Shompens:
The director of the Andaman and Nicobar Tribal Research Institute (ANTRI), recently underscored the findings of his report on the Shompens, one of the primary aboriginal communities inhabiting the interior forests and coastal areas of the Great Nicobar Islands (GNI).
- They are one of the most primitive tribes of the Andaman and Nicobar (A&N) islands, and one of the most isolated tribes on the Earth.
- They are one of the least studied Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) in India.
- They reside in the dense tropical rain forests of the Great Nicobar Island.
- Around 95% of the island is covered in rainforest.
- Shompens, unlike the other primitive tribes of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, are not of Negrito but of Mongoloid stock.
- Their light yellow-brown skins, straight hair, narrow eyes and stocky build give them a strong resemblance to the people of Myanmar and Indonesia.
- The Shompens’ habitat is also an important biological hotspot that includes two National Parks – Campbell Bay and Galathea and one Biosphere Reserve – Great Nicobar Biosphere Reserve.
- Though according to the Census (2011), the estimated population of Shompen is 229, the exact population of Shompen is unknown till today.
- Most of them remain in the forest and have little or no contact with outsiders.
- They are hunter-gatherers, living in small groups, whose territories are identified by the rivers that criss-cross the rainforest.
- Being nomadic, they typically set up forest camps where they live for a few weeks or months, before moving to another site.
- They collect a wide variety of rainforest plants, but their staple food is the pandanus fruit, which they call larop.
- They also plant small gardens, cultivating lemon, chillies and betel, amongst other plants.
- Shompen speak their own language, which has many dialects. Members of one band do not understand the dialect of the other.
- They are of short to medium stature, have a round or nearly broad head shape, narrow nose, a broad facial profile, and distinctly exhibit Mongoloid features such as light brown to yellow brown skin and oblique eye features.
- They have nuclear families comprising husband, wife, and their unmarried children.
- A Shompen family is controlled by the eldest male member, who controls all activities of the women and kids.
- Monogamy is the general rule, although polygamy is allowed too.
- The Shompen worship the moon, known as Houou, as their goddess, whom they believe created the universe.
