Munda people

{{short description|Ethnic group of India, Bangladesh and Nepal}} {{About|the Mundari speaking ethnic group|a list of all ethnic groups using Munda languages|Munda peoples}} {{Distinguish|text=the Mundari people of South Sudan}} {{Use Indian English|date=May 2025}} {{Use dmy dates|date=May 2025}} {{Infobox ethnic group | group = Munda people | native_name = Hoṛoko, Hoṛo | native_name_lang = unr | image = Old Munda Men, Dinajpur, 2010 by Biplob Rahman.jpg | image_caption = Munda men, Dinajpur District, Bangladesh | image_alt = | image_upright = | total = {{circa|2.29&nbsp;million}} | total_year = | total_source = | total_ref = | genealogy = | regions = {{hlist|India| Bangladesh |Nepal}} | region1 = India | pop1 = 2,228,661 (2011) | ref1 = <ref name="census">{{Cite web |url=http://www.censusindia.gov.in/2011census/PCA/ST.html |title=A-11 Individual Scheduled Tribe Primary Census Abstract Data and its Appendix |website=censusindia.gov.in |publisher=Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India |access-date=18 November 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220107124005/https://www.censusindia.gov.in/2011census/PCA/ST.html |archive-date=7 January 2022}}</ref> | region2 = Jharkhand | pop2 = {{space|5}} 1,229,221 | region3 = Odisha | pop3 = {{space|5}} 584,346 | region4 = West Bengal | pop4 = {{space|5}} 366,386 | region5 = Assam | pop5 = {{space|5}} 149,851 (1921) | ref5 = <ref>{{cite web|title=Estimated Population by Castes, 5. Assam – Census 1951 |year=1954 |url=https://censusindia.gov.in/nada/index.php/catalog/30196/download/33377/44094_1951_POP.pdf |publisher=Office of the Registrar General, India |page=9}}</ref> | region6 = Chhattisgarh | pop6 = {{space|5}} 15,095 | region7 = Tripura | pop7 = {{space|5}} 14,544 | region8 = Bihar | pop8 = {{space|5}} 14,028 | region9 = Madhya Pradesh | pop9 = {{space|5}} 5,041 | region10 = Bangladesh | pop10 = 60,191 (2021) | ref10 = <ref>{{Cite web |url=http://bbs.portal.gov.bd/sites/default/files/files/bbs.portal.gov.bd/page/b343a8b4_956b_45ca_872f_4cf9b2f1a6e0/2022-07-28-14-31-b21f81d1c15171f1770c661020381666.pdf |title=Table 1.4 Ethnic Population by Group and Sex |year=2021 |publisher=Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics |page=33 |language=bn |access-date=15 August 2022 |archive-date=13 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220813235827/https://bbs.portal.gov.bd/sites/default/files/files/bbs.portal.gov.bd/page/b343a8b4_956b_45ca_872f_4cf9b2f1a6e0/2022-07-28-14-31-b21f81d1c15171f1770c661020381666.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> | region11 = Nepal | pop11 = 2,350 (2011) | languages = Mundari<ref name="Osada">{{cite book |last1=Osada |first1=Toshiki |editor1-last=Anderson |editor1-first=Gregory |title=The Munda languages |date=19 March 2008 |publisher=Routledge |location=New York |isbn=978-0-415-32890-6 |chapter=3. Mundari |quote=...the designation Munda is used for the language family. Mundari, on the other hand, refers to an individual language, namely the language of Munda people.}}</ref>{{hlist | Panchpargania{{*}}Sadri{{*}}Odia{{*}}Bengali{{*}}Hindi}} | religions = {{hlist |Hinduism • Sarnaism • Christianity • Islam}}<ref name="Cen2011">{{cite web |title=ST-14 Scheduled Tribe Population By Religious Community |url=http://www.censusindia.gov.in/2011census/SCST-Series/ST14.html |website=Census of India |publisher=Ministry of Home Affairs, India |access-date=15 October 2017 |archive-date=15 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171015214556/http://www.censusindia.gov.in/2011census/SCST-Series/ST14.html |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Srivas">{{cite journal |last1=Srivastava |first1=Malini |s2cid=73737689 |title=The Sacred Complex of Munda Tribe |journal=Anthropologist |year=2007 |volume=9 |issue=4 |pages=327–330 |doi=10.1080/09720073.2007.11891020 |url=http://krepublishers.com/02-Journals/T-Anth/Anth-09-0-000-000-2007-Web/Anth-09-4-000-07-Abst-PDF/Anth-09-4-327-07-417-Srivastava-M/Anth-09-4-327-07-417-Srivastava-M-Tt.pdf |access-date=22 October 2017 |archive-date=17 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170517132805/http://krepublishers.com/02-Journals/T-Anth/Anth-09-0-000-000-2007-Web/Anth-09-4-000-07-Abst-PDF/Anth-09-4-327-07-417-Srivastava-M/Anth-09-4-327-07-417-Srivastava-M-Tt.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref>{{rp|327}}<ref>{{Cite news |title=Tribals who convert to other religions will continue to get quota benefits: Jual Oram {{!}} India News |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/tribals-who-convert-to-other-religions-will-continue-to-get-quota-benefits-jual-oram/articleshow/65379249.cms |access-date=10 July 2021 |work=The Times of India |language=en |archive-date=12 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210712091834/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/tribals-who-convert-to-other-religions-will-continue-to-get-quota-benefits-jual-oram/articleshow/65379249.cms |url-status=live}}</ref> | related_groups = Munda peoples {{hlist | Bhumijs|Ho|Kharias|Juangs|Santhals}} | footnotes = }} {{Infobox ethnonym|root={{lang|unr-nagm|𞓧𞓟𞓨𞓜𞓕}} Munda|person={{lang|unr-nagm|𞓞𞓐𞓣𞓐}} (Hoṛo)|people={{lang|unr-nagm|𞓞𞓐𞓣𞓐𞓢𞓐}} (Hoṛoko)|language=Mundari|country={{hlist|{{Flag|India}}| {{Flag|Bangladesh}} |{{Flag|Nepal}}}}}}

