A Study of Folk culture of the Tai Phake tribe in Assam

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Bikash Das

Abstract

The Tai people belong to the Thai-Sino branch of the Sino-Tibetan language family. They are scattered from Assam to Yunnan in a vast area of India and China. There are six communities in Assam in the north eastern part of India who speak different forms of Tai language. They are—Tai Ahom, Tai Khamti, Tai Aiton, Tai Khamyang, Tai Phake and Tai Turung. Though the origins of these six groups are derived from the same root, they all have uniqueness in their language, culture, customs and social norms.  This research paper seeks to study the folk culture of the Tai Phakes. The population of this ethnic group in Assam is only two thousand. The globalisation and modernisation posed many serious threats to the language, society and culture of the Tai Phakes. At such juncture, it is need of the hour to study various aspects associated with the Tai Phake community. This paper titled ‘Folk festivals of the Tai Phake tribe in Assam’ will discuss the folk festivals, language, songs, dance, beliefs, marriage, food and other aspects associated with the Tai Phake people living in Assam.


 

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