Documentation of Folklore from Nagaland

Folktales, passed on from the elders to the younger generation were an important way of preserving cultural traditions and teaching the youth to understand the world around them; there is even a folktale to explain illiteracy amongst the Nagas, narrating how a script was given to them on a piece of animal hide that they ate when they were hungry. Folktales offered solutions to dilemmas and gave the community a sense of history and belonging. ICH collaborated with the Adivasi Arts Trust for this project and Ms. Tara Douglas conducted the illustration workshop and complied the folktales and illustrations.

The collection of stories is gathered from four different tribes- Pochury, Yimchunger, Konyak and Aao. The illustrations in the book are the product of the creative genius of Naga artist Lepden Jamir, and the hard work of sixteen students from the Stella Higher Secondary School in Kohima who participated in the illustration workshop and created the remaining illustrations under his guidance.

INTACH decided to publish the material in the form of a multi-lingual book to encourage preservation of endangered Naga languages. The aim in producing this book is to create new multi-lingual material to revitalize the storytelling tradition and to entertain.