History of Northeast India: New Research and Perspectives

This book is a collection of twenty papers dealing with the history and historiography of northeast India. The chapters deal with new topics of research and employ new methods of analysis. They stand out in terms of use of new sources as well as the study of various aspects of traditional institutions, health care, games and sports, music, etc of northeast India. The cultural dynamics of societies in the region have been discussed in an unbiased manner. The contributions on women, student mobilization, and contemporary history of northeast India add special academic value to the book.

Dr. Rusievan Shangpliang teaches history at Synod College, Shillong. He specialized in modern history during his postgraduate studies. His areas of interest in research include Christianity, Culture, Historiography and Material Culture. He has authored the book History of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Northeast India (2018). He has to his credit a number of articles and chapters published in peer reviewed journals, edited books and proceedings. He has also presented papers in National and Intemational seminars conferences in India and abroad. He is currently the Treasurer of the renowned North East India History Association (NEIHA).

For more than a decade now in research, I have come across many works on the history of the communities of northeast India. However, most of these works largely focus on political and administrative developments, identity issues, the beginning and development of Christian missions, etc. In the short span as a researcher I also find many works done in the past contain only descriptive accounts. I felt a need to have a book on emerging problems of research by budding scholars. Hence, I discussed with some of my teachers and fellow researchers of northeast India and the book is the outcome of the same. Purposely, new perspectives and new regions were explored. Therefore, in light of the above, this book aims to present fresh perspectives on the issues relating to the history and historiography of northeast India. It seeks to identify various factors that influence not only socio-cultural changes in the region but also address emerging issues and developments related to its socio-political, economic, and cultural identity.

At the outset, my greatest gratitude goes to the Almighty for His countless blessings. The book is not an outcome of my labour but it has come out successfully due to the contributions of many individuals. Firstly, I am immensely thankful to all the contributors who not only submitted their essays within time but have developed the patience to endure the editing of the volume for two consecutive years till it attains completion. Secondly, the book would not have seen the light of the day without the help and guidance of Prof. A. K. Thakur.

Studies of societies and their histories consist of a wide range of dimensions including different aspects of human interactions in the social, political, religious, ecological, environmental and economic spheres. Hence, when one studies a particular community, the evolution of history is associated with the progress of that society in terms of identity formation, social values, traditional ethics or norms, modernity and its concurrent dilemmas, and even cultural schisms. Considering the diversity of cultures in northeast India, we must also accept the fact that the societies in this region of the country also have unique developments and histories that tell the stories of not only their progress but also of their "stagnation" and "regress". To understand the basic idea about the importance of collectivism and individualism in the indigenous way of life, we can make use of the opinion of Clifford Greetz who suggests that "becoming human is becoming individual, and we become individual under the guidance of cultural patterns, historically created systems of meaning in terms of which we give form, order, point, and direction to our lives."

In the last few decades, historical studies in Northeast India have gained momentum with numerous works done by scholars both from within and outside the region. With changing times and changes in approach, the studies on history of tribal lives in the region have opened up scope for more research and new findings from different aspects. While dealing with the pre-colonial period, though numerous problems such as lack of sources and written records are being encountered by scholars, nevertheless a substantial amount of brilliant works have been published by scholars of the region which have attracted even researchers from abroad to take interest in the history of northeast India and its communities. Studies on the colonial era find a wider representation due to the availability of official documents and records, as well as the monographs and reports of British administrators and ethnographers. The post- colonial period and the evolution of the modern nation-state of India provide ample scope for scholars to put forward their contributions in a more holistic way on the many aspects of the history of India's north-eastern region. The same is reflected in the growth in research works from the 1970s onwards. The paradigm shift is seen in the emergence of regional history as an area of interest which has provided fresh perspectives on the history of India as a whole. These interests did not mean the rejection of colonial and nationalist paradigms, rather, they suggest that other narratives and histories are also worthy of recognition. Moreover, from the 1990s onwards, social history and the study of material culture have got more acceptances in the framework of historiography since there is an awareness of the need to supplement empirical and quantitative studies with methods suited to society and culture.