Introduction of the Ahoms
The Ahom, also known as the Tai-Ahom, are an ethnic group from Assam and Arunachal Pradesh in India. This ethnic group is made up of interbred descendants of the Tai people, who first came to Assam's Brahmaputra valley in 1228, and indigenous people who later joined them. Sukaphaa, the Tai group's leader, and his 9000 supporters founded the Ahom empire (1228–1826 CE), which ruled over part of modern-day Assam's Brahmaputra Valley until 1826. The current Ahom people and culture are a mix of the ancient Tai people and culture, as well as indigenous Tibeto-Burman people and cultures that they assimilated in Assam.
As a consequence of the Ahomisation process, local people from diverse ethnic groups in Assam who accepted the Tai way of life and administration were incorporated into their fold, which became known as Ahom. Many local ethnic groups, such the Tibeto-Burman Borahis, were entirely absorbed into the Ahom community, while members of other communities were recognised as Ahoms based on their devotion to the Ahom monarchy or the use of their talents. With a population of almost 1.3 million in Assam, they are now India's largest Tai group. Ahom people are primarily located in Upper Assam, particularly in the districts of Golaghat, Jorhat, Sibsagar, Dibrugarh, Tinsukia, and Lakhimpur, Sonitpur, and Dhemaji (south of the Brahmaputra River) (north).
Despite the fact that the already admixed group Ahom constituted only a tiny percentage of the kingdom's population, they kept their own Ahom language and religion until the 17th century, when the Ahom court and commoners adopted the Assamese language.
A Closer Look at the Ahoms Origin
After a long and bloody fight with the Chinese, the Tai speaking people rose to power in China's Guangxi area, from which they migrated to mainland Southeast Asia in the middle of the 11th century. The Tai-Ahoms can be traced back to either South China's Mong Mao or Myanmar's Hukawng Valley. Sukaphaa, a Mong Mao Tai ruler, and a group of supporters arrived in Assam in 1228 with the aim of establishing there.
They brought with them a better level of wet-rice farming technique than was previously available, as well as writing, record-keeping, and state-formation tradition. The Ahoms still dwell in the area south of the Brahmaputra River and east of the Dikho River, where they settled. The Ahom kingdom (1228–1826 CE), founded by Sukaphaa, the Tai group's leader, and his 9,000 supporters, ruled much of the Brahmaputra valley until 1826.
The Initial Formation of Ahoms
During the early stages, Sukaphaa's disciples roamed about for over thirty years, mixing in with the local people. He moved from one location to the next, looking for a seat. He reached an agreement with the Borahi and Moran ethnic groups (tribe), and he and his largely male followers married into them, resulting in an admixed people known as Ahoms and starting the Ahomisation process. The Tibeto-Burman Borahis were completely assimilated into the Ahom fold, but the Moran remained ethnically separate. In 1253, Sukaphaa founded his capital at Charaideo, which is today near Sivasagar, and began the process of becoming a state.
Language of Ahoms People
After the traditional language, the Ahom language, fell into usage, the Ahoms now utilise the Assamese language. The Ahom language, which belongs to the Tai branch of the Kra–Dai languages, is now extinct, and its tone system has been lost completely. Nevertheless, some Tai Ahom organisations are reviving it. Beginning in the late twentieth century and continuing into the early twenty-first, the Ahoms have shown renewed interest in their culture and language, leading to greater research and revival efforts. Around 179,000 individuals identified as Ahom were counted in India's 1901 census.
A Closer Look at the Ahoms Religion
Although there is an effort to restore the original Ahom faith, most Ahoms nowadays return to Hinduism as their religion. Despite this, Me-Dam-Me-Phi is well-known. During the reign of Suremphaa Rajeswar Singha, who enforced Sanskritisation, the Ahom faith collapsed. A Maithil Brahmin priest and a traditional Deodhai priest were to conduct all funerals according to Hindu cremation rites.
Wedding of the Ahoms
Cho Klong is the most important of the Tai Ahom people's twenty marriage rituals. Cho Klong is a Tai Ahom word that means (full form in English) ["Cho= combine" and "Klong=to perform a ritual." The ritual is described in an ancient Tai Ahom script Lai Lit nang Hoon Pha. There are 101 ban-phai (earthen lamps) or lights glowing. The bride presents the husband with a heng-dan (sword) in exchange for his protection of her, their children, family, race, and nation. Sum of twenty rituals is performed in Ahoms wedding along with Cho klong, including:
Ju-ron
Rik-Khwan
Aap-Tang (Aap=Bath, Tang=devine)
Chow Ban (worshipping sun)
Jon-ming (Blessing given by Moloung priests)
Food Habit of the Ahoms
One of the most important aspects of Tai-Ahom culture is eating habits. The majority of Ahoms, particularly in rural regions, are non-vegetarians who, like the other Tai peoples, retain a traditional cuisine of their own food. Their characteristic meals include chicken, pig, duck, slices of beef (buffalo), frogs, a variety of fishes, hulkoti maas (dry preserved fish combination), Muga lota (cocoon seeds of yendi and muga worms), and red ant eggs. Insects are also a valuable source of nutrition for the Ahoms.
Rice is the primary meal, and traditional beverages include Lao (homemade rice beer); Luk-Lao or Nam-Lao (rice beer, undiluted or diluted). They eat "Betgaaj'' (tender cane shoots), "Khar" (an alkaline liquid produced from the ashes of burned banana peels/bark), and a variety of other naturally produced therapeutic herbs and vegetables.