The '''Munda people''' are an Austroasiatic-speaking ethnic group of the Indian subcontinent. They speak Mundari as their native language, which belongs to the Munda subgroup of Austroasiatic languages. The Munda are found mainly concentrated in the south and East Chhotanagpur Plateau region of Jharkhand,<ref>{{cite book |last1=Gupta |first1=Satya Prakash |title=Tribes of Chotanagpur Plateau: An Ethno-nutritional & Pharmacological Cross-section |year=1974 |publisher=Government of Bihar, Welfare Department |page=12 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0gAEAAAAMAAJ&q=munda+people+are+concentrated+in+chotanagpur+plateau |language=en |access-date=19 March 2023}}</ref> Odisha and West Bengal.<ref name="census"/><ref>{{Cite web |date=December 2012 |title=Adivasi Volume 52, Number 1&2 |url=http://www.stscodisha.gov.in/pdf/June-Dec-2012-Vol-1-2.pdf |url-status=live |archive-date=8 November 2016 |website=Web Archive |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161108183956/http://www.stscodisha.gov.in/pdf/June-Dec-2012-Vol-1-2.pdf}}</ref> The Munda also reside in adjacent areas of Madhya Pradesh as well as in portions of Bangladesh, Nepal, and the Indian state of Tripura.<ref name="census"/><ref name="BD">{{cite web |title=Mundari Language |url=https://www.ethnologue.com/language/unr |website=Ethnologue |publisher=SIL International |access-date=20 October 2017 |url-access=subscription |archive-date=20 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210420113123/https://www.ethnologue.com/language/unr |url-status=live}}</ref> They are one of India's largest scheduled tribes.{{Citation needed|date=September 2025}} Munda people in Tripura are also known as '''Mura'''.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://tribesindia.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=792&Itemid=104&lang=en |title=Homepage |access-date=14 December 2017 |archive-date=14 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214182942/http://tribesindia.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=792&Itemid=104&lang=en |url-status=live}}</ref> In the Kolhan region of Jharkhand the Munda people are often called '''Tamadia''' by other communities.<ref>{{Cite web |year=1993 |title=Munda Tribe |url=https://www.trijharkhand.in/en/publications |publisher=Dr. Ramdayal Munda Tribal Welfare Research Institute |place=Jharkhand, India |language=hindi |edition=4th 2020}}</ref>

==Overview== === Etymology === Munda means headman of a village in the Munda-Manki system to govern villages in South-east Chotanagpur. They call themselves ''horoko'' or ''ho ko'', which means "men".<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://mundariversity.com/history-munda-tribe-language-mundari/ |title=History of Munda Tribe Language : Mundari |date=29 May 2018 |publisher=mundariuniversity |access-date=20 October 2022 |archive-date=20 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221020013818/https://mundariversity.com/history-munda-tribe-language-mundari/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

Robert Parkin notes that the term "Munda" did not belong to the Austroasiatic lexis and is of Sanskrit origin.<ref>{{cite web |website=University of Oxford |title=Second Reply to Pfeffer |first=Robert |last=Parkin |year=1993 |page=161 |url=https://www.anthro.ox.ac.uk/sites/default/files/anthro/documents/media/jaso24_2_1993_158_163.pdf |access-date=18 December 2020 |quote=The term 'Munda' is of Sanskritic origin and therefore not original in any sense to Austroasiatic speakers, although it has come to be used by one tribe as an alternative to their own term 'Horo' (Le. Roy's group; cf. Pfeffer above, p. 154; also Parkin 1990: 17, 23). |archive-date=16 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200916201633/https://www.anthro.ox.ac.uk/sites/default/files/anthro/documents/media/jaso24_2_1993_158_163.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> According to R. R. Prasad, the name "Munde" is a Ho word that means "headman". It is an honorific name given by Hindus, and hence became a tribal name.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Prasad |first1=R. R. |year=1996 |title=Encyclopaedic Profile of Indian Tribes |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TmDRNTYw49EC&pg=PA186 |volume=1 |page=186 |publisher=Discovery Publishing House |isbn=978-81-7141-298-3 |access-date=16 August 2019}}</ref> According to Standing (1976), it was under British rule that the term Munda started to be used for the tribal group.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/46519807.pdf |title=An Anthropological Study of Rural Jharkhand, India |author=Alpa Shah |page=88 |year=2003 |access-date=8 November 2022 |archive-date=8 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221108161436/https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/46519807.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Geographic distribution === thumb|Distribution of Munda people

