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HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF KHOIBU TRIBE

Terminology:

As our forefathers have been handing it down of our accounts orally from generation to generation, we called ourselves ‘Uipo’. We are called ‘Uipowaa’ by the Maring,‘ Apo ’ by the Tangkhul Villagers neighboring to present Khoibu indigenous territory. We were said to be called ‘Upong’ in the ‘Inthee’(believed to be so called ‘Ningthee’) basin civilization .The term Khoi-pu derived from the version of ‘Khoi’ means bee  and ‘Pu’ derived from ‘Akapu’ which means owner. Therefore, Khoipu means the people who owns bee, beehives, honey in the indigenous land of Khoibu Territory. They often exchanged gifts with the neighboring communities. In the long run it is literally pronounced as Khoibu. Though we called ourselves ‘Uipo’, we officially represent as Khoibu to avoid any confusion of our identity.

The Beginning:

Our ancestors handed down the following folklore verses of Khoibu {Uipo} genealogy:

Kheisin se, hatlaipang ngisou tou

(Once, we human being were)

Mangsawrna sawrkaphoom tawe tou

(Mangsawr ruled)

Khayir na yeerkaphoom tawe tou

(Khayir bound)

Mangsawr na apaa tawe tou

(Mangsawr was the male)

Khayir na apui tawe tou

(Khayir was the female)

Thalung daagrang hoy tawe tou

(It was under the stone)

Thalei daagrang hoy tawe tou

(It was beneath the earth)

Thelei daagrang sir rie tou

(There, beneath the earth)

Thalung daagrang sir rie tou

(There, under the stone)

Kathrungla manie mangne tou

(Neither was healthy)

Kaluola manie mangne tou

(Nor wealthy was)

Tlaipang sangthawgnung sou tou

To come onto the earth)

Tlaipang sangmoonung sou tou

(To see the earth)

Thalungkhaarnu loukaleiy tawe tou

(There was gate of stones)

Thalung khaarpaa loukaleiy tawe tou

(Gate of bigger stones)

Thalungkhaarnu laadmaniemag tawe tou

(Hard to open)

Thalungkhaarpaa laadmaniemag tawe tou

(Harder to open)

Raloyna thalung khaarnu laadkapi tawe tou

(The buffalo opened the hard gate)

Raloyna thalungkhaarpaa ladkapi tawe tou

(The buffalo opened the harder gate)

Free Translation & Commentary:

In the beginning, all human beings were believed to be living inside a cave where Mangsawr and Khayir ruled. Life inside the cave was terribly difficult. However, they could not come out of the cave, as there was big stones at the gate of the cave. They tried several means to removed the stone at the gate. They send pigs to tow away them. They send bulls to push and open the gate and so on. But its time the gate could not be opened. At last, after much consultation and discussion among themselves, they send buffalo and the buffalo opened. Finally, after clearing more hurdles on the way, they came out of the gate.

Settlement:

People took their own choice of direction to travel in looking for their habitation after coming out of the cave. Khoibu people is believed to have traveled towards Mongrengphai as the following folklore verses sing:

Mongrengphai sankachan tawe dtou

(Towards Mongrengphai we traveled)

Mongrengphai sie rie tou

(At Mongrengphai)

Thamilamag hoy tawe

(Neither we were human)

Thangaa lamag Tawe tou

(Nor we were fishes)

Mongreng hu seen nie tou

(For it was like a dream)

Mongrengphai hei ka-uong tawe tou

(It was called Mongrengphai)

Mongrengphai sir rie tou

(At Mongrengphai)

Kapaal shangkoumarsie tawe tou

(Started learning to live)}

Kaluo sangkoumarsie tawe tou

(Learned to prosper)

Free Translation & Commentary:

Mongrengphai means a vast valley visualized as if it could be seen in a sweet dream. We traveled upto Mongrengphai (after coming out of the cave} when we were so ignorant that neither could live like a human nor could we swim like a fish. Mongrengphai was so beautiful that we lived in it as if we were dreaming a dream. So, we called it the valley of dreams. There we started living like real human beings and we prosper from there.

As our forefathers have been telling it, the Khoibu people made their first humanly settlement at Mongrengphai. Gradually, our civilization was said to have been spread along the Inthee Basin, in the Angoching range and in the Yoomadung Hills. Some of the major places of settlement best remembered till now are Thipaamna, Sawngkaan, Khamphat, Kameng, Lataa,Taap, Lichik, Waashaphai, Mangsaa etc. The most prosperous time of civilization of Khoibu peoples is still said to be the one under the reign of “Mikhongpa”

Khoibu people were said to have experience their best and most prosperous life of civilization under the reign of Mikhongpa in the Inthee Basin, Angoching Range and Yoomadong Hills. The population of Khoibu, by then, was believed to be counted by tens of thousand which can be considered as big enough to fight big war at that time.

