas.averyfrugal,pushing,active,intelligent,well-taught,astute,self-confidentandoverbearingclass[following]almostallcallingsandgenerallywithsuccess."A1920censuslist of theiroccupationsreads:governmentservice,lawyers,engi-neers,doctors,bankers,priests,writers,landowners,andhusbandmenn"(farmers).One of thefirstMaharashtrianin-dustrialistswasVishnuRamchandraVelankar(b.1890),founder of GajananWeavingMills.RecentlyChitpavanshaveenteredhigh-techindustryandbusiness.Chin65itistosomeextentatleastconveyableinmarriage-pricesorbysale,andyetitisfarfromanabsoluteparamountright.Forinstance,itisarguablewhetherconveyance of ownershipthroughmarriagepaymentsorsalecaneverbeoutrightalien-ationsratherthanmerelong-termmortgagings.AtleastintheHaka(Lai)area of centralChinState,individualhouse-holdsandpersonscanhaveheritable,evenconveyablerights(withinvillagelimits,perhaps)overindividualcultivationplotsinoneormorecultivationtracts,forwhichtheownerowespaymentstothechieflyparamountownerthatareinthenature of bothtaxandrent.Yetshouldthesepaymentsnotbemade,thefieldownertechnicallycannotbeevicted-thoughhemaybeexiled,physicallyassaulted,orevenkilled,becausethefailure of paymentisarejection of constitutedauthority.Fruittrees,honeybeehives,andotherexploitableitemsonthelandmayalsobeindividuallyownedandconveyed.Housesitesareownedsubjecttotheright of residenceinthevillageatthepleasure of constitutedvillageauthority.Nowa-daysmuch of thelandhaspassedintotrueprivateownership,especiallywheremodemcommercialcropsorapatch of irri-gatedricearegrown,moresoperhapsontheIndianside of theborderthaninMyanmar.Butinbothcountriestherearelegalrestrictionsontheright of nonnativeinhabitantstoownlandintheChin-Lushaicountry.KinshipKinGroupsandDescent.Descentisagnatic,withepony-mousclansandlineagesthattendtosegmentfrequently:ingeneralonefindsmaximallineagesandmajorandminorseg-ments,theminorsegmentoftenbeingcoextensivewiththehousehold.Oftenonlytheminimallineagesegmentisstrictlyexogamous-andtherapidity of segmentationcanoftenoverrideeventhatproscription,sothatmarriagebetweenevenhalf-siblingsisinparts of ChinStatenotnecessarilypenalized-thoughatleastthelegalfictionthatclansarethemselvesexogamousiscommonlymaintained.Postnuptialresidenceisusuallyvirilocal,anditisviripatrilocalinthecase of thesonwhowillinherithisparent'shouse.Daughtersal-waysmarryout of thehouseholdandnoninheritingsonsmarryneolocally.Althoughpolygynyisallowed,it ... enment,anddeath of theBuddha;theyobserveKathinChibarDanandotherBuddhistoccasions.Villagersalsounitetopropitiatethemalevolentspirits.IndividualChakmahouseholdsmayalsoarrangeritualstocounteractillnessandcropdamage.Medicine.Illnessisattributedtofright,spiritpossession,oranimbalance of elementsinthebody.MostChakmawillstillcallinavillagebaidyo.DeathandAfterlife.Thedeadbodyisburnt;kinandaf-finesmournforaweek,andthentheyarrangesatdinnatoprayforpeaceforthedepartedsoul.TheBuddhistmonkleadsthecremationandsatdinna.SeealsoBangaliBibliographyBangladesh,Government of (1983).ChittagongHillTracts:DistrictStatistics.Dhaka:BangladeshBureau of Statistics.Bangladesh,Government of (1989).StatisticalYearBook of Bangladesh.Dhaka:BangladeshBureau of Statistics.Bernot,Lucien(1964)."EthnicGroups of ChittagongHillTracts."InSocialResearchinEastPakistan,editedbyPierreBessaignet,13 7-1 71.Dhaka:AsiaticSociety of Pakistan.Bessaignet,Pierre(1958).Tribesmen of theChittagongHillTracts.Dhaka:AsiaticSociety of Pakistan.Dewan,BirajMohan(1969).ChakmaJatirItibritta(Thehis-tory of theChakma).Rangamati:KaliShankar.Ishaq,Muhammad,ed.(1972).BangladeshDistrictGazet-teers:ChittagongHillTracts.Dhaka:Government of Bangladesh.MOHAMMEDHABIBURRAHMANChenchuETHNONYM:junglepeopleTheChenchus of AndhraPradesh(formerlyHydera-bad)inhabitthehillycountrynorth of theKistnaRiver,whichformsthemostnortherlyextension of theNallamalaiHillsandisgenerallyknownastheAmrabadPlateau.Itliesbetween16'and16'30'Nand78'30'and79'15'E.Thewhole of ... hisbehavioraccordingtothecontext(e.g.,atworkheadoptsasecularselfwithoutobservingcastetaboos,butathomeheisacasteHindu).Castebecomesapotentforceinamoderndemocraticpoliticalsystemwhenitbecomesacasteblockwhosemem-berscanaffecttheoutcome of elections.Atlocallevelsthiscanleadtoamonopoly of powerbyonecaste,butnocasteislargeenoughorunitedenoughtodosoatanationallevel.Anothermoderntrendistobefoundamongmigrantsfromruralpartswhotendtosettleclosetoeachotherinthecity,formingacasteneighborhood.Oftentheyformcasteassocia-tionsforcivicandreligiouspurposes(e.g.,celebratingInde-pendenceDayorperformingreligiousrecitals).Inadditiontheymaypetitionforgovernmentbenefits,setupstudenthostels,commissionthewriting of acastehistory,orinotherwayspromotethewelfare of theirgroup.Inrecenttimessomehighcasteshaveresentedtheprivilegesnowflowingtolowcastesandhaveeventakenthematterintotheirownhandsinintercommunalstrife.SeealsoBengali;Brahman;Kshatriya;Sudra;Untoucha-bles;VaisyaBibliographyBerreman,GeraldD.(1979).CasteandOtherInequities:Es-saysonInequality.NewDelhi:ManoharBookService.Kolenda,PaulineM.(1978).CasteinContemporaryIndia:BeyondOrganicSolidarity.ProspectHeights,Ill.:WavelandPress.68Stevenson, H. N.C.(1943).TheEconomics of theCentralChinTribes.Bombay:Times of IndiaPress(forTheGovern-ment of BurmainExile).F.K.LEHMAN(MARK-PA)Schermerhorn,RichardAlonzo(1978)."TheChinese:AUniqueNationalityGroup."InEthnicPluralityinIndia,byRichardAlonzoSchermerhorn,29 0-3 13.Tucson:University of ArizonaPress.Thurston,Edgar(1909).'Chinese-TamilCross."InCastesandTribes of SouthernIndia,editedbyEdgarThurstonandKadamkiRangachari.Vol.2,9 8-1 00.Madras:GovernmentPress.PAULHOCKINGSChinese of South Asia ETHNONYMS:Chini,IndianChineseThisarticlerefersnottoChinesesoldiers,whoformorethanthirtyyearshavepatrolledtheTibetanborderthatformsthenorthernlimit of South Asia, butrathertoethnicChi-nesewhohavelivedmainlyinmajor South Asiancitiesforacenturyormore.In1982therewere700ChineseinBan-gladesh,110,000inIndia,3,600inPakistan,and3,000inSriLanka.Therearealso700,000ChineseinMyanmar(Burma),whousuallyareclassifiedasChinese of Southeast Asia (ratherthan of South Asia) .Inall South AsiannationstheChinesepopulationhasincreasedsince1955,although,exceptinMyanmar,theyareasmallminority.Calcutta,Bombay,Madras,Delhi,andColomboeachhavesizablepop-ulations,withmost of theChineseprovidingspecializedeco-nomicservicessuchasrunningshoeshopsandrestaurants;inCalcuttaChinese-ownedtanneriesarealsoimportant.Evenatownthesize of Ootacamund(population100,000)hastwolong-residentChinesebusinessfamilies.AfewBuddhistpilgrims,mostnotablyFaHien(fl.A.D.39 9-4 14),cametoIndiafromChinainveryearlytimes;andearlyinthefifteenthcenturyafewthousandcametothecoast of Kerala,toCalicut,withtheMingexpeditions;butitwasonlyafter1865thatChinesecameinsignificantnum-bers.Theyworkedasteaplantationlaborers,carpenters,roadbuilders,tradesmen,andseamen'slaunderers;alsoafewwereconvicts.Thosewhomigratedto South Asia camemainlyfromthesoutheasternprovinces of Guangdong,Hunan,Jiangxi,andFujian,speakingeitherCantoneseorHakka(aminoritylan-guage of thatregion).Theytendedtosettleintheseaports of South Asia, andtheyhaveremainedinsomecasesforfiveorsixgenerations.Although...

