Merger of Naga (Southern) Territory with Manipur
Z. K. Pahrii | BTC, Pfutsero
Introduction: Manipur, an erstwhile Princely State of the British Raj, is situated in the extreme north-eastern corner of India. The present Manipur State (created by Indian Union) is bordered by Nagaland on the north, Mizoram on the south, Myanmar (Burma) on the east and Assam on the west. Manipur State can be sharply divided into two parts: the valley which home to Meiteis (The words Meiteis, Meeteis, Meitheis and Manipuris are used by different authors referring to the valley dwellers of Manipur excluding tribal people), and the hill territory which is the homeland of the various tribes. The State is divided into nine districts—Imphal West, Imphal East, Bishnupur, Thoubal, Ukhrul, Churachandpur, Senapati, Tamenlong, and Chandel. Four of the districts cover the entire valley, which probably made up the former independent Kingdom of Manipur before its annexation by the British. The remaining five districts were added to Manipur at different stages of the State’s organisation in the colonial period and after the independence of India [Gam A Shimray, et al, An Introduction to the Ethnic Problem in Manipur, (Nagaland: Naga Students’ Federation, Kohima, reprint, ny), p.1]. However, according to some meitei scholars like Hareshwar Goswami (2004), it was the British who ruled from 1891 to 1947, who placed a wedge amongst the people of Manipur [Hareshwar Goswami, History of the People of Manipur (Imphal: Kangla Publications, 2004), pp. 7,8,103,104 ]
I. Probable Names and Extent of the Territory of Ancient Manipur: Some confusion exists about its ancient name. The nomenclature “Manipur” is not found in the oral traditions or recorded history of the early Meiteis. The Burmese called this country Katha; the Shans called it Kasse; the Cacharies described it as Mogali, and the Assamese called it Mekheli [C.U.Atchitson, A Collection of the Treaties, Engagements and Sanads relating to India and the Neighbouring countries, Vol.XII (Delhi: Mittal Publication 1983, reprint, p.14]. Prof. Gangmumei Kabui writes: ‘in ancient times the Meiteis called their land as Kangleipak, Poreipak and Meitrapak’[Gangmumei Kabui, History of Manipur, Vol.1. Pre-Colonial Period, New Delhi: National Publishing House, 1991, p.1]. He adds that in the first recorded treaty between East India Company and Jai Singh, Raja of Manipur in 1762, the Kingdom was recorded as “Meckley”. Later on it appears that Raja Jai Singh and his successors adopted the title of ‘Manipureshwar’, the Lord of Manipur and discarded Meckley. The adoption of Manipur in the 18th century seems to be a consequence of sanskritisation. The author of this article is convinced that the name of ancient “Manipur” described by various writers is composed of the valley area whose population has been sanskritised and not the whole of the present day Manipur which includes the hill areas.
Moreover, ancient Manipur did not have a distinct territorial boundary. B. Pemberton observes: “The territories of Muneepor have fluctuated at various times with the fortunes of their princes, frequently extending…beyond the Ningthee or Khyendwen river and west to the plains of Cachar” [R. B. Pemberton, Report on the Eastern Frontier of British India, Gauhati: 1966, Reprint, pp 22,23]. Sir James Johnstones made a similar remark when he said, “the territories of Manipur varied according to the mettle of its rulers. Sometimes they held a considerable territory east of the Chindwin River in subjection, at other times only the Kubo Valley, a strip of territory inhabited not by Burmese, but by Shans” [Sir James Johnstone, My Experience in Manipur and Naga Hills, New Delhi: Mittal Publication, reprint 1971, p.81; O. Tomba, A Need to Rewrite Manipuri History, 199]. If these written histories are valid, it would mean that the fluctuating territory of the ancient Manipuri kingdom was mainly confined to the areas bordering the Burmese (Kubow Valley) and the Assamese (Brahmaputra) Valley. The hill areas of modern Manipur were not part of the ancient Manipuri kingdom.
