The term Old Kukis has long been applied to the clans which suddenly appeared in Cachar about 1800, the cause of which eruption I have explained when dealing with the history of the Lushais, but Dr. Grierson in the Linguistic Survey has included in this group a number of clans which had long been settled in Manipur territory, and my enquiries all go to prove the correctness of this classification. It appears practically certain that the ancestors of the Old Kukis and the Lushais were related and lived very close together somewhere in the centre of the hills on the banks of the Tyao and Manipur rivers. The Old Kuki clans of Manipur seem to have been the first to move, as records of their appearance there are found in the Manipur chronicle as early as the sixteenth century, and, though the chronology of the chronicle is not beyond suspicion, I think this may be taken as proof that these clans appeared in Manipur a good deal earlier than their relations the Bete and Rhangkhol entered Cachar. What the cause of this move was it is impossible to say. Probably quarrels with their neighbours, coupled with a desire for better land, combined to cause the exodus, and the movement, once started, had to continue till the clans found a haven of rest in Manipur, as their relatives did centuries later in British territory; for they were small, weak communities, at the mercy of the stronger clans, through whose lands they passed.

All these Old Kuki clans are organised far more democratically than the Lushais or Thados. Lieut. Stewart in his Notes on Northern Cachar says:—“There is no regular system of government among the Old Kukis and they have no hereditary chiefs as among the New ones. A headman called the ‘ghalim’ is appointed by themselves over each village, but he is much more a priest than a potentate, and his temporal power is much limited. Internal administration among them always takes a provisional form. When any party considers himself aggrieved, he makes an appeal to the elders, or the most powerful householders in the village, by inviting them to dinner and plying them with victuals and wine.”

Among the clans which settled early in Manipur, each village has been provided with a number of officials with high-sounding titles and little power, in imitation of the Manipur system. Among those who have settled in British territory the ghalim has been transformed into the “gaonbura”—i.e., head of the village—and has acquired a certain amount of authority, whilst among the Khawtlang and Khawchhak clans, which after various vicissitudes, including a more or less lengthy sojourn among the Lushais, recently entered Manipur territory, the ghalim has become a feeble imitation of a Lushai lal.

The Old Kuki Clans of Manipur.

Under this heading I propose dealing with the Aimol, Anal, Chawte, Chiru, Kolhen, Kom, Lamgang, Purum, Tikhup, and Vaiphei, who are now found in various parts of the hills bordering the Manipur valley, and who resemble each other in very many respects. In spite of this resemblance, the clans, while acknowledging their relationship to one another, keep entirely apart, living in separate villages and never intermarrying.

In the Manipur chronicle the Chiru and Anal are mentioned as early as the middle of the sixteenth century, while the Aimol make their first appearance in 1723. They are said to have come from Tipperah, but at that time the eastern boundary of Tipperah was not determined, and the greater part of the present Lushai Hills district was supposed to be more or less under the control of the Rajah of that State. A short distance to the east of Aijal there is a village site called Vai-tui-chhun—i.e., the watering place of the Vai—which is said to commemorate a former settlement of the Vaiphei. It seems probable, therefore, that the Aimol and Vaiphei left their former homes in consequence of the forward movement of the Lusheis. The remaining tribes all claim to have come from various places to the south of Manipur—the Anal from the Haubi peak, the Chiru from “the Hranglal hill far away in the south,” the Kom from the Sakripung hill in the Chin Hills; the other clans can give no nearer definition of the home of their forefathers than far away to the south. Like the Lushais, they all assert that they are descended from couples who issued out of the earth, the Chhinglung of the Lushais being replaced by “Khurpui”—i.e., the great hole.

The Anal assert that two brothers came out of a cave on the Haubi peak, and that the elder was the ancestor of the Anals, while the younger went to the valley of Manipur and became king of the valley. Another tradition says that the Manipuris, Anals, and Thados are the descendants of three men, whose father was the son of Pakhangba, the mythical snake-man ancestor of the Manipuri royal family, who, taking the form of an attractive youth, overcame the scruples of a maiden engaged in weeding her jhum (compare Hodson’s “Meitheis,” page 12). These legends were probably invented after the clans had come in contact in order to account for the resemblances between them. The Chiru claim to be descended from Rezar, the son of Chongthu, the ancestor of the clan of that name still found in the Lushai Hills, whose name also appears in the Thado pedigree. The Lamgang tell the following tale:—On the Kangmang hill, away to the south, there is a cave. Out of this came a man and a woman, and were eaten up by a tiger which was watching. A god who had two horns, seeing this horrible sight, came out and drove away the tiger, and so the next couple to emerge escaped and became the ancestors of the Lamgang. The Purum claim to be descended from Tonring and Tonshu, who issued from the earth. It is said that “Pu rum” means “hide from tiger,” which connects them closely with the Lamgang legend. The Kolhen’s ancestors were a man and woman who sprang out of Khurpui provided with a basket and a spear, and lived at Talching, and had a son and daughter called Nairung and Shaithatpal, the direct descendants of whom are said still to be found among the Kolhen.

The Chawte told me the tale of the peopling of the world out of a hole in the ground, adding the graphic touch that an inquisitive monkey lifted up a stone which lay over the opening, and thus allowed their ancestors to emerge.

It is not quite clear whether these clans are eponymous. The Chiru say that their clan is named after an ancestor, but can give no pedigree. The Aimol say that there is no general name for the various families, and that Aimol is the name of the village site. It is probably Ai-mual. “Ai” is the Lushai name of a berry and also means crab, and appears in Ai-zawl or Aijal. “Mual” is the Lushai for a spur of a hill. It is a very common, in fact almost a universal, custom to call a new village site, if it has no recognised name, after the site of the old village, and probably the original Aimual would be found in the centre of the Lushai Hills.

All these clans have come much under Manipuri influence, and the Chiru, Aimol, Kolhen, Chawte, Purum, and Tikhup have abandoned the ancestral architecture, and now live in houses built on raised earthen plinths like the Manipuris.

The remaining clans still adhere to the ancient style, their houses being raised some four or five feet off the ground on posts. The walls are of planks, and the roofs of thatching grass; they remind one much of the Falam houses. Round each village are clustered the granaries—small houses raised well off the ground and placed sufficiently far from the dwelling houses to make them fairly safe from fire. Where the houses are raised sufficiently pigs and poultry live under them; but cattle sheds are common, most of these clans having learnt the value of cows and buffaloes from the Manipuris. The handsome breed of goats so common in a Lushai village is seldom if ever seen, but animals of an inferior sort are generally kept.

