Apa Tani: Encyclopedia II - Apa Tani - History

Apa Tani - History

There are currently no known written records of the history of the Apatani tribe, although it is speculated that, throughout their history, the Apatani had a democratic system of running the society. The village council was known as the Bulyang.

Anthropologists such as Sumit Guha suggests that the Apatani have good oral accounts of the political history of the region. One of their oral accounts speak of their migration from the extreme north of Subansiri and Siang areas following the rivers of Kurung and Kimey.

These oral accounts are often presented in the form of folk tales such as the Miji and Migung. The Miji is a collection of religious chants performed by priests who preside over the sacrifices of mithuns, cows, chickens and pigs. A religious song, which is sung from one to twelve hours, accompanies all these ritual performances which describe the previous interactions with the spirits or gods, locally known as ui, the content of which explains the origin of the myths.

On the other hand, the Migung is more realistic, since it is narrated in prose, and that the stories within it explain the origins of the Apa Tani people, who trace their genealogical links to other tribes of Tibet.

This also necessarily includes a few legendary places, and recent events, such as the downfall of a nineteenth-century never-do-well. In these two folk tales, both the ritual chants and the prose narrations speak of Abo Tani, who is reputed to be the original ancestor of the Apatani and the other tribes in central Arunachal Pradesh. These tribes encompass the Tani group.

The first contact with the Europeans came only in 1897, when British officials came to stay in the valley for two days, and only six similar brief visits were later held between the 1920s and 1930s.

In 1944, only after a temporary government outpost was set up by an anthropologist-administrator, did the Apa Tani come in contact with even a minimal government presence. However, when a second but permanent outpost was constructed by the Assam Rifles, stationed there to protect the land, the Apatanis, in 1948, attacked. The angry officer in charge retaliated by burning two of their villages.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "History", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki