Mao Nagas:
The Mao Council, apex tribal body of the Mao Nagas in Manipur, has officially accepted the judgment and order of the Tenyimia People’s Organisation (TPO) Presidential Council regarding the traditional land dispute along the Nagaland-Manipur border.
- Mao Naga is one of the indigenous tribes of Northeast India.
- It is one of the Naga tribes in Manipur.
- Their language is called Mao, and also the whole land area inhabited by them is also called Mao.
- The Mao Nagas call themselves Ememei or Memei in their language.
- Mao is geographically situated in the northern part of Manipur, adjoining the southern part of Nagaland.
- According to the 2011 provisional census, Mao has a population of 97,195.
- The Mao Nagas live in a compact and well-protected village usually situated in the hilltop and mountain ridges.
- Their society follows a patriarchal system where descent is traced through the male lineage.
- Like any other Naga community, the Mao Naga is divided into different clans (Opfuta), which are further divided into sub-clans.
- The economy of the Mao Nagas is predominantly agrarian, and rice is their staple food.
- Terraced rice cultivation (both dry and wet) is a customary practice that Mao people have been engaged in through generations.
- They emphasized cooperative and collective endeavors and believed in the system of distribution in the form of a barter system or mutual exchange.
- Before the advent of Christianity, the Mao Naga had their traditional religion known as ‘Opfupe Chüna-Chüno’ (religion of the forefather).
- They believe in the existence of a Supreme being called ‘Iyi Koki Chüku Kapi Oramei’ (a benevolent God who protects and nurtures man).
- Today, the majority of the Mao Nagas have embraced Christianity.