II. Ethnic Composition: 1. The Meiteis and Pangans: The Meiteis (Manipuris) are the dominant ethnic group of the State. They are confined to the Valley. As Prof. Jyotirmoy Roy says, “The valley is the abode of the largest and the most advanced community known as the Meitheis. Ethnically, culturally and linguistically the Meitheis are an organised and consolidated community having distinctive traits of a sub-nation. They can be clearly distinguished from the people living in the hills” [Jyotirmoy Roy, History of Manipur, Calcutta: Eastlight Book House, 1973, p.188]. Before their conversion from their indigenous religion Sanamahi Laining to Hinduism in the 17th century the Meiteis were meat eaters, sacrificed animals and practised headhunting. Today some of them abstain from a few types of meat but they eat fish. Those who abstain from some meat, do not drink alcohol, observe rigid rules against ritual pollution, and revere the cow [Meithei” in The New Encyclopaedia Britannica VoI. VI, Chicago: Encyclopaedia Inc., 1977, p.764]. The Manipuri-Muslims, commonly known as Pangans, are roughly 17 percent of the state’s population. They are believed to have been brought originally from Cachar as prisoners of war by the Meiteis during the reign of King Khagenba (1597-1652) [Gam A Shimray, Op.cit., pp 3,4. Also see Hareshwar Goswami. History of, Op.cit., pp. 289,290]
There seems to have no clear traditions about the origin and migration of the Meiteis to the present site. They have a chronicle claiming Pakhangba to be their first king who ascended the throne of Manipur in 33 A.D. at Imphal Kangla. The chronicle continues till the 14th century [Hareshwar Goswami, History of the People, Op. Cit., p. 235].However, many historians doubt the authenticity of this chronicle. For example, O. Tomba, a noted Meitei scholar, says, ‘this is a concocted history because the Meiteis did not settle in Manipur before the fourteenth century’ His claim has the support of geological excavations which suggest that the entire Manipur Valley was under water till about 500 years ago. Over the years, this large wetland shrank to the present Loktak Lake due to siltation and geological uplift [O. Tomba, A Need to Rewrite Manipuri History, Imphal: Author, 1993, pp.2, 3]. Prof. Jyotirmoy Roy says that though the sea receded from that area, the valley portion of Manipur remained under water for a long time [J. Roy, History of Manipur, 1973 edn. , New Delhi: Author, 1973, p. 3].
2. The Nagas: According to oral tradition and some written records the hill tribes of Manipur were the first to come to Manipur. T. C. Hodson opined that the tribes, especially the Tangkhuls, had settled in the areas they now occupy at an early date, when the Meiteis, now their masters, were untouched by the finer arts of life [T. C. Hodson, The Naga Tribes of Manipur, op.cit., pp. 3, 4]. When the hill tribes migrated to this valley, they found it unfit for habitation because it was under water and was infested with mosquitoes. This discussion suggests that the Meiteis came later than the hill tribes did but developed themselves rapidly due to their topographical location. The Naga Tribes of Manipur have in many ways ethnic and cultural affinity with the people of Nagaland. The Kuki-Chin tribes of Manipur have affinity with the Chins of Burma (Myanmar) and the Mizos of Mizoram [Rev. R. R. Lolly, The Baptist Church in Manipur, A Historical Survey of the Mission Strategies and Development of the Baptist Church in Manipur North East India, 1894-1983, Imphal: Mrs. R. Khathingla Lolly, 1985, pp. 5, 6. Also, see T. C. Hodson, The Naga Tribes.Op.cit., 26]. While the majority Meiteis have been converted to Hinduism, a majority of the tribal people have converted to Christianity from their traditional religion, commonly known as Animism.
III. Merger of Naga Territory with Manipur: Fairly reliable records exist of the alternating relationship of hostility and friendship between the independent Naga village-states and the Meitei Maharaja. According to the Royal Chronicles of the Meiteis, in 1717-18, the Raja Garib Nawaz welcomed all the Naga chiefs and established friendship with them. The Raja entertained the Naga chiefs with good feasts and wine, and requested them to help him to attack Samjok. In 1758-59, when Burmese troops attacked Manipur and took possession of the Manipuri palace, the Manipuris fled to the Naga villages for protection, returning to their original homes after the Burmese left the country [Issues Relating to the Territorial Integrity of Manipur- A Naga Perspective, np. United Naga Council Working Group, 2002, p. 18]. It is probable that there was much interaction between the valley dwellers and the hill dwellers for centuries.
With the coming of the British, the contact between the Nagas and Meiteis intensified. In 1819, the Burmese invaded Manipur and occupied it for seven years and committed severe atrocities. The British extended help to the Meiteis and drove out the Burmese. Gambhir Singh was made the independent ruler of Manipur [Manipur Fact File 2001, Imphal: All Manipur College Teachers’ Association, 2nd edn. Aug.2001), pp. 36,37]. With the combined forces of Raja Gambhir Singh of Manipur, by 1832 the British began to intrude into the Naga territory. The Raja of Manipur gave safe passage to the British to go to Burma. In return, the British not only tolerated Raja Gambhir Singh but also assisted him with weaponry to annex a large area inhabited by the Nagas. That appears to be the starting point of a more systematic subjugation of the Nagas to the Manipuri Kingdom. The process of conquest did not happen all at once. There are many oral stories of how the Meitei Rajas invaded the villages of the Nagas. The last Poumai Naga village to be conquered by the Meitei rulers was Liyai village, probably in the late 1870s. In spite of fierce resistance, the Nagas were defeated by the more advanced and better-armed Meitei troops. In 1891, war broke out between the British and the Meiteis. The Meiteis were defeated and the British took over the whole administration of Manipur. The systematic and complete merger of the Nagas (Southern Nagas) took place after India got Independence in 1947 followed by the subsequent surrendering of Meiteis into Indian Union in 1949 and the formation of Manipur State in 1971.