The Chiru, Kom, and Tikhup still build zawlbuks. No woman is allowed to enter these buildings, which, besides being the dormitories of the unmarried men, are used for drinking bouts. They are externally very like those built by the Lushais, but have several fireplaces evidently used for cooking, and the general hearth in the centre is absent. Some of the clans which do not now build zawlbuks say that they believe their forefathers did so. In the absence of the zawlbuk the young men generally sleep in the houses of well-to-do villagers, but among the Purum I am told that “if a man has one unmarried son and one unmarried daughter, the boy goes to sleep at the house of a man who has an unmarried daughter; though they sleep in this way they are very careful about their characters.” Have we here stumbled on the real origin of the “young men’s house”—a desire to prevent incest? The young women also have houses in which they gather at time of festivals, but they do not sleep there.

The rotchem, the Lushai mouth-organ, is found among all these clans, but rather smaller and ornamented with fowls’ feathers. The Anal make a speciality of long bamboo trumpets, on which they perform with considerable skill, producing sounds indistinguishable from those of a bugle. The trumpets are from four to five feet long, and have bell-shaped mouths made of gourds.

Most of these clans have adopted various dances from the Manipuris, their own dancing being of the monotonous nature common to the Lushais and Kukis.

In dress and method of wearing the hair Manipuri influence is also noticeable, the men generally wearing coats and loin-cloths and turbans. The women are more conservative and adhere to the short petticoat. The hair is generally worn very much in the Lushai fashion, but the Chiru men are an exception to this. They part their hair in the middle and brush it down straight, and trim it level with the bottom of the ears. They bind a narrow fillet of cane round the head slightly above the eyes. The Kolhen women gather the hair into two heavy rolls, which hang down in front of each ear. The Tikhup maidens have adopted the Manipuri method of dressing the hair.

The ivory discs worn in the ears by Lushai women are not found, but metal rings are worn in a similar manner by both sexes.

The Manipuris have instituted in each village a number of posts with high-sounding titles, similar to those in use among themselves, but traces of the older organisation are to be found. Thus the Aimol recognise a man called Thompa, of the Chomgom family, as the head of the clan, but he has no power and receives nothing, while in each village are four officials who receive a portion of every animal killed in the chase. They are called “kamzakhoi,” “zakachhunga,” “zupalba,” and “pakanglakpa.” The last two titles have a distinctly Manipuri sound about them. The usual titles found are “khul-lakpa”—i.e., chief of the village—“lup-lakpa,” “zupalba,” and “Methei lumbu”—i.e. Manipuri interpreter—but there are others. The khul-lakpa and lup-lakpa are hereditary posts. Among the Lamgang there are seven such hereditary posts. Among the Chiru the khul-lakpa, besides receiving a portion of each animal killed, also gets his house built for nothing, which brings him very near to the Lushai “lal.” Among the Kolhen the khul-lakpa’s and lup-lakpa’s posts are not hereditary, but on the death of either his successor must be chosen out of the same family, but his sons are ineligible. The new official has to give a feast, killing a pig, which is eaten by the whole community, and the young men and maidens make merry with dance and song. It seems probable that in this may be some idea of averting the evil effects of a breach of the generally accepted custom.

The puithiam is known as “thempu,” “khulpu,” or “bulropa,” and both he and the blacksmith are sometimes rewarded, receiving a day’s labour from each householder they serve, instead of a donation of rice.

The Lushai system of “boi” is generally unknown, which is only natural in such democratic communities.

The following animals are not generally eaten—tigers, snakes, cats, crows, or kites; and among the Lamgang the rat is also considered unfit for food.

Each clan is divided into eponymous families and generally marriage is restricted to the clan, but alliances within the family are prohibited. The Aimol clan is divided into five families—Chongom, Laita or Mangte, Khoichung or Leivon, Lanu, and Chaita. Marriage is unrestricted, but it is unusual for either sex to marry without the clan. The Kolhen are divided into twelve exogamous families divided into two groups, which are also exogamous (v. below, under Festivals, page 167), but marriage outside the clan is prohibited. Among the Anal, Purum, and Lamgang marriages must be made within the clan, but not within the family.

The Tikhup clan, which only numbers some twenty households, is not sub-divided, but marriage is endogamous. The union of first cousins, either paternal or maternal, is prohibited. The elders of the clan attributed the steady decline in their numbers to this custom of endogamy.

The Chiru and Chawte customs are alike; not only is a young man’s choice limited to some family in the clan other than his own, but the actual families from which he may choose his bride are strictly fixed.

Among the Chiru—

• A Danla lad may marry a Dingthoi or Shangpa girl.
• A Dingthoi lad may marry a Chongdur or Danla girl.
• A Rezar lad may marry a Danla girl.
• A Shangpa lad may marry a Dingthoi or Danla girl.
• A Chongdur lad may marry a Danla girl.

Danla is the family from which the khul-lakpa must be taken, and Rezar has already been noticed as the son of Chongthu, from whom the Chiru claim descent.

Among the Chawte—

• A Marem lad may only marry a Makhan girl.
• A Makhan lad may only marry an Irung girl.
• A Kiang lad may only marry a Makhan or Marem girl.
• An Irung lad may only marry a Marem, Thao, or Kiang girl.
• A Thao lad may only marry a Makhan girl.

Among the Aimol, Anal, Chiru, and Purum, a young man has to serve his future wife’s father for three years, during which he works as if he were a son of the house. During this period he has free access to the girl, though among the Chiru he continues to sleep among the bachelors. Should the girl become enceinte the marriage ceremony must be performed, and the price paid. Among the Aimol the bride’s eldest brother gets Rs. 6/- and each of the others one rupee less than his immediate senior. The paternal and maternal uncles receive Rs. 2/- each; the aunt and the elder sister also receive Rs. 1/- each as “niman” and “nao-puan-puk-man,” as among the Lushais. Among the Anal and the Purum, the price must not be less than a pig and a piece of iron a cubit in length, but the girl’s relatives try to get as much more as they can. The bridegroom has also to feast the family of his bride three times on pork, fowls, and rice, washed down, of course, with plenty of zu. The Chiru girls are only valued at one gong.