... 78Divehidress,haveclaimedthatunliketheotherDivehistheyhadnodivorceorwidowremarriage,andhavesaidtheirancestorswereTamils,thoughtheyhavenoknowledge of suchpeopleandhavenevertraveledoutsidetheiratoll.Theyhavealsoclaimedtobestrictlyendogamous.OtherDivehistradition-allyhavethought of theGirivaruasdirty,whiletheyhavethought of otherDivehisasmorallycorrupt.PoliticalOrganization.Theoldaristocraticfamiliesfromthetime of thesultanatearestilldominantinMale.Sincein-dependencein1965thecountryhasbeencalledarepublic.Itisgovernedbyapresident,whomaintainstightauthoritythroughtheministries of religionandlaw,thesystem of ap-pointedatollandislandchiefs,andfinancesfromthetouristandshippingindustries.Intheory,hegovernsatthewill of thenationalassembly,theMajlis,whichisjustnowbegin-ningtoassumeamodernlegislativerole.SocialControl.Controlisthroughtheislandofficesandatolloffices,inwhichreligiouslawispart of thetightstateap-paratus.Alllargerislandsandatollofficeshaveaqizi,whoperformsmarriages,adjudicatesdisputesandinheritance,ex-aminestheaccused,andenforcesSharialawasinterpretedbytheattorney-general.Theatollcourthasseparatesectionstodealwithreligious,criminal,andpoliticalviolations.Thecourtmaypunishanaccusedbygivinganorderforsocialboy-cottorbybanishmenttosomeislandforayearorforlife.AtollandislandheadmenstudyIslamicreligiouslaw,andthereareafewexpertstrainedinEgypt.Conflict.Divehisareextremelyreticenttoshowaggressionortomakethreats,andthereishardlyanymurder.Butthereareseriousconteststoseizenationalpoliticalpower,andalosermaybebanishedtoanislandformanyyears.Thereisahistorictendencyforthesouthernatollstoclaimautonomy,butthistendencyisnotovertnow,andthereisnootheror-ganizedoropenconflictinthesociety.Divehisonsmallis-landsmayhavehardlyanyknowledge of theoutside world, andtheyoftenfearstrangers.ReligionandExpressiveCultureReligiousBeliefs.AllDivehisareSunniMuslims, of theShafitradition,andwillremainsobecauseanon-Muslimcannotmarryorsettlethere.Everyislandhasitsmosquewiththekatibuincharge,whoispaidbythegovernment.MostmenattendFridayprayersandgivetocharity.Womenper-hapsmorethanmenprayfivetimesadayandreadscripture.Theethos of Islamappearstobeverystrong,butsomefeelittendstoconsistonly of perfunctoryfastingandprayers.Is-lamicmysticismandSufiideasareofficiallydisapproved of asleadingtoemotionalismratherthantoSunnilegalobser-vance.Islamoverliesanearlierreligioussystemhavingmanydeitiesandspirits-originallyHindu,Buddhist,orJaindei-tiesandlocalghosts-butpeoplenowthink ... 78Divehidress,haveclaimedthatunliketheotherDivehistheyhadnodivorceorwidowremarriage,andhavesaidtheirancestorswereTamils,thoughtheyhavenoknowledge of suchpeopleandhavenevertraveledoutsidetheiratoll.Theyhavealsoclaimedtobestrictlyendogamous.OtherDivehistradition-allyhavethought of theGirivaruasdirty,whiletheyhavethought of otherDivehisasmorallycorrupt.PoliticalOrganization.Theoldaristocraticfamiliesfromthetime of thesultanatearestilldominantinMale.Sincein-dependencein1965thecountryhasbeencalledarepublic.Itisgovernedbyapresident,whomaintainstightauthoritythroughtheministries of religionandlaw,thesystem of ap-pointedatollandislandchiefs,andfinancesfromthetouristandshippingindustries.Intheory,hegovernsatthewill of thenationalassembly,theMajlis,whichisjustnowbegin-ningtoassumeamodernlegislativerole.SocialControl.Controlisthroughtheislandofficesandatolloffices,inwhichreligiouslawispart of thetightstateap-paratus.Alllargerislandsandatollofficeshaveaqizi,whoperformsmarriages,adjudicatesdisputesandinheritance,ex-aminestheaccused,andenforcesSharialawasinterpretedbytheattorney-general.Theatollcourthasseparatesectionstodealwithreligious,criminal,andpoliticalviolations.Thecourtmaypunishanaccusedbygivinganorderforsocialboy-cottorbybanishmenttosomeislandforayearorforlife.AtollandislandheadmenstudyIslamicreligiouslaw,andthereareafewexpertstrainedinEgypt.Conflict.Divehisareextremelyreticenttoshowaggressionortomakethreats,andthereishardlyanymurder.Butthereareseriousconteststoseizenationalpoliticalpower,andalosermaybebanishedtoanislandformanyyears.Thereisahistorictendencyforthesouthernatollstoclaimautonomy,butthistendencyisnotovertnow,andthereisnootheror-ganizedoropenconflictinthesociety.Divehisonsmallis-landsmayhavehardlyanyknowledge of theoutside world, andtheyoftenfearstrangers.ReligionandExpressiveCultureReligiousBeliefs.AllDivehisareSunniMuslims, of theShafitradition,andwillremainsobecauseanon-Muslimcannotmarryorsettlethere.Everyislandhasitsmosquewiththekatibuincharge,whoispaidbythegovernment.MostmenattendFridayprayersandgivetocharity.Womenper-hapsmorethanmenprayfivetimesadayandreadscripture.Theethos of Islamappearstobeverystrong,butsomefeelittendstoconsistonly of perfunctoryfastingandprayers.Is-lamicmysticismandSufiideasareofficiallydisapproved of asleadingtoemotionalismratherthantoSunnilegalobser-vance.Islamoverliesanearlierreligioussystemhavingmanydeitiesandspirits-originallyHindu,Buddhist,orJaindei-tiesandlocalghosts-butpeoplenowthink ... 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...

... isnotnecessaryforhimtomarryforcompanionshiporevenforhelpincultivation,astheaverageholding of aGrasiaissmallandheisabletodoallagricul-turalworkevenifhehasasmallfamily.Themainreasonsforamantotakemorethanonewifeareeitherthathisfirstwifecannotbearchildrenorthatshehasonlyfemalechildren.SociopoliticalOrganizationTheGrasiasworkwithinajoint-familysystemwherethesonsstaywiththefamilyuptothetimetheirchildrenbecomeadults.Onlyonrareoccasionsdothesonsliveseparatelyfromtheirparentsduetodomesticquarrels.Separationusu-allyoccurs,however,afterthefather'sdeath.Onlyunmarriedsistersandminorunmarriedbrotherscontinuetolivewiththefamily of one of theolderbrothers.ReligionTheGrasiasbasicallyworshiptheHindugodsandrespectthecowandarethusalmostHinduized,eventhoughtheytendtoholdontotheiroriginalbeliefinspiritsandfearghosts,spirits of thedead,andblackmagic.SeealsoBhilBibliographyDave,P.C.(1960).TheGrasiasalsoCalledDungriGrasias.Delhi:BharatiyaAdimjatiSevakSangh.LeSHONKIMBLEGujarETHNONYMS:Gujareta,Gujjar,GujjaraTheGujarsareahistoricalcastewhohavelenttheirnametotheGujaratDistrictandthetown of GujaranwalainthePunjab,thepeninsulaandstate of Gujarat,andtheareaknownasGujargashinGwalior.Theynumbered56,000per-sonsin1911, of whichthemajoritybelongedtotheHoshan-gabadandNimardistricts.(In1971therewere20,634GujarsenumeratedinHimachalPradeshalone.)InthoseprovincesthecasteisprincipallyfoundintheNarmadaValley.ThecasteisbroadlydividedalongreligiousandgeographiclinesintotheMuslimGujars(whoalsosharemanyHinducustomswiththeirHinduGujarbrethrenandarethusnotfullyac-ceptedintotheMuslimmajority)innorthernIndiaandPaki-Gujarati89stanandtheHindupopulationinthecentralregions of India.GujarsspeakGujari,adialect of Rajasthani,anIndiclanguage of theIndo-IranianSector of theIndo-EuropeanFamily.InHimachalPradeshthelanguageismixedwithWesternPahari.GujarswriteintheUrduscript.Theorigins of theGujarsareunknown;however,severaltheoriesplacethemeitherasabranch of theWhiteHunswhooverranIndiainthefifthandsixthcenturiesorasabranch of theKushandivision of theYueh-Chitribe,whichcontrolledmuch of northwesternIndiaduringtheearlycen-turies of theChristianera.InthepasttheGujarswereconsid-eredmaraudersandvagrants.Todaytheyarelaw-abidingpas-toralistsandcultivators.ManyGujarswereconvertedtoIslamatvarioustimesandindifferentplaces,beginningwiththeattack of Mahmud of GhaznionSomnathinGujaratin1026.TheGujars of OudhandMeerutdatetheirconversiontothetime of Timurin1398,whenhesackedDelhiandforci-blyconvertedthem.By1525,whenBaburinvaded,hediscov-eredthattheGujarinthenorthernPunjabhadalreadybeenconverted.Untilthe1700stheconversionscontinuedundertheMogulrulerAurangzeb,whoconvertedtheGujar of HimachalPradeshatthepoint of asword.ThePathansandBaluchidrovetheGujarconvertsfromtheirland,forcingthemintoanomadicexistence.TheGujarsaredividedintoHinduand ... isgovernedbyrepre-sentativeselectedbyuniversaladultfranchisewhoconstituteavidhansabha(legislativeassembly).Amajoritypartyformsthegovernment.Thehead of thestateisthegovernor,ap-pointedbythepresident of India.Thestategovernmenthasverywidepowersformaintaininglawandorder,levyingtaxes,andcarryingoutdevelopmentwork.Italsosharesresourceswiththeuniongovernment.Gandhinagaristhecapitalcity of thestate.Thestateisdividedinto19districts,whicharefurthersubdividedinto184talukas.Localself-governmentbyelectedrepresentativesfunctionsatvillage,taluka,anddis-trictlevelandalsointownsandcities.Thelocalgovernmentperformsfunctionsrelatedtopublicamenities,education,anddevelopment.Itraisesresourcesbylevyingtaxesandin.comefrompropertyandalsoreceivesaidgrantsfromthestategovernment.Industrialinvestmentisstronglyencouraged.SocialControl.Gujarattodayhastheusualinstitutions of astatepoliceforceandahierarchy of lawcourts,rangingfromthesubmagistrate'scourttothestatesupremecourt.InallcourtsthecentralwritistheIndianPenalCode.Butinaddi-tiontotheseinstitutions,whichwerefirstdevelopedundertheBritishadministration of theoldBombayPresidency,thereisalsoanindigenoussystem of casteandvillagecoun-cils.Thecastecouncilisfoundinanyvillageorsmalltownwherethenumbers of anyonecasteorcasteblocaresuffi-cienttowarrantit.Thiscouncilconsists of themaleheads of themostprominentfamiliesinthecaste,anditsfunctionistomaintainequanimitywithothercastesbyseeingthattradi-tionalpatterns of behavior(thecaste'sdharma)arefollowed.Finesandminorphysicalpunishmentmaybehandeddowntothosewhooffendagainstthesepatterns.Publichumilia-tion,suchasabeatingwithsandals,isausualpunishment.Thereisalsoavillagecouncil(grampanchayat)whichisGurung93greatestpercentage of theirpopulation of allthegroups),Magar,Tamang,Sunwar,Limbu,andRai.Gurkhasclaimde-scentfromthewarlikeRajputs of Chittaur,inRajasthan,say-ingtheyweredriventhencetotheNepalesehillsbytheMus-liminvasions.TheGurkhamilitarytraditioncanbetracedbacktothesixteenthcenturywhenthekingdom of Gorkhawasconqueredbythefirstkings of theShahThakuridynasty.Bytheend of theeighteenthcenturytheGurkhaKingdom,asitwasthenknown,hadexpandedcontrolovermuch of whatisnowNepalandhadbegunpushingnorthintoChinaandTibet.Expansion south intoIndiawasresistedbytheBrit-ish(whowereexpandingnorthward),butin1815theNepa-leseweredefeated.TheBritishwereimpressedbytheGurkhasandobtainedpermissiontorecruitthemfortheBritish-IndianArmy.Therecruitswereorganizedintoethnicregimentsandparticipatedwithdistinction(onthegovernmentside)intheIndianMutiny of 185 7-5 