Climate
Nagaland is a picturesque town with panoramic views. Various exotic flowers along with a friendly weather make Nagaland ideal place for tourists. Kohima, the capital city, occuppies a prominent place in the pages of history as important battles of world II were fought on this side of India with British forces defeating the Japanese troops here. Kohima is situated in the eastern parts of the Himalayas and have a temperate climate all year round. Rains are mostly heavy in Nagaland. The average rainfall is between 175cm and 250 cm. Most of the heavy rainfall is during June to September. Strong winds blow from the north west in February and March, making the climate pleasant.
People
The population of Nagaland is entirely tribal. The Nagas belong to the Indo-Mongoloid stock. The fourteen major Naga tribes are the Angami, Ao, Chakhesang, Chang, Khemungan, Konyak, Lotha, Phom, Pochury, Rengma, Sangtam, Sema, Yimchunger and Zeliang. The hill tribes in the areas now known as Nagaland had no generic term applicable to the whole race. The word 'Naga' was given to these hill tribes by the plains people. This proved to be a great unifying force to the tribes now classified as Naga. A striking characteristic of the Naga tribes is their hospitality and cheerfulness. To be greeted with a smiling face while traveling on the roads is a common experience. A visitor to Naga village is heartily received and entertained with a surfeit of rice-beer, which is generally served by the lady of the house
The most prominent item of Naga dress is the shawl. It is different for every tribe and besides, there are varieties and sub-varieties in every group. A warrior's shawl or shawl of a man who has performed the Feast of Merit, is different from that of an ordinary villager. In the past, it was possible to identify, by simply looking at the shawl of the wearer, the tribe he belonged to and occasionally even the group of villages he came from, his social status and the number of gennas he had performed. Apart from the shawl, the normal working dress is a kilt which is generally of black color. It may be embroidered with cowries in which case it is looked upon as a distinctly male dress. The cowries are rubbed on stone before being embroidered so that they may stick well, and they are always sewn by the man using the cloth and never by his wife or anybody else. The cowrie decoration is quite popular among the Nagas and it imparts to the kilt the character of toga virility, signifying his success in love or war.
All the major Naga tribes have their own language. In actual practice, the language, even within one tribal area, varies from village to village. There are about thirty languages. The multiplicity of Naga languages is mainly because of the living condition in the past, when villages were isolated and there was little of friendly inter-communication between them. It is interesting to find that some Naga tribes have borrowed Sanskrit words in their Assamese form. Hindi is well understood in Nagaland - even in the interior areas. But, only a fraction of the population in the state speaks or write English with some degree of accuracy.
The staple food of the Naga tribes is rice. It is generally taken with meat or vegetables. The Nagas are very fond of chillies and the Semas eat them with the greatest delight. Meat could be beef, pork and chicken. Nagas also eat mithun, dogs, cats, fish, spiders, birds, crabs - in fact almost any living thing that he can lay his hands on. Even the elephant is eaten and is considered a delicacy. No part of the animal is wasted. Even the skin and intestines are eaten. The skin is spared only if needed for making a shield. Sometimes the meat is smoke dried and preserved for a long time. Meat and vegetables are usually cooked together. The food is generally boiled.
Rice beer is the main drink. It is nutritive in content and if hygienically prepared is a desirable drink. It is taken by all, including the very young.
Festivals
The festivals are mostly related to agricultural operations. The important thing about the Naga festivals is their corporate character. The community as a whole participates in the celebrations. There is a definite programme stretching over a specified period in which all the village folk join.
- Moatsu - Among the Aos, the most important festival is Moatsu, which is celebrated after the sowing is over. The festival lasts six days.
- Sekrenyi - The principal Angami festival in the Sekrenyi. It is celebrated in February by the Western Angamis and in December by the Southern Angamis. The festival is to ensure the health and well being of the community during the coming year. It is an occasion of great merry making, enormous quantities of rice-beer, beef and pork are consumed.
- Sankarni - One of the major festivals of the Zemis is the Sankarni Puja which coincides with Shivaratri. Single boys and girls join in the Sankarni puja which lasts over a week. Chanting songs, they smoke, eat and drink to their hearts content. Contribution in money and kind is welcome from the participant families as well as visitors.
- The Chakhesang Khilunyie and Rengma Ngadah are both harvest festivals.
Industry
Nagaland has basically an agricultural economy. A great ambition of the villager is to have a bumper harvest. A remarkable feature of the state’s economy is that there are no absentee landlords and there is no class of landless peasants. The village society is so organized that the basic requirement of food, clothing and shelter are guaranteed to all the members. The population as a whole remains gainfully employed in productive activities and there is no surplus labor.
There is a system of providing communal labor by forming what are called 'field companies' of men and women of the same age group. Every member of the company gets the benefits of company's labor by turn.
In tribal areas like Nagaland, the obstacles to economic development generally arise out of the prevailing physical, social and economic conditions, such as a hilly terrain, dense forests, lack of education and the people's initial apathy to any kind of innovation. To these we may also add the political condition arising out of the subversive activities of the underground Nagas.
Forests being an important source of revenue, measures have been initiated to develop them. The forest department has also established wild life sanctuaries, zoological park, botanical garden, forest training schools and a seasoning and treatment plant.
The age old industry of the state is cottage industry – such as waveing, dyeing, woodwork, canework, blacksmiths and pottery – which plays a vital role in the village's economy. The state is trying to encourage small-scale and cottage industries. This will reduce the pressure on land, ensure a larger employment potential and lead to a balanced regional development.
Places to See in Kohima
- World War II Cemetery - This cemetery has well maintained lawns. The rose bushes bloom here in season.
- State Museum - The historical artifacts, the log drums, the tools and implements, the ancestral weaponry the Naga currencies of old, the attire of warriors, the dresses of women, the hearth of a Naga Kitchen,.... in short, the entire Naga traditional lifestyle et al, have been depicted in dioramas. This is a bird's eye view of the fifteen colorful tribes at close quarters.
- Kohima Village (Bara Basti) - This village has a traditional Naga ceremonial gateway carved with motifs of guns, warriors and symbols of prosperity at the entrance to the village. The traditional Naga house built here had crossed 'horns' on the gables, carved heads to signify the status of the family, a huge basket to hold the grain in front of the house.
- Kohima Zoo - You can see the rare Tragopan bird, which is alo the state bird of Nagaland. And the Mithun, the state animal.
- Catholic Church on Aradhurah Hill - This is the biggest church of it's kind in the pre-dominantly Christian region north-eastern region of India. The view of the town from this church is outstanding.
- Naga Bazaar - You can find nearly anything that is living and moving here on sale. Nagas have a wide-ranging cuisine encompassing the entire spectrum of living things.
- The Dzukou Valley - It is tucked away at an altitude of 2438.4 metres above sea level. This is a valley that dreams are made up of. From June to September, the entire valley is a carpet of wild flowers.
- The Japfu Peak - It would just be what the doctor ordered for the adventure lovers and rekkers. Relax in the company of friends and watch the sun paint fascinating pictures over the entire is it travels slowly beyond the horizon. Then marvel at the ocean of mist at the crack of dawn. October-March is the right time to try this out, when the visibility is at its best.
- Dzulekie - It is a spot of enchantment within easy reach of Kohima. Here the domesticated bisons roam freely in the pastoral ambience and the rainbow trouts swim the cold water streams. For centuries, this stream has laboriously carved out awesome gorges, 90-100 feet deep, from the solid rocks. The surrounding green hills with little waterfalls thrown in, adds pleasure to a cool getaway.