Among the other clans, marriage is by simple purchase. A Chawte maiden can be obtained for a spear, a dao, and a fowl, the payment being sealed by the consumption of much zu. The price of a Kolhen girl is a gong and Rs. 7/- to her mother, and Rs. 7/- each to the elder and younger brother and the maternal uncle. This is most curious, for the father is entirely omitted. Can it be a survival of mother right? The Kom girls are valued very high, the father receiving one gong, four buffaloes, fifteen cloths, a hoe, and a spear, the aunt taking a black and white cloth. A Lamgamg bridegroom has to pay his father-in-law three pigs or buffaloes or cows, one string of conch shell beads, one lead bracelet, and one black or blue petticoat. A Tikhup father expects a gong, ten hoes, one dao, and one spear; the maternal grandfather also demands Rs. 7/-.

The price of a Vaiphei girl varies between two and ten mithan. To a certain extent the price of the girls may be taken as an indication of the relative importance of the clan. Marriage by servitude is not found among either the Lushai or the Thado clans; its appearance among the Old Kukis is therefore curious, for as a rule the customs of a clan will be found to resemble those of one or the other of these two main divisions of the Kuki-Lushai race.

Polygamy is, as a rule, permitted. Among the Anal and Lamgang, the first wife is entitled to the company of her husband for five nights, the second for four, and the third for three. It is not quite clear how a second marriage by servitude can be carried out, and probably the rules are modified in such cases. Polygamy is but little practised on account of the expense; among the Kolhen it is prohibited.

In most of these clans the Thado rule of inheritance is followed—viz., the eldest son takes all his father’s property, the younger sons only getting what the heir chooses to give them. Among the Anal and Purum, and probably also the Lamgang, the sons of the deceased divide the property, but the youngest son takes the house and supports the widow, thus approximating to the Lushai custom.

In most clans the father of an illegitimate child is fined. Among the Chiru the fine is a pig, a mithan, and two gongs.

Divorce is generally easily obtained. Among the Aimol, if either party repents of the bargain, the payment of a cloth and three pots of zu annuls the contract. Among the Tikhup the cost of divorce is a mithan and a gong. The Anal and most of the other clans insist on the question being submitted to the village officials, who receive fees according to their position, and settle what compensation, if any, shall be paid to either party. As a rule it is very difficult for a woman to obtain a divorce unless her husband agrees, even though he may be extremely unfaithful and brutal. Among the Anal she must give a feast to the village or pay her husband Rs. 50/-.

In case of a wife being led astray the injured husband recovers her price or an equivalent amount (among the Tikhup twice the price) from her seducer. In this the Thado custom is followed, which is more just than that of the Lushais, but not so conducive to morality, for among the the Lushais the whole of the woman’s family are interested in keeping her from committing herself and are loud in condemnation should she do so, as they have to refund the various sums they have received on her behalf, whereas among the Thado the seducer simply pays up the price and takes the woman, who is thought very little the worse of—in fact, among the clans which follow this apparently more just custom, women hold a far lower position, being traded from one to another, unless they have influential male relatives who take an interest in them.

All these clans have been given definite sites in Manipur and have practically abandoned the migratory habits of their forefathers, and therefore the idea of property in land, which is entirely absent in the case of the Lushais, is fast springing up. Many villages are moving nearer to the plain in order that the people may take leases from the State of land in the valley and carry on plough cultivation, but they also do a certain amount of jhuming, and proprietary rights in jhum lands are recognised.

The punishment for theft is arranged much on the Lushai system of the theft of certain articles having a fixed fine attached to it. This is generally a pig, two jars of zu, and a brass plate. Among the Chiru the whole fine is consumed by the people of the village, the thief also getting his share. The Kolhen punishment is a fine of Rs. 28/-, a pig, and two jars of zu. In case of rice being stolen, the Tikhup custom is that the village officials at once kill and eat the pig of the thief and then make him pay a mithan as compensation to the complainant. Thefts of minor articles are generally punished by the thief providing a pig and zu for the entertainment of his judges. Manslaughter is punished by the payment of compensation, the amount varying considerably. The Anal demand a mithan and a gong, the Chiru a mithan and a cloth, the Kolhen three mithan, a brass pot, a pig, and two pots of zu, the Lamgang four gongs, ten jars of zu, and a big pig. Petty assaults are punished by fines of pigs and zu. A false charge is often punished by a fine of zu. Most of these clans declare that sodomy is unknown among them, the very notion appearing to them highly absurd.

All disputes and accusations are disposed of by the village officials, who meet sometimes in the house of the khul-lakpa and sometimes at a special spot outside the village where stone seats have been prepared.

Since the settlement of these clans in Manipur territory all raiding and fighting has been stopped, so that they have practically forgotten what were the habits of their forefathers in these respects, but the Kom declare that in the good old days the young Kom warriors went off on head-hunting expeditions, and if successful adorned the village gate with the trophies of their prowess; and there is no reason to doubt that, in spite of their present peaceable behaviour, the previous history of these clans was not less full of raids and counter-raids than that of their neighbours.

The general religious beliefs of these clans show a great resemblance to each other and also to that of the Lushais. Pathian is universally recognised as the creator who lives in the sky, though the name is slightly different, appearing as Pathel among the Anal and Kolhen, and Patheng among the Kom. Mi-thi-khua is generally known as the place of departed spirits, but the Chiru and Tikhup have no idea of a place of greater comfort for the spirits of warriors, though the Chiru believe that the spirits of those that die unnatural deaths go to a separate and inferior place, while those of the other dead go westwards into the sky. The Anal, Kolhen, and Lamgang believe that, after hovering around the grave for some time, the spirit is reincarnated in some new-born child, but that an unnatural death prevents this and the spirit passes away skywards and returns no more. The belief in a being or beings which trouble the spirits on their way to Mi-thi-khua, as Pupawla does with his pellet bow, is very general. The Aimol call him Ramcharipu, and say that he makes the spirits of all, except “Thangchhuah,” kill a certain number of lice in his head. The Vaiphei say that a male and a female being guard the road and trouble and detain the spirits of those who have not attained the honours of Thangchhuah. With the exception of the Tikhup, all the clans believe in demons, which they call by various names and which correspond exactly with the Huai of the Lushais. The Aimol call these devils Numeinu, Thanglian Borh, Tuikuachoi. “Numeinu” means mother of woman Borh brings to memory the infantile illness called by that name by the Lushais, while “Tuikuachoi” is evidently the Tui-huai. The Aimol and Chiru perform the Daibawl sacrifices in the same manner as the Lushais. The Chawte sacrifice pigs and fowls in case of sickness, but the Khal sacrifices are quite unknown to any Old Kuki clans. Lashi is known to the Aimol and Vaiphei. Among the former the Sakhua sacrifices are performed to this deity, and he is capable of giving success in the chase. The Vaiphei place Lashi almost on a par with Pathian and sacrifice a pig to him every year. Strange to say, he is supposed to have only one leg. The Sakhua chant of the Vuite commences with an invocation to all the wild animals to collect.