The Munda primarily inhabit the eastern states of Jharkhand, West Bengal, and Odisha, specifically in the Khunti, Ranchi, Simdega, Paschim Singhbhum, Gumla, Purbi Singhbhum, and Ramghar districts of Jharkhand; the Sundargarh and Sambalpur districts of Odisha; and the Jalpaiguri, Paschim Medinipur, and North 24 Parganas districts of West Bengal. They are also sporadically distributed in the neighbouring states of Chhattisgarh and Bihar. Additionally, they live in the northeastern states of Assam, Tripura, and Mizoram, largely in the tea valleys of Assam, where they migrated to work as tea garden workers during colonial India. Apart from India, they also reside in neighbouring countries such as Bangladesh and Nepal.

==History== {{See also|Munda peoples#History}} According to linguist Paul Sidwell, Munda languages arrived on the coast of Odisha from Southeast Asia approximately 4,000 to 3,500 years ago ({{circa|2000|1500}} BCE).<ref>Sidwell, Paul. 2018. [https://www.academia.edu/36689736/Austroasiatic_Studies_state_of_the_art_in_2018 Austroasiatic Studies: state of the art in 2018] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190503013417/https://www.academia.edu/36689736/Austroasiatic_Studies_state_of_the_art_in_2018 |date=3 May 2019 }}. Presentation at the Graduate Institute of Linguistics, National Tsing Hua University, Taiwan, 22 May 2018.</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Rau |first1=Felix |last2=Sidwell |first2=Paul |title=The Munda Maritime Hypothesis |date=12 September 2019 |url=https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/228160282.pdf |journal=Journal of the Southeast Asian Linguistics Society |volume=12 |issue=2 |issn=1836-6821 |hdl=10524/52454 |s2cid=204901974|pages=35–57 }}</ref> The Munda people are genetically closely related to Mah Meri and Temuan people of Malaysia.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.downtoearth.org.in/lifestyle/scientists-solve-genetic-puzzle-surrounding-mundas-63548 |title=Scientists solve genetic puzzle surrounding Mundas |publisher=down-to-earth.org |date=12 March 2019 |access-date=1 October 2022 |archive-date=25 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220925014616/https://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/lifestyle/amp/scientists-solve-genetic-puzzle-surrounding-mundas-63548 |url-status=live}}</ref>

According to historian R. S. Sharma, tribals who spoke the Munda language occupied the eastern region of ancient India. Many Munda terms occur in Vedic texts that were written between 1500 BCE and 500 BCE. Their presence in texts compiled in the upper Gangetic basin late in that period suggests that Munda speakers were there at the time.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sharma |first=R. S. |author-link=Ram Sharan Sharma |year=2005 |title=India's Ancient Past |publisher=Oxford University Press |pages=2, 118–119 |isbn=978-0-19-566714-1}}</ref> According to Barbara A. West, the Mundas claim origin in Uttar Pradesh, and a steady flow eastward in history as other groups moved into their original homeland; she suggests that they inhabited a "much larger territory" in ancient India.<ref>{{cite book |last1=West |first1=Barbara A. |title=Encyclopedia of the Peoples of Asia and Oceania |date=2010 |publisher=Infobase Publishing |isbn=9781438119137 |page=564 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pCiNqFj3MQsC&q=munda+people+came+from+south+east+asia&pg=PA564 |access-date=20 September 2019 |language=en |archive-date=14 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230414174240/https://books.google.com/books?id=pCiNqFj3MQsC&q=munda+people+came+from+south+east+asia&pg=PA564 |url-status=live}}</ref> Recent studies suggest that Munda languages spread as far as Eastern Uttar Pradesh but not beyond that, and impacted Eastern Indo-Aryan languages, as some groups such as Musahar have Munda genetic lineage. The claim of a Munda presence in the Upper Gangetic plain has no linguistic or genetic basis.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/355078227 |title=The spread of Munda in prehistoric South Asia -the view from areal typology To appear in: Volume in Celebration of the Bicentenary of Deccan College Post-Graduate and Research Institute (Deemed University) |author=John Peterson |date=October 2021 |access-date=1 September 2022}}</ref>

thumb|1903 Group photo of Mundas in Chota Nagpur.

