Tribes in India

 UPSC generally asks one question about tribes in prelims. Since hundreds of tribes are
there in India, it becomes very difficult for the aspirants to remember each and every
tribe. I have tried to discuss about the major tribes and tribes which are in news.
Apologies if I have missed out any major tribes.
 For classification of tribes, read this http://mrunal.org/2012/07/culture-tribalsp1.html
 Constitutional provision for ST, read this http://mrunal.org/2012/07/polity-rights-st.html
 Tribal people constitute 8.6% of the nation's total population, over 104 million people as
per 2011 census.
 The Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order (Second Amendment) Bill, 2013: The bill
aims at inclusion of Narikoravan, grouped with Kurivikkaran community from Tamil
Nadu, and Dhanuhar and Dhanuwar communities from Chhattisgarh in the list of
Scheduled Tribes will require a Constitutional amendment.

Tribes spread across different parts of India

Name State Description

Bhils (derived from bow) MP, Gujarat,  Popularly known as the bow men
Rajasthan, of Rajasthan
Maharashtra and  They forms the largest tribe of the
north-eastern part of whole South Asia
Tripura  Divided into two main groups :
Central or pure Bhils and Eastern
or Rajput Bhils
 They speak Bhili, which is an Indo
Aryan language
 Religion practice among the Bhils
differ from place to place
 The Baneshwar fair is the main
festival celebrated during Shivratri
Munda ( means headman of the village) Mainly Jharkhand  They speak Mundari, which is a
Spread across Bihar Austro- Asiatic language
,WB, Chhattisgarh  Complexion is blackish. They have
and Orissa short curly hair.
 Christianity is the main religion.`
 They believe in Singbonga, which
means the Sun God
 They remained hunters for
centuries. But now they have been
 converted into the settled
agriculturist
 Mage, Phagu, Karam, Sarhul, and
Sohrai are the few festivals
celebrated
Santhals West Bengal, Bihar,  It is one of the largest tribe in India
Orissa, Jharkhand and  They wagged war against the
Assam permanent settlement of Lord
Cornwallis in 1855.
 They speak Santhali, which is a
Austro- Asiatic language
 They are engaged in hunting,
fishing and cultivation for their
livelihood
 They have no temples of their own.
They even do not worship any
idols. Santhals follow the Sarna
religion.
 They mainly celebrate the Karam
festival to please the God to
increase their wealth and free them
from all the enemies.
Gonds Widely spread in the  They are the largest tribe in
Chhindwara district Central India
of Madhya Pradesh,  They speak Gondi language which
Bastar district of is related to the Telgu and the other
Chhattisgarh and also Dravidian languages. In the
in the parts of northern parts Gonds are often seen
Maharashtra, Andhra speaking the local Hindi.
Pradesh, and Orissa.  They are divided into four tribes
namely - Raj Gonds, Madia Gonds,
Dhurve Gonds, Khatulwar Gonds
 They are largely influenced by the
Hindus and for the long time have
been practicing the Hindus culture
and traditions
 Keslapur Jathra is the important
festival of the Gonds
Khasi Mainly found in the  They are called by the different
state of Assam and names such as Khasi Pahris,
the Khasi Jaintia Khuchia, Kassi, Khashi and Khasa
hills in Meghalaya  Most of the Khasis follow
Christianity
Other places are  They speak Khasi-an Austro-
Punjab, UP, Manipur, Asiatic language
WB and J&K
  The property of the Khasis is
passed on from the mother to the
youngest daughter
 The women wear silver or gold
crown on their head and men wear
large earrings.
 Nongkrem is the major festival
celebrated among the Khasi’s.

Baiga Chhattisgarh,  They are the forest-dwelling

Jharkhand, Madhya aboriginals from central India
Pradesh and Orissa  They do not interact with other
tribal, believe in a hand-to-mouth
existence.
 Do not try to access education, eat
outside their community, or
associate with others
 Tattooing is an integral part of their
lifestyle

Birhor Chhattisgarh,  They are known as the hunter tribe.