In nearly every clan there is an annual festival in honour of the souls of those who have died during the year, but in no case is the Mi-thi-rawp-lam or any similar festival included in the series of Thangchhuah feasts.

The Aimol sacrifice either a pig or a goat to Lashi as their Sakhua. The Chawte have been much influenced by Manipuris, and I was first told that the names of their gods were Pakhangba and Nungchongba, but on a little further enquiry I found that Pakhangba was always called Pathian when talking among themselves. The other deity is probably the Manipuri god Nungshaba (“The Meitheis,” Hodson, page 98).

Above the hamlet was an oval, level space with a low wall round it. At the eastern end was a small house in which were two stones. This was the abode of Pakhangba, and to one side was Nungchongba’s dwelling place, which consisted of three small stones, with a fourth one placed on the top. In front of these a bull is sacrificed once in three years, and dancing and singing take place every year after the harvest. The Chiru believe in “Rampus,” which in some respects appear to be the same as the Lushai “Huai,” but in others they appear to be local gods. The four chief Rampus live one on Kobru, a high hill overlooking the northern extremity of the Manipur valley and called by the Manipuris the guardian of the north, one in Kangjupkhul, the village site of my informants, one on Makong hill and one in the valley of Manipur. Twice a year the Rampu of Kobra is honoured with the sacrifice of a dog, while pigs, fowls, or goats are offered to the others. In July a dog is killed in honour of the first three and a pig in honour of the last-named. In case of very serious illness, when the Daibawl sacrifices have proved unavailing, special sacrifices are made to the three chief Rampus above mentioned. These four Rampus are evidently nearer to local godlings than the multitudinous and ill-defined Huais of the Lushais. In July Pathian also is honoured, a pig being killed on behalf of the whole village, while each household sacrifices a fowl. The day is held sacred, no work being done. It is known as Chapui-chol-lai—i.e., holiday in the great heat. The four Rampus can only have come into prominence since the settlement of the hamlet at Kangjupkhul, and it is probable that different ones are worshipped by other hamlets. The Chiru also perform Sakhua sacrifices as the Lushais do. The Tikhup denied all knowledge of any devils or semi-divine beings, saying that they worshipped Pathian and him only. Every year in Phalgun they sacrifice a pig and a cock to Pathian, and much zu is drunk. In cases of sickness sacrifices of pigs or fowls and offerings of flowers, eggs, and rice are made to Pathian. Dogs are never sacrificed. I think this is the only clan in which they are not. I failed to find out the cause of this.

In the other clans the sacrifices are combined with festivals either in connection with the crops, the dead, or Thangchhuah, and are not simply in honour of the god.

The puithiam of the Lushais becomes “thempu” and in some clans “khulpu.” The last name seems to indicate his responsibility for protecting the village from all ills and misfortunes by performing the necessary sacrifices (khul = village, pu = protector). He appears here as one of the village officials, which is the natural result of the inhabitants of each village being all of the same clan, instead of many clans, as among the Lushais. The functions and methods of the thempu and khulpu appear to be the same as those of his Lushai confrÈre. There are various restrictions imposed on pregnant women. Among the Anal she may not eat chillies or honey, and her husband must not touch a snake or a corpse. The Kolhen prohibit her from killing a snake, attending a funeral ceremony, and eating a crab, eggs, and a certain vegetable called “chak” in its young state. The Lamgang also debar her from touching a corpse, but the prohibited articles of food are a sort of fish called “ngarin” and a small animal which I have not succeeded in identifying. The birth ceremonies are much alike; in every clan there is a period during which the woman, and in some cases the house, is “sherh.” During this time the mother’s movements are restricted in some way.

Among the Aimol the period is five days in case of a boy, and three in case of a girl; among the Anal and Purum, three days in both cases; among the Chawte, Kom, and Vaiphei, five. Among the Chiru the period is extended to ten days, during which the mother must not go out and no one but near relations may enter the house. Among the Kolhen the period is also ten days, but all women of the village may enter the house; the mother must eat no flesh, and fowls only may be sacrificed. Cohabitation is prohibited for three months. Among the Tikhup the restriction on the mother’s movements lasts only till the disposal of the afterbirth by special persons who clean up the house; till this is done no one may take a light from the fire or remove any article from the house. In every case at the conclusion of this period there is a sacrifice. The custom of the Aimol is for the “thempu” to pour out a libation of zu and herbs in front of the house and invoke the child’s spirit to take up its residence within the new-born infant. The name is given at the same time, the father’s family choosing the name of a son and the mother’s of a daughter. On the day of the birth of an Anal child, the “khulpu” is called, and after he has muttered certain incantations, zu and fish are distributed to the whole village. All sacrificing is prohibited for three days, and cohabitation for three months. When distributing the zu and fish, the household gods—i.e., the Sakhua—are invoked and the soul of the child is summoned. Among the Chawte the thempu attends on the day of the birth, and sacrifices a fowl and sips zu. He then mutters incantations over a piece of turmeric which is then thrown out of the house. On the fifth day a fowl is killed, and as the name selected is pronounced three grains of rice are dropped into a cup of water, and if they sink the name is approved, but if they float another one must be selected and tested in the same manner.

The Chiru ceremonies are more elaborate. After ten days the thempu comes to the house, a rakeng tree is planted in front of it, and then the thempu sacrifices a hen on behalf of the mother, and a cock or a hen, according to the sex of the child, on its behalf. The parents eat the flesh of the birds, and the sherh and bones are buried in the house. Two or three pots of zu are consumed by married persons. The thempu, taking some zu in his mouth, goes round inside the house, blowing it out on the walls and muttering charms. The mother can now leave the house, but for three or four days must not leave the village. The “keng-puna” or “ming-puna”—i.e., “name-giving”—takes place almost immediately. Two cocks or hens, according to the sex of the infant, are killed by the thempu, and their blood smeared on the infant’s forehead and navel, some of the feathers being tied in its hair. The Kolhen pierce the child’s ears and give the name on the tenth day, the ceremony being the same as among the Chiru on that day. The maternal grandfather is expected to give the child a pair of brass earrings, bracelets, leg ornaments, and a string of glass beads, and it is generally named after him—a custom also followed by the Koms, who combine the name-giving and ear-piercing, giving a feast for the purpose, on the expiration of the five days’ sherh. The ear-piercing is done by the paternal aunt. The Lamgang ceremonies are the same as those of the Anal, but the father is prohibited from eating the flesh of fowls during the sherh period, while the mother is under no restriction as regards diet. No other animal may be sacrificed during that time, and cohabitation is not allowed for one month. The Purum customs are severely simple. The thempu comes and mutters charms on the day of the birth, and returns on the third day and makes a libation of zu. No sacrifices are allowed. The name is given on the second day by the midwife, and the ears are pierced on the seventh day, but in neither case is there any ceremony. The Tikhup give the name at a feast, to which the elders of the community are invited; a cock is killed and zu dispensed freely. In case of the parents being poor, this feast may be postponed till the child is two years old.

