Khasi People from Meghalaya | History, Culture and Language

Image Credit: indiatimes.com

Feb 20, 2024

History of the Khasi Tribe

Image Credit: wikimedia.org

The Khasi people are the local ethnic group that lives in the state of Meghalaya in northeast India.

Khasi tribe are one of the oldest living cultures which were found in the prehistoric era.

Khasi people follow the matrilineal system which means the youngest daughter inherits the ancestral property and clan name.

Image Credit: cultureandheritage.org

The Khasi Culture

Image Credit: caleidoscope.in

The Khasi culture is rich and diverse and celebrates different traditions, festivals, music, art and cuisine.

The major festivals of the Khasi people are “Ka Shad Suk Mynsiem” which is also known as the dance of  the joyful heart.

The khasi music is commonly vocal and is played by the instruments like duitara, the ksing and tangmuri.

Image Credit: realbharat.org

Language of Khasi people

Image Credit: indiatimes.com

The khasi language is a part of the Austroasiatic language which is connected to the munda language of eastern India.

 Khasi language is spoken by around 1.5 million people, mainly in Meghalaya.

The system of this language's tone is pretty hard to understand. It has a vast vocabulary with many words taken from nature.

Image Credit: adotrip.com

Controversies happened in the past

Image Credit:twitter.com

The Khasi people have faced multiple conflicts in the past like, the British colonial rule, the partition of India and the demand for autonomy etc.

 The most recent issue is between Assam and Meghalaya for the village of Langpih which they both claim as their own.

These conflicts have led to violence and protests many times and have even affected the lives of people in the area.

Image Credit:twitter.com

The "Delhi Chalo" Movement: A Look at Farmer’s Concerns and Ongoing Protests

Image Credit: indiatimes.com