Bonda People
Encyclopedia
The Bonda are an ancient tribe of people numbering approximately 5000 who live in the isolated hill regions of the Malkangiri
Malkangiri
Malkangiri is a town and a notified area committee in Malkangiri district in the Indian state of Orissa. It is the headquarters of the Malkangiri district. Malkangiri is the new home of the Bangladeshi refugees, who were rehabilitated since 1965 under the Dandakaranya project...
district of southwesternmost Orissa
Orissa
Orissa , officially Odisha since Nov 2011, is a state of India, located on the east coast of India, by the Bay of Bengal. It is the modern name of the ancient nation of Kalinga, which was invaded by the Maurya Emperor Ashoka in 261 BC. The modern state of Orissa was established on 1 April...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, near the junction of the three states of Orissa
Orissa
Orissa , officially Odisha since Nov 2011, is a state of India, located on the east coast of India, by the Bay of Bengal. It is the modern name of the ancient nation of Kalinga, which was invaded by the Maurya Emperor Ashoka in 261 BC. The modern state of Orissa was established on 1 April...
, Chhattisgarh
Chhattisgarh
Chhattisgarh is a state in Central India, formed when the 16 Chhattisgarhi-speaking South-Eastern districts of Madhya Pradesh gained separate statehood on 1 November 2000....
, and Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
. The Bonda are a scheduled tribe of India and are also known as Remo (meaning "people" in the Bonda language
Bonda language
The Bonda language, also known as Bondo or Remo, is a language spoken by the Bonda people of India.-Classification:The Bonda language belongs to the Southern subgroup of the Munda branch of the Austro-Asiatic language family. It is most closely related to the Gutob language.-External links:*...
), Bhonda, Bondo, or Bondo Poraja. Their language belongs to the Munda subgroup
Munda languages
-Anderson :Gregory Anderson's 1999 proposal is as follows. Individual languages are highlighted in italics.*North Munda **Korku**Kherwarian***Santhali***Mundari*South Munda **Kharia–Juang***Juang***Kharia...
of the Austro-Asiatic language family
Austro-Asiatic languages
The Austro-Asiatic languages, in recent classifications synonymous with Mon–Khmer, are a large language family of Southeast Asia, also scattered throughout India and Bangladesh. The name Austro-Asiatic comes from the Latin words for "south" and "Asia", hence "South Asia"...
.
The Bonda are generally semi-clothed, with the women characterised by the wearing of thick silver necklace bands. The tribe is one of the oldest and most primitive in mainland India with their culture little changed in over a thousand years. Their isolation and known aggression continue to preserve their culture despite the pressures of an expanding Indian population. In contrast with many other populations in India, the number of females among the Bondas greatly exceeds the number of males.
The best way to see members of the tribe is to go to one of the local town markets. It is not safe to venture into their tribal areas. Bondas still use 'binnimoy protha', i.e., barter, and they customarily go to a market every Sunday.
They like to put castor oil in their head. Women make worli paintings in their house.
External links
- Sinlung Sinlung — Indian tribes