The custom of summoning the child’s soul reminds one of the Lushai prohibition of labour on the part of the parents for seven days after the child’s birth, lest its soul, which hovers around them during that period, be injured.

Ceremonies connected with marriage. Where marriage is by service, it is only natural that the actual ceremony should be of little importance, for the couple have been living as man and wife during the whole time; but there are exceptions.

At an Aimol wedding two thempus are necessary—one of the bridegroom’s, and one of the bride’s family. Each kills a cock, the feathers of which are tied round the necks of the happy pair, after which there is the usual orgy. The Chiru and Tikhup custom is almost identical, but the village thempu officiates alone. Among the Kolhen, the young man’s mother makes six visits to the parents of her future daughter-in-law, taking an offering of zu, and being accompanied by her eldest son-in-law or other male relative, and on the last occasion by two or three women. Two days after the last visit, the price is fixed, and the day for the ceremony chosen by the bridegroom’s father and the village officials. The bridegroom, on the day before that fixed for the marriage, goes to the girl’s house, accompanied by several male friends, and makes a present of three pots of zu to her parents. The next morning the bride, accompanied by the unmarried girls of the village, goes to her future home, taking with her two jars of zu, a hen, a piece of ginger, a dog, a strap for carrying loads, a new cloth, and a bracelet. She parts from her friends, with many tears, on the doorstep of her new home. The khulpu decapitates a fowl and throws it down; if the right leg falls over the left a happy married life is assured. The night is spent in singing and dancing, and the following night in the same way, but in the house of the bride, who on the next morning quits her father’s house for good. On the day of the marriage the bride and bridegroom must not leave the village. This taking of omens by killing a cock is practised by the Lamgang and Kom. Where marriage is not by service the preliminaries in all clans resemble much those among the Kolhen. Among the Vaiphei, and, I think, in some other clans, the young man has to give a feast to the young men frequenting the same dormitory. A similar custom is described in Fielding Hall’s “The Inward Light,” page 104, as existing in Burma. “It is an old custom for the village boys to band themselves together in a company.... But when one marries he ceases to belong to the company, for he is about to enter into another and a wider life. He is a deserter and a traitor to his fellows. Therefore they lay in wait for him and caught him as he went home at night, and, taking him without the village gate, they tried him and found him guilty. With mock ceremony he was condemned to be turned out from their ranks, and to pay a fine wherewith his comrades might drown their sorrow at his desertion. Then with laughter and song, to the light of torches, they took him home in long procession.”

Widows are allowed to remarry, but as a rule the brothers of the deceased husband have a prior claim, and if the woman marries anyone else before the annual feast in honour of the dead she has to pay a fine, which in some clans is as much as Rs. 120/-, to her brother-in-law. Until this annual feast has come round she must remain in her late husband’s house, but when that has been performed she may return to her father’s house if she wishes to, but in that case the brother-in-law will take the dead man’s property and children.

Ceremonies connected with death. All these clans bury their dead in special cemeteries outside the village, and unnatural deaths or deaths in childbirth are universally considered signs that the deceased has failed in some way, and the corpses of such unfortunates are buried outside the cemetery and with scant ceremony.

Among the Aimol, the corpse of the khul-lakpa is carried round the village before being taken to the grave. The corpse of one who has gained honours equivalent to Thangchhuah among the Lushais is enclosed in a rough log coffin and kept for two days amid much drinking and feasting, which recalls the funeral ceremonies of a Lushei chief. With a rich man many cloths are buried and with a poor man at least one. In addition some cooked rice, zu, a dao, some meat, and a bow and arrow are deposited in the grave. The bow and arrow are a survival, for such weapons have been long obsolete. Over the grave a small house is built in which some meat and zu are placed to attract the “Khawhring.” Spears are then thrust through the house, which is then thrown away. I am not quite clear whether the “Khawhring” in this case is supposed, as among the Lushais, to have inhabited the body of the deceased, or whether it is believed to be a disembodied spirit which is on the lookout for the soul of the deceased.

Three days after the burial a wild animal is killed and zu and rice are offered, and the spirit of the deceased is asked to go away and not to trouble the living who have sacrificed and made an offering of zu and rice. The Anal make a distinction between deaths in childbirth and deaths by accident or in war. In the former case the body is buried in the cemetery, the grave being dug by those of her household, and food and drink and domestic utensils are deposited therein. The husband has to sacrifice a pig and feast the village before the burial, and the village is “sherh” for that day. The first stones and earth are placed in the grave by aged men, and the filling then completed by young men. The thempu having muttered some charms, the young men and women sing and dance for the deliverance of the soul. In cases of ordinary death the grave is dug by men not of the household, but in case of unnatural death only old grey-headed men may perform the task, and the grave is dug in the jungle and no dance or song terminates the funeral, but the village is not “sherh.”

The Chawte make their cemetery some distance from the village. The dead are buried on the day of death. Over each grave a mound is raised and fenced round with a bamboo trellis-work. A small post carved faintly to resemble the human form is placed over the grave of a man, while a hoe, axe, and winnowing fan denote the grave of a woman. On each grave rests a flat basket containing some flowers and a small jar of water. Behind each grave is a rough representation of a house raised some four feet from the ground, which is also ornamented with flowers, and some of the deceased’s clothes hang from it, while inside are placed a bamboo full of zu and a small cup, which is filled with clean water, and a handful of raw rice. These are changed every third or fourth day till the Thi-duh ceremony comes round in May, when there is a feast, and portions of meat and some zu are placed on each fresh grave.