8,theSecondAfghanWar(187 8- 1880),andtheBoxerRebellion(1900).By1908the12,000GurkhaswereorganizedintotenregimentsastheGurkhaBrigade.During World WarIand World WarIIthenumber of Nepalesemilitaryvolunteersincreasedtomorethan200,000andadditionalunitswereformed.In1947theGurkhaBrigadewasdisbandedandsincethenvariousGurkhaunitshaveservedwiththeBritisharmy,theIndianarmy,theNepalarmy,andtheUnitedNationspeacekeepingforces.Today,theyaremainlyusedintheCrownColony of HongKong(whichwillreverttoChinain1997).WithBrit-ain'sintegrationintoEurope,Gurkhasarebeingphasedout of theBritisharmy.GurkhaveteransplayasignificantsocialandeconomicroleinNepalesesociety.Theyenjoyhighstatusandareoftenelectedcommunityleaders,andtheincomefromtheirpen-sionsprovidesasteadysource of cashfortheirfamiliesandcommunities.NepaleseworkinginIndiaaswatchmenarealsosometimesreferredtoasGurkha.SeealsoGurung;Limbu;Magar,Nepali;Rai;Sunwar;TamangBibliographyVansittart,Eden,andB.V.Nicolay(1915).Gurkhds.Calcutta:Superintendent of GovernmentPrinting.Reprint.1985.NewDelhi:B.R.PublishingCorp.GurungETHNONYMS:noneOrientationIdentification.TheGurungsareapeopleinhabitingthefoothills of theHimalayasincentralNepal.Theiroriginsareuncertain,thoughlinguisticevidencesuggeststhattheiran-cestorsmayhavemigratedfromTibetabout2,000yearsago.Location.Themajority of Gurungvillagesarelocatedonmountainslopesatelevationsbetween1,050and2,100me-tersinthefoothills of theAnnapurnaandLamjungHimalayaandHimalchuliinNepalat28°0'to28°30'Nand83°30'to84°30'E.TowardtheHimalayanrange,therearewidegorgeswithtallcraggyridgesrisingabovethem.Thesearedottedwithvillages,sethighonthemountainsides.Oftentherewillbejungleaboveavillageandbelowitacascade of terracedfields.Wintersarecoldanddry,thoughitseldomfreezes.Monsoonrainscomefromthe south insummer.Tempera-turesrangefromabout0°to32°C."Gurungcountry"issitu-atedbetweentwodistinctecologicalzones,thealpinemoun-tainhighlandsandthelowsubtropicalvalleys.Likewiseitexistsbetweentwogreatculturalandsocialtraditions,Ti.betanBuddhismtothenorthandIndianHinduismtothe south. Demography.The1981Nepalcensusreported174,464GurungspeakersinNepal,makingup1.2percent of thecountry'stotalpopulation.Thesefiguresreflectasmallernumber of Gurungsthanactuallyexist,sincetheyindicateonlythosewhonamedGurungastheirmothertongueandnotallGurungsspeakthelanguage.ThecensusshowsGurungstobemostnumerousinthedistricts of Lamjung,Syangja,Kaski,Gorkha,Tanahu,Parbat,andMananginGandakiZone,centralNepal.LinguisticAffiliation.GurungbelongstotheTibeto-BurmanLanguageFamilyandresemblesotherlanguages of peoples of themiddlehills of Nepal,suchasThakaliandTamang.Ithasatonalstructureandnowrittenform.MostGurungsarebilingualandtendtobefluentfromchildhoodinNepali,theSanskriticlanguagethatisthelinguafranca of thenation.HistoryandCulturalRelationsGurunglegendsdescribea"GhaleRaja,"akingwhoruledtheGurungsinancienttimes.HewasoverthrownbytheNepaliraja of aneighboringprincipalityaboutthefifteenthcenturyAD.Bythesixteenthcentury,Khasakings of theShahfamilyhadconqueredmost of theprincipalitiesthatmakeuppres-ent-dayNepal.GurungsactedasmercenariesinKhasaar-mies,includingthose of PrithviNarayanShah,theancestor of thepresentking of Nepal,whocompletedunification of thekingdom of NepalwhenheconqueredtheKathmanduValleyin1769.Because of theirservice,Gurungsenjoyedrel-ativelyhighstatusinthenewkingdom.Theycontinuedtoactasmercenaries,andinthenineteenthcenturytheNepalesegovernmentsignedatreatyallowingtheBritisharmytore-cruitthemandotherhillpeoplesintotheGurkharegiments,inwhichtheycontinuetoserve.Beyondancientlegendanddocumentedrelationswiththenation-state(suchasmilitaryservice),littleisknownaboutthehistory of Gurungs.TheGurungsareneithergeographicallyisolatedfromothergroupsnorunaware of thesocialconventionsandcul-turalvalues of thepeoplesaroundthem.Theyareinvolvedintradingrelationswithmembers of neighboringethnicgroups,includingThakalisandTibetans,andhigh-casteHindumer-chantswhotravelthroughthevillagessellinghouseholdgoods.Gurungsalsohaveongoingpatron-clientrelationshipswithmembers of blacksmithandtailorservicecasteswholiveinhamletsattachedtoGurungvillages.Althoughinterethnic88GrasiatohavecomefromMewarmanycenturiesago,"andastheystillhavetheirinternal'Gots'orcircles of affinity(suchasParmars,Chouhan,Rathoi,etc.)uponthemodel of aregularclan,wemayperhapsassumethattheyarethedescendants of RajputsbyBhilwomen,"accordingtoP.C.Dave.InMaharashtraStatetheGrasiasareonthelist of ScheduledTribesas"Dungri-Grasias."TheGrasiasspeakadialect of theirownthatisclosetoBhili,withBhilibeingcloselyrelatedtoGujarati.SettlementsGrasiahousesarefoundontheslopes of hillswiththeirfieldsextendingoutinfront.Thehousesusuallyeachhaveoneroomandanopenverandawithwalls of mudorsplitbambooplasteredwithmud.TheroofsarecoveredwithhandmadeflattilesmadebytheGrasiasthemselves.Sometimes,though,thehouses of thepoormayhavegrassthatchingcoveringtheroofs.Aspecialshedforthecattleisoftenconstructedontheside of oroppositetothehouse,andoftenfodderisstoredontheroofs of thesesheds.Toshelterguests,aspecialshedwithatiledroofisbuiltoppositethehouse of theheadman.EconomyGrasiasaregenerallyvegetarianbuthavebeenknownocca-sionallytoenjoynonvegetarianfoods.Maizeisthefoodsta-ple,whichisgrownbyeveryGrasiawhohaslandforcultiva-tion.Itispreparedbycookingthecoarsemaizeflourwithbuttermilkandaddingsomesalttoit.Sometimesbreads of maizeflourarealsoprepared.WhenlittlewheatandmaizeareavailabletheGrasiasuseinferiorgrainlikekuro(Italianmil-let?)asasubstitute,andwhennecessaryjunglerootsandtu-bersareused.Menprimarilydotheworkthatrequiresthemostphysi-calstrength,suchasplowingandotheragriculturalwork,pre-paringfencesforthefields,construction of houses,felling of trees,andsomehouseholdworksuchaschurning of thecurdsforbutter.Womendothecooking,tendtothecattleandmilkthecows,buffalo,andgoats,bringdrinkingwater,grindgrain,etc.,andlookafterthechildren.Therearenoso-cialstigmasattachedtoeithermen'sorwomen'swork.Womenveiltheirfacesinthepresence of eldermalerelations of theirhusbands,buttheyaregenerallyfreetomoveaboutinsocietylikemenandarenotconsideredinferiortomen.Girlsshareasimilarfreedomwithboys.Oncetheyaregrownuptheyhavethefreedomtochoosetheirownhusbands.Thelargestsign of femalesocialoppressionisthatwomenaren'tallowedtoownpropertyontheirown,notevenifitwaslefttothembytheirfather.Kinship,MarriageandFamilyOnlyextremecircumstancessuchasabjectpoverty,debilitat-ingdisease,etc.keepGrasiamenandwomenfrommarrying,astheGrasiasbelievemarriageisanecessityforall.Boysmarrybetweentheages of 18and24,andgirlsbetween14and18.Theselection of amateusuallyiswithoutritualandinvolvesselectingaspouseandthenlivingtogetherwithoutanymarriageceremony.Thisarrangementmayvaryinsomeareasbecause of Hinduinfluence.Theonlyrestrictionsarethatthebride-pricemustbepaidandthatthemarriagecan-notbebetweencousins.Divorceoftenoccursiftheboydoesnotlikethegirl.Itiseasyandfreelypermitted.Thetermsnatra,ornata,refertowidowremarriage,whichisquitecommonandwhichinvolvesthehandingout of breadandjaggerytorelatives,andthemanmakingapay-ment of moneytothewidow'sfatherandprovidingtheneces-sarymarriageclothestothewidow.Polygynyoccursbutpolyandryisunknown,althoughmostGrasiamenmarryonlyonce.Because of thesocialstructurethatexistsit ... 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...

... Indianpriests,andalsobroughtinlargenumbers of EuropeanJesuitsinasu-pervisorycapacity.Theyear1947markedalandmarkinProtestantchurchhistory,notjustbecausethiswastheyear of independenceforbothIndiaandPakistanbutalsobecauseitwastheyearwhentheChurch of South Indiacameintobeing-thefirstunifiedProtestantchurchanywhere.It of courseabsorbedtheformerAnglican,Methodist,andseveralothersectarianinstitutions.In1970therefollowedaunifiedProtestantChurch of NorthIndiaandaProtestantChurch of Pakistan.Thesechurches,bothProtestantandCatholic,arenowentirelyinthehands of South Asianbishopsandarchbish-ops,withveryfew of theformerEuropeanmissionariesre-maining.InSriLankaand south India,thegreatestgrowthshaverecentlybeenseenamongtheRomanCatholics,notprimarilybecause of newconversionsbutratherbecause of acalculatedavoidance of familyplanning.InNepalChristianandMuslimmissionaryactivityisprohibitedbylaw.Thehistory of Christianityin South Asia hasindeedbeenacheckeredone,butithasbeenanimportantinstru-ment of Westernization.ThefirstprintingpressesandthefirstmodemcollegeswereintroducedbyEuropeanmissionar-ies.Bythemiddle of thenineteenthcenturythesepeopleweremakingimportantcontributionstothegeneralsocialuplift of thecountry(andnotonlyforChristianconverts)bytheirpromotion of ruralandurbanschooling,adultliteracy,femaleeducation,colleges,hospitalsandclinics,andmodemurbancareers.AsaresulttheChristianpopulationhaswieldedadisproportionateinfluenceinmodemIndianandSriLankanlife.Littleconversionisstilltakingplace.IndianChristianstodaytendtobeurban,arealwaysmo-nogamous,andformnuclearfamiliesuponmarriage(whichtakesplaceinachurch).TheyusuallyfollowWesternizedprofessions,becomingteachers,nurses,bankclerks,andcivilservants.SeealsoEuropeansin South Asia; SyrianChristian of KeralaBibliographyCoutinho,Fortunato(1958).Leregimeparoissialdesdiocesesderitelatindel'Indedesorigines(XVIesiecleanosjours).Paris:EditionsBiatrice-Nauwelaerts.Gibbs,MildredE.(1972).TheAnglicanChurchinIndia,160 0-1 970.Delhi:IndianSocietyforPromotingChristianKnowledge.Nanjundayya, H. V.,andL.K.AnanthakrishnaIyer(1930)."IndianChristian."InTheMysoreTribesandCastes,editedby H. V.NanjundayyaandL.K.AnanthakrishnaIyer.Vol.3, 1-7 6.Mysore:MysoreUniversity.Neill,Stephen(1984).AHistory of ChristianityinIndia.2vols.Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress.Thomas,AbrahamV.