The Jenu Kuruba are a tribal community from the Nilgiris that numbers roughly 37,000 people. They are concentrated in districts that border the states of Kerala and Karnataka. 'Jenu' means 'honey' in Kannada, referring to their traditional job as honey collectors in the jungle.
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Jenu Kuruba families have lately begun the long-awaited reoccupation of their ancestral houses within Nagarhole National Park.
Aspect |
Details |
Language |
Jenu Kurumba language; related to Kodava or considered a rural dialect of Kannada. |
Traditional Occupations |
Food gathering, collecting minor forest produce, handling elephants. |
Settlement Pattern |
Small settlements known as Hadi. |
Agriculture |
Practice shifting cultivation. |
Lifestyle |
Semi-nomadic. |
Social Organization |
Decentralized authority structure. |
Leadership Roles |
- Head-man (Yajamana): Oversees community matters. - Ritual Head/Shaman (Gudda): Handles rituals and spiritual matters. |
Practice Question Consider the following pairs : Tribe: State 1. Limboo Limbu : Sikkim 2. Karbi : Himachal 3. Dongaria Kondh : Odisha 4. Bonda : Tamil Nadu Which of the above pairs are correctly matched? (a) 1 and 3 only (b) 2 and 4 only (c) 1, 3 and 4 only (d) 1, 2, 3 and 4 Correct answer: (a) 1 and 3 only. |
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