Dr. Keisham Shitaljit Singh (Associate Professor) & RGG Just Shimray, Manipur University (INDIA)
Tangkhul Traditional System of Education and Its Relevance in the Modern Indian Context
Authors
Abstract
The Tangkhul tribe is one of the major Naga tribe of Manipur and is an
indigenous people of the state. They are inhabited mostly in Ukhrul and Kamjong
districts of Manipur and some are found in Senapati and Imphal East districts of
Manipur and Somra tract of north western part of Myanmar. The population of
Tangkhul is about 2 lacks. The Tangkhuls ethnically belonged to Naga groups who
are Mongoloid race speaking Tibeto-Burman language. There is a peculiarity in
their dialect and they are a mono-tribal community having the same custom, culture
and tradition. Each and every village speaks different dialects, hardly or not
understood by other villagers. However, they have evolved a common dialect
known as Tangkhul dialect, though which they communicate among themselves.
Agriculture was the main occupation of the Tangkhul people. The social lives of the
Tangkhuls were closely intertwined with their religious life and the religious
festivals are in perfect harmony and their festivals and songs are mostly agricultural
oriented. Music and dance are the two main features and events of every festival.
The culture of the Tangkhul revolves around the traditional beliefs and
custom exercises being passed down. The Tangkhuls were an organized people who
had well-structured socio-political system in their own way. In course of time every
Tangkhul village became a small republic like the Greek city states. Every village
had an unwritten constitution made up of age-old conventions and traditions. They
had their own clan administration, village administration and area or regional
administration, and an overall judicial administration for the entire territory.