(means peoples of jungles) Jharkhand, Orissa  This tribe is a Proto-Australoid
tribe, physically recognizable by
their deep, dark-brown skin color
and wavy, curly/frizzy black hair
 The tribe is divided into two major
sub-tribes, the Jaghis
Birhor(wandering, practice shift
cultivation) and Uthalu
Birho(settled, follow agro-based
economy)
 Tanda: The settlement whether
permanent or temporary, which
consists of usually half a dozen or
more huts
 In news because the tribe
struggles to maintain traditional
lifestyle in the face of
government intervention

Chenchus Andhra  They live in bee hive shaped tiny

Pradesh, Karnataka huts with wattle walls
and Odisha  They speak Chenchu language with
the Telgu accent
  They worship number of deities.
They mainly believe in Bhagaban
taru who lives in the sky and look
after them in all their doings
 They are referred to as one of the
Primitive Tribal Groups that are
still dependent on forests and do
not cultivate land but hunt for a
living
 Most of them inhabit in the
Nallamalai hills of AP

North and North-West

Name State Description
Gaddis Himachal Pradesh  They mainly dwell around Dhauladhar
mountain range, Chamba, Bharmaur and the
areas near to Dharamshala
 The main occupation is shepherding and they
make their livelihood by rearing and selling
sheep, goats, mules and horses.
 Most of them are Hindus and a few Muslims
 The most attractive aspect about this tribe is
their attire.
 They speak the Gaddi Language but for
writing they use Takri and Hindi.
Pangwal Himachal Pradesh  They are the inhabitants of the Pangi valley
of Chamba district
 They are known for their charming faces, fine
physique and for their love of song and dance.
 They are mostly engaged in farming.
Bhutia Sikkim  They are also known as the Lachenpas and
(Baichung Bhutia? ) Lachungpas
 They are of the Tibetan origin and migrated to
Sikkim around 16th century.
 They form 14% of the total population of
Sikkim.
 They usually speak Sikkimese. They also
speak Lepcha, Bhutia, Nepali, English and
Hindi.
 A traditional Bhutia house is called a "khim"
and is usually rectangular.
  Losar and Losoong are the main festivals
celebrated
Limbus/ Limboos Sikkim  They are one of the indigenous tribe of Sikkim
belonging to Nepali stock
 Mongoloid looking by figure having their
own language, faith, costume, culture and life
style.
 Their traditional group dance called
Dhannach is famous usually performed in the
marriage, death and any festive celebrations.
 They are farmers by profession and they love
enjoying their life more by singing, feasting
and dancing.
 The traditional dress of the Limbus is mekhli
and taga.
Lepchas Sikkim  They are one of the indigenous tribe of Sikkim
 They look fair in complexion, shy in nature
wearing generally a kind of set wear of shirt
and trousers called Hontaj Gyador.
 They call themselves Rong in their language.
 They speak their own dialect and they too
follow the same Tibetan form of Buddhism
besides their local faith.

Buksa Uttarakhand and UP  They are one of the primitive tribal groups of
India
 They are indigenous people concerated in
the Dehradun and Nainital in
the Kumaon foothills of the outer Himalayas
 Major occupation are agriculture and animal
husbandry

North-East
Name State Description
Apatani or Tanni Arunachal Pradesh  They are settled agriculturists inhabiting the
valley around Ziro-the headquarters of Lower
Subansiri district.
  They practice permanent wetland cultivation
in hilly terrain by slicing the hills.
 They are loyal followers of the Donyi-Polo
faith, who pray to the Sun and the Moon
 Men of other tribes would often steal the
Apatani women, which led the Apatani men to
tattoo the faces of their women and make them
wear massive nose plugs, in order to make
them less appealing.
Adis/ Bokar Lhoba Arunachal Pradesh ,  They have two main divisions the Bogum and
(meaning hill or mountain top) Assam Bomis
 They by nature are democratic and organized
village council called Kebang
 Their traditional dance called Ponung is
famous in the whole of Arunachal Pradesh.
 Dances are very popular among them.
 The villages are situated generally on the spurs
of hills
 The women are very good weavers and weave
cloth with highly artistic designs.
Nyishis Arunachal Pradesh  They are the largest groups of people
inhabiting the major part of Lower Subansiri
district
 Their menfolk wear their hair long and tie it in
a knot just above the forehead
 They are Indo-Mongoloid group of people and
their language belongs to the Tibeto-Burman
family.
 The tribe as a whole is fond of hunting and
fishing in which they perhaps excel any other
neighboring tribes
Kampti Arunachal Pradesh  They are a sub-group of the Shan people Lohit
district.
 They posses East Asian features.
 They are followers of Theravada Buddhism
 They have adopted a script of Shan origin,
known as Lik-Tai for their language.
 They are renowned for their craftsmanship.

