Intangible Cultural Heritage of Assam

Contents Preface. Intangible cultural heritage of Assam an introduction/Kishor K. Basa and Birinchi K. Medhi. 1. The intangible heritage of Assam/Sankar Kumar Roy and Birinchi K. Medhi. I. Folk tales 2. Folk tales of Tai Khamtis of Assam a brief comparative analysis/Yikham Gogoi. II. Rituals cults and religious practices 3. The intangible elements in Karbi rituals and the need for their preservation/Upala Barua. 4. Social practices rituals and festive events of the Bishnupriya Manipuris/Shibani Das. 5. Rituals connected with birth and puberty among the Koch Rajbanshis in a rural context of Assam/Mohendra Gogoi. 6. Megalithic culture of Dimoria/Kalpana Choudhury. 7. An appraisal of the mortuary rites of the Pati Rabhas of Assam/Monmee Sonowal. 8. Worship of the Goddess of snake in Assam with special reference to South Kamrup/Anima Choudhury. 9. The concept of area God among the Dimasas of Assam/D.K. Saikia. 10. Indigenous folk tradition in the Assamese Sikh Society/Birinchi K. Medhi. III. Festivals 11. Pai Chankein the water festival of the Tai Khamtis of Assam/Bandana Mahan. 12. The Karam festival of the tea workers of Assam/Banashree Sarmah. 13. Festivals and ceremonies observed by Sri Sri Iswar Hati Satra and Sankaradeva Mandir in Sualkuchi Village Kamrup District Assam/Moromi Talukdar. 14. Rituals and festivals of the Mundas of Upper Assam/Tultul Baruah. IV. Music and performing arts 15. An overview of folk musical instruments of Assam with special reference to structural and acoustic modification of Pepa Bin and Tokari/Prashannia Gogoi. 16. The Rhythmic styles in Bihu Dhol of Assam/Anamika Gogoi Duarah. 17. Jagannathar Nam a performing women of art of North Kamrup Assam/Kailash Bhattacharyya. 18. Satriya dance a unifying force/Tanuja Bora. 19. The Bhaira of Jagra area of Nalbari District Assam/Anjali Bhattacharyya. V. Arts and crafts 20. Tradition of mask at a Vaishnavite Monastery in Majuli of Assam/Birinchi K. Medhi and Arifur Zaman. 21. The traditional brass metal craft of the Marias of Assam/Sandhya Das. 22. Intangible aspects of pottery in Kamrup District of Assam/Pradip Goswami. VI. Culinary traditions 23. Intangible cultural elements associated with food among the Assamese Hindus of Silsakoo area of North Guwahati Assam/Lipika Sarmah. VII. Ethnoscience and conservation of biodiversity 24. Intangible cultural elements in the ethno medicinal practices of the Garos of Assam/Biranchi K. Medhi and Rameeza Hasan. 25. Beliefs integral to ethno medicinal plants in a rural context of Assam/Chandana Sarma and Birinchi K. Medhi. 26. Indigenous knowledge of the Assamese in the treatment of women's diseases/Birinchi K. Medhi and Mahasweta Saikia. 27. Traditional child care practices among the Kaibartas of North Guwahati/Pixy Bhani Baruah. 28. Customary practices related to natural resource management a case study of the hill Tiwas of Assam/Indrani Barpujari. Notes on contributors. Highlighting the intangible cultural heritage of Assam the gateway to North East India the present volume contains papers under seven themes for documenting such heritage. Based on field work of a number of scholars this book is an humble tribute to the creativity as well as the ingenuity of the Assamese Intangible cultural heritage. It is hoped that the volume would be relevant to anthropologists sociologists and other connoisseur of folk and tribal heritage as well as traditional knowledge system. 308 pp. …