In the late 1800s, during the British Raj, the Mundas were forced to pay rents and work as bonded labourers to the zamindars. During the Kol uprising in 1823–1833, some Manki Munda revolted due to their disposition and attacked Thikedars, other Mankis, plundered and destroyed villages. This insurgency was suppressed by Thomas Wilkinson.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kUueDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT215 |title=Mughal Administration and the Zamindars of Bihar |isbn=9781000651522 |last1=Ansari |first1=Tahir Hussain |year=2019 |publisher=Routledge }}</ref> During the 19th century, Munda freedom fighter Birsa Munda began the protest marches calling for non-payment of rents and remission of forest dues. He led guerrilla warfare to uproot the British Raj and establish Munda Raj. He was caught by Company forces, along with his supporters, and died in jail. He is still revered in Jharkhand.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://indianexpress.com/article/india/jharkhand-amit-shah-launches-scheme-for-villages-of-freedom-fighters-khunti-4848635/ |title=Jharkhand: Amit Shah launches scheme for villages of freedom fighters |last=Pandey |first=Prashant |date=18 September 2017 |work=The Indian Express |access-date=21 October 2017 |language=en-US |archive-date=14 November 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191114151130/https://indianexpress.com/article/india/jharkhand-amit-shah-launches-scheme-for-villages-of-freedom-fighters-khunti-4848635/ |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=History of Munda Tribes |url=https://www.prabhatkhabar.com/topic/history-of-munda-tribes |access-date=22 January 2025 |work=Prabhat Khabar}}</ref> thumb|Illustration of Munda rebellion in 1800s

Nomadic hunters in the India tribal belt, they became farmers and some were employed in basketwork. With the listing of the Munda people as Scheduled Tribes, many are employed in various governmental organisations (particularly Indian Railways).<ref>{{cite web |title=List of Schedule Castes |publisher=Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India |year=2011 |url=http://socialjustice.nic.in/aboutdivision1.php |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140923060507/http://socialjustice.nic.in/aboutdivision1.php |archive-date=23 September 2014}}</ref>

==Social structure == ===Kinship patterns=== Munda are divided into a number of exogamous clans. Clans among Mundas are known as ''Killi'', which is similar to Sanskrit word ''Kula''. Munda are patrilineal, and clan name descends father to son. According to tradition, people of the same clan are descendants of the same forefather. Clans among Mundas are of totemic origin. Some clans are:<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roy |first=Sarat Chandra |title=The Mundas and their Country |publisher=Asia Publishing House |year=1912}}</ref> {{div col|colwidth=15em|rules=yes}} * ''Baa'' (a fish) * ''Baba'' (rice) * ''Bodra'' * ''Balamchu'' (fish net) * ''Barla'' * ''Bhengra'' (horse) * ''Bhuswar''(bird) * ''Bukru'' (a bird) * ''Bulung'' (salt) * ''Dang, Dungdung'' (a fish) * ''Gudia, Hans'' (swan) * ''Hemrom/Hembram'' (a tree) * ''Herenz'' (a specific Bird) * ''Horo'' (turtle) * ''Hundar'' (hyena) * ''Jojo'' (tamarind) * ''Kauwa'' (crow) * ''Kerketta'' (a bird) * ''Kula'' (tiger) * ''Nil'' (bull) * ''Mus'' (mouse) * ''Nag'' (cobra) * ''Oreya'' (bammboo basket) * ''Pandu'' (cobra) * ''Purty'' * ''Runda'' (wild cat) * ''Sandil'' (Full moon)<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bfAMAQAAMAAJ|title=Communities, segments, synonym, surnames and titles V.8, xiii,1948p.-(People of India National Series) |isbn=978-0-19-563357-3 |access-date=1 August 2024 |last1=Singh |first1=K. S. |date=1996 |publisher=Anthropological Survey of India }}</ref> * ''Sanga'' (a type of root) * ''Surin/Soren/Soreng'' (a bird) * ''Tiru'' (a bird) * ''Tuti'' (a type of grain)<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://hi.vikaspedia.in/social-welfare/92d93e930924-915940-91c92891c93e92493f92f93e901/90692693f93593e938940-93890293894d91594392493f-914930-92a93092e94d92a93093e/90692693f93593e938940-91794b92494d930 |title=आदिवासी गोत्र |website=vikaspedia |access-date=18 September 2019 |archive-date=18 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218142057/http://hi.vikaspedia.in/social-welfare/92d93e930924-915940-91c92891c93e92493f92f93e901/90692693f93593e938940-93890293894d91594392493f-914930-92a93092e94d92a93093e/90692693f93593e938940-91794b92494d930 |url-status=live}}</ref> * ''Topno'' (red ants) * ''Kongari'' (white crow) {{div col end}}