On the death of a Chiru, guns are fired and gongs beaten, and a fowl, pig, and goat are killed at once. There is the usual funeral feast, and food and personal effects, including his comb, are buried with him. The house is “sherh” for three days, during which rice is placed in a small basket in the house and then thrown on to the grave. On the third day the house is purified by the thempu sacrificing a cock. In nearly every clan the house has to be purified by the thempu besprinkling it with either consecrated water or zu, and in many cases the funeral party are similarly purified. The Kolhen bury the bodies of those who die natural deaths in front of their houses, as do the Lushais, and the funeral feast closely resembles that held by the Lushais. The body of a khul-lakpa is carried three times round his memorial stone, from left to right. A bow and arrow are placed in the grave. The village is “sherh” for three days for any death. The Lamgang follow the same customs as the Anal, but the bodies of women who die in childbirth are not buried in the graveyard. The Kom and the Purum have the curious custom that the duty of digging the grave in case of an unnatural death falls on the son-in-law of the deceased. They say that the spirit of the dead cries out at the place where he met his death until appeased by an offering of tobacco leaves and rice. The Tikhup funeral is exactly the same as that of an ordinary Lushai. The Vaiphei dress up the corpse and strap it on to a bamboo frame, as do the Lushais, and feast around it for three days if food and drink suffice for so long. At the end of the feast the thempu pours some zu down the throat of the corpse and bids the spirit go in peace, and the body is carried to the grave, but if the deceased has attained Thangchhuah honours, it is first earned round the village. The household of the deceased abstain from washing or dressing the hair till some wild animal has been killed. The custom of giving something to the maternal grandfather or uncle on the occasion of a death, known among the Lushais as “lukawng,” is found among several clans. Among the Tikhup and Kolhen, for instance, he receives the neck of the animal killed on the occasion of the funeral, and in the last-named clan he also receives a pipe or Rs. 2/-. The custom known among the Kabui and other allied tribes in Manipur as “mandu,” which ordains that a widower shall pay his deceased wife’s father a certain sum as the price of her bones, is only found among the Kolhen, with whom it is usual to pay Rs. 5/- or 6/-. Among the Kolhen a child dying within ten days of its birth is buried under the eaves of the house, and is called “thichhiat” equivalent to the “hlamzuih” among the Lushais.

Festivals. 1. Connected with Crops.—The Tikhup, the only monotheistic clan in the hills, have no ceremonies connected with the crops, but allow no dancing, singing, or music in the village between the sowing and the reaping.

Among the other Old Kuki clans there is a great resemblance between the festivals, and their connection with the Lushai “Kuts” can be easily traced—in some cases, as among the Kom, the name being actually the same.

A festival which is common to several clans and generally takes place in the spring, though sometimes later, and is supposed to ensure good crops and good luck generally, is known by various similar names, all meaning “Pulling the Creeper.”

Kolhen “Keidun” Festival.—This occurs in April. The first day, called “Karamindai,” or “Changritakhoi,” is occupied by the young men going off to bring in two long creepers. A fowl and a pig are sacrificed and the creepers are hung over a post. On the next day the creepers are brought to the khul-lakpa’s stone, and he, saying certain charms, pours out a libation of rice beer, and then a tug of war takes place between two parties selected as follows:—On one side are all the young men of the khul-lakpa’s family—viz., the Chongthu—and on the other those of the Jete, to which the lup-lakpa belongs. With the Chongthu pull the young men of the following families—viz., Tulthung, Maite, Tiante, Laishel, Songchungnung, while with the Jete are associated the young men of the Lunglai, Rembual, Mirem Tumtin, and Vanbie. The girls of each family pull on the opposite side to the young men of their family. While the pull is in progress the khul-lakpa sings a song, and when he reaches a certain point the rope is cut in two by a man who stands waiting with a dao. The pull is repeated with the second creeper, and each party carries off the ends it has retained. Marriages are only allowed between the young people who pull on the same side, with the exception of the Chongthu, who, being of the chief’s family, may marry a girl of any family except their own. During the festival no work of any sort must be done, but otherwise there are no restrictions as regards villagers or strangers, but the khul-lakpa must abstain from work and from cohabitation for two or three days before. Should a death occur a day or two before the date fixed for the festival, the fact will not be recognised till the completion of the feast, when the funeral ceremonies will take place as if the death had occurred on that day, the corpse being kept outside the village during the interval.

The Anal and Lamgang, as usual, observe the festival in a similar manner. The creeper having been brought to the gate of the village, the headmen and the thempu receive it, and the latter, muttering prayers, pours over it a libation of rice beer, and then ties a piece of it to the gate. The remainder is cut up and a piece is tied to each house in the village. The thempu goes round at night throwing a piece of turmeric into each house and calling out as he throws each piece, “From to-day may all evil and misfortune run away from this house.”1

The Purum celebrate the festival in August, and the unmarried girls take a prominent part in the ceremony. A raised platform is made before the house of the eldest unmarried girl in the village. (In a community where there is no dearth of husbands, and every girl is sure of being married in due course, the prominence given to the eldest spinster is not objected to as it might be in an English village.) On this platform the girls assemble, and the creeper after the usual ceremonies is tied to the platform, and there is a great feast with much dancing between the young folk.

The similarity between these festivals and the “Koi-hrui-an-chat,” mentioned under the Ngente, bears out the truth of the tradition that these clans long ago were near neighbours.

The Chiru at the time of cutting the jhums go in procession with drums and gongs to the place chosen and on their return drink much rice beer. In March or April, before the sowing, a festival called “Arem” is celebrated. On the first day a dog is killed at a stone to the west of the village, and a pig to the north in the direction of the hill Kobru. All the men attend, but no women. The animals are killed by the thempu. The flesh is eaten there by the whole party, and the “sherh” are left at the place of sacrifice. There is then a drinking party in the house of the thempu. On the second day all the young men go and catch fish, and on their return they are entertained with two pots of rice beer by the unmarried girls. On the third day the lup-lakpa gives a feast of meat and rice, washed down by much rice beer, to the men only, and later all dance in front of the “chhirbuk”—i.e., Lushai zawlbuk.

The fourth day is spent in visiting each other, drinking and singing at each other’s houses. As soon as it is dark men and women meet before the chhirbuk and dance round the stone drinking; then they go to the lup-lakpa’s house and drink again, and then to a house where all the unmarried girls are collected and drink again, and then bring the girls to the chhirbuk and dance round the stone again, drinking as they go. This is a pretty heavy day’s work, and it speaks well for the young folk if many of them have the energy to complete the programme by drinking and dancing together on the fifth day. During the festival the village is “sherh.”

