Brill’s Encyclopedia of the Religions of the Indigenous People of South Asia Online

Get access Subject: Asian Studies


Edited by:
Marine Carrin (Editor-in-Chief), University of Toulouse Jean Jaurès, and Michel Boivin, Centre for South Asian Studies (CNRS-EHESS), Gérard Toffin, Centre d’Études Himalayennes, Paul Hockings, University of Illinois at Chicago, Raphaël Rousseleau, Université de Lausanne, Tanka Subba, North-Eastern Hill University, Harald Tambs-Lyche, University of de Picardie-Jules Verne (Section Editors)

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Brill’s Encyclopedia of the Religions of the Indigenous People of South Asia strives to reflect the diversity of indigenous cultures of South Asia with its many language groups and religious traditions. Shaped by their own mythologies, these tribal religions differ in form and content from Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Islam, Sikhism, and Christianity, though variants of the latter traditions have been adopted by some indigenous people. Religion is taken in a broad sense and includes aspects of morality, symbolism, identity formation, environmental concerns, and art. Far from being simple survivals of an earlier stage, these religions often show remarkable capacity for adaptation and change. The approach is contemporary rather than a reconstruction of an anterior state, though it does not overlook relevant historical processes.

More information: Brill.com

Tharu

(6,248 words)

Author(s): Guneratne, Arjun
The ethnonym Tharu refers to a number of named, historically endogamous and culturally and linguistically differentiated ethnic groups that inhabit the Tarai region of Nepal. They are considered to be indigenous to the region. Although there are many such groups subsumed under this term, the major groups from west to east are the Rana, the Kathariya, the Dangaura, the Chitwaniya/Nawalpuriya, the Lampuchuwa, and the Kochila. The various dialects that they speak belong to the Indo-European languag…
Date: 2021-11-10

Tiwa

(4,757 words)

Author(s): Ramirez, Philippe
The Tiwa, called Lalung by their neighbors, by early authors, and in their administrative designation, is a 210,000-strong population (according to the 2011 census), 90% of which live in the plains of central Assam (Morigaon, Nagaon, West Karbi Anglong, and Kamrup districts of Assam) and 10% in the hills of West Karbi Anglong district of Assam and Ri Bhoi district of Meghalaya. Although all acknowledge the same Tiwa identity, they are divided into two contrasted cultural subsets. The Tiwa of the…
Date: 2021-11-10