The Karbis, who were still recently known as the Mikirs, are a major hill tribe of Assam. They also call themselves Arleng which mean a man. Although they are found to inhabit mainly the Karbi Anglong District of Assam, some scattered Karbi inhabitated pockets are found in the North Cachar Hills, Sibsagar, Nowgong and Darrang Districts. Racially the Karbis belong to the Mongoloid group, while linguistically they belong to the Tibeto Burman Group.
Their folklores indicate that during the long past once they used to live on the banks of the rivers the Kalang and the Kapili and the entire Kaziranga area, the famous National Game Sanctuary of Assam, was within their habitation. During the reigns of the Kachari Kings they were driven to the hills and some of them entered into Jaintiapur, the erstwhile Jaintia Kindom and lived under the Jaintia suzerainty.
The Karbis had their own kingdom also adjacent to the Jaintia Kingdom. Socheng and Niz Rongkhang were their capitals. Their traditional king still lives in Niz Rongkhang. Each Karbi village under the erstwhile Karbi kingdom was headed by the village headman called Sarbura. There was an officer called Havai over one Longri constituted with a cluster of contiguous villages. There were altogether 12 such Longris. These 12 Longris were constituted into 4 Artus and each Artu was governed by an officer called Lingdok. Above the four Lingdoks was the king called Recho.
The Karbis have five exogamous clans called Kur. They are Terang, Teron, Enghee, Engti and Timung. Each clan has a number of subclans, viz., Terang-6, Teron-6, Enghee-30, Engti-4 and Timung-30. These clans are exogamous and the marriage between a boy and a girl of the same clan is a taboo. Cross-cousin marriage is a preferential one. Monogamy is the prevailing rule, although there is no bar to marrying more than one wife. There is no system of bride price among the Karbis. The wife does not change her surname after marriage. Marriage by negotiation is the prevailing rule. In the event of marriage by capture, the marriage has to be regularised later on. Divorce, although permitted under the customary rule, is very rare. Widow remarriage is permissible, but the widow must marry a man belonging to the same clan of her deceased husband.
The Karbis follow the patriarchal system of family structure. All the children belong to the father and assume his title. The line of descent is traced through male members only. At the death of their father, the sons inherit his property and not by daughters. If the deceased leaves no male issues, his property is inherited by his nearest male relative belonging to the same clán, but never by his daughters. Agriculture is the mainstay of the Karbis. They practise shifting cultivation (Jhum). In the plains portions of the Karbi Anglong District, the Karbis now-a-days have resorted to settled cultivation. Cows and buffaloes are reared by them, but they hardly use their milk for consumption purposes. Besides cattle, each family rears pigs and birds. The Karbi women are expert weavers and almost all the clothes required for their domestic use are produced by them in their family looms. Rearing of Endi, spinning of Endi thread and weaving of Endi clothes are common sights in the Karbi villages. Bamboo and cane goods required for day-to-day use are also produced by the Karbis at their leisure time. There are good carpenters and blacksmiths among them.
The Karbis are a colourful tribe with their traditional dresses, ornaments, dances, music and folklores. They are peace loving and prefer to lead a life of content. The village council of elders called 'Me' presided over by the Sarburah or the Gaonbura (village headman) still settles the minor disputes. The bachelors' dormitory and the youth organisation called Resomar still play important roles in Karbi social life.
Hindu (935)
Agriculture (118)
Ancient (1086)
Archaeology (753)
Architecture (563)
Art & Culture (910)
Biography (702)
Buddhist (544)
Cookery (167)
Emperor & Queen (565)
Islam (242)
Jainism (307)
Literary (896)
Mahatma Gandhi (372)
Send as free online greeting card
Email a Friend
Manage Wishlist