Singpho
Singpho people
The Singpho/Jingpho/Kachin/Jinghpaw are a tribe who are inhabiting in India, China and Myanmar. In India these people are residing in the state of Arunachal Pradesh in the district of Lohit and Changlang and in Assam inhabits in the district of Tinsukia and scattered in some other district like Sivasagar, Jorhat and Golaghat, the Kachin State of Burma and Dehong of Yunnan Province, China . Comprising a population of at least 7,200 in India, they live in the villages, namely Bordumsa,
Miao, Innao, N-hpum, Namgo, Ketetong, Pangna, Phup, N-htem, Mungong,
Kumchai, Pangsun, Hasak, Katha, Bisa, Dibong, Duwarmara, Namo and
Namsai, etc. The Singpho are the same people as those called the Kachin
in Burma and the Jingpo in China.[1] They speak the Singpho dialect of the Jingpo language.
The Singphos are divided into a number of clans, each under a chief
known as a Gam. The principal Gams include the Bessa, Duffa, Luttao,
Luttora, Tesari, Mirip, Lophae, Lutong and Magrong. The Singpho are also
divided into four classes, namely Shangai, Myung, Lubrung and Mirip.
Religion
Like the Khampti, the Singpho are mainly Theravada Buddhist
by religion. Animism is also widely followed in this community. The
ancestor of all the Singpho, who is worshiped as a spirit or god, is
held to be named Madai. Singpho Animists believe that spirits reside
everywhere, from the sun to the animals, and that these spirits bring
good or bad luck. For the Singpho, all living creatures are believed to
have souls. Rituals are carried out for protection in almost all daily
activities, from planting of crops to warfare.
Lifestyle
Unlike most hill-people, shifting cultivation (Jhum) is not as widely
practised, although tea is widely planted. Singpho people were the one
who gave British the idea of tea. The Singpho produce their tea by
plucking the tender leaves and drying them in the sun and exposing to
the night dew for three days and nights. The leaves are then placed in
the hollow tube of a bamboo, and the cylinder will be exposed to the
smoke of the fire. In this way, their tea can be kept for years without
losing its flavour. The Singpho also depended on yams and other edible
tubers as their staple food.
Dress
The Singpho made shields from buffalo hide, many of them can be as
long as four feet. They also have helmets are made from either buffalo
hide or rattan-work, and vanished black and decorated with the boar's
tusks. Most men tie their hair in a large knot on the crown of the head.
The women dress their hair gathered into a broad knot on the crown of
the head, fastening it by silver bodkins, chains and tassels, which is
similar to the architecture of the modern skyscrapers. The maidens tie
their tresses into a roll and keep it tied just above the nape. Singpho
dwellings are usually two stories and built out of wood and bamboo. The
houses are of oval form; the first floor serves as a storage and stable
while the second is utilized for living quarters. Women often dress in
black jackets with silver decorations during festival known as Munao
Poi. This dress are one of the most beautiful and attractive dress in
Northeast India. They also wear wool skirts made in bright red colors.
The men often wear a white shirt with colorful Lungi, covering their
heads with turbans.
The Opium Controversy
The consumption of opium
was a traditional practice among the Singpho, and it can be witnessed
that the opium has severely harmed the fertility among the tribesmen.
According to the 1950 census, the population of the Singpho tribe has
fallen from 50,000 to less than 10,000 in recent years.[2] With the free trade of opium between India and Burma
since the signing of the bilateral trade in 1995, extreme abuse of
opium have been reported since of 1997, especially in the villages of
Pangsun and Kumsai. Cases of selling off their properties for the sake
of buying opium was widespread in recent years. Many of these addicts
consumed opium by smoking wooden and bamboo pots known as Doba, although
injection of needles is also used. Most of these addicts take twenty
grams, or even higher amounts of opiums. According to one villages,
opium used by the Singpho is supplied by members of the Tangsa tribe living just across the Burmese border.
The Indian government had also responded to the problem. Of late,
they have established laws of jail terms and rehabillation centers for
opium addicts. The Singpho National Council also have plans to set up posts to restrict of the opium inflow into India.
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