A Discourse on the Traditions and Cultural Identity of the Deori Community of Assam

Abstract

The Deori Tribe is one of the major ethnic tribes of Assam in India. It belongs to the Sino-Tibetan family of Mongoloid stock. They have been able to preserve their Mongolian racial traits, languages, religion and folk tales, beliefs through centuries. It is believed that the people of Deori tribe had migrated from Dibang, Lohit, Kundil valleys and settled in Upper Assam long ago. However, turning the pages of history one can find that the homeland of the Deoris is in the North Eastern states of India or in the east of undivided Assam. The book ‘Mataks and their Kingdom’ states that the Deoris had their abode on the bank of the Kundil River that flows through the Sadiya (Chapakhowa) area. Hence, their Kingdom was known as Chutam in the North Eastern region of the Brahmaputra Valley. Again according to ‘Siva Purana’, the Deoris were living at Chaug-Chu-Kul, Chakati-Chaliya, Laibari, Lataubari, Joidaam, Arem-Kerem and Mamaru-Pichala.