(1974).ChristiansinSecularIndia.Rutherford:FairleighDickinsonUniversity.PAULHOCKINGSIrula105gosa)andtamarindareoftenpresentwithinlowlandsettle-ments.ThelowlandIrulawhoherdcattleforothers,typicallyindrierareaswiththornforest,areassociatedwithadistinc-tivesettlementpatterninwhichalargecattleenclosureissur-roundedbyathornywall of piledbranches.TheIrulaalsohaveburialgroundswithancestraltemples,calledkoppamanais,inwhichstonesassociatedwiththedepartedspirits of thedeadarehoused.Eachpatricianhasaburialplaceandakoppamanai,butthetwoarenotnecessarilytogether(forexample,whileSambanpeopleareonlyburiedatKallampa-layam,thereareSambankoppamanaisatHallimoyarandKunjappanai).Althoughaburialgroundisusuallyclosetoasettlement,itcanbefartheraway.Asinmanyotherparts of Asia andintothePacificBasin,thesacredness of aburialgroundisoftenassociatedwiththepagodatree(thePolyne-sianfrangipani).Largelybecausemany of theIrulaarelandlesslaborers,most of themliveinone-roomedhouses.Nevertheless,IrulaplantationlaborersinhabitingtheNilgirislopesstilloccupybipartitehouseswiththesacredcookingareaformallyseparated(typicallynotwithawallbutwithashallowearthenplatform)fromthelivingandsleepingareas.TheKasabatothenorth of theNilgirimassif,whoherdcattleforothers(Badagasincluded),occupytripartitestructureswithlivingquartersforhumanstooneside of aroomwithanopenfront,andacalfroomtotheotherside.Theopenfront of thecenterroomfacilitatesthewatching of theenclosedcattleatnight,anditismostusefulwhenpredatorsorwildel-ephantscomenear.WhiletraditionalIrulahousesaremade of wattleanddaub,withthatchedroofs(orinsomeinstancesbananasheathsforwallingandroofing),moreIrulaarelivinginhouseswithwalls of stoneorbrickandroofswithtiles,es-peciallyifthegovernmenthasprovidedfinancialassistance.EconomySubsistenceandCommercialActivities.Theearliestre-portsindicatethatthehoe-usingIrula of theeasternNilgirislopesobtainedonecrop of milletinayearfromshiftedplots,involvingagrowingperiodthatcoincidedwiththewesterlymonsoon.Theythendependedupongardenproduce,gath-erededibles,andhuntingforsurvivaloncetheharvestedgrainhadbeenconsumed.ThattheseIrulawereprobablynamedafterayamspeciesisindicative of howimportantyamsweretothemwhentheyturnedtogathering.Severalwildyamspecieswereavailable.Irulaarestillwellknownforthegatheringandsupply of honeytotheirneighbors.Despitesculpturedrepresentations of bowsandarrowsinsomeNilgiridolmensathigherelevation,itisnoteworthythattheIrulaseemalwaystohaveusednetsandspearswhentheyhunted.Ourrecord of atleasteightyspecies of plantsgrowinginIrulagardenstestifiestothepastandcontinuingsignificance of gardenstoalltheIrula.Thatatleasttwenty-five of theidenti-fiedplantshadaNew World originalsoprovesthewilling-ness of theIrulatoincorporateintroducedspeciesintotheireconomy.Thecontinuedcultivation of fingermillet(Eleusinecorocana),Italianmillet(Setariaitalica),andlittlemillet(Panicumsumatrense)andnodryricebytheIrulaonthehigherslopesmayinitselfrepresentaNeolithicsurvival,be-causethecultivation of dryricehasinSoutheast Asia widelyreplacedtheearliercultivation of theItalianandlittlemilletsfromChina.TheIrulastillcommonlygrowthesetwospecies of millettogetherandthenharvesttheItalianmilletwhenthelittlemilletisfarfrommaturation.Verysmallsicklesareusedforharvestingindividualgrainheads.Whenfingermillet(grownapartfromtheothertwo)istobeharvested,theplantsarevisitedperiodicallytopermittheremoval of grainasitripens.Anothereconomicpursuitthatmayhavecontin-uedfromNeolithictimes,duringwhichcattlerearingwaswidespreadinsouthernIndia,isthemannerbywhichlow-landIrulainforestedareaskeepcattlefortheirneighbors(Kuruvasincluded).ThefewIrulawhostillmanagetoprac-ticeshiftingagriculturesetfireinAprilorMaytothevegeta-tiontheyhavecut,sothecultivation of milletwillthentakeplaceduringthewesterlymonsoon.Thebarnyardmillet(Echinochloa),bullrushmillet(Pennisetum),commonmillet(Panicummiliaceum)andsorghummillet(Sorghum),all of thelowland,renownedfortheirdroughtresistance,andthustypicallygrownondryfields,arecultivatedwiththeaid of plowsandmainlyintheseason of thewesterlymonsoon.Nowwiththecooperation of theForestDepartment,theIrulagatherforestproduce(includingmedicinalplants)forsale.SincemostIrula of theNilgirislopescurrentlyworkasplantationlaborers,plantationmanagementsstartingwiththoseinthetime of theBritishRajhadtoprovideperiodicre-leasetimeforthoseIrulawhoneededtoperformtheirownagriculturalchores.TheGandhianquesttoimprovethelives of members of theScheduledTribesisdemonstratedbythemannerinwhichthegovernmenthasenabledIrula of theeasternNilgirislopestoestablishcoffeeandteagardens of theirown,andatKunjappanaitheSilkBoard of thegovern-ment of TamilNaduisnowprovidingfinancialassistancetoenablesilkwormfarmingamongtheIrula.From1974thegovernmentgavesmallplotstoIrulaontheeasternslopes,andtheCooperativeLandDevelopmentBank(anagency of theTamilNadugovernment)atthenearesttown(Kotagiri)wasby1979helpingtofinancethegrowing of coffeeandteainnurseries,sothattheIrulacouldhavetheirowncommer-cializedgardens.WhileafewIrulawhowiselymanagedtheirgrantedlandsandloansprospered,manydidnotmanagetheirendeavorswellandthereturnpaymentonloansatalowratewaseventuallyendedinmanyinstancesbyaspecialbillpassedinMadrasbytheTamilNadugovernment.Itispri-marilythecooperation of thegovernment,withtheForestDepartment of TamilNaduplayinganimportantrole,thathasenabledmorelowlandIrulatobecomeinvolvedinthean-nualcultivation of irrigatedrice.Hallimoyar,Kallampalayam,andThengumarahada(withitsCooperativeSociety),inwhichtheIrulaliveclosetothemembers of severalcastes,haveirrigationnetworks.OnericecropstartedinMarchisharvestedinJune,andthesecondcropstartedinJulyisreadyinDecember.In1978anewlyconstructedricemillbecameoperationalatThengumarahada.Irulalivingtothe south of theNilgirimassifare ... alsoinvolvedinwetricecultivation.There,apartfromirrigationwaterfromsurfaceflow(Coo-noorRiveristhemostimportant),subsurfacewaterisnowbeingobtainedwithelectricpumps.ThemainricecropisgrownfromJuneintoJanuaryorFebruary,andthegrowing of short-maturationriceenablestheproduction of asecondcropfromFebruarytoMay.Aslowlandpopulationincreases,themajority of thelowlandIrula(whoownnoland)arein-creasinglybesetbytheproblem of obtainingworkwhereverpossible.SomeareemployedintheirrigatedarecagrovesnearMettupalaiyam,reputedtoformthelargesthuman-madeIrula107member of theSambanpatricianwilltrytokeepitintact,oramember of theKoduvanpatricianwillhelpifamember of theSambanclanisinvolved.Ifthreeattemptsatreconciliationdonotwork,adivorceisgranted.Thevillageheadmanandagroup of malesformingacouncil(panchayat)simplyissuetheirconsentfordivorce.Thebride-priceandanygiftjewelrymustbereturnedtothehusband'sfamily.Thenthehus-band'smotherorhusband'sbrother'swifesmearssomecas-toroilbackwardfromtheforehead of thewifealongthepart of herhair.Afterthetaliisremovedfromherandreturnedtothehusband,theyaredivorced.Thechildrenfromthemar-riagewillremainwiththefather.DomesticUnit.Thetypicalfamilywhosemembersareservedfoodfromthesamehearthaveragesfourtofivepeople,butitmayreachasize of seventoninepeople.Becausethein-stitution of theextendedfamilystillremainsvital,thoserela-tivesbeyondthenuclearfamilymayassumeresidence,espe-ciallyiftheyareleftdestituteininfancyoroldage.Ifthewifedies,itistheresponsibility of thehusbandtocareforthechil-dren.Hemayremarry.Whiletheconstitution of Indianowenablesawomantoremarryifherhusbanddies,anIrulawidowseldomwill.Thebrothers of adeceasedhusbandareexpectedto ... asthebridesmaid,andthebride'sbrotherwillserveasthebestman.Thebrideisbroughtbyherrelativesandthegroom'spartytothegroom'shouseontheweddingday.Inthehouseorwithinatemporaryshelter(pandal)erectednearthehouse,thegroominthemostpertinentact of themarriageceremonyandinconformitywiththewidespreadpracticeinsouthernIndia,tiesanecklace(tali,providedbyhismaternaluncle)aroundthebride'sneck.Afeastisthenprovidedbythegroom'speople.Milletwouldinpasttimeshavebeenserved,butitisnowfashionabletoservericewithcurry.Thegroomafterwardbowstothefeet of gueststoreceivetheirblessingandisfollowedinthisactbyhiswife.Alongwiththeirbless-ing,theguestsgivemoney(typicallyRs1,2,or5)tothecou-ple.Alllatergotothebride'shouse,andthereisthenan-otherfeast(again,withriceandcurry),whichrunsintothenight.Allfeastingisaccompaniedbythedancing of malesandfemales(usuallyinseparategroupsbutinonecircle).Theconsumption of intoxicatingbeveragesisalsoliabletotakeplace.Theestablishment of aseparatepatrilocalhouse-holdaftermarriageisthenorm.Conformingwiththewide-spreadpracticeinsouthernIndia,thewifeusuallyreturnstoherpaternalhomeinherseventhmonth of pregnancyandre-mainsthereuntilafterherinfantisdelivered.Whileawom-an'sinabilitytobearachildisnotconsideredgroundsfordi-vorce,anIrulamanmaymarryanotherwomanifhisfirstwifecannotconceive.Hethenismarriedtobothwomen.Theusualgroundsfordivorceareunfaithfulnessorahusband'slack of provisionforhiswife.Whenamarriageistroubled,aIndianChristian103BibliographyChaudhuri,NiradC.(1979).Hinduism,aReligiontoLiveBy.NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress;London:Chatto&Windus.Zaehner,RC.(1962).Hinduism.London:OxfordUniver-sityPress.PAULHOCKINGSStutley,Margaret,andJamesStutley(1977).Harper'sDic-tionary of Hinduism:ItsMythology,Folklore,Philosophy,Liter-ature,andHistory.NewYork:Harper&Row.IndianChristianETHNONYMS:noneIndianChristiansarebelieversinthedivinity of JesusChrist.Despitethepersistingideain South Asia thatChris-tianityisthe"whiteman'sreligion,"ithasamassivefollowingtodayinthesubcontinent.Still,itisverymuchaminorityfaith,accountingfornearly8percent of theSriLankanpopu-lationbutlessthan3percentineach of theother South Asiancountries.In1991Indiahadanestimated21millionChristians,andtheother South Asiancountriestogetherhadanother3million.TheideathatChristianitywasintroducedbythecolo-nialpowers-RomanCatholicismbythePortugueseandthenAnglicanismbytheEnglish-isnotstrictlytrue.Keralaandsomeotherparts of thewestcoasthadcertainlybeenevangelizedbyNestorianmissionariessincethesixthcentury,andmanyin south IndiabelievethattheapostleThomascametoTamilNaduandwasmartyredandburiedinwhatisnowMadrascity.TheseearlyreligiousconnectionswerewithSyria(cf.SyrianChristians).ThePortuguesebroughtPortu-gueseandItalianpriestswiththem,andin1557Goa,theirmajorIndiancolony,becameanarchbishopric.Withthefounding of theEastIndiaCompanyin1600theEnglishin-troducedtheAnglicanfaith,andastimepassedotherProtes-tantsectsappeared.Theyears185 0-1 900werethehighpoint of Protestantmissionactivityin South Asia, withmin-istersfromAmericaandvirtuallyeverycountryinEuropevyingforconverts,especiallyamongtheUntouchables,tri-bals,anddowntroddenslumdwellers.Insomeareastheyweredramaticallysuccessfulatgainingconverts:theMizos of northeasternIndiaarenearlyallChristianstoday,thankstothesomewhatobscureWelshBaptistmission.Attheotherend of thecountry,though,theBadagasare97percentHinduafterseventyyears of concertedeffortbytheBaselEvangelicalmission,followedbyanotherseventyyears of othermissionaryactivity.TheRomanCatholicmissionarieshavenotfaredanybetteramongtheBadagas;butelsewheretherearelargeCatholiccongregationsinmanytownsandcit-ies.BytheCongregationdePropagandaFide(1622)theCatholicchurchencouragedthetrainingof...

