Mythologies of the Uranw (Uraons) Tribe


Scattered from Sarlahi to Morang, and densely populated in Jhapa, Morang, Dhanush, Sarlahi district, Uranw are also known as Jhangad or Dhangad. They call themselves as Uraunw themselves call Uranw or Kurukha. Uranw are also found in Madhya Pradesh and Bihar of India and they are believed to have migrated from there. The main occupation of Oranw or Jhagad is agriculture. Uranw/Jhangad are animist and nature worshipers. According to latest national census 2011, Uranw are put into two-different categories. As per the Census, the population of Jhangad is 37,424 and the population of Dhangad is 2,681, which together make a total population of Uranw is 40,105. Uranw have their own distinct mother tongue which is called Uranw, Oraon or Kurukh language belongs to Dravidian language family. According to latest national census 2011, the population of Uranw, Oraon or Kurukh language is 33,651. Currently, under the education in mother tongue scheme of government, education of grade 1 and 2 is provided into Uranw, Oraon or Kurukh language at Sarada Primary School Tanmuna in Sunsari district. At least dozen of books and a few newspapers have been published in this language, also radio programmes is produced in it. Besides Nepal, Uranw language is also spoken in India, Bangladesh, Jharkhand, Asam, Chhatisgadh of India. Besides Nepal, Uranw language is also spoken in Madhya Pradesh and Bihar of India.Read more at: https://english.indigenousvoice.com/uranwRead more at: https://english.indigenousvoice.com/uranw Read more at: https://english.indigenousvoice.com/uranw


The indigenous Uranw (Kurukh or Oraon) community of Nepal have been lobbying for the Karma Puja (a religious festival) to be recognized nationally so that community members can get holidays to attend a festival of social cohesion and community bonding. On the first day of the Nepali month of Bhadra (mid-August), members of the Uranw community gather at their chief's house to plant jamara (barley sprouts). Young girls go to the nearby forest and bring back some soil to the chief’s home while boys play the dhol (the traditional drum). The soil is mixed with barley seeds and wheat for the jamara. Uranw woodcutters then get ready to harvest branches from the karma (Neolamarckia cadamba) tree. They light up incense and perform a puja (a religious ceremony) before cutting off the branches. Three girls and three boys from the community, specifically chosen for a fasting ritual, are handed the branches to take home in the evening. The branches of the karma tree and the jamara are both placed in a designated space where everyone from the community can worship, pray, sing, and dance. On the final days of the festival, they take the branches and jamara to each house from the Uranw community, and everyone immerses themselves in the nearby river. The festival, known locally as a Karma Puja, is a culturally significant ritual for the indigenous Uranw people. It is celebrated with fasting, nature worship, feasts, and prayers. Elders relay folktales to the young and the whole community rejoices in traditional song and dance. But the festival is often marred by the fact they don’t get a formal holiday for the festival. “If the state doesn’t recognize the existence and significance of our culture then how will anyone respect and value our identity?” said 56-year-old Parvati Devi Uranw of Paschim Kusaha in Sunsari district. Although celebrating the Karma festival is essential for the Uranw community, many cannot attend the festival because they don’t have the day off. “It is vital that every Uranw is present during the Karma puja but work prevents many from participating,” said Parvati Devi, whose eldest son, who works in the police force, was unable to attend the most recent Karma Puja. To Parvati and Saroj, without a national or even regional holiday to commemorate their biggest festival, their culture will continue to face marginalization.

The Uranw (Uraons) are one of the five largest tribes in South Asia. They live in the forested uplands of east-central India, occupying the Chota Nagpur region of Jharkhand and adjoining states. Scholars have speculated that they migrated there in the distant past from the Konkan coast of South India. In the centuries preceding the Christian era, the Oraons were established around Rohtas, to the northwest of their present home. According to their own traditions, the Oraons were forced out of their lands by invading peoples and migrated to Chota Nagpur, where they settled among the Munda tribes of the area. Historians indicate this may have occurred around 100 BC. The origins of the name "Oraon" are unclear. Some Oraons say that the name is derived from Ur (chest), because they believe they were born of the blood from the chest of a holy man. Many see the name as a disparaging one given by caste-conscious Hindus who considered the tribe to be unclean. The Oraons themselves use the name "Kurukh," possibly after a mythical Oraon king called Karakh. Oraons are, as a rule, short of stature and dark-complexioned, broad-nosed, and thick-lipped. They are considered to be of Proto-Australoid stock, descended from a race that influenced the peoples and cultures of a wide area of South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the islands of Polynesia. In South Asia, the Proto-Australoids form an old, pre-Dravidian element in the population. The physical traits associated with this group are found among tribal peoples and also, to varying degrees, among the lower castes of the Hindu populations of peninsular India. Population estimates of the Oraon are clearly unreliable. The Joshua Project estimates that Kurukh speakers in India number around 4,390,000 people while Oraons in Nepal, Bangladesh, and Bhutan would bring this total to close to 4.5 million. However, by totaling the Oraon populations in the states where they were found for the 2001 Census of India, and allowing for a natural increase in the region of 1.7% per year, this figure is estimated to be closer to 3.5 million people. Part of the confusion may be that in some states the Oraons are called Dhangar, Kisan, or Kuda. So, the total population of Oraons numbers between 3.5 and 4.5 million people. The creation of the new Indian states of Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh in 2000 resulted in the inclusion of over one million Oraon in each state, thus giving them greater political representation. In addition to Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh, Oraons are also found in neighboring areas of Orissa and in Madhya Pradesh State. In Madhya Pradesh, they are also known as Dhanka and Dhangad. Numbers of Oraons have migrated from their homeland to areas of West Bengal, with many settling in Jalpaiguri District in the north. A few Oraon live in Tripura State and Assam in northeastern India, where their ancestors were taken in the early 20th century to work as laborers on tea plantations.

 







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Uranw (Uraons) Tribe



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