In conclusion, I would like to make it clear that to suppress the historical truth by any individual or group is unjust and unwise. The unique identity and distinctive culture of each group/nation needs to be acknowledged sufficiently. It is equally important for people/group trying to assert their rights to be cautious enough so that no untoward incident/situation is created. A time has come for all us to think seriously whether to reconstruct our life and society based on the ‘past’ histories or on the experiences of the ‘present’ reality. Which way?
The hill areas of Manipur are very much as part of the kingdom of Kangleipak, just as Andabar and Nicobar Islands is India…. it’s another thing the tribals are not aware they are Indian tribe…. i think that explains… now stop this nonsense
we live peacefully in valley ok
this article is partly true, however to know the exact and unaltered history of our land please refer our scriptures”puyas”
I think u dont know about history of manipur.
Dear brothers and sisters of Manipur,
When we criticise the History of Manipur we should always refer to written DOCUMENTS and that document must be a Univasal truth. One should undrstand that one can not criticise the history in few days in fact it takes even more then one’s life just to criticise of 2000 yrs of history. I feel proud to be a Meitei that Meitei Dynasty could marked as ROYAL which is highly powerfull and organised and that also from this tiny palace The Kangla.
Yesterday’s civilization of Meiteis and Today’s civilization of Nagas is vast deference so its batter not to think of history of Manipur. Every civilization on earth begins from valley not from hill, moutain, forest or trees. The Meitei is formed of seven clains by Meitei themselves, but unfortunately, naga is formed of few tribes by Britishers and that is also not by the Quin of England… at this juncture, every educated person would clearly understand who is encountering the history of one’s KINGDOM (Manipur Kingdom). Please do not forget the term LOIPOT KABA from all the village chiefs to the King so village chief (KULLAKPA) is only for village like Khurai Lakpa, Yaiskul Lakpa, Wangkhei Lakpa and so many. It was the then administration. …. to be continued……
The sources quoted above are erratic, patchy and ill reasearched.where do these sources came from? Settlement in the valley at 15th century? Head hunting by meiteis? Burmese leaving manipur on their own? Or where they driven out?
I have read books by Hudson, ibohal, grimwood,roy, gangumei kamei etc. And also by various scholars from meitei, kuki, nagas communities. And the oral traditions of story telling, puyas and sagei puyas. Above all, the stories of the origin of legend of liangmei petanga, kabui salang maiba, mera waayungba, mera hou chongba, barter system at yaingangpokpi.
To tell you the truth, no britishers, nagas, kukis, pangals can understand the deep and rich history of meiteis. Not in their lifetime. But it doesnt mean that we are right and others are wrong. We also committed much errors and injustice to our fellow brothers, nagas, kukis etc and yet it doesnt mean we should part ways. Be aware, this place will break into a thousand pieces if we try to separate. Simply because we are one, parts of a sacred body, will be and remained such since time immemorial.
Before the The royal chronicle, cheitharol kumbaba came into existence, accounts of kangba ningthou, 1400 BC were available. Who mentioned something about excavation in kangla? Come on. You cannot simply go to the kangla to excavate. It is a very sacred place. You will get killed.
Britishers wrote after their researches, with help from local interpreters. It is mediocre, at the best.
Subjugation took place. Loipot was the norm. Records of attacks to ukhrul, mao, maram occured umpteen number of times. Outposts of meitei force at Pallel, khoubum, kanglatongbi, keithelmanbi were mentioned. Ningthou Charairongba died on his way back from one of such campaigns.
But we helped each others out during times of adversities.
Nagas territorial ambitions stem from the fact that they became masters of wherever their nomadic lifestyles took them to. Even the origin of the word nagas is disputed. It was coined arguably by the britishers or bengalis. The britishers, then indians charted their territories from the vast wilderness of assam, parts of other states.
The wily indian government know well that this contentious issue of nagalim will act as a lever to control the tribes of north east be tilting it to different positions.
How did Meiteis subjugate Angamis of KOHIMA in 1879 if Mao Maram were not under Meitei Kingdom ? Did those 2000 Meitei armies fly from Imphal to KOHIMA like birds in order to avoid direct confrontation with Mao Madam tribes ?
