Notes on the sociopolitical history of nomenclatures in Northeast India

Abstract

This study discusses the different types of ethnolinguistic nomenclatures before and after British colonial rule in Northeast India. Before the colonial era, every community had endonyms/autonyms and exonyms for regional ethnic groups, often with inclusive cultural terms meaning ‘our people’ for themselves, while they often used derogatory terms for their neighboring communities based on features of food choice, clothing, and other ethnic features. After the British established an administration and settled in the region, they started naming the tribes of North India based on the names provided by the plainsmen under their control, often with meanings along the lines of ‘savage’, ‘uncouth’, ‘wild’, and so on. Whilst most of the names were denounced later by speakers of the languages because of their pejorative connotations, others survived, such as ‘Naga’, and more groups have embraced ‘Naga’ as their ethnic identity despite its derogative meaning, while others, such as ‘Kuki’, have divided into various tribes with their own ethnonyms. This study also deals with other factors affecting nomenclatures, namely, ‘scheduled tribe’ recognition (a constitutional safeguard for the promotion and protection of the rights of minorities belonging to a social category of scheduled tribes) and the influence of Western education in shaping nomenclatures the way they are.