Tagin Arunachal Pradesh  They are main inhabitant of Upper Sunansiri

district.
 Their main occupation is agriculture.
 Polygamy is customary among them.
  Their dress is very simple consisting of only
one piece of cloth.
Angami Nagaland  Tenyidie is the most common language
spoken
 Population is around 12 million.
 Agriculture is the main occupation.
 Christianity is the major religion followed
 They are quite popular for their woodcraft and
artwork( producer of bamboo work, cane
furniture, beds, shawls and powerful
machetes)
 Sekrenyi is the main festival celebrated which
marks the beginning of the lunar year
Rengmas Nagaland  They are one of the seventeen major Naga
Tribes.
 They follow patriarchal system.
 Originally they were animist. They believed in
various gods and goddess. The Christianity is
also present among the tribe.
 Agriculture is the main occupation. They
practices Jhumming. Women are expert
weavers.
 Nyada is the main festival celebrated. This is
to mark the end of the agricultural years.
 Note: A section of them have migrated to
Karbi Anglong districts of Assam
Sema /Sumi Nagas Nagaland and Assam  They are one of the major tribes of Nagaland
recognized for their martial art skills.
 They mainly inhibit Zunheboto district.
 They are most united and aggressive tribe.
 Tuluni is the major festival celebrated.
 They follow Christianity.

Zeliang Nagaland  The Zeliang is the official name of the Zemi

and Liangmei people in Nagaland
 They live primarily in the south-western part
of Kohima district
 The Hega festival is one of the most important
and the biggest festival.
 They inhabit Barrail range of hills in Manipur,
Nagaland and Assam.
 They are very famous for their sanitation and
hygiene.
Konyak Nagaland  They are the largest out of 17 officially
(means blackhead or human) recognized tribes in Nagaland,
 They are known as 'those violent headhunters
with tattooed faces.'
 One of the last headhunters, they now
practice agriculture and hunt seasonally
 The most important festival is AolingMonyu
which is celebrated in spring season and the
occasion is related to the sowing of seeds.
 More than 95% of them follow Christianity.
 The men wear earrings made out of deer
horn, necklace made out of boar tusks and
brass heads.
Garos Meghalaya  They are the second-largest tribe in
Meghalaya and comprise about a third of the
local population.
 They are mainly Christians.
 The youngest daughter inherits the property
from her mother. Sons leave the parents' house
at puberty, and are trained in the village
bachelor dormitory. After getting married, the
man lives in his wife's house.
 They are a matrilineal not matriarchal society.
Jaintias Meghalaya  They are traced in the Jaintia hills.
 They belong to the Proto Autroloid Monkhmer
race
 Basically it is a sub tribe of Khasis and since
they have been residing in Jaintia hills, they
have been named so.
 Most of them follow Christianity
 The men wear Jymphong and dhoti while the
women wrap several pieces of clothes so as to
give a cylindrical shape.
Reang Tripura  They are the second largest tribal community
of Tripura.
 They are said to have came first from Shan
State of upper Burma.
 They belong to Indo-Mongoloid racial stock.
 Their language is known as "Kaubru" which
have a tonal effect of Kuki language though
broadly it is Kok-Borok (language of men).
 They are still a nomadic tribe and a large
numbers among them maintain their livelihood
 involving Top Hill Jhum Cultivation, food
gathering, fishing & hunting.
 They follow Hindu religion.
Lushais Tripura  They belong to Kuki-Chin group of tribes.
 They are commonly known as Mizos.
 They live on Jhum Cultivation and hunting of
wild animal. They are also famous as orange
producing community.
 They follow Christianity as their religion.
 Their Bamboo Dance (Cheraw-dance) is very
much popular in and outside the country.

