Khiamniungan people

They inhabit Noklak District in the state of Nagaland, India, and Lahe Township, Htanparkway Sub-Township, Leyshi Township of the Naga Self-Administered Zone and Hkhamti District of the Sagaing Region of Myanmar.

The name "Khiamniungan" is derived from the words "Khiam", meaning "Water"; "Niu", meaning "Great"; and "Ngan", meaning "Source". Thus, the term "Khiamniungan" means "Source of great water/river." The name derives from the two largest rivers flowing through the Khiamniungan region: the Zungki River and the Chindwin River in Myanmar.^[4]

The origin of the Khiamniungan people remains uncertain because there are no written records. However, the Khiamniungan people trace their earliest origin to a place called "Khiamniungan Nokthang", which is located below Lengnyu Village–Tsuwao Village,^[5] Panso Circle, Noklak District.

After residing in Khiamniungan Nokthang for generations, the Khiamniungan people gradually migrated in different directions to establish several villages and hamlets. There were four waves of migration:^{[citation needed]}

• Patsho–Peshu group: This group migrated to a place called "Lumoking" and then continued to establish the Patsho Range and the Peshu Range.
• Thang–Wolam group: Likewise, another group migrated to Nokhu Thangsoun and gradually moved north to establish the Thang Range and the Wolam Range.
• Nokhu group: Like the Patsho–Peshu group, the Nokhu group first settled at Lumoking, then moved to Shajaijai, also called Langiu–Mong, before moving to a place known as "Shedkhan", where they established the Nokhu Range.
• Lahe–Leyshi–Hkhamti group: Finally, the last group migrated from Nokhu because of overpopulation, moving eastward toward Lahe, Leshi, and Hkamti. This expansion extended to the northern bank of Jǖhōknyù, or Chuhoongan (the Chindwin River), and beyond in Myanmar.^[6]

During the British Raj, the Khiamniungans were referred to as "Kalyo Kenyu" or "Kalyo Kengyu", particularly in the works of anthropologists such as Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf. Unlike several other Naga tribes, the advent of Christianity had little impact on the Khiamniungan for a long time due to their remote location. The first Khiamniungan to convert to Christianity was Khaming in 1947.^[7] Thereafter, a number of Khiamniungans converted to Christianity. Following the introduction of the new education system, social system, modernization, and Christianity, there have been drastic changes in their social life.

The traditional Khiamniungan village had eight important people:^[8]

1. Nōkpàu (Village chief/war leader)
2. Pǖtshī or Petche (peace maker, elder)
3. Āmpāu, Müyo, meya (priest)
4. Mūolī-îe (doctor)
5. Ie or Ain (priestess and oracle)
6. Shūalānghái or sonlang (blacksmith)
7. Pāuthéu or Paothai (story teller)
8. Ainloom (the keeper of the supposedly magical stone; the stone is said to warn of any impending disaster, such as a fire or a raid, by moving out of its basket or by creating a sound through striking another object)

By the early 1990s, only the Petche, the Sonlang, and the Ainloom remained relevant, others being remembered mainly as part of books and oral tradition.^[8]