Ahom eating habits are similar to Thai cuisine. Thu–dam (black lentil), Khao–Moon (Rice Frumenty), "Xandohguri'' (dry roasted rice powder), "ChewaKhao" (steamed rice), "Chunga Chaul" (sticky rice cooked in delicate bamboo tubes), "Til pitha" (sesame rice rolls produced from sticky rice powder), and Khao-tyvek are only a few of them (rice flakes).
The Housing of the Ahoms
There are several connections between living room styles. The houses of the rural Ahom family are built of wood, bamboo, and two roofs are generally designed by thatching grasses, same as the rural Thai people of Thailand. Every family has an orchard and plough field near their home. Within the bamboo groves, the inhabitant's houses have been built in a haphazard way. The Ahom used to build their homes on stilts called Rwan Huan, which were roughly two metres above ground level.
The Ahoms People Today’s Status
Ahom people have now been classified as members of the other backward classes (OBC) caste; there has also been debate and desire for the Schedule Tribe for a long time. The Indian government now associates the term "ethnic Assamese" with the different indigenous Assamese people. According to Anthony Van Nostrand Diller, as many as eight million Assamese speakers can trace their ancestors to the Ahoms.
However, historian Yasmin Saikia claims that the Ahoms were not an ethnic group in pre-colonial periods, but rather a rather open status group. With the active permission of the monarch, any community entering the socioeconomic fold of the Ahom kingdom may claim Ahom status.
Conclusion
The Ahom are an Indian ethnic group that hails from Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. They are descended from the Tai people, who first came to Assam's Brahmaputra valley around 1228. They are currently India's biggest Tai tribe, with a population of over 1.3 million. Until 1826, the Ahom kingdom (1228–1826 CE) controlled over much of the Brahmaputra valley. In 1228, Sukaphaa, a Mong Mao Tai king, with a party of followers landed in Assam with the intention of establishing a presence. The above article gets a closer look at the Ahoms people including the introduction of the Ahoms people, Origin, Language and so on.
FAQs on A Closer Look - The Ahoms
1. Who were the Ahoms?
The Ahoms were a Tai ethnic group who migrated to the Brahmaputra valley in present-day Assam from what is now Myanmar in the 13th century. They established the powerful Ahom kingdom, which ruled the region for nearly 600 years. They created a new state by suppressing the older political system of the bhuiyans (landlords).
2. What is the origin and history of the Ahom kingdom's establishment?
The Ahoms originally came from the Yunnan region of China. They began migrating into Indochina and northern Myanmar in the first century AD. In 1228, a Tai Ahom leader named Sukaphaa and his followers reached the Brahmaputra valley in Assam. They established the Ahom kingdom, which gradually expanded by annexing the kingdoms of the Chhutiyas and the Koch-Hajo, and subjugating many other tribes.
3. What was the social structure of the Ahom people?
Ahom society was organised into clans or khels. A khel often controlled several villages. The society was highly sophisticated, with land grants given to poets and scholars, and theatre was encouraged. Initially, there were very few artisan castes, so artisans were often brought in from neighbouring kingdoms.
4. How was the Ahom state administered, and what was the role of the 'paiks'?
The Ahom state's administration became quite centralised by the first half of the 17th century. A key feature of their system was its dependence on forced labour. The state forced adult males, known as paiks, to work for it. Each village had to send a specific number of paiks by rotation. This system allowed the Ahoms to build large-scale public works like embankments and irrigation systems without a regular army or cash economy for much of their rule.
5. What were the religious beliefs of the Ahoms?
The Ahoms originally worshipped their own tribal gods. However, during the 17th century, the influence of Hinduism, particularly the Brahmans, grew significantly. The Ahom king Siba Singha (1714-1744) made Hinduism the state religion. Despite adopting Hinduism, the Ahom rulers did not completely abandon their traditional beliefs and continued to practice them alongside Hindu rituals.
6. How did the Ahom culture show a blend of local and external influences?
The Ahom culture demonstrates a fascinating blend of their original Tai traditions and local Assamese culture. For example:
Language: While they initially spoke the Ahom language (a Tai language), they gradually adopted the local Assamese language.
Religion: They worshipped their own tribal gods but later adopted Hinduism, creating a syncretic belief system.
Historiography: They introduced the practice of writing historical works, known as buranjis, first in the Ahom language and then in Assamese.
7. Why was the Ahom kingdom so successful in creating a stable state for 600 years?
The Ahom kingdom's long-lasting success can be attributed to several factors. Firstly, they used advanced military technology for their time, including the use of firearms and gunpowder as early as the 1530s. Secondly, their administrative system, based on the paik system of forced labour, allowed them to mobilise large resources for both military campaigns and public works. Finally, their policy of assimilating local cultures and tribes into their state structure helped build a broader and more stable political entity.
8. What were the 'buranjis', and what was their importance in Ahom society?
The buranjis were historical chronicles written by the Ahoms. This practice of writing detailed history was introduced by them to the region. Initially written in the Ahom language, they were later written in Assamese as well. These texts are incredibly important as they provide a detailed account of the Ahom kingdom's history, administration, and society, offering a unique glimpse into the past of North-East India.
9. What is a key difference between the Ahom state and other tribal societies like the Gonds?
A major difference lies in their method of state formation and administration. While many tribal societies like the Gonds evolved into kingdoms, the Ahom state was built through military conquest and a highly centralised, non-monetary system of labour. The paik system of the Ahoms was a unique feature that made their state organisation more structured and powerful than many of their contemporaries, allowing for large-scale mobilisation of manpower that was not as systematically organised in Gondwana.
