The Lanjia Saora: A Study of a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group in Odisha by Krupasindhu Nayak

Description

The Saora, variously pronounced and spelt as, Sabara, Sa-ara, Saura, Sora etc are one of the 62 tribes of Orissa. These people are mentioned in the great epics and other ancient sanskrit literatures indicating their presence since hoary past on a vast tract of land. Many other Tribal communities have added Savara as suffixs to their ethnic name for e.g. Lodha Savara, Jara Savara, in northern Orissa. Depending on their stages of socio cultural development, they are found to live in the plains and known to the non-tribal neighbours as ‘Sa-ara‘ and Suddha Saora (purified). The community under present discussion live on the hills amidst forest in the Paralakhemundi and Gunupur areas of southern Orissa. The prefix Lanjia(tail) is given due to peculiarity of their dress. The name wear a strip of loin cloth, about six feet long and ten inches broad, around the waist, leaving a short front piece and a longer tail piece hanging. This looks like tail and hence the name. Physically these people confirm to Australoid racial type with short stature, dark brown skin colour, long head, wavy and brown hair, short, low and broad nose. Facial and body hairs are not thick. they speak a dialect of Mundari language ut can communicate in local Oriya language of the neighbours. As per 1991 census they counted 403518 which constitute 6.72% of total tribal population of Orissa, with 1030 females per 1000 males.

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