The Mankidia (also known as Mankadia, Mankidi, Mankirdia)
are a nomadic ethnic group of India that live in
Odisha
Odisha (), formerly Orissa (List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2011), is a States and union territories of India, state located in East India, Eastern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by ar ...
. Mankidias mostly live in the
Mayurbhanj
Mayurbhanj district is one of the 30 districts of Odisha state in eastern India and the largest in the state by area, nearly equivalent to Tripura. The district's headquarters is located in Baripada, with other major towns including Rairangp ...
,
Sambalpur
Sambalpur () is the fifth largest city in the Indian State of Odisha. It is located on the banks of river Mahanadi, with a population of 335,761 (as per 2011 census). Prehistoric settlements have been recorded there. It is the home of the Samb ...
,
Kalahandi and
Sundergarh district
Sundargarh District is a district in the northwestern part of Odisha state in eastern India.
Sundargarh district is bounded by Raigarh district of Chhattisgarh in the west, Jashpur district of Chhattisgarh in the North-West, Simdega district o ...
s.
According to the 2011 census, the population of Mankidia was 2,222. They are classified as a
Scheduled Tribe by the Indian government.
Origins
The Mankidia are an ethnic offshoot of the
Birhor tribe. They specialize in catching monkeys (called ''mankada'' in
Odia), hence their name was derived from the name that neighboring tribes called them. People believe that their origin is from
Chota Nagpur Plateau
The Chota Nagpur Plateau () is a plateau in eastern India, which covers much of Jharkhand state as well as adjacent parts of Chhattisgarh, Odisha, West Bengal and Bihar. The Indo-Gangetic plain lies to the north and east of the plateau, and th ...
. They might have migrated to different parts of Odisha and finally settled in the hilly areas.
Culture
The Mankidia are a semi-nomadic
hunter/gatherer community. Traditionally skilled in rope making, catching, and hunting of monkeys, they are often employed by local people to drive away invasive monkeys in rural areas. They move around forests in small bands and stay at different temporary makeshift settlements called tanda/tandia. The tandia comprises a temporary dome-shaped leaf hut known as Kumbhas. They speak a form of
Mundari language
Mundari (MunÉ–ari) is a Munda languages, Munda language of the Austroasiatic languages, Austroasiatic language family spoken by the Munda people, Munda tribes in eastern Indian states of Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal and northern Rangpur Di ...
, and some can also speak Odia.
Each ''Tandia'' is headed by a religious head man called ''Dehuri''. The ''Dehuri'' has an assistant called ''Naya''.
The Mankidia people's religious beliefs are polytheistic. They believe in many malevolent and benevolent spirits and gods. Their supreme deities are ''Logobir'' and ''Budhimai''. They also worship their ancestors for good health and success in hunting and harvesting forest produce.
Besides hunting they also engage in making baskets and ropes out of
Siali fiber,
Sabai grass and
Jute
Jute ( ) is a long, rough, shiny bast fibre that can be Spinning (textiles), spun into coarse, strong threads. It is produced from flowering plants in the genus ''Corchorus'', of the mallow family Malvaceae. The primary source of the fiber is ...
, as well as making disposable plates made out of leaves called ''
Khali''.
See also
*
Tribes of India
The Adivasi (also transliterated as Adibasi) are heterogeneous tribal groups across the Indian subcontinent. The term is a recent invention from the 20th century and is now widely used as a self-designation by groups classified as Scheduled Tr ...
*
List of Scheduled Tribes in Odisha
References
{{reflist
Scheduled Tribes of India
Social groups of Odisha
Scheduled Tribes of Odisha