Kuki Manipur  An ethnic tribe spread across vast areas of

North-eastern region of India except
Arunachal Pradesh, Burma and foot hills of
Chittagong hills
 They form a part of the great Mongolian race
 They prefer to live on the hill tops and their
villages are cluster of houses closely
constructed to protect from alien raiders.
 Mainly followers of Christianity and Judaism
Bodos Assam  They belong to Indo-Mongoloid family. It is
believed that their origin was Tibet and China.
 The speak Bodo language that is derived
Tibeto Burmese family of language
 Most of them are engaged in rice cultivation,
tea plantation and poultry farming. Women
engage themselves in weaving
 They are expert in bamboo and cane craft;
hence one would usually come across houses
fashioned out of bamboo and wood in places
where they live in majority
 Some of them are Christians, while a large
chunk follows the precepts of Hinduism
Mishing /Miris Assam  They are the second largest schedule tribe of
Assam.
 As per tradition they practice group fishing in
winter and group hunting in summer. The
women are expert weavers.
 The ‘Ali-Ai-Ligang' is the most well-known
and widely observed festival (festival of
sowing seeds)
 They have their own language, but no script:
hence they use the Assamese language when
the written form is required
Karbi/ Mikirs Assam  They belong to the Mongoloid group and
linguistically to the Tibeto-Burman group
 They reside in hilly areas of Assam and form
the major portion of population of Karbi
Anglong district. They also inhabit places in
North Cachar Hills, Nagaon and Sonitpur
districts of Assam
 Their main occupation is agriculture.
 The place of women is same as the men, and
women help their men in every step of life
 Dance and Music play an important role in
their life
 They are mentioned as Mikir in the
constitution of India.
Rahabas Assam  They are widely scattered but mostly
concentrated on Goalpara, Kamrup, and
Darrang.
 Agriculture is the main occupation
 Traditionally they were very religious. Now
most of them have embraced Hinduism or
Christianity.
 They like to live in compact blocks having 50-
100 families.
Biate Mizoram, Assam and  They are also one of the oldest living tribes
(means worshipper) Meghalaya in the NE.
 Though they are less in term of population,
they have their own identity with a rich and
distinctive history, culture, dialect and
religious heritages..

Central India

Name State Description

Khonds / Dongaria Khonds Orissa  They are indigenous tribal groups in Orissa.
 Their native language is Kui, a Dravidian
language written with the Oriya script.
 They are nature worshipping forest dwellers.
 Vedanta Resources, mining company, was set
to destroy the forests, wildlife and way of life
of the Dongria Kondh people. Their four year
long protests finally paid off as the
 government has now banned Vedanta from
mining in Niyamgiri Mountain and in their
forests.