The Chawte, before cutting their jhums, sacrifice a pig and go down to the stream and sharpen their daos—“Trust in God, but keep your powder dry.” The above festivals correspond to the “Chap-char-kut” of the Lushais, and the following resemble the “Mim-kut.” The Purum in September observe “Chulkut” for five days, making and exchanging rice cakes and drinking rice beer, but not sacrificing any animals. The Kolhen observe “Chamershi” for two days in the middle of the rains—viz., in July or August. A pig and a cock are sacrificed in the khul-lakpa’s house and eaten there by men only. Old men dance, and rice beer is drunk. This feast is supposed to expel evil spirits. The Chiru in July sacrifice a pig on behalf of the village to Pathian, while each household offers him a fowl. This feast is called the “feast of the hot season rest”—i.e., the few days of leisure after the second weeding of the crops.

The Aimol, after burning the jhums, celebrate a feast they call “Lo-an-dai.” Three fowls are killed and eaten in the khulpu’s house, and rice beer is drunk, but no gong-beating or singing is allowed.

After the harvest, feasts corresponding to the Lushai “Polkut” are held, but among the Purum a feast called “Shanghong” has to be celebrated in October, just when the grain is filling in the ear. Every householder has to bring a small sheaf of the green rice, which is presented to the village god, and feasting and drinking goes on for three days, during which time the village is “sherh.” The Kolhen, before reaping the crop, carry the khul-lakpa or lup-lakpa out of the village towards the fields with beating of drums, and later drink at his expense.

The Kom call the harvest festival “Lam-kut.” It lasts three days. No sacrifice is performed, but the young men and girls dance and drink together.

Among the Chawte the custom is practically the same as among the Purum, save that the feast only lasts one day.

The Lamgang and Anal harvest festival is practically the same. In each case the best crop in the village is reaped by the whole community going to the field with dance and song, and subsequently the lucky owner of the crop has to entertain the village for three days. It would appear that all good Lamgangs and Anals must pray to have the second best crop. On the second day of the feast the consumption of meat and tobacco, the carrying of water and wood, and working with axes or hoes are tabu. The feast closely resembles the “Buh-Ai” of other clans. The Aimol custom is very different from that of the other clans. All the men go out in search of game, the flesh of which is eaten in the evening, and drums are beaten and songs sung while the rice beer circulates freely, in contrast to the feast at the sowing time. Dancing is, however, tabu. The harvest feast is called “Sherh an long.”

The Lamgang have an extra feast, or rather period of rest, when the grain is all garnered, when for ten days no one may enter or leave the village, and no work can be done, the whole energies of the community being concentrated on eating and drinking well.

2. Feasts Corresponding with the Thangchhuah Feasts of the Lushai.—The idea of “Thangchhuah” is found in some form or other in all clans. Even in those clans who have no very clear conception of a special abode for the spirits of those who have earned good fortune in the world beyond the grave by feasts and killing men and animals here below, we find feasts the giving of which confers on the giver special consideration among his fellow-villagers and entitles his corpse to special funeral honours. All these feasts seem more or less connected with the erection of some form of memorial—either a post, such as the Lushai “she-lu-pun,” which finds its counterpart among several Old Kuki clans, but among them the erection of the memorial is the important part of the ceremony, whereas among the Lushais the killing of the animal is the more important and the feast is named after that, not after the planting of the post; or a stone or a heap of stones, or a paved platform. All these are erected during a man’s life and are quite distinct from the memorials erected in memory of the deceased, and thus connect the Lushai-Kuki race with the Nagas, among whom the erection of stones is a very important function.

The “Mi-thi-rawp-lam” is not included in the Thangchhuah series by any of these clans—in fact, it seems to be omitted by all clans not living under Lushei chiefs. These all have a special annual ceremony to lay the ghosts of those who have died during the preceding year. The explanation of this seems to be that among the Lushais the clans have all been broken up and are scattered in different villages, and therefore an annual clan ceremony is not possible, and it has become a virtuous act for some wealthy member of the clan to celebrate the feast in honour of the dead of the clan. Among the clans which have retained their corporate existence the annual ceremony is natural, and therefore it is excluded from the Thangchhuah series.

The Tikhup can earn consideration after death by giving a single feast. The young men and maidens collect a big heap of stones and arrange a seat of honour near it for the giver of the feast, who is carried down on a litter. The young folk dance and sing and drink before him, and then he is carried back to the village and has to present a mithan to the young men, who feast on it for a day and a night at the house of their leader. A song is composed in honour of the giver of the feast, which is sung at all subsequent feasts.

The Lamgang, Kom, Kolhen, and Anal put up wooden posts, the Chawte erect a post and pave a piece of ground in front of it, while the Aimol put up a stone and make a pavement. Mithan and pigs are killed, and a feast given which lasts several days, the cost being met by the person ambitious of fame.

The Chiru alone seem to have no idea of Thangchhuah, and, as noted before, have no idea of a special abode for good spirits.

The Vaiphei have to give two feasts, at the first of which one, and at the second two or more, mithan are killed. The Kolhen, on occasion of putting up the post, sacrifice a mithan thus:—The thempu first throws an egg at the forehead of the mithan, muttering a charm to drive away all evil; the animal is then speared until blood is drawn, after which it may be shot. They also give the following feasts as part of the Thangchhuah ceremonies:—“Khuang-that”—i.e., “making a drum.” The first day is occupied in bringing the log which is to be hollowed into the drum; on the second there is a dance outside the house of the giver of the feast; on the third the mithan is killed after a thempu has broken the egg on its forehead, and then another thempu invokes its spirit, blowing rice-beer over the body, as at the Fanai festival, p. 138. The fourth and fifth days are occupied with feasting.

“Lungainai”—i.e., “collection of stones”—this is very similar to the Tikhup festival, with the carrying of the giver omitted; a mithan is killed as above described. The Aimol have also the drum-making feast, and another in which the giver is carried on a litter, but no heap of stones is made. On each occasion much rice-beer and flesh has to be consumed.

3. Other Feasts.—Mostly annual, if necessary provisions are forthcoming. Some of these probably have reference to the crops.

