(Rabha Boy and Girls in traditional attire)
History: Another important tribe of this region(Hasam) is the Rabhas who also belong to the Mongoloid stock. They also had come down from the Himalayan range. A batch of them entered the district of Goalpara and settled down there,another batch of them settled down in the undivided Darrang district. According to Kalaguru Bishnu Prasad Rabha , the original name of the Rabhas was Koss or Koch and they had spoken the Koch language. On the other hand, Dr. Birichi Kr. Baruah is of the opinion that the 'Rabhas constitute a section of the major ethnic group known as the Bodo people who form a substantial portion of the Assamese population.' According to Major Playfair, the resemblance between the Garos and the Rabhas is so great that the two communities constitute the same group.
Unlike the Bodos, the Rabhas of Darrang are not bilingual. They do not know Rabha language. They speak Assamese. According to the Census Report of 1971 the population of the Rabhas of Darrang is 18,000 only. According to Rev. S Endle, there is a slight different between the Rabhas and Bodos of Darrang district. The Rabhas consider themselves slightly superior to the Bodos. A hundred years ago, if a Rabha boy married a Bodo girl, the groom had to arrange a feast to satisfy the members of his 'Khel' (Clan) . There are 11 kinds of Rabhas but only Pati Rabha and Totla Rabha are said to have been living in Darrang district.
The Madahis are also a branch of the Rabhas. They constitute a micro-minority because some of them identify themselves as Madahi Koches . Like the Rabhas, they also speak Assamese. But the Madahis have been already recognised as Scheduled Tribe.
The Saranias who constitute a splinter group of the Bodo –Kacharis do not know Bodo language. All Saranias are tribal but all Saranias are not Bodo-Kacharis. Some Rabhas also became Sarania in this region by taking 'Saran' from the Goswamis and Mahantas . In Upper Assam, Tiwas and Chutias were converted to Hinduism by this process. when a tribal takes Saran, he has to discard certain of his old habits, adopts Hindu usage and becomes a Sarania. The rapid progress of proselytisation took place between 1650 and 1800AD. Many well-to-do Bodos of Kamrup and Darrang district were promoted to the Koch.
In fact, the Saranias were promoted to the Madahis and the Madahis were promoted to the 'Saru' Koch and after some generations, the 'Saru' Koch could become a 'Bor' Koch . Rabhas are also slightly different from Bodos by their appearance,as they have broader face and their nose is flatter as compared to the Bodos, Unlike Bodo-Kacharis they used to be more aggressive by their nature,The hunting also constituted the major part of their culture, but lots of mutation has taken place within their community since a century.
Words by Mwikwm Ingti Basumatary
Looks like u have not done your research properly. I will not say about the history written in the article but the picture shown in here is not Koch Rabha traditional dress.
ReplyDeleteSir, can you plz give me details about saru koch and madahis. Can you also specify the authorities if any.. .. I'll be glad if you share your contact
ReplyDelete