Bonda Odisha  They are also known as Bondo or Remo

 They live in the isolated hill regions of
the Malkangiri district of
southwestern Odisha.
 They are one among the Primitive Tribal
Groups identified by GOI.
 They are generally semi-clothed, the women
wear thick silver neck bands.
 The Gov of Orissa had setup Bonda
Development Agency (BDA) in 1977 with the
aim of bringing Bonda’s into the mainstream
Oarons /Kurukh Odisha ,Bihar,  They mainly depend on agriculture for earning
Jharkhand, WB their living.
 Most of them are engaged in the occupation of
tea cultivation.
 They are considered to have the second largest
population of tribes in Bihar and Jharkhand
 They speak Kurukh language related to
Dravidian family.
 Majority of them are Hindus and are religious
minded people. They worship Gods and
Goddesses but a great number of these tribes
have adopted Christianity.
Khairwar Madhya Pradesh  It is on the brink of extinction because of the
tribe members' inability to conceive
 They reside in a remote village called Harrai.
 There are only about 30 families left -- all
childless couples who are either old or middle-
aged and past their reproductive age.
Kol Madhya Pradesh  It is one of the most ancient tribes of India,
(means human) whose mention is found in the Rig Veda and
Other states include many other mythological scriptures.
Bihar, UP,  Most of them are landless and work on farm as
Chhattisgarh, Assam, laborers and sharecroppers
Tripura  They prefer to live in groups near the villages
called as Kolhan
Murias Chhattisgarh  They are a sub-group of the Gonds and inhabit
the forests and plains of central India. They
live along the Indrawati River, which flows
through the Bastar district.
 They survive mainly by farming, hunting, and
eating the fruits of the forest.
 The ghotul, or temporary dormitory for
unmarried youth, is a significant building
within the Muria villages
Pahari Korwa/ Korba Chhattisgarh, Bihar  They belong to Austro-Asiatic family
 The Korwas are divided into Pahari Korwa
and Dihari Korwa.
 The main concentration is in Jashpur, Sarguja
& Raigarh.
 They are medium to short height have a dark
brown or black skin.
 Fishing and hunting are practiced as
occupation.
 Karma dance is very popular dance and all the
villagers participate in it.
Maria Chhattisgarh  Two types: Abhuj Maria and Bison Horn Maria
 Both are sub castes of the Gond tribals.
 Abhuj Maria:
 They live in isolation and inhabit the secluded
enclaves of Narayanpur tehsil of Bastar
District
 They fear mankind
 They are one of the few tribes that have many
to keep their quintessential culture alive and
unaffected by the vestiges of time
 Bison Horn Maria:
 They are found in MP and Maharashtra also
 Their introvert nature makes them live in
isolation in the interiors of dense forest areas
 They derived their name from their unique
custom of wearing a distinctive headdress,
which resembles the horns of a wild bison
Western India
Name State Description
Sahariya Rajasthan  Only primitive tribe of Rajasthan residing in
(meaning residents of Jungle) the Baran district
 They follow Hindu religion and speak a dialect
influenced by Hadoti.
 Faced with social ignorance, anger,
deprivation and inhuman treatment inherent in
the system, the people of this tribe are once
again in the miserable condition.
 In the absence of sources of livelihood, this
tribal group is again forced to resort to
migration
Mina/ Meena Rajasthan  They are found in the northern part
(meaning fish) of Rajasthan.
 Originally a nomadic, warlike people
practicing animal breeding and known for
lawlessness, today most of them are farmers.
 At the time of British rule, this community had
been acclaimed as criminal tribe
 Majority of them follow Hinduism

South India
Name State Description
Irulas Tamil Nadu  They are inhabitants of the scrub jungles of
(meaning darkness) Southern India belonging to the Negrito (or
Negroid) race
 Hunter-gatherers by tradition, their expertise
in catching snakes is legendary
 Most of them are wage laborers working in
tea estates now.
 They are partly Hinduized, but have their own
indigenous religious system
Badagas Tamil Nadu  It is one of the oldest tribal communities in
the Nilgiris.
  The main occupation of the people in this
community is agriculture. Tea plantation is
the major agriculture here.
 They are socially, educationally and even
economically advanced now.
 The Badaga language is a mixture of Kannada
and Tamil and there is no script for this
language.
 They are Hindus of Shiva sect.
Kota Tamil Nadu  They have been living in the Nilgiri
(Ko meaning mountain) mountains for ages
 They are found living only in seven
settlements, referred to by them as Kokkals
 They are the only artisan community on the
hills of the Nilgiris
 Most of the crafts practiced by them are on
the decline.
 The major festival is the annual Kamatra-ya
festival

Kanis Kerala  They belong to a traditionally nomadic

community, who now lead a primarily settled
life in the forests of the Agast-Hymalai hills
of the Western Ghats
 They have an extremely rich and unique
Traditional Knowledge about the use of the
resources, particularly the biological
resources around them
 They introduced Tropical Botanical Garden
and Research Institute (TBGRI) to a
medicinal plant in their forest from which a
drug named 'jeevani' was isolated and
commercialized
Uralis Kerala and Tamil  They are mostly found on the Idukki hills of
(means ruler of a locality) Nadu Kerala
 Agriculture is the main occupation.
 They worship nature as Gods and inventor of
the world.
 They have their own native language called as
Urali language

Lambada / Banjaras/ Sugalisa Andhra Pradesh  They are the largest tribe of AP.
 They live in exclusive settlements of their
own called Tandas, usually away from the
 main village, tenaciously maintaining their
cultural and ethnic identity.
 They are expert cattle breeders and largely
subsist by sale of milk and milk products.