The Purum celebrate “Yarr” in February for seven days. Dancing begins each evening at sundown, and is kept up all night with feasting and drinking. In March they keep “Kumyai” for three days, the young men and maidens dancing and drinking together, but no animals are killed. This seems probably equivalent to the “Chap-char-kut” of the Lushais, but both it and the Yarr are said to be to please the village god, without any special reference to the crops. The Lamgang have a peculiar feast early in May, when the young men plant a very tall bamboo, from the end of which hangs a wooden representation of a bird, at which every man in turn, commencing with the thempu and the khul-lakpa, shoot with bows and arrows. Mithan are killed and eaten. No woman is allowed to join this festival.

The Chiru and Kolhen celebrate a somewhat similar festival called “Ratek” in the middle of August. A pig and a dog are sacrificed by the thempu outside the village, on the side towards Kobru, and then two or three days later an offering of zu is placed in a small bamboo tube beside the water supply, and the drum is beaten for some time; the party then return to the khul-lakpa’s house and are treated to a drink. The following day a tall bamboo is planted in the village with a wonderfully ornamented basket hanging from it, and much zu drunk. The following year the bamboo is taken up and thrown away, the festival being named “Ratek poiyi” (cf. Lushai “pai,” to throw away). Before the feast young men go hunting, and if they are successful good luck is sure to follow. The first day of the feast a pig and a dog are sacrificed, and zu drunk; on the second, the bamboo is thrown away and more zu drunk in the house of the khul-lakpa. On the third day the unmarried girls of the village give a drinking feast to the young men, and both dance together. Should the zu suffice this portion of the festival may be prolonged for several days.

It is believed that unless these two festivals are carried out every year in their proper rotation, there will be serious mortality among the elders of the village.

Since writing the above, I have found two more small clans, which evidently belong to the Old Kuki group—Lonte or Ronte, of whom there are only nine households, living alongside of the Burma road, close to the Chawte hamlet, with whom they are classed by the Manipuris; and Tarau, eighteen households living slightly to the south of the Burma road.

The Ronte clan is divided into two families, called Lanu and Changom. Marriages can only be made with members of the other family of the clan. They say that they came from the Ngente hill far to the south (v. Ngente clan), and claim some connection with the Chiru and Aimol.

The Tarau clan is divided into four families, and marriages are restricted as among the Chawte, Chiru, and Kolhen.

A youth of the Pachana family must marry a girl of the Tlangsha family.

A youth of the Tlangsha family must marry a girl of the Thimasha family.

A youth of the Thimasha family must marry a girl of the Khulpu-in family.

A youth of the Khulpu-in family must marry a girl of the Pachana family.

In both clans the young men sleep in any house, except their parents’, in which there are unmarried girls. The Ronte say that formerly they built zawlbuks like the Lushais.

The price of a Tarau girl is a gong or Rs. 30/-, or five years service in the girl’s father’s house. The Ronte maiden’s price is two gongs, and her proper husband is her maternal first cousin. In both clans a fowl has to be killed by the khulpu at the time of the marriage, and the Ronte tie some of its feathers round the necks of the couple. Should a Tarau maiden be led astray both parties are fined a pot of rice-beer, which the villagers share, and the seducer pays the girl’s father one pig. The child, when old enough to leave the mother, becomes the property of the father. A Ronte mother must not leave her house till five days after the birth of a daughter and seven after that of a son. On the day of the birth there is a feast, and on the fifth or seventh day, according to the sex of the child, a fowl is killed by the khulpu, and the child’s hair is cut, its ears pierced, and its name decided on, the choice being made from the names of its forefathers. The house is purified by being sprinkled with zu by the khulpu.

Among the Tarau, the period during which the mother may not leave her house is prolonged to ten days, at the expiry of which the khulpu kills a cock for male child and a hen for girl, and then purifies the house.

In both clans the dead are buried in a cemetery situated to the west of the village, while the corpses of those who have died unnatural deaths are buried elsewhere with no ceremony. Women dying in childbirth among the Tarau are buried by old men, who have no further hope of becoming fathers, far from the village, while persons being killed by wild animals, or by some accident, such as a fall from a tree, are buried where they die. Persons who are drowned are buried on the bank of the river where the body is found, the grave being dug at the spot where some water thrown up by hand from the river happens to fall. This custom also exists among the Shans of the Upper Chindwin, which lends some colour to the tradition that the Tarau sojourned in Burma before entering Manipur. Among the Ronte, women dying in childbirth, and all children dying under a year of age, are buried to the east of the village, while accidental deaths necessitate the burial being made to the south. The funeral takes place on the day of death except in the case of old men, whose corpses are kept for a day while their friends eat, drink, and dance before them. Whatever animals can be spared are killed in the honour of the deceased, and their sherh are buried with him, together with some rice. Every day till the “Papek” feast, in honour of those who have died within the year, rice and zu are placed on the grave. At Papek a platform of bamboo is constructed near the cemetery, and on it are placed such offering of flesh as the family can afford; much zu is drunk and all dance. The Ronte Sakhua sacrifice consists of a goat, dogs and mithan being prohibited.

Although the Tarau, from their language, are evidently closely allied to the Lushais, they are the only Old Kuki clan I have met which does not worship Pathian. They denied all knowledge of that name, affirming the name of their god was “Rapu,” to whom the Manipuri name of “Sankhulairenma” has been given. Rapu has a shrine just above the Burma road near to Tegnopal, where every year fish, rice, and zu are offered to him. When the rice begins to fill in the ear there is a five days’ feast in the village, during which time the young people dance and drink. A pig is killed, and the liver, ears, feet, and snout are offered to Rapu. These are called “sar” (cf. Lushai “sherh”). Before the cutting of jhums commences a small pig or a fowl is sacrificed to Rapu so that no one may be cut with a dao during the clearing of the jhums. Dogs are not eaten or sacrificed by the Tarau or the Ronte; the latter also consider the mithan unfit for a sacrifice. In these particulars they form an exception to the general custom of Kuki clans.

The Ronte have a feast called “Va-en-la,” which is given with the idea of enhancing the giver’s importance in this world and assuring him comfort in the next. A pig is killed and thirty pots of zu are prepared, and the whole village makes merry. A long bamboo is planted in front of the house of the giver of the feast. Throughout its length this bamboo is transfixed with crosspieces of bamboo about 18 inches long; from its end depends a bamboo representation of a bird, whence the name of the feast—“va,” in Ronte, as in Lushai, meaning “a bird,” and “en,” “to see.”

To show the similarity between the Tarau and the Lushai language I give a few words of each.

The east and west in Tarau are called “ni-chhuak-lam” and “ni-thlak-lam,” which are pure Lushai for “the direction of sun rising and sun setting.”