===Administrative system=== Munda-Manki governing system was prevalent in Kolhan region of Jharkhand. Munda govern their villages by Munda-Manki system. Head of village is called ''Munda'', informant of village is called ''Dakuwa'', village priest is called ''Pahaan'', assistant of ''Pahaan'' is called ''Pujhar'', head of 15 to 20 villages is called Manki, assistant of Manki is called ''Tahshildar'', which collected taxes. The priest "Deori" is also prevalent among Hos, Bhumij, Bhuyan, Sounti, Khonds tribe of Odisha and Chutia people of Assam.<ref name = "Prasad">Prasad, Hem Chandra. ''Bihar''. 1983/2003, pp. 36, 67, 159, 162, 184. National Book Trust, New Delhi. {{ISBN|81-237-0151-9}}</ref>{{refn|group=lower-alpha|"All these Bodo tribes had their own respective priests called Deoris".<ref>{{cite book |last=Dutta |first=Sristidhar |year=1985 |title=The Mataks and their Kingdom |publisher=Chugh Publications |place=Allahabad |page=50 |oclc=13959339}}</ref>}} In Chotanagpur division, Munda have adopted Pahan as their village priest.<ref name="academia.edu">{{Cite journal |url=https://www.academia.edu/42298290 |title=Pages from the Old Records: A Note on 'The "Kols" of Chota-Nagpore' by E.T. Dalton |author=Sanjay Nath |website=academia.edu |page=19 |year=2015 |access-date=25 October 2022 |archive-date=25 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221025154052/https://www.academia.edu/42298290 |url-status=live}}</ref>

== Culture and tradition == ===Festival=== Involved in agriculture, the Munda people celebrate the seasonal festivals of Mage Parab, Phagu, Karam, Baha parab, Sarhul and Sohrai. Some seasonal festivals have coincided with religious festivals, but their original meaning remains. Their deity is Singbonga.<ref name="auto">{{cite web |url=http://www.ecoindia.com/tribes/munda.html |title=Mundas, Munda Tribe in Jharkhand India, Occupation of Mundas |website=ecoindia.com |access-date=26 March 2016 |archive-date=16 November 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191116025801/http://www.ecoindia.com/tribes/munda.html |url-status=live}}</ref>

===Music=== They have many folk songs, dances, tales and traditional musical instruments. Both sexes participate in dances at social events and festivals. The naqareh is a principal musical instrument.<ref>{{Cite web |date=30 January 2025 |title=The Munda Tribe of Jharkhand: Glimpse into Rich Heritage |url=https://sudershanchakra.com/the-munda-tribe-of-jharkhand/ |access-date=4 April 2025 |language=en-US}}</ref> Munda refer to their dance and song as ''durang'' and ''susun'' respectively. Some folk dances of the Munda are ''Jadur'', ''Karam Susun'' and ''Mage Susun''.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Prasad |first1=R. R. |year=1996 |title=Encyclopaedic Profile of Indian Tribes |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TmDRNTYw49EC&pg=PA186 |volume=1 |pages=188–191 |publisher=Discovery Publishing House |isbn=978-81-7141-298-3 |access-date=16 August 2019}}</ref> Mundari music is similar to the music of Sadan. Mundari Mage song (winter) rhythm is similar to the Nagpuri Fagua song (winter, spring) rhythm.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GbbQyA557B0C&pg=PA215 |title=Ethnomusicology and Modern Music History |publisher=University of Illinois Press |year=1993 |isbn=978-0252063435 |editor=Blum |editor-first=Stephen |page=215 |editor-last2=Bohlman |editor-first2=Phillip Vilas |editor-last3=Neuman |editor-first3=Daniel M. |access-date=30 January 2023}}</ref> thumb|Mundari dance

===Rituals=== The Munda people have elaborate rituals to celebrate birth, death, engagement and marriage.

Munda practice clan exogamy and tribal endogamy. Monogamy is the norm. Bride price is prevalent. Marriage ceremony starts with Sagai and ends with Bidai. Munda enjoy this occasion with feast, drinks and dance.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=za396I85CPEC&pg=PA116 |title=Marriages in Indian Society |publisher=Discovery Publishing House |author=Prakash Chandra Mehta |year=2005 |isbn=9788171419210 |page=116 |access-date=24 October 2022}}</ref> According to Sarat Chandra Roy, Sindurdaan ceremony and turmeric use in marriage clearly reflect Hindu elements borrowed into Munda tradition.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/stream/in.ernet.dli.2015.125201/2015.125201.The-Mundas-And-Their-Country_djvu.txt |title=The Mundas and their country |author=Sarat Chandra Roy |year=1912 |publisher=Asia Publishing House |access-date=22 October 2022}}</ref>