The Downfall:

The tragedy started when Ava invaded the Khoibu territory and Khoibu people were said to have lost their lives in defending the eastern territory. Thousands of women and children perished and died in the torturing hands of Ava army, thousands of khoibus were said to have become captive under Ava Authority whose fate is not known. Thousands were said to have died in the epidemic after the Ava War. Many were also said to have fled to the neighboring Maring villages namely Machi, Kharou, Lamlong, Khunbi,Laiching,Langol etc. The present villagers of these Maring villages who belong to Charangaa (‘Charang in Khoibu language’) and Tontanga (‘Tontang in Khoibu language’) clans are believed to be Khoibu descendants.

Identity established:

The Khoibu people who were popularly known as Khoibu, were recognized as one of the oldest, indigenous and major tribe. Ym. (L) Konai Khoibu was appointed the Senapati of King Maharaj Churachand Singh (Please refer the relevant page of ‘Cheitharol kumbaba’, No.601 ). Later, when India attains her independence and when the first general election was held in 1948 Ym. (L) Konai Khoibu contested the said election from Tengnoupal Assembly Constituency as an independent candidate from Khoibu Tribe (Please refer the relevant page No.37 of ‘the Mate Tribe’ written by Langsun D.Mate). Thus,Ym. (L) Konai Khoibu become the first beneficiary among khoibus being a recognized Tribe. By virtue of this fact the then Chief Minister of Manipur, reasonably and rightly declared the Khoibu Tribe as Scheduled Tribe of Manipur vide letter No.2/AC/49/0695-96 dated 6th June 1949, sent to the advisor of His Excellency, the Governor of Assam in which the following were given as Scheduled Tribe of Manipur state viz. Kuki, Kabui, Kacha Naga, Tangkhul, Mao, Maring, Kom, Chiru, Koireng, Maram, Lamgang, Anal, Chothe, Purum, Khoirao, Tarao, Moyon, Khoibu, Monsang, Aimol, Kharam, Thanggan, Wainem and Kwatha based on the aforementioned letter, the Government of India passed the  CONSTITUETION (SCHEDULED TRIBES) (PART C STATES) ORDER 1951, part VI-Manipur state recognizing the following  scheduled tribes of Manipur State.

Any Kuki Tribes,

Any Lushai Tribes,

Any Naga Tribes,

Identity suppressed:

The Govt. of India in its amendment of THE CONSTITUTION SCHEDULED CASTES AND SCHEDULED TRIBES LIST (MODIFICATION) ORDER, 1956, Part-X- Manipur, Notification No.SRO-2477A Ministry of Home Affairs, Govt. of India dated 29-10-1956, Khoibu Tribe was dropped from the list of the recognized Scheduled Tribes.

Identity misunderstood:

Khoibu people are immediate neighbor to Maring people in terms of habitation. As such, there is frequent social interaction between the two tribes. Religious fellowship, social activities like games and sport etc, are jointly organized. There are even intermarriages between the two tribes. However, the lingua-franca between the two tribes as the Meiteilon (Manipuri). By this reason or the other, the Khoibu people are often called “Khoibu Maring”. But, occurrence of misunderstanding, disagreement, is not deniable, as there are sharp differences of customs, culture, tradition, language etc, between the two tribes.

Distinct Identity:

Khoibu is a tribe having its own distinctive culture, custom, language, genealogy, history of origin, migration, settlement, socio-political and religious organization. Khoibu people have Christian worship hymnal and the Bible written/translated in our own dialect. Shri. Rajat Kanti Das, the famous Indian Anthropologist wrote in his book TRIBAL STUDIES OF INDIA SERIES T 129- TRIBAL SOCIAL STRUCTURE A STUDY OF THE MARING SOCIETY OF MANIPUR.

‘….the inhabitant of Khoibu, Narum are not pure Marings in the sense that they had a different tribal origin …..the dialects spoken in this villages are different from the Maring dialect’.

The distinct identity of Khoibu have been studied by many famous foreign and Indian scholars and anthropologists like Mackenzie (1856),W.McCullogh (1859), R.Brown (1873), E.W. Dunn (1886),T.C. Hudson’s The Nagas of Manipur’ (1911), R.Needham (1962), G.L.Cowgill(1964), R.K. Das’s ‘The Tribal Social Structure’ (1978), page 35 to 37, ‘Poireiton Khonthok’ translated by Moirangthem Chandra Singh, Linguistic Survey by G.A. Grierson Vol. 3, part II, First Edition 1903, Reprinted again (1967), on Tibeto-Burman family,Bodo-Naga & Kachin Group by Motilal Banarsidas, page 472 ‘…..This tribe, which is generally called Naga inhabited in few small villages on the Heirok range of Hills which separate from Burma. They have 300 houses and a population 1500. They are divided into two branches known as Khoibu and Maring. They are said to have been much more numerous than at present…’.

Characteristic of Khoibu:

The Khoibu Tribe bears some characteristic such as

*Head hunting

*Common dormitory for both male and female youth which is term as

‘Yakhang’ in Khoibu dialect.

*Socio-political in village level/village republic.

*A large quadrangular or hexagonal shield use in war or battlefield.

*Settlement in high lands.

*A crude form of agriculture practice for livelihood.


 * Every Khoibu village has defined territory, population and independent       internal and external policy exercise by the chief assisted by the village council consisted of different clans.


 * Common land ownership.