... averylargeproportion of thepopulation.IndustrialArtsandDivision of Labor.Amongtheagri-culturalJat,traditionallyonlythemenworkinthefields,Jain109primeresponsibilityfordiggingthegrave,buttheKurumbapresentalsoassists.Whenallisready,thebodyisplacedinthegravesothatitfacestowardthenorth.ThelocalIrulapriest(pujari)thengazesatalampandgoesintoatrance.Amember of thebereavedfamilyaskshimifthedeathwasnat-uralortheresult of sorcery.Ifnatural,thegraveisfilledinrightaway.Ifsorcerywasthecause of death,elaborateritualusedtobeperformed;today,however,thepriestsaysasimpleandhastyprayertoeaseanytorment of thespiritandtoen-ableittodepartpeaceably.Allthemournersthenleave.Ahighlightintheending of thesevendays of ritualpollutionamongthecloserelatives of thedeceasedisthedistribution of newclothingbytheKurumbatotheserelatives.Assoonaspossibleafterthefuneral,preferablywithinamonth,astone(oftenwaterwornandfromastreambed,butsometimessculptedbynon-Irulas)isplacedintheancestraltempletogivethedeceasedaplacetostay.Because of thebeliefthat,withoutastone,thespirit of thedeceasedwandersaroundandmaybecometroublesomeifitdoessofortoolong,thetimeissueisunderstandable.Afterpouringalittleoilonthestoneaspart of aprayerritualandleavingfoodanddrinkforthespirit of thedeparted,therelativesleave.Onceayear,allthosewhohadarelativewhodiedwithintheyearparticipateinafinalceremony.Eachfamilypurchasesanewclothandricegruelisprepared.Atthenearbyriverorstream,thegruelispouredoverthecloths,whicharethensetadrift.Inaddi-tiontohonoringthespirits of thosewhodiedwithintheyear,theIrulatherebyhonoralltheancestralspirits of therelatedpatricians.Aftergroupfeasting,dancingcontinuesintothenight.SeealsoBadaga;Kota;KurumbasBibliographyBuchanan,Francis(later,Buchanan-Hamilton)(1807).AJourneyfromMadrasthroughtheCountries of Mysore,Canara,andMalabar.Vol.2.London:W.Bulmer&Co.Jebadhas,A.William,andWilliamA.Noble(1989).'TheIrulas."InBlueMountains:TheEthnographyandBiogeography of a South IndianRegion,editedbyPaulEdwardHockings,28 1-3 03.NewDelhi:OxfordUniversityPress.Nambiar,P.K.,andT.B.Bharathi(1965).Census of India,1961.Vol.9,Madras,pt.6.VillageSurveyMonographs,no.20,Hallimoyar.Delhi:Manager of Publications,Government of India.Nambiar,P.K.,andT.B.Bharathi(1966).Census of India,1961.Vol.9,Madras,pt.6.VillageSurveyMonographs,no.23,Nellithorai.Delhi:Manager of Publications.Zvelebil,KamilV.(197 3-1 982).TheIrulaLanguage.3vols.Wiesbaden:OttoHarrassowitz.Zvelebil,KamilV.(1988).TheIrulas of theBlueMountains.ForeignandComparativeStudies /South AsianSeries,no.13.Syracuse,N.Y.:MaxwellSchool of CitizenshipandPublicAffairs,SyracuseUniversity.WILLIAMA.NOBLEANDA.WILLIAMJEBADHASJainETHNONYMS:nonePossiblytheoldestasceticreligioustraditiononEarth,Jainismisfollowedtodaybyabout3.5millionpeople,especiallyinRajasthan,MadhyaPradesh,Gujarat,Maharashtra,andKarnataka.AlongwithBuddhism,Jainismwasone of severalre-nunciatorymovements-theSramanaschools-thatgrewupinmodem-dayBiharandsouthernNepalinthesixthcenturyB.C.TheotherSrarnanamovements(includingBuddhism)gradu-allydiedoutinIndia,leavingJainismastheonlyonewithanunbrokensuccession of Indianfollowersdowntothepresentday.TheSramanaschools,indudingJainism,reactedagainstthecontemporaryform of Hinduism(knownasBrahmanism)andpositedthatworldlylifeisinherentlyunhappy-anendlesscycle of deathandrebirth-andthatliberationfromitisachievednotthroughsacrificesorpropitiatingthegodsbutthroughinnermeditationanddiscipline.ThuswhileJamsinIndiatodaysharemanysocialpracticeswiththeirHinduneigh-bors(indeed,severalcasteshavebothHinduandJainmem-bers),theirreligioustraditionisinmanywaysphilosophicallyclosertoBuddhism,thoughdistinctlymorerigidinitsasceti-cismthanBuddhismhasbeen.The"founder" of JainismistakenbymodernscholarstobeMahavira("greathero"),otherwiseknownasVardhamana(c.59 9-5 27B.C.);butthereisevidencethatJainpracticeswereinexistenceforsometimebeforehim.TheJaintextsspeak of asuccession of prophets(tirthankaras)stretchingbackintomythologicaltime, of whomMahavirawasthetwenty-fourthandlast.Thetirthankarasaredistinguishedbythefactthattheyarethoughttohaveachievedliberation of theirsoulsthroughmeditationandausteritiesandthenpreachedthemessage of salvationbeforefinallyleavingtheirmortalbodies.Jainstodayworshipalltwenty-fourtirthan-karas,notinthesense of askingthemforboonsorfavors,butinmemory of thepaththeytaught.One of themostpopular of theJaintextsistheKalpaSutra,atleastpart of whichisca-nonicalandmaydatebacktothefourthcenturyB.C.,andwhichdescribes,amongotherthings,thelives of alltwenty-fourtirthankaras.Theessentialprinciple of Jainphilosophyisthatallliv-ingthings,eventhetiniestinsects,haveanimmortalsoul(iva),whichcontinuestobereincarnatedasitisboundandconstrainedbykarma-aform of matterthatisattractedtothesoulthroughgoodandbaddesiresinthisandinpastlives.Thustofreethesoulonemustperformausteritiestostripawaythekarma-matterandcultivateinoneselfadetach-mentordesirelessnessthatwillnotattractfurtherkarma.Theprinciplemeanstothisendisthepractice of ahimsa,thelack of desiretocauseharmtoanylivingthing.Fromthisprinci-plearisesthemostcharacteristicfeatures of Jainlife:insis-tenceonastrictvegetariandiet,filteringdrinkingwater,run-ninganimalsheltersandhospitals,neverlyingorcausinghurttoothers,temporarilyorpermanentlywearingagauzemasktopreventinsectsfromenteringthebody,andsweepingthegroundinfront of one'severystep.ForsomeJains,theirdevotiontoahimsaleadsthemtobeordainedasmonksandnunswholivethelife of wanderingascetics.MostJainstoday,however,arelaity,livingworldlyJatav113stillobserveHindumarriageritesandtillrecentlyfollowedHindufuneralcustoms;themajorityalsoemployedBrah-mansasfamilypriests.InmostvillagesinhabitedbySikhJatthereistheshrine of aSikhmartyr of oldthatactsasanan-cestralfocusfortheminimallineage.VarioussupernaturalbeingsplayaroleinJatlifeandarecommontomostjatirre-spective of creed;beliefinmany of themiswidespreadintheregionasawhole.Arts.Thewomen of thenomadicJatareveryskilledinneedleworkandembroidervarioustextilesusingthreads of manycolorsinthedeltaregionbutmainlyblackandredinthenorth;tinypieces of mirrorarealsousedtodecoratethesetextiles.DeathandAfterlife.Jatholdconflictingviewsonlifeafterdeath.SomebelieveinthetraditionalHinduconcept of rebirth,othersbelieveingoingtoHellorHeaven,butmanybelievethatthereisnoexistenceafterdeathandthatthereisnoform of lifebesidesthepresentoneonEarth.SeealsoAhir;Baluchi;Gujar,Pathan;Punjabi;Rajput;SikhBibliographyHershman,Paul(1981).PunjabiKinshipandMarriage.Delhi:Hindustan.Kessinger,TomG.(1974).Vilayatpur,184 8-1 968:SocialandEconomicChangeinaNorthIndianVillage.Berkeley:University of CaliforniaPress.Lewis,Oscar(1958).VillageLifeinNorthernIndia.NewYork:RandomHouse.Pettigrew,Joyce(1975).RobberNoblemen:AStudy of thePo-liticalSystem of theSikhJats.London:Routledge&KeganPaul.Pradhan,M.C.(1966).ThePoliticalSystem of theJats of NorthernIndia.Delhi:OxfordUniversityPress.Rao,Aparna(1986)."PeripateticMinoritiesinAfghanis-tan-ImageandIdentity."InDieethnischenGruppenAfghanistans,editedbyE.Orywal.Wiesbaden:L.Reichert.Westphal-Hellbusch,Sigrid,andHeinzWestphal(1968).ZurGeschichteundKulturderJat.Berlin:Duncker&Humblot.APARNARAOJatavETHNONYMS:Jadav,Jatava,Jatua;alsoknownasChamar,Harijan,ScheduledCaste,UntouchableOrientationIdentification.TheJatavsareanendogamouscaste of theChamar,orleatherworker,category of castesinIndia.Be-cause of thepollutingoccupation of leatherworkertheyrankamongtheUntouchablecastesclosetothebottom of India'scastehierarchy.Somesaythename"Jatav"isderivedfromthewordjat(cameldriver),whileotherssayitisderivedfrom"Jat,"thename of anon-Untouchablefarmingcaste.Manyjatavsthemselvessayitisderivedfromtheterm"Yadav,"thelineage of LordKrishna.TheyarealsoknownasaScheduledCastebecause,asUntouchables,theyareincludedonaschedule of casteseligibleforgovernmentaid.MahatmaGandhigavetoUntouchablesthename"Harijans"or"chil-dren of god,"butJatavsrejectthetermanditsconnotations of Untouchablechildlikenessandupper-castepaternalism.Location.Jatavslivemostlyinthestates of UttarPradesh,Rajasthan,Haryana,andPunjab,aswellasintheUnionTer-ritory of DelhiinnorthwestIndia.Thisisasemiaridareawithrainfallmostlyinthemonsoonseason of JunetoAugustandlesserrainsinJanuary-February.Temperaturesrangefrom5.9°CinJanuary-Februaryto41.5°CinMay-June.Demography.Jatavsarenotlistedseparatelyinthecensus of IndiabutalongwithotherChamars.InthefourstatesmentionedaboveChamarsnumbered27,868,146,about9.9percent of thethosestates'population(1981).linguisticAffiliation.Jatavsspeakrelatedlanguages of theIndo-AryanFamily of languagesincludingHindi,Rajas-thani,andBrajBhasha,allusingtheDevanagariscript,aswellasPunjabiusingtheGurmukhiscript.Chamarsinotherparts of Indiaspeakotherlanguages of theIndo-AryanFam-ilyandlanguages of theunrelatedDravidianFamily,suchasTamilandTelugu.HistoryandCulturalRelationsOrigins of theJatavs,aswellasmostotherChamarandUn-touchablecastes,aremythical.SomesaytheJatavsaretheproduct of marriage of upper-casteJatswithChamarwomen.Jatavsthemselvesdenysuchorigins.InpreindependentIndiatheyclaimedupper-casteKshatriyaorwarriororigin.Inpost-independentIndiamanyhaveclaimedtobedescendants of India'sancientBuddhists.Thisclaimisinpartarejection of Untouchablestatusandinpartanassertion of apoliticalidentity of equalityrejectingthecastesystem.SettlementsInvillages,where90percent of India'sUntouchableslive,Jatavsliveinhamletsseparatefromnon-Untouchablecastes,whileincitiestheyliveinsegregatedneighborhoods.Inlargersettlementsincitiesthesemaybebrokendownintosubsec-tionswithseparateleadership.Housesaredenselygroupedinanucleatedpattern.Housingstyleis of twotypes:kaccaandpakka.Kaccahomesaregenerallyoneroommade of mud, ... averylargeproportion of