Island Region
Name State Description
Jarawas Andaman  They are one of the indigenous peoples of the
Andaman Islands. They have inhabited the
islands for thousands of years
 Their present numbers are estimated at
between 250–400 individuals.
 Since they have largely shunned interactions
with outsiders, many particulars of their
society, culture and traditions are poorly
understood.
 For more details on Jarawas read this :
http://mrunal.org/2013/03/rights-issue-
jarawa-tribes-human-safari-buffer-area-tribal-
commission-13th-schedule.html
Sentinelese Andaman  They are one of the Andamanese indigenous
peoples and one of the most remote tribes of
the Andaman Islands.
 They inhabit North Sentinel Island.
 They are noted for vigorously resisting
attempts at contact by outsiders.
 The Sentinelese maintain an essentially
hunter-gatherer society subsisting through
hunting, fishing, and collecting wild plants;
there is no evidence of either agricultural
practices or methods of producing fire.
 Their language remains unclassified.
Shompens Great Nicobar Island  They are one of the last surviving stone-age
tribes in the world.
 They wander in their forest and coastal
habitat in search of food.
  They are also on the brink of extinction as the
four other hunter-gatherer tribes (the Jarawa,
the Andamanese, the Onge and the
Sentinelese).
 They are of mongoloid stock unlike the other
primitive tribes of the Andaman Islands
which are negrito

Onges Little Andaman  A negrito tribe with just 96 in number now.

(means ‘we people’) They are divided into 5 families comprising
of 15 members in all living in South Bay
 They are pure hunter-gatherers and are not
aware of agriculture
 They have no clear concept of religion but
they are animistic.

******************END*****************

Questions:
1. Consider the following pairs: (UPSC 2013 question)
Tribe State
1. Limboo (Limbu): Sikkim
2. Karbi: Himachal Pradesh
3. Dongaria: Odisha
4. Bonda: Tamil Nadu

Which of the above pairs are correctly matched?

(a) 1 and 3 only
(b) 2 and 4 only
(c) 1, 3 and 4 only
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

2. Match the following

Tribe State
1. Aka a. Arunachal Pradesh
2. Bondo Poraja b. Tripura
3. Riang c. Himachal Pradesh
 4. Gaddi d. Odisha

3. Where do Sahariya tribals, live?

a. Andhra Pradesh
b. Odisha
c. Assam
d. Rajasthan

4. Match List I and II and select the correct answer from the codes given below:
List I List II
a. Lepcha 1. Uttaranchal
b. Maria 2. Sikkim
c. Urali 3. Chattisgarh
d. Khasa 4. Kerala
Codes
A BC D
a. 2 3 1 4
b. 3 4 2 1
c. 2 3 4 1
d. 3 2 4 1

5. To which group do the tribals of central and southern India belong?

a. Negritoes
b. Proto-Australoids
c. Mongoloids
d. Western Brachycephals

6. Where are Angamis found?

a. MP
b. AP
c. TN
d. Nagaland

7. Which among the following tribes do not live in the Union Territory of Andaman and
Nicobar Islands?
a. Sentinelese
b. Shompens
c. Zeliang
d. Onges
 8. Which of the following pairs of primitive tribes and places of their inhabitation is not
correctly matched?
a. Buksa: Pauri Garhwal
b. Kol: Jabalpur
c. Munda: Chhotanagpur
d. Korba: Kodagu

9. Which of the following pairs of states and tribes is not correctly matched
a. Assam: Miri
b. Nagaland: Konyak
c. Arunachal Pradesh: Apatani
d. Madhya Pradesh: Lambada

10. Where are Todas and Moplahs found?

a. MP and Assam
b. Tamil Nadu and Kerala
c. Kerala and West Bengal
d. Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu

Reference:

http://www.ecoindia.com/tribes/
http://tribes-of-india.blogspot.in/
http://www.pinterest.com/satishnair/tribes-of-india/
http://www.famous-india.com/tribes/
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-02-21/india/37220989_1_tribe-village-head-childless-
couples

http://cjtdp.cg.gov.in/tribes.htm

http://online.assam.gov.in/tribes_of_assam

http://www.tritripura.in/tri/Tribes/Tribes2.aspx

http://baran.nic.in/sahariya.htm

Wikipedia
GS Manual and Arihant Publications for questions
Name: Divya V Prabhu