The Nagas

Hill Peoples of Northeast India

Project Introduction The Naga Database

manuscript - Christoph von Furer-Haimendorf notebook on his return to Nagaland, 1970

caption: clans and customs
medium: notes
ethnicgroup: Konyak
location: Tang
date: 6.9.1970
production:
person: Furer-Haimendorf
date: 8.8.1970-8.9.1970
acquirer:
person: private collection
text: Tang 6/9/1970
text: Clans: Wangsham, Wang-sha, Wang-shu
Kang (= Pangsha = Ben):
Wangnau, Kongam, Yokam, Nam - women cut their hair
Nanam, Nganam, Nye-mam, Shu-am
text: There are four morungs, and five "lom" (= yo), one is in the Ang's house.
text: Yonpu is the land of the dead - Longba (male) and Longniu (male) are the guardians. There is a gate, the dead are asked to pick out the lice out of the hair of Longba and Longniu. Those who do not find any are not allowed to enter. Such persons are neither dead not quite alive. They remain on this earth and suffer ie. if someone is seriously ill, he is supposed to be held up at the gate. Ultimately all enter. Soul = shasha.
text: When on earth there is day, in Yonpu is night; and vice versa.
text: There are fireflies in Yonpu.
text: Christian: both Christian and non-Christian go to Yonpu, the former will have a good life, the others will suffer.
Ka-wan = earth
Yang-kang = sky
text: Yo-wang (god): When there is a ceremonial meal, a little is thrown to Yo-wang; they say "You take this food", and then eat themselves.
text: Before a boy entered the morung he was not entitled to wear the apron. At the Auling festival young boys competed in jumping over a stone near the morung. If they succeeded they would enter and put on an apron. They used to put up posts when they sacrificed buffaloes or mithan to Yo-wang, but for the last five years this practice has been stopped for most of the villagers became Christians.