Cover not available

Article published In: Linguistics of the Tibeto-Burman Area
Vol. 45:2 (2022) ► pp.262–299

Get fulltext from our e-platform
JBE logo with link
PDF logo with download linkDownload PDF
EPUB logo with download linkDownload EPUB
authorization required

“Fish die of number, animals of footprints, but humans by mouths [words]!”

Diminishing cultural knowledge from the margin: The case of Thadou-Kuki

 | Jawaharlal Nehru University
Published online: 4 November 2022
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/ltba.21026.hao
Abstract
This paper discusses the cultural knowledge of Thadou-Kuki which constitutes one of the least explored genres of language use, with the hope that it will remain a source of information for future generation speakers and scholars. The paper provides examples of the vast pool of knowledge that lies underneath the traditional culture. It discusses two types of cultural knowledge in Thadou-Kuki, namely, material and oral culture transmitted from one generation of speakers to the other; these have not received the kind of attention that they deserve. The study shows how both material and oral culture are fast disappearing due to onslaughts from different quarters: the shift from traditional to a more sedentary lifestyle, the shift from traditional religion to Christianity, and finally the shift from traditional modes of entertainment to modern forms of entertainment. Many of the phenomena discussed in the paper apply to many of the other languages spoken in the hills of Northeast India, which are faced with similar threats.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Sources of information
  • 3.Culture-related morphological features
  • 4.Material culture of Thadou-Kuki
    • 4.1Building
    • 4.2Bamboo use
    • 4.3The art of weaving
    • 4.4Ornaments
    • 4.5The art of hunting practices
    • 4.6Fauna and flora
  • 5.Oral culture of the Thadou-Kuki
    • 5.1Speech taboo
    • 5.2Riddles
    • 5.3Proverbs
    • 5.4Lullabies
    • 5.5Rituals
      • 5.5.1Invocation
      • 5.5.2Direct address to the spirits
    • 5.6Christian prayer and traditional prayer
    • 5.7Colloquial and archaic terminology
    • 5.8Greetings
    • 5.9Curses and abuse
  • 6.Conclusion
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • Abbreviations
  • References
References (16)
References
Bhattacharyya, Pushpa Renu & Barshapriya Dutta. 2017. Khelma chong anchuna lekhabu: A learner’s book of the Khelma language. Tezpur: Tezpur University.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Bradley, David. 2011. A survey of language endangerment. In Peter K. Austin & Julia Sallabank (eds.), The Cambridge handbook of endangered languages, 66–77. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Burling, Robbins. 1985. Noun compounding in Garo. Linguistics of the Tibeto-Burman Area 8(1).14–42.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Census of India. 2011. New Delhi: office of the Registrar General, India. [URL]
Ding, Picus Sizhi. 2017. Language endangerment and the loss of traditional knowledge: The case of Prinmi. In Picus Sizhi Ding & Jamin Pelkey (eds.), Sociohistorical linguistics in Southeast Asia: New horizons for Tibeto-Burman studies in honor of David Bradley, 53–73. Leiden: Brill. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Gangte, Thangkhomang S. 1993. The Kukis of Manipur: A historical analysis. New Delhi: Gyan Publishing House.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Haokip, Pauthang. 2014. Word formation in Thadou. Himalayan Linguistics 13(2).58–82. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2021a. May you fall [dead] while standing!: Curses and abuses in Thadou-Kuki. Linguistics of the Tibeto-Burman Area 44(2).197–213. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
. 2021b. Annotated texts of the languages of Barak Valley. Denton: Aquiline Books. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Kaivola-Bregenhøj, Annikki. 2001. Riddles. Perspectives on the use, function and change in a folklore genre. Helsinki: Studia Fennica Folkloristica. [URL].
Moseley, Christopher (ed.). 2010. Atlas of the world’s languages in danger, 3rd edn. Paris: UNESCO Publishing.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Shakespear, J. 1912. The Lushei Kuki clans. London: Macmillan.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Shaw, William. 1997 [1929]. Notes on Thadou Kukis. Guwahati and New Delhi: Spectrum Publications.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Soppitt, C. A. 1887 [1976]. A short account of the Kuki-Lushai tribes on the North-East frontier (districts Cachar, Sylhet, Naga Hills, etc., and the North Cachar Hills), with an outline grammar of the Rangkhol–Lushai language and a comparison of Lushai with other dialects. Shillong: Assam Secretariat Press.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Stewart, R. 1855. Notes on Northern Cachar. Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal 24(3).582–701.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Tsunoda, Tasaku. 2005. Language endangerment and revitalization. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar
Cited by (1)

Cited by one other publication

Haokip, Pauthang
2024. “Come thou the spirits of village and locality, come thou the spirits of sons and daughters!”. Linguistics of the Tibeto-Burman Area 47:1 ► pp. 57 ff. DOI logo

This list is based on CrossRef data as of 27 november 2025. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.

Mobile Menu Logo with link to supplementary files background Layer 1 prag Twitter_Logo_Blue