Munda people of Jharkhand also follow the age old tradition of Patthalgari, i.e., stone erection, in which the tribal community residing in the village buries a large inverted U-shaped dressed headstone on the head side of a grave or at the entrance to the village, in which is inscribed the family tree of the dead persons.<ref>{{cite thesis |last=Poyil |first=Manjula |year=2006 |title=Death funeral and the ancestors Cult of the dead and the Malabar tribes |type=PhD |chapter=Death Customs In The Tribal Context: Concluding Observations |chapter-url=http://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/20515/11/11_chapter%205.pdf |publisher=University of Calicut |hdl=10603/20515 |url=http://hdl.handle.net/10603/20515 |access-date=21 February 2022}}</ref> There are some other types of patthalgari also: * ''Horadiri'' - It is the stone in which family tree is written. * ''Chalpadiri'' or ''Saasandiri'' - It is the stone in remarking boundary of any village and its limits. * ''Magodiri'' - This is the headstone of a social criminal who committed polygamy or unsocial marriage. * ''Ziddiri'' - This is the stone placed over burial of placenta and dried navel part of a newborn.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.antiquity.ac.uk/projgall/mendaly352 |title=Menhirs and cultural diffusion: megalithic practices in Central-eastern India &#124; Antiquity Journal |website=antiquity.ac.uk |access-date=22 December 2019 |archive-date=18 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218142113/https://www.antiquity.ac.uk/projgall/mendaly352 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=https://scroll.in/article/878468/the-constitution-set-in-stone-adivasis-in-jharkhand-are-using-an-old-tradition-as-a-novel-protest |title=The Constitution set in stone: Adivasis in Jharkhand are using an old tradition as a novel protest |work=Scroll.in |access-date=31 July 2018 |archive-date=31 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180731125000/https://scroll.in/article/878468/the-constitution-set-in-stone-adivasis-in-jharkhand-are-using-an-old-tradition-as-a-novel-protest |url-status=live}}</ref> thumb|Munda House at "State Tribal Fair- 2020", Bhubaneswar thumb|Munda Lady

==Literature and studies== [[File:Encyclopedia mundarica (John-Baptist Hoffmann).JPG|thumb|alt=Eight books on a shelf|upright=1.2|Part of John-Baptist Hoffmann's 15-volume ''Encyclopaedia Mundarica'']] Jesuit priest John-Baptist Hoffmann (1857–1928) studied the language, customs, religion and life of the Munda people, publishing the first Mundari language grammar in 1903. With the help of Menas Orea, Hoffmann published the 15-volume ''Encyclopaedia Mundarica''. The first edition was published posthumously in 1937, and a third edition was published in 1976. ''The Mundas and Their Country'', by S. C. Roy, was published in 1912. ''Adidharam'' (Hindi:आदि धर्म) by Ram Dayal Munda and Ratan Singh Manki, in Mundari with a Hindi translation, describes Munda rituals and customs.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://tribalstuffs.blogspot.in/2011/11/mundari-language-of-munda-tribe.html |title=Mundari: The Language of Munda Tribe |access-date=6 February 2015 |archive-date=1 May 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180501192451/http://tribalstuffs.blogspot.in/2011/11/mundari-language-of-munda-tribe.html |url-status=dead}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable sortable collapsible plainrowheaders" border="1" style="text-align:left" ! scope="col" | Title ! scope="col" | Author(s) ! scope="col" | Year / Edition ! scope="col" | Focus / What It Covers ! scope="col" | Significance |- | Encyclopaedia Mundarica | John Baptist Hoffmann & Arthur Van Emelen | Volumes published between ~1924-1950 | A multi-volume reference work describing the language, culture, customs, material culture of the Mundas. | One of the most comprehensive traditional sources in English on Munda culture. |- | The Mundas and Their Country | S. C. Roy | 1912 (original) | Ethnographic / geographical study of the Munda people and their lands. | Important early work documenting Munda social and economic life during British colonial period. |- | Musical Culture of the Munda Tribe | Sem Topno | (year not always indicated) | Study of music and dance among the Munda, with song texts (in original + English translation), relation to life-cycle, cosmology etc. | Fills a gap in literature by focusing on artistic expressions; useful for culture & anthropology. |- | Cultural Study of Oraon and Munda Tribes | Niranjan Mahawar | 2019 (Hardcover ed.) | Comparative cultural study of the two tribes: lifestyle, performing arts, cultural change etc. | Useful for understanding similarities/differences with neighbouring tribes; more recent scholarship. |- | The Religious History of Munda and Oraon Tribes | Diwakar Minz | 2017 | Traces beliefs, customs, origin, and changes over time among Munda & Oraon tribes. | Helps understand religious dimension historically and its evolution. |- | The Legend of Birsa Munda | (by Tuhin A. Sinha) | English edition (2021) | Narrative / biographical work about Birsa Munda, his life, struggle, resistance. | Widely accessible work; useful for popular understanding and for those less familiar with academic texts. |- | The Life and Times of Jaipal Singh Munda | Santosh Kiro | 2018 | Biography of Jaipal Singh Munda, notable leader, role in tribal politics, sporting and other contributions. | Adds dimension of modern political history, leadership, and identity. |- |}

==Social issues == ===Economic condition=== In a 2016 research paper on subsistence strategies of Mundas in a village of Sunderbans in West Bengal, it was found that many people migrate out of their residences because of poor economic conditions and landlessness. This rural to urban migration has followed a greater trend within India. Men and women engage in forest product collection, cultivation, small business and agricultural as well as non-agricultural jobs. A person or a family may be engaged in multiple occupations, often undertaking risky visits to the forests and rivers. It was also found that younger generation preferred to engage as migrant workers outside the village and often outside the district and the state.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Bandyopadhyay |first1=Ayan |title=Subsistence strategies of the Mundas in a village of Sundarban, West Bengal |date=November 2016 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/318359839 |journal=Journal of the Indian Anthropological Society |volume=51 |issue=3 |pages=128–144 |access-date=30 March 2020}}</ref>

