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origins of Kongon people ; history of feuds |
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The Kongon people came first from Yin-yu-shang, a now abandoned site across the Dikhu near the village of Chuchu Yimlang (cf. p. 4). From Yin-yu-shang they went to a place near Wanching, there they stayed for three years. At that time they had no Angs. Half of them lived in Wanching and half of them outside the village. After three years they founded Kongon and the Wanching men helped them to build their houses. After a time the Ang of (3) Wanching had a quarrel with Kongon and his men began to go to war against Kongon. One day when the young men had gone to the fields the Wanching men raided Kongon and killed 60 people - most children and old people. Then Kongon took revenge and in many raids they took altogether 140 heads from Wanching. Then the two villages made peace. Kongon pays no tribute to Wanching, but each house gives one small basket of rice to the Wakching Ang yearly. And they give to the Ang of the Balang morung (4) (Dzemang) from every house one long chunga of chaul (5 or 6 seers). The Wakching men come and collect this tribute. |
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They don't know the origin of their rice (sic), but they have the tradition that they came from the Assam valley through the Ao villages - as Molung - and went from there to Yin-yu-shang. Then they thought it is not good to live in such a high place and decided to move towards the plains. |
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(5) Kongon was founded by a man of Pem-long-hu clan (the clan of Lem-ang), called Yong-wau. When the village was founded a buffalo (from the plains) was sacrificed. They didn't know mithans at that time. Yong-wau built on the site of Lem-ang's present house, the first house of the village. Therefore when Kongon was taken over in Lem-ang's house were many rows of human heads. In Yong-wau's time once a tiger came near to the village and killed many (6) people. On the site where the Ling-ba morung stands he heaped up all the skulls. Then Yong-wau decided to kill the tiger. He was himself a tiger-man and knew that the tiger had become very old, so the villagers killed the tiger and Yong-wau built the Ling-ba morung on that place. This was twelve generations ago. |
