The Naga People, India

The Naga people live on the mountains of Nagaland, Manipur, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh, in Northern India, as well as throughout the border in Myanmar. Their villages are located on the top of mountains and can only be reached through unpaved roads with four-wheel cars. During the British occupation of South-east Asia, the Naga people – although formally subjected to the British rule – proved to be too fierce for being effectively subjugated, and were therefore left free to organize their societies autonomously. Still today, they retain a high degree of autonomy from the government. However, the Indian government is now building a large highway in the middle of Naga lands, due to be completed by September 2019, seriously threatening their rights and culture. Since only little written sources exist on the Naga people, the present research is in part based on the personal contacts by two of the authors – Federico Lenzerini and Phutoli Shikhu Chingmak – with the leaders of Naga communities as well as with the government of Nagaland.