thepopulation.IndustrialArtsandDivision of Labor.Amongtheagri-culturalJat,traditionallyonlythemenworkinthefields,Jain109primeresponsibilityfordiggingthegrave,buttheKurumbapresentalsoassists.Whenallisready,thebodyisplacedinthegravesothatitfacestowardthenorth.ThelocalIrulapriest(pujari)thengazesatalampandgoesintoatrance.Amember of thebereavedfamilyaskshimifthedeathwasnat-uralortheresult of sorcery.Ifnatural,thegraveisfilledinrightaway.Ifsorcerywasthecause of death,elaborateritualusedtobeperformed;today,however,thepriestsaysasimpleandhastyprayertoeaseanytorment of thespiritandtoen-ableittodepartpeaceably.Allthemournersthenleave.Ahighlightintheending of thesevendays of ritualpollutionamongthecloserelatives of thedeceasedisthedistribution of newclothingbytheKurumbatotheserelatives.Assoonaspossibleafterthefuneral,preferablywithinamonth,astone(oftenwaterwornandfromastreambed,butsometimessculptedbynon-Irulas)isplacedintheancestraltempletogivethedeceasedaplacetostay.Because of thebeliefthat,withoutastone,thespirit of thedeceasedwandersaroundandmaybecometroublesomeifitdoessofortoolong,thetimeissueisunderstandable.Afterpouringalittleoilonthestoneaspart of aprayerritualandleavingfoodanddrinkforthespirit of thedeparted,therelativesleave.Onceayear,allthosewhohadarelativewhodiedwithintheyearparticipateinafinalceremony.Eachfamilypurchasesanewclothandricegruelisprepared.Atthenearbyriverorstream,thegruelispouredoverthecloths,whicharethensetadrift.Inaddi-tiontohonoringthespirits of thosewhodiedwithintheyear,theIrulatherebyhonoralltheancestralspirits of therelatedpatricians.Aftergroupfeasting,dancingcontinuesintothenight.SeealsoBadaga;Kota;KurumbasBibliographyBuchanan,Francis(later,Buchanan-Hamilton)(1807).AJourneyfromMadrasthroughtheCountries of Mysore,Canara,andMalabar.Vol.2.London:W.Bulmer&Co.Jebadhas,A.William,andWilliamA.Noble(1989).'TheIrulas."InBlueMountains:TheEthnographyandBiogeography of a South IndianRegion,editedbyPaulEdwardHockings,28 1-3 03.NewDelhi:OxfordUniversityPress.Nambiar,P.K.,andT.B.Bharathi(1965).Census of India,1961.Vol.9,Madras,pt.6.VillageSurveyMonographs,no.20,Hallimoyar.Delhi:Manager of Publications,Government of India.Nambiar,P.K.,andT.B.Bharathi(1966).Census of India,1961.Vol.9,Madras,pt.6.VillageSurveyMonographs,no.23,Nellithorai.Delhi:Manager of Publications.Zvelebil,KamilV.(197 3-1 982).TheIrulaLanguage.3vols.Wiesbaden:OttoHarrassowitz.Zvelebil,KamilV.(1988).TheIrulas of theBlueMountains.ForeignandComparativeStudies /South AsianSeries,no.13.Syracuse,N.Y.:MaxwellSchool of CitizenshipandPublicAffairs,SyracuseUniversity.WILLIAMA.NOBLEANDA.WILLIAMJEBADHASJainETHNONYMS:nonePossiblytheoldestasceticreligioustraditiononEarth,Jainismisfollowedtodaybyabout3.5millionpeople,especiallyinRajasthan,MadhyaPradesh,Gujarat,Maharashtra,andKarnataka.AlongwithBuddhism,Jainismwasone of severalre-nunciatorymovements-theSramanaschools-thatgrewupinmodem-dayBiharandsouthernNepalinthesixthcenturyB.C.TheotherSrarnanamovements(includingBuddhism)gradu-allydiedoutinIndia,leavingJainismastheonlyonewithanunbrokensuccession of Indianfollowersdowntothepresentday.TheSramanaschools,indudingJainism,reactedagainstthecontemporaryform of Hinduism(knownasBrahmanism)andpositedthatworldlylifeisinherentlyunhappy-anendlesscycle of deathandrebirth-andthatliberationfromitisachievednotthroughsacrificesorpropitiatingthegodsbutthroughinnermeditationanddiscipline.ThuswhileJamsinIndiatodaysharemanysocialpracticeswiththeirHinduneigh-bors(indeed,severalcasteshavebothHinduandJainmem-bers),theirreligioustraditionisinmanywaysphilosophicallyclosertoBuddhism,thoughdistinctlymorerigidinitsasceti-cismthanBuddhismhasbeen.The"founder" of JainismistakenbymodernscholarstobeMahavira("greathero"),otherwiseknownasVardhamana(c.59 9-5 27B.C.);butthereisevidencethatJainpracticeswereinexistenceforsometimebeforehim.TheJaintextsspeak of asuccession of prophets(tirthankaras)stretchingbackintomythologicaltime, of whomMahavirawasthetwenty-fourthandlast.Thetirthankarasaredistinguishedbythefactthattheyarethoughttohaveachievedliberation of theirsoulsthroughmeditationandausteritiesandthenpreachedthemessage of salvationbeforefinallyleavingtheirmortalbodies.Jainstodayworshipalltwenty-fourtirthan-karas,notinthesense of askingthemforboonsorfavors,butinmemory of thepaththeytaught.One of themostpopular of theJaintextsistheKalpaSutra,atleastpart of whichisca-nonicalandmaydatebacktothefourthcenturyB.C.,andwhichdescribes,amongotherthings,thelives of alltwenty-fourtirthankaras.Theessentialprinciple of Jainphilosophyisthatallliv-ingthings,eventhetiniestinsects,haveanimmortalsoul(iva),whichcontinuestobereincarnatedasitisboundandconstrainedbykarma-aform of matterthatisattractedtothesoulthroughgoodandbaddesiresinthisandinpastlives.Thustofreethesoulonemustperformausteritiestostripawaythekarma-matterandcultivateinoneselfadetach-mentordesirelessnessthatwillnotattractfurtherkarma.Theprinciplemeanstothisendisthepractice of ahimsa,thelack of desiretocauseharmtoanylivingthing.Fromthisprinci-plearisesthemostcharacteristicfeatures of Jainlife:insis-tenceonastrictvegetariandiet,filteringdrinkingwater,run-ninganimalsheltersandhospitals,neverlyingorcausinghurttoothers,temporarilyorpermanentlywearingagauzemasktopreventinsectsfromenteringthebody,andsweepingthegroundinfront of one'severystep.ForsomeJains,theirdevotiontoahimsaleadsthemtobeordainedasmonksandnunswholivethelife of wanderingascetics.MostJainstoday,however,arelaity,livingworldlyJatav113stillobserveHindumarriageritesandtillrecentlyfollowedHindufuneralcustoms;themajorityalsoemployedBrah-mansasfamilypriests.InmostvillagesinhabitedbySikhJatthereistheshrine of aSikhmartyr of oldthatactsasanan-cestralfocusfortheminimallineage.VarioussupernaturalbeingsplayaroleinJatlifeandarecommontomostjatirre-spective of creed;beliefinmany of themiswidespreadintheregionasawhole.Arts.Thewomen of thenomadicJatareveryskilledinneedleworkandembroidervarioustextilesusingthreads of manycolorsinthedeltaregionbutmainlyblackandredinthenorth;tinypieces of mirrorarealsousedtodecoratethesetextiles.DeathandAfterlife.Jatholdconflictingviewsonlifeafterdeath.SomebelieveinthetraditionalHinduconcept of rebirth,othersbelieveingoingtoHellorHeaven,butmanybelievethatthereisnoexistenceafterdeathandthatthereisnoform of lifebesidesthepresentoneonEarth.SeealsoAhir;Baluchi;Gujar,Pathan;Punjabi;Rajput;SikhBibliographyHershman,Paul(1981).PunjabiKinshipandMarriage.Delhi:Hindustan.Kessinger,TomG.(1974).Vilayatpur,184 8-1 968:SocialandEconomicChangeinaNorthIndianVillage.Berkeley:University of CaliforniaPress.Lewis,Oscar(1958).VillageLifeinNorthernIndia.NewYork:RandomHouse.Pettigrew,Joyce(1975).RobberNoblemen:AStudy of thePo-liticalSystem of theSikhJats.London:Routledge&KeganPaul.Pradhan,M.C.(1966).ThePoliticalSystem of theJats of NorthernIndia.Delhi:OxfordUniversityPress.Rao,Aparna(1986)."PeripateticMinoritiesinAfghanis-tan-ImageandIdentity."InDieethnischenGruppenAfghanistans,editedbyE.Orywal.Wiesbaden:L.Reichert.Westphal-Hellbusch,Sigrid,andHeinzWestphal(1968).ZurGeschichteundKulturderJat.Berlin:Duncker&Humblot.APARNARAOJatavETHNONYMS:Jadav,Jatava,Jatua;alsoknownasChamar,Harijan,ScheduledCaste,UntouchableOrientationIdentification.TheJatavsareanendogamouscaste of theChamar,orleatherworker,category of castesinIndia.Be-cause of thepollutingoccupation of leatherworkertheyrankamongtheUntouchablecastesclosetothebottom of India'scastehierarchy.Somesaythename"Jatav"isderivedfromthewordjat(cameldriver),whileotherssayitisderivedfrom"Jat,"thename of anon-Untouchablefarmingcaste.Manyjatavsthemselvessayitisderivedfromtheterm"Yadav,"thelineage of LordKrishna.TheyarealsoknownasaScheduledCastebecause,asUntouchables,theyareincludedonaschedule of casteseligibleforgovernmentaid.MahatmaGandhigavetoUntouchablesthename"Harijans"or"chil-dren of god,"butJatavsrejectthetermanditsconnotations of Untouchablechildlikenessandupper-castepaternalism.Location.Jatavslivemostlyinthestates of UttarPradesh,Rajasthan,Haryana,andPunjab,aswellasintheUnionTer-ritory of DelhiinnorthwestIndia.Thisisasemiaridareawithrainfallmostlyinthemonsoonseason of JunetoAugustandlesserrainsinJanuary-February.Temperaturesrangefrom5.9°CinJanuary-Februaryto41.5°CinMay-June.Demography.Jatavsarenotlistedseparatelyinthecensus of IndiabutalongwithotherChamars.InthefourstatesmentionedaboveChamarsnumbered27,868,146,about9.9percent of thethosestates'population(1981).linguisticAffiliation.Jatavsspeakrelatedlanguages of theIndo-AryanFamily of languagesincludingHindi,Rajas-thani,andBrajBhasha,allusingtheDevanagariscript,aswellasPunjabiusingtheGurmukhiscript.Chamarsinotherparts of Indiaspeakotherlanguages of theIndo-AryanFam-ilyandlanguages of theunrelatedDravidianFamily,suchasTamilandTelugu.HistoryandCulturalRelationsOrigins of theJatavs,aswellasmostotherChamarandUn-touchablecastes,aremythical.SomesaytheJatavsaretheproduct of marriage of upper-casteJatswithChamarwomen.Jatavsthemselvesdenysuchorigins.InpreindependentIndiatheyclaimedupper-casteKshatriyaorwarriororigin.Inpost-independentIndiamanyhaveclaimedtobedescendants of India'sancientBuddhists.Thisclaimisinpartarejection of Untouchablestatusandinpartanassertion of apoliticalidentity of equalityrejectingthecastesystem.SettlementsInvillages,where90percent of India'sUntouchableslive,Jatavsliveinhamletsseparatefromnon-Untouchablecastes,whileincitiestheyliveinsegregatedneighborhoods.Inlargersettlementsincitiesthesemaybebrokendownintosubsec-tionswithseparateleadership.Housesaredenselygroupedinanucleatedpattern.Housingstyleis of twotypes:kaccaandpakka.Kaccahomesaregenerallyoneroommade of mud, ... 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...