It think it will be an exaggerated and futile attempt to draw ourselves emotionally to the origins of our ancestors (be it naga, meitei, kuki or pangal etc). Let us be very clear, the words naga, kuki or meiteis are not the original names, they are very recent ones. Who came first or who came second does not give one group proprietorship of the territory allegedly occupied by their ancestors. Can we claim part of southern China or central China or northern Burma or for that matter Mongolia as our territory based on some traditional folklore says we originated from somewhere that area. If Pre Bristish Manipur in the 1700s did not have a definite boundary, so as the case with Nagas or Kukis. More than 90% of ancestors of today’s Naga tribes did not identify themselves as Naga some 200 years back because there was nothing called Naga or Naga territory except that multitudes of independent tribal chieftains control their own tribe villages. Please dont attempt to fabricate history as there is none before the Raj. What ever available, who ever claims, are the hearsay and personal opinions of the writers. The Puyas and cheitharol Kumbaba were also written very late and their tall claim of thousands of years old is all fabrication. However, the Meitei tribe fortunately had certain recorded history while none of the other tribal groups has any. So let us not fabricate part of history which can not be verified to alienate one tribe from another. This does nothing good for the Nagas, Meiteis or the Kukis.
[An extract to an article by Prof.Gangmumei Kamei posted on Hueiyen Lanpao(English edition) on February14,2012]:
On February 1, 1826, Gambhir Singh at the head of the Manipur Levy arrived at the western bank of the Ningthee (Chindwin) river, the natural boundary between Manipur and Burma. The Burmese fled from the entire area. The inhabitants fled. They allowed the Manipur prisoners to escape. They left behind their cattle. A historian writes, ” From the standpoint of Gambhir Singh and his Manipur Levy, the liberation of Manipur was complete on February 1, 1826 with the occupation of Kabaw valley”. And the First Anglo-Burmese war was concluded by the Treaty of Yandabu signed on February, 24 1826. Art. 2 of the Treaty recognized the independence of Gambhir Singh as the King of Manipur.
The Manipur Levy which was increased to 3000 men was equipped, trained and commanded by the British military officer, F.J. Grant and Francis Jenkins. The soldiers of the Levy were paid by the British. The Manipur Levy was used for the subjugation of the hill tribes of Manipur 1862-29, the defeat of the Khasi rebels 1830. The conquest of Kohima (Thiboma) in the military expeditions to Naga Hills 1832-1833
“Cheitharol kumbaba: the royal chronicle” deals chronologically with the life, times and event during the reign of 76 kings-from lord Pakhangba (33 A.D.) to Maharajah Bodhchandra(1955 A.D.).This article mentions it to be continued till 14th century which is absolutely false. Please know the history of Manipur first before writing any article related to it.
That the so called Manipur territory was confined only in the valley areas is verified by the forceful conversion of his subjects to Vaishnavite Hinduism by Pamheiba(Garibniwaz) in the early 18th AD. The repeated Burmese attack on Manipur never even once affected the hills. As for the exonym “Naga” coming at a very later stage, the late enlightenment of the Race is the reason which in no way stands in the way to legitimacy.That the Nagas could not build an empire or a kingdom should neither disqualify them to identify with their common Race all across.We cannot either deny the facts that the Nagas depended and interacted largely on the Keithei, the katha or kasse called by the Burmese.
All knowledge shared about the relationship between naga, meitei and kuki in the above articles are only half truth cooked with half false carefully design to befool the indigenous bloodlines inhabiting the region by pedofile bloodline invaders known as Aryan. The purpose of all the cooked up was to segregate the blood brothers. Come-on lookup all the happening in the past. Doesn,t anyone see divide and rule going on for so long, making us weak by hating and fighting one another. Are we that blind not to see the real enemy infecting us for so long. Come on brothers we are much better then these. Let’s wakeup from this slumber and feel the reality together. It’s time we shine together. Belive one another unconditionally, forgive the past mistakes and bring the love back to each other and see the truth starts to come within. Belive me we are all blood brothers related to one another in truth. Pls heal the past first. And it will come out slowly but surely. It’s never been lost , it’s just that we forgot to reconnect after a long slumber. Love and peace to all my Highlander brothers called by diff identity be it the chin kuki, naga brothers and meitei. Salon
Let’s not blindly follow the story cooked by outsiders called his story. Our story is in our blood, language and our land habited by our common ancestor. We can find glimpse of our past in myths, songs , lifestyle , culture. Know that the entire Mongoloid stock right from west Bengal to Vietnam are all true brothers of a single bloodline. We were divided into rouge nations to subjugate and made to belive that we are different. Soon we are all going to see the truth coming out. Disclosure is on the way.