Lanjia Saora Tribe:
It is observed that among the younger members of the Lanjia Saora Tribe community, tradition is being reinterpreted and negotiating modernity on its own terms.
- Saora is one of the ancient tribes of Odisha and categorized as a particularly vulnerable tribal group.
- Other names: Savaras, Sabaras, Saura, Sora, etc.
- A small number of people are also found in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, and Assam.
- They have their own native language called Sora, which is a Munda language, and they are one of the very few tribes of India that have a script for the language, Sorang Sompeng.
- They show their racial affinity to the Proto Australoid physical characters.
- They are living in mud-and-thatch homes scattered across undulating terrain,
- The community sustains itself through shifting cultivation, foraging, and small-scale farming.
- Saoras follow an ingrained and intricate religion, having faith in and worshipping a number of gods and spirits, who they believe are the supreme controllers of their regular lives.
- They have unique art practices, religious customs, as well as a dying tattooing tradition called ‘Tantangbo’.
- Their belief system is closely tied to nature, with rituals, music, and dance forming an integral part of everyday life.
- Among the most distinctive visual traditions are their large metal earrings — thick, circular ornaments that are not merely worn but fixed into stretched earlobes, often over years.
- Village guardian deities like Kitungsum are installed at the entrance of the settlement.
