Konyak Tribe

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About Konyak Tribe:

The Konyaks can be found in the Mondistrict of Nagaland and also in the Tirap and Changlang districts of Arunachal.
The term ‘Konyak’ is believed to have been derived from the words ‘Whao’ meaning ‘head’ and ‘Nyak’ meaning ‘black’ translating to ‘men with black hair’.
- They can be grouped into two groups, namely “Thendu”, which means the “Tattooed Face” and “Thentho”, meaning the “White face”.
The Konyaks are of Mongoloid origin and about 95% of the population follows the Christian faith now.
Language: The Konyak language belongs to the Northern Naga sub branch of the Sal subfamily of Sino-Tibetan.
Festivals: Festivals occupy an important place in the lives of the Konyaks. The three most significant festivals were Aolingmonyu, Aonyimo and Laoun-ongmo.
They are skilled in the art of making firearms. They are also skilled in handicrafts like basket making, cane and bamboo works, brass works etc.
The Konyak society is a patriarchal society and the eldest son of the family usually inherits the paternal property.

Q1: Who are known as Tribes?

According to the Imperial Gazetteer of India, a tribe is a collection of families bearing a common name, speaking a common dialect, and occupying or professing to occupy a common territory.

Source: Nagaland tribe seeks Assam boundary map ‘rectified’, writes to CM Rio