... H. (1872)."OntheStoneMonuments of theKhasiHillTribes,andonSomePeculiarRitesandCustoms of thePeople."Journal of theAnthropologicalInsti-tute of GreatBritainandIreland1:12 2-1 43.Gurdon,P.RT.(1904)."NoteontheKhasis,Syntengs,andAlliedTribes,InhabitingtheKhasiandJaintiaHillsDistrictinAssam."Journal of theAsiaticSociety of Bengal73,pt.3:5 7-7 4.Gurdon,P.R.T.(1907).TheKhasis.London:D.Nutt.2nded.1914.Reprint.1975.Delhi:CosmoPubli-cations.Hunter,WilliamW.(1879)."StatisticalAccount of theKhasiandJaintiaHills."InStatisticalAccount of Assam.Vol.2,20 1-2 55.London:Tribner.McCormack,AnnaP.(1964)."Khasis."InEthnicGroups of MainlandSoutheast Asia, editedbyFrankM.Lebaretal.,10 5-1 12.NewHaven,Conn.:HRAFPress.Nakane,Chie(1967).GaroandKhasi:AComparativeStudyinMatrilinealSystems.Paris:Mouton.Roy,David(1938)."ThePlace of theKhasiinthe World. "ManinIndia18:12 2-1 34.Stegmiller,F.(1921)."AusdemReligi6senLebenderKhasi."Anthropos1 6-1 7:40 7-4 41.124Khasifamily(byworkingthefieldsforhiswife)whileatthesametimekeepinghissister'smercantileaccounts.Awoman'suncle,brother,orsonmayfunctioninasimilarcapacityonherbehalf,thoughthisismorelikelytobethecaseifthewoman'sbusinessisonalargescale.LandTenure.Therearefourkinds of publicland:kariraj(Crownlands);karilyngdoh(priestlylands);kishong(villagelandsfortheproduction of thatchinggrass,firewood,etc.);andki'lawkyntang(sacredgroves).Therearetwotypes of pri-vateland:ri-kur(landownedbyaclan)andri-kynti(landownedbyfamiliesoracquired;itisinheritedbyawomanfromhermotherorisacquiredbyamanorawoman).Ancestrallandmustalwaysbeownedbyawoman.Menmaycultivatetheland,buttheproducemustbecarriedtothehouse of themotherwhodividesitamongthemembers of herfamily.Usu-ally,ifamanobtainsland,uponhisdeathitisinheritedbyhismother(i.e.,ifheisunmarried).Thereis,however,apro-visionmadeforamantowilllandacquiredaftermarriagetohischildren.KinshipKinGroupsandDescent.TheKhasiareawell-knownin-stance of matriliny.Themaximalmatrilineageamongthemistheclan(calledkurorjaid).TheKhasispeak of afamily of great-grandchildren of onegreat-grandmother(thus,fourgenerations)asshikpoh(onewomb).Clanstracedescentfromancestressesorkiaw(grandmothers)whoarecalledkilawbei-tynrai(grandmothers of theroot,i.e., of theclantree).Insomeinstancestheactualname of theancestresssurvives.Sheisreveredgreatlyandherdescendantsarecalledshikur(oneclan).Belowthisdivisionarethesubclanorkpoh(asal-readymentioned,descendants of onegreat-grandmother)andtheiing(houseorfamily),usuallymadeup of agrand-mother,herdaughters,andherdaughters'children.Togetherthesearesaidtobeshiiing(onehouse).KinshipTerminology.KinshipterminologyemployedforfirstcousinsfollowstheIroquoispattern.MarriageandFamilyMarriage.TheKhasiare,forthemostpart,monogamous.Theirsocialorganizationdoesnotfavorotherforms of mar-riage;therefore,deviationfromthisnormisquiterare.Mar-riageisapurelycivilcontract.Theceremonyconsists of abe-trothal,thepouring of alibationtotheclan'sfirstmaternalancestor,thetaking of foodfromthesameplate,andthetak-ing of thebridetothehouse of thegroom'smotherwherearingisplacedonthebride'sfingerbyhermother-in-law.Malesarebetweentheages of 18and35whentheymarry,whilewomen'sagesrangefrom13to18.Althoughparentallyarrangedmarriagesdooccur,thisdoesnotappeartobethepreferredform.Youngmenandwomenarepermittedconsid-erablefreedominthechoice of matesandinpremaritalsex-ualrelations.Potentialmarriagepartnersarelikelytohavebeenacquaintedbeforebetrothal.Onceamanhasselectedhisdesiredspouse,hereportshischoicetohisparents.Theythensecuretheservices of amalerelative(orothermaleun-relatedtothefamily)tomakethearrangementswiththefe-male'sfamily(providedthattheman'sparent'sagreewithhischoice).Theparents of thewomanascertainherwishesandifsheagreestothearrangementherparentschecktomakecer-tainthatthemantobewedisnotamember of theirclan(sinceKhasiclansareexogamous,maritalpartnersmaynotbefromthesameclan).Ifthisissatisfactory,thenomensaretaken.Iftheomensarefavorable,thenaweddingdateisset,butiftheomensarenegative,theweddingplansareaban-doned.Divorceisfrequent(withcausesrangingfromincom-patibilitytolack of offspring)andeasilyobtainable.Thiscer-emonyconsists of thehusbandhandingthewife5cowriesorpaisawhichthewifethenhandsbacktoherhusbandalongwith5 of herown.Thehusbandthenthrowstheseawayorgivesthemtoavillageelderwhothrowsthemaway.Accord-ingtoGurdon,postmaritalresidenceismatrilocal,withthehusbandandwifeleavingthewife'smother'sresidenceafterthebirth of oneortwochildren.C.Nakanemakesafurtherdistinctionbetweentwotypes of marriages,thefirstbeingmarriagetoanheiress,thesecondmarriagetoanonheiress.Thetype of marriageis,forNakane,thedeterminingfactorinmaritalresidence.Thispracticeistheresult of rulesandregu-lationsgoverninginheritanceandpropertyownership.Theserulesarethemselvesrelatedtothestructure of theKhasiiing.Inshort,postmaritalresidencewhenanheiressisinvolvedmustbeuxorilocal,whilepostmaritalresidencewhenanonheiressisinvolvedisneolocal.Khasimenprefertomarryanonheiressbecauseitwillallowthemtoformindependentfamilyunitssomewhatimmunetopressuresfromthewife'skin.AKhasimanreturnstohisiinguponthedeath of hisspouse(ifsheisanheiress).Ifsheisnotanheiress,hemayre-mainwithhischildreniftheyarenottooyoungandifheplanstomarryhiswife'syoungersister.Marriagetoade-ceasedwife'seldersisterisprohibited.Thisistheonlyform of thesororatefoundamongtheKhasi.TheleviratedoesnotobtaininKhasisociety.Ithasbeensuggestedthatthein-creasingmonetization of theKhasieconomyandavailability of jobsformenbeyondvillageconfinesmayhavealteredpostmaritalresidencepatterns.DomesticUnit.Aroundtheturn of ... Crooke.1920.London:OxfordUniversityPress.Numerousreprints.PAULHOCKINGSTyler,StephenA.(1972)."FieldsAreforPlanting:NotesonKoyaAgriculture."InProceedings of theSeminaronTribalStudies,editedbyD.P.Sinha.NewDelhi:Government of IndiaPress.STEPHENA.TYLERKurumbasKshatriyaETHNONYMS:Alu-Kurumbas,Betta-Kurumbas,Jenu-Ku-rumbas,Kurubas,Mudugas,Mulla-Kurumbas,Palu-Kurum-bas,Urali-KurumbasETHNONYMS:noneTheKshatriyasarealargeblock of Hinducastes,mainlylocatedinthenorthernhalf of India.TheSanskrittermKshatrimeans"warrior,ruler,"andidentifiesthesecondvarna,rankingimmediatelybelowtheBrahmans.Nodoubt,most of themanycastesthatclaimtobeKshatriyaaresome-howdescendedfromwarriorswhowereintheservice of princesandrulersorwhowere of royalfamilies.Conversely,numerousrulershavelegitimizedtheirstatus,especiallyifusurpers,byclaimingthattheirlineagewasindeedKshatriya.Mosttypicalandbestknown of thesegroupsaretheRajputs,whoonceformedthemanyprincelyhouses of Rajasthan(for-merRajputana)andneighboringareas. Of course,todaymostKshatriyasarelandownersorfollowurbanprofessions.Althoughtheyrankhighinthevarnasystem,Kshatriyasmayandcommonlydoeatmeat(thoughneverbeef),andmanyalsotakealcoholicdrinks;both of thesecharacteristicssetthemapartfromtheBrahmans.PeopleidentifiedasKurumbashavebeenreportedacrossawideareain south India.Majorsettlements,however,arefoundintheNilgiriarealocatedbetween11010'and11°30'Nandbetween76°25'and77°00'E,atthejunction of theEasternGhatsandtheWesternGhats.TheretheKurumbasoccupythethicklyforestedslopes,glens,andfoothills of theNilgiriPlateau.TheNilgirigroupsareseveninnumber:theAlu-(milk),Palu-(milk),Betta-(hill),Jenu,(honey),Mulla-(net),andUrali-(village)Kurumbas,aswellastheMudugas(noetymology).Eachisadistinctethnicgroupdif-feringfromtheothersindialect,religiousbeliefs,andotherculturalattributes.The1971Indiancensuscounted12,930Kurumbas.In1981theNilgiriDistrictcensusreported4,874Kurumbas,most of whomareMuduga.TogethertheKurumbagroupscomposethesmallestproportion of thepla-teaupopulationthere,andthepoorest. Of thefourtribesthatoccupytheNilgiriPlateau,legendsaysthattheToda,Kurumba,andKotatribeswerebroughtintobeingsimultaneouslybyaparentcreator.Therewerethreebrotherswhoeithertransgressedagainsttheparentsorquarreledamongthemselves.Asaresulttheirfather,asuper-Kanjar121throughreceipt of bride-priceand/orthroughachievement of amoredesirablealliancewithotherfamilies.Divorcemaybeinstigatedbyeitherspouse;however,reconciliationisalwayssoughtbecauseotherwisebride-pricemustbereturned.Dis-putesaboutmaritaltensionsandbride-pricearecommonsources of conflict.DomesticUnit.Thesameterm(puki)isusedfortentandforthebasicsocialunit of Kanjarsociety.Pukiconnotesthecommensalgroup of afemale,herspouse,andtheirunmar-riedchildren.Marriagecreatesanewtentandresidenceisei-therneolocalorwithsiblingsorparentalsiblingstravelinginothergroups.Eachtentiseconomicallyindependent.Inheritance.Allmaterialandanimalresourcesareownedcorporatelybythetentorfamilyunit.Whenamemberdies,hisorherportion of thetent'sresourcesisequallydividedamongsurvivingmembers.Individualdebtsalsobecometheresponsibility of thebereavedtentifnotsettledbeforedeath.Socialization.Thereisnoseparate world forchildrenandadultsandKanjarbelievethatchildrenlearnbestthroughacombination of exampleandspecifictraining.Broadlyspeak-ing,malesareenculturatedtobecooperativeandsupportive,whereasfemalesareencouragedtobemoreaggressive,self-reliant,andindependent.Exceptionallyattractiveandtal-entedgirlsareraisedwithexpectationthattheywillbesoldintoprofessionalentertainmentestablishments.Musicallytalentedboysmaybeencouragedtoleavetheirtentsandworkindependentlyasprofessionalmusicians.SociopoliticalOrganizationSocialOrganization.Whereeachtentisanindependenteconomicunit,familiesusuallyformtemporaryallianceswithothertentsformingad&ra.DEratypicallyconsist of twotofourtentswithabalanceamongskilledperformersandjhula(carnivalrides).Whileeconomicconsiderationsarealwaysamediatingfactor,mostd&raincludetentsinvolvedinengage-mentormarriagenegotiations.PoliticalOrganization.Whilefemalestendtodominate,bothtentsanddEraareacephalous.Decisionsaffectingthegrouparereachedthroughconsensus,deferencewiselybeingpaidtoolderand/ormoreexperiencedindividuals.SocialControl.Kanjarrecognizethattheindependence