==Notable people== <!---♦♦♦ Only add a person to this list if they already have their own article on the English Wikipedia ♦♦♦---> <!---♦♦♦ Please keep the list in alphabetical order by LAST NAME ♦♦♦---> * Dayamani Barla (active 2004–2013), journalist<ref>{{Cite web |title=Dayamani Barla: Indigenous Journalist and Activist from India |url=https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2007/11/24/18463235.php |access-date=4 April 2025 |website=Indybay |language=en}}</ref> * Puna Bhengra, politician<ref>{{Cite news |last=Das |first=Madhuparna |date=17 April 2021 |title=How tea gardens in North Bengal, key to poll fortunes of BJP & TMC, have kept both guessing |url=https://theprint.in/politics/how-tea-gardens-in-north-bengal-key-to-poll-fortunes-of-bjp-tmc-have-kept-both-guessing/641016/ |access-date=4 April 2025 |work=ThePrint |language=en-US}}</ref> * Niral Enem Horo, politician<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kumar |first=Raj |date=6 January 2017 |title=New names for city roads |url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/jharkhand/new-names-for-city-roads/cid/1335902 |work=The Telegraph |location=Kolkata |language=en}}</ref> * Amrit Lugun (born 1962), ambassador to Greece,<ref>{{cite web |title=Amrit Lugun has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to Greece |url=https://www.mea.gov.in/press-releases.htm?dtl/31896/Amrit+Lugun+has+been+appointed+as+the+next+Ambassador+of+India+to+Greece |date=3 October 2019 |website=mea.gov.in |access-date=11 March 2022 |archive-date=14 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230414185759/https://www.mea.gov.in/press-releases.htm?dtl/31896/Amrit+Lugun+has+been+appointed+as+the+next+Ambassador+of+India+to+Greece |url-status=live}}</ref> South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation director<ref>{{cite web |url=http://saarc-sdmc.nic.in/saarc_secretariat.asp |title=SAARC Secretariat |access-date=23 January 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150403005743/http://saarc-sdmc.nic.in/saarc_secretariat.asp |website=saarc-sdmc.nic.in |archive-date=3 April 2015}}</ref> * Anuj Lugun (born 1986), poet who received the 2011 Bharat Bhushan Agarwal Award<ref>{{cite news |last=Ganguly |first=M. |date=11 August 2011 |url=https://in.news.yahoo.com/hindi-stalwarts-praise-tribal-poet-000000197.html |title=Hindi stalwarts praise tribal poet |publisher=Yahoo! News |access-date=26 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141112214729/https://in.news.yahoo.com/hindi-stalwarts-praise-tribal-poet-000000197.html |archive-date=12 November 2014 |url-status=dead}}</ref> * Munmun Lugun, football player<ref>{{Cite news |date=18 September 2020 |title=Mohammedan Sporting sign defender Munmun Timothy Lugun |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/football/i-league/mohammedan-sporting-sign-defender-munmun-timothy-lugun/articleshow/78182108.cms |access-date=4 April 2025 |work=The Times of India |issn=0971-8257}}</ref> * Arjun Munda (born 1968), politician<ref>{{Cite news |date=31 May 2019 |title=Former Jharkhand CM Arjun Munda gets tribal affairs ministry |url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/former-jharkhand-cm-arjun-munda-gets-tribal-affairs-ministry/story-HJQOPdm2riSuRrSYi7CZJM.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220627123653/https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/former-jharkhand-cm-arjun-munda-gets-tribal-affairs-ministry/story-HJQOPdm2riSuRrSYi7CZJM.html |archive-date=27 June 2022 |access-date=4 April 2025 |work=Hindustan Times |language=en-us}}</ref> * Birsa Munda (1875–1900), freedom fighter, religious leader<ref>{{Cite web |title=Birsa Munda |url=https://www.indianpost.com/viewstamp.php/Alpha/B/BIRSA%20MUNDA |access-date=4 April 2025 |website=indianpost.com}}</ref> * Jaipal Singh Munda (1903–1970), politician, hockey player<ref>{{Cite news |last=Suren |first=Aswin |date=2 January 2025 |title=Jaipal Singh Munda — the Hockey captain who fought for the cause of Adivasis vigorously |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/jharkhand/jaipal-singh-munda-the-hockey-captain-who-fought-for-the-cause-of-adivasis/article69053196.ece |access-date=4 April 2025 |work=The Hindu |language=en-IN |issn=0971-751X}}</ref> * Joseph Munda, politician<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=iMeUsWe |title=MUNDA Surname in India {{!}} iMeUsWe Surnames Origin |url=https://www.imeuswe.in/surname/MUNDA |access-date=4 April 2025 |website=imeuswe.in}}</ref> * Kariya Munda (born 1936), politician<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite news |title=Tribal activists expect Droupadi Murmu to be assertive as President |url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/jharkhand/tribal-activists-expect-droupadi-murmu-to-be-assertive-as-president/cid/1871370 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241203023120/https://www.telegraphindia.com/jharkhand/tribal-activists-expect-droupadi-murmu-to-be-assertive-as-president/cid/1871370 |archive-date=3 December 2024 |access-date=4 April 2025 |language=en}}</ref> * Laxman Munda, politician<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=MLA Laxman Munda Profile {{!}} BONAI Constituency |url=https://naveenpatnaik.com/MLA-Laxman-Munda-of-BONAI-constituency-1237.html |access-date=4 April 2025 |website=naveenpatnaik.com}}</ref> * Nilkanth Singh Munda (born 1968), politician<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Sourav |date=21 October 2024 |title=Neelkanth Singh Munda: Biography, Wiki, Career, Net Worth, Caste, Contact, etc. |url=https://chunavsathi.com/neelkanth-singh-munda/ |access-date=4 April 2025 |language=en-US}}</ref> * Ram Dayal Munda (1939–2011), scholar in languages & folklore<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Gupta |first=Smita |title=A life dedicated to preserving tribal culture |url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article2506981.ece |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111005123739/http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article2506981.ece |archive-date=5 October 2011 |work=The Hindu |language=en}}</ref> * Sukra Munda (active 2016 to 2020), politician<ref name=":0" /> * Tulasi Munda (born 1947), social activist<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=S |first=Lekshmi Priya |date=15 May 2017 |title=12 Facts About Tulasi Apa, the Odisha Woman Who Taught 20,000+ Children in 50 Years |url=https://thebetterindia.com/100710/tulasi-apa-eradication-of-illiteracy/ |access-date=4 April 2025 |website=The Better India |language=en-US}}</ref> * Rohidas Singh Nag (1934–2012), creator of "Mundari Bani" script<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mundari Bani alphabet |url=https://www.omniglot.com/writing/mundaribani.htm |access-date=4 April 2025 |website=omniglot.com}}</ref> * Masira Surin, hockey player<ref>{{Cite news |date=9 September 2002 |title=Three hockey players from Jharkhand bring pride back to their people, save their school |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/sport/story/20020909-three-hockey-players-from-jharkhand-bring-pride-back-to-their-people-save-their-school-796378-2002-09-08 |access-date=4 April 2025 |work=India Today |language=en}}</ref> * Rajeev Topno (born 1974), private secretary to the prime minister of India, senior advisor to the executive director at World Bank<ref>{{Cite web |date=22 May 2018 |title=Surnames in Munda Tribe |url=https://mundariversity.com/munda-tribe-surnames/ |access-date=4 April 2025 |website=Online Platform to Learn Mundari Language |language=en-US}}</ref> <!---♦♦♦ Only add a person to this list if they already have their own article on the English Wikipedia ♦♦♦---> <!---♦♦♦ Please keep the list in alphabetical order by LAST NAME ♦♦♦--->

