Origin of the Tai-Phake community of the Brahmaputra valley and their acculturation with the greater Assamese society

Abstract

The present paper tries to throw some light on the origin of Tai-Phake community living in selected pockets of Assam and deal with the change in life and culture of Tai-Phake community of Namphake village. The Tai-Phake people were originally from the Hu-kwang valley of Myanmar. They migrated in and around 1775 from Hu-Kwang valley to Assam in search of better life. To sustain their lives the people settled around the river side because of availability of water for various works. Water also helps them for cultivation of crops i.e. agriculture, which was their main occupation. The river plays an important role in the Tai-Phake community of Namphake village. The process of modernization is observed with the help of comparison in lifestyle, food, traditional practices among the older generation and new generation. Many of the festivals have vanished because of the irregular practices. There is influence in the language of the Tai-Phake community because of acculturation with different culture like the Assamese, Bengali etc. Monastery was considered to be the place where people worship, cultural gathering and educational hub but in the present period it is used only for worshipping and considered as a tourist hub. The people of Namphake village has tried to hold on to their original customs and beliefs and has preserved it by arranging evening classes of tai languages for the people, wearing traditional dresses during festival and marriage festivals and marriages. Conclusions are drawn based on the analysis of the collected information during the survey time.