of tentsandfreedom(azadi)tomovearethemostimportantforms of socialcontrol.Tentsunwillingtoabidewithd&raconsensusareencouragedtoorsimplymoveawayinordertoavoidseriousconflictorviolence.AmongKanjar,loss of mo-bilityisloss of socialcontrol.Conflict.Tensionanddisputesarisefrombickeringbe-tweenspousesorentertainersworkingtogetheraboutshareanddistribution of earnings,adulteryorexcessivesexualjok-ing,disagreementsabouttravelroutesandtenureinanarea,andbride-pricenegotiations,aswellasindividualtransgres-sionssuchasdrunkenness,excessiveabuse,theft,physicalat-tacks,seriousinjury,andmurder.Whengrouppressureandnegotiatedcompromisesfail,Kanjarhaveaformallegalsys-temforhearingandresolvingseriousdisputes.Sincetheylackinstitutionsorformalrolesforenforcinggroupsanc-tions,settlement of disputesultimatelydevolvesonthecon-flictingparties,theirfamilies,andtheirallies.ReligionandExpressiveCultureReligiousBeliefs.AsnomadsKanjararefamiliarwithabroadspectrum of religiousbeliefsandpracticesamongthecommunitiestheyservice,andtheydonanysacredmantlethatmomentarilymeetstheirpracticalneeds.Whiletheyareessentiallyagnostic,theydoprotectthemselvesfromspirits(jinn)bywearingamulets(tabiz)purchasedfromholymen(fakirs).Arts.Asprofessionalartisansandhighlyskilledentertain-ers,theireverydaysubsistenceactivitiesareaform of expres-siveandcreativeart.Medicine.Kanjarseektreatmentfromhomeopathicprac-titioners,druggistsorpharmacists,andfakirs(holymen)forseriousillness.Chronicmalariaisendemicandmostsufferfromseasonalboutswithtyphoidandcholera.Greaterenergyandresourcesarespentonsickfemalesthanonsickmales,especiallyasinfantsandyoungchildren.Malesareconstantlyremindedthat'roti(bread)foryourstomach"comeslargelyfromthefemalesintheirlives.DeathandAfterlife.Kanjararestoicaboutdeathandac-ceptitasfateandanormalaspect of life.Individualsprefertodieinthecompany of familyandsiblings;however,theyreal-izethattheirperipateticlife-styleoftenprohibitsdispersedkinfrombeingpresent.Ideally,parentsand/orsiblingswashthebody,wrapitinanewwhitecloth,sprinkleitwithscentedwater,andburyitonitssidefacingeasttowardwarmthandtherisingsun.Burialtakesplaceassoonaspossible-thenextdayduringthehotseason,andaftertwoorthreedaysinwinter,thusincoolerweatherallowinganysiblingswhomightbeinthesameareatimetotravelandbeinvolvedintheburialprocess.Thebodyisconsideredpollutingtofe-malesandthereforemalesprepareitforburial.Kanjargener-allyfearincapacitatingdiseasesorlongfinalillnessesmorethantheactualdeathitself.Whileafamilywillcarryasickin-dividualontheircartsand/orstoptravelingwhenanindivid-ualbecomesextremelyillorcrippled,Kanjarfearloss of mo-bilitymorethandeath.AmongKanjar,freedomandmobilityrepresentlife.SeealsoPeripatetics;QalandarBibliographyBerland,JosephC.(1982).NoFiveFingersAreAlike:Cogni-tiveAmplifiersinSocialContext.Cambridge,Mass.:HarvardUniversityPress.Berland,JosephC.(1987)."KanjarSocialOrganization."InTheOtherNomads:PeripateticMinoritiesinCrossCulturalPerspective,editedbyAparnaRao,24 7-2 65.Cologne:BohlauVerlag.Berland,JosephC.,andMatt.T.Salo,eds.(1986).'Peripa-teticPeoples."NomadicPeoples(Toronto)21/22(specialissue).Hayden,Robert(1979)."TheCulturalEcology of ServiceNomads."EasternAnthropologist32:29 7-3 09.Misra,P.K,andRajalakshmiMisra(1982)."NomadismintheLand of theTamilsbetween1A.D.and600A.D."InNo-Khasi125theinheritance of theirmother,butthelargestsharegoestotheyoungestdaughter.Whenthemotherhasnodaughters,theinheritancegoestohersister'syoungestdaughter.Ifthesisterhasnodaughters,thenthemother'ssistersandtheirfe-malekinreceivetheinheritance.Menareprohibitedfromin-heritingrealproperty.Allpropertyacquiredbyamanbeforemarriagebelongstohismother.Propertyacquiredbyhimaftermarriagebelongstohiswifeandchildren. Of thesechil-dren,theyoungestdaughterwillreceivethelargestshare of theinheritanceuponthedeath of theman'swife.Ifthemanhasnodaughters,thenhissonsreceivehispropertyuponthedeath of theirmother.Christianconversion ... thecentury,thebasicKhasidomesticunitwasasinglehouseholdmadeup of agrandmother,herdaughters,andherdaughters'children(thegrandmotherbeingthehead of thehouseholdduringherlife-time).Inmid-century,Nakanedistinguishedbetweenfourtypes of Khasihouseholds:(1)ahouseholdcomprised of wife,husband,theirchildren,andwife'sunmarriedsistersandbrothers;(2)ahouseholdcomposed of nearlyalltheiingmembers(butnotincludingtheirspouses)oralargerhouse-hold(includingwivesandhusbands)thatcontainsalldescen-dants of threeormoregenerationsfromonewoman(inwhichcasetheiingcorrespondstothekpoh);(3)anintermediatetype of household,betweentypes1and2,thatispopularamongnewlymarriedcouplesbeforethebirth of children,inwhichahusbandissupposedtoliveinthewife'shousebutoftenreturnstohissister'shouseformealsandtosleep,andinwhichthehusbandisresponsibleforworkinghiswife'sfieldsandmayalsoworkthose of hismotherandsister;and(4)onenuclearfamilyunit(usuallywhenthemanmarriesanonheir-ess).AccordingtoNakane,mostKhasihouseholdsare of types1,3,and4.Allthreetypesareusuallyfoundinonevil-lage.Type2wasprominentatonetimeamongtheJaintias.Inheritance.Withregardtorealproperty,inheritancegoestotheyoungestdaughter of thedeceasedmotherandupontheyoungestdaughter'sdeathinturntoheryoungestdaughter.Otherdaughtersareentitledtoasmallershare of Kanjar119typerides,andprostitutes;theyarebestknownforthesmallterra-cottatoystheymanufactureandhawkdoor-to-doorthroughsedentaryruralandurbancommunities.Location.Smallnomadicgroups of KanjararefoundthroughoutPakistanandnorthIndia;theyaremostconcen-tratedinthefertileandmoredenselypopulatedareas of theIndusRivervalleyandthePunjab.In1947theinternationalboundaryseparatingPakistanfromIndiadividedthePunjabregionbetweenthetwonations.DisputesbetweenthetwonationsaboutirrigationresourcesandreligiousconflictsamongMuslims,Hindus,andSikhskeeptensionshighonthefrontierandprohibitfreemovement of nomadicpeoplesalongtraditionaltravelroutes.Traditionally,KanjarusedtotravelacircuitfromRawalpindiandLahoreinPakistantoAmritsarandDelhiinIndia.Thisregionliesinawarmtem-peratezone,generallyarid,withhotsummersandcooltocoldwinters.Onthewhole,rainfallislow.ThefiveriversfeedingthePunjabandextensivesystems of irrigationcanalshavesustainedthedevelopment of relativelydensenetworks of agriculture-basedvillagesandthegrowth of smalltownsandmetropolitancenters.Thehumanpopulation of thesecom-munitiesformstheeconomicnicheexploitedbyKanjar.Demography.Thereareabout5,000KanjarinPakistanandconsiderablymoreinnorthIndia.UnfortunatelythereisnoaccuratedemographicorothercensusinformationonKanjarineithernation.Smallgroups of onetothreefamiliestravelextensivelythroughruralareasfollowingthewheatandriceharvests.WeddingsandotherfestiveoccasionsfollowharvestactivitiesinvillageareasandKanjarcapitalizeonthesepatterns of seasonalwealth.Duringfallowandgrowingseasonstheymoveintourbanareas.Bycombiningentertain-mentandhandicraftskillswithmuchspatialmobilitytheKanjarexploitaperipatetics'niche-aconstantdemandforgoodsand/orservicesthatlocalcommunitiescannotinter-nallygenerateorsupportonafull-timebasis.linguisticAffiliation.Kanjararefluentinseverallan-guagesandmanyregionaldialects of Hindi,Urdu,Punjabi,andSindhi.Theirownlanguage,Kanjari,hasaffinitieswithIndo-AryanPrakritsandRomani.Linguistically,andintheirculturalhabits,contemporaryKanjarmayshareacommonancestrywithRam(Gypsies)andotherpopulations of Ro-manispeakersthroughoutthe world. HistoryandCulturalRelationsAncienthistoricalaccountsindicatethatnomadicgroupsliketheKanjarwerefirmlyembeddedthroughoutthefabric of sed-entarysocialsystemsin South Asia bythelateVedicperiod(circa100 0-7 00B.C.).OngoingethnoarchaeologicalresearchsuggeststhatgroupssimilartooridenticalwithcontemporaryKanjarmayhavebeenresponsibleforthemanufactureanddis-tribution of terra-cottafigurinesfoundthroughouttheruins of theHarappanCivilizationintheIndusValley(circa300 0-1 500B.C.).Kanjarfigureinlocaltraditionsandfolkloreandpracticallyallvillagesandurbancentersarevisitedbythematleasttwiceeachyear.Thenature of theirperipateticsubsistenceactivitiesandethnicpridegovernKanjarrelationswithclientcommuni-ties.FemalesperegrinatethroughnarrowvillagelanesandurbanstreetscallingoutGugughoraylaylao,"Comeandtakethetoys."Respondingtothisbeckoningrefrain,childrenrushtoparentsforafewannas(coins),measures of riceorwheat,and/oritems of cast-offclothingtoexchangeforsome of theterra-cottatoysbeingofferedforsale.SomewillholdbackcashorbarteritemsknowingtheKanjarmayalsohavecarnival-typeridesorjhula(smallmerry-go-roundsandFerriswheels)intheirtentcampspitchedinnearbyfieldsorvacantlots.Adultsanticspatealateafternoonorevening of musicanddancing.Kanjarmensurreptitiouslysmilewhilewiveslookscornfullyattheirhusbands,knowingthatKanjarwomenalsohavesexualfavorsforsale.SeniorfemalesfromclienthouseholdswithdaughtersabouttomarrywillseekoutolderKanjarwomentocomeandquietlysingandjokebeforethebride-to-beabouttheweddingnight,sexualintercourse,andrelationswithmales,aspart of thegirl'senculturationintoadulthood.Beyondtheseformalizedrolesandtransactions,Kanjarrelationswiththemembership of hostcommunitiesarethose of professionalstrangers.Theyhavenobonds of kinship,theyhavenotbelongedtothecommunityfromthebeginning,andtheydesirenocontractsthatmightbindtheminthefuture.Theysimplyimportgoodsandservicesthatdonot,andcannot,stemfromtheclientcommunityitself.Becauserelationswithclientsareconfinedtoformalizedtrans-actionsinstructuredsettings,clientsknowverylittleaboutKanjarlifeandculturalhabits.Conversely,Kanjarconstantlylearnandunderstandagreatdealabouttherolesandpatterns of socialstructureandorganizationgoverningeverydayactivitiesinthecommunitiesandregions of theirperegrinations.Thisknowledgeisusedandconstantlyupdatedinordertomaintaintimelyandsensitiveentertainmentroutinesandtodetermineeconomicorpoliticalconditionsaffectingtheirtravelroutesandtenureinanarea.Also...