==See also== * Christianity in Jharkhand * Korku people * Munda peoples * Kolarian

==References== === Footnotes === {{notelist}}

=== Sources === {{reflist}}

===Bibliography=== * {{Cite book |last=Ray |first=Sarat Chandra |author-link1=Sarat Chandra Roy |date=1912 |title=The Mundas and Their Country |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hMpGAAAAIAAJ |publisher=Kuntaline Press |publication-place=Calcutta |language=en |oclc=504764442}}

==Further reading== * Parkin, R. (1992). ''The Munda of central India: an account of their social organisation''. Delhi: Oxford University Press. {{ISBN|0-19-563029-7}} * Omkar, P.(2018). "Santhal tribes present in India" like Jharkhand, Odisha, and West Bengal... Belavadi. * Omkar, patil.(2018). "Kola tribes"...

==External links== {{commons category}} * [http://koenraadelst.bharatvani.org/articles/chr/sarna.html Sarna&nbsp;– A case study in religion] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080131234541/http://koenraadelst.bharatvani.org/articles/chr/sarna.html |date=31 January 2008 }} On the religion of the Munda tribals * [http://www.sinlung.com/ Sinlung]&nbsp;– Indian tribes * {{Cite EB1911 |wstitle=Mundās |volume=18 |short=x}} This article is a discussion of the related family of languages. * [http://projekt.ht.lu.se/rwaai RWAAI | RWAAI, Lunds universitet] RWAAI (Repository and Workspace for Austroasiatic Intangible Heritage) * http://hdl.handle.net/10050/00-0000-0000-0003-A6AA-C@view Mundari language in RWAAI Digital Archive

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Munda}} Category:Munda people Category:Ethnic groups in Bangladesh Category:Ethnic groups in India Category:Ethnic groups in South Asia Category:Ethnoreligious groups in Asia Category:Scheduled Tribes of India Category:Scheduled Tribes of Odisha Category:Social groups of Bihar Category:Social groups of Jharkhand Category:Social groups of Odisha Category:Social groups of West Bengal Category:Sociology of religion Category:Tribes of Jharkhand Category:Tribes of West Bengal Category:Ethnic groups in Nepal