Karbi people

The Karbis (Assamese:কাৰ্বি), mentioned as the Mikir in the Constitution Order of the Government of India, are one of the major ethnic groups in Northeast India and especially in the hill areas of Assam. The great artist-scholar Bishnu Prasad Rabha refer to them as the Columbus of Assam. They prefer to call themselves Karbi, and sometimes Arleng (literally "man" in the Karbi language). The term Mikir is now not preferred and is considered to be derogatory. The closest meaning of mikir could said to be derived from "Mekar".

Overview

The Karbis are the principal tribal community in the Karbi Anglong district of Assam, a district administered as per the provisions of the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution of India, having an autonomous district of their own since 17 November 1951. Besides Karbi Anglong district, the Karbi-inhabited areas include Dima Hasao, Kamrup, Morigaon, Nagaon, Golaghat, Karimganj, Lakhimpur, Sonitpur and Biswanath Chariali districts of Assam; Balijan circle of Papumpare district in Arunachal Pradesh, Jaintia Hills, Ri Bhoi and East Khasi Hills districts in Meghalaya, and Dimapur District in Nagaland. Apart from Assam, the Karbis are also recognised as Scheduled Tribes in Meghalaya, Mizoram and Nagaland. With a population of around 4 lakhs 6 thousand (406,000) as per 2001 Census, the Karbis constitute the third largest tribal community in Assam after the Bodos and the Mishings.