History and Historiography of the Khasis of Meghalaya

Prof J. B. Bhattacharjee has analyzed how the India'slargest of these principalities were Khyrin, Mulliem,
North- Eastern region is the homeland of a number ofNongkhlaw, Nongstin and Cherra. Fourteen of them
ethnic and cultural groups with different languages,were under constitutional heads called
religions, faiths and beliefs and traditions.‘Syiems’, seven were under Sirdars, three
The important part of the region is the hilly people byunder priest- rules called ‘Lyngdohs’ and one
the Indo- Mongoloid tribal groups, while the Indo-actually a confederacy of independent villages
Aryan (non-tribal) population is mostly concentrated inSouthern Khasi Hills.
the Brahmaputra Valley and the Barak valley ofThe offices of Syiems and Lyngdohs have always
Assam and the plain areas of Tripura. The importancebeen hereditary and according to the Khasi usage,
of the tribal population is in the hilly areas. The regionsuccession falls on the eldest son of the previous
is the homeland of a number of ethnic andincumbent's sister.
variegated cultural groups with their languages,Contacts between the British and the Khasis began
religions, faiths and beliefs and traditions.by the end of the eighteen century. The British East
Meghalaya was declared the 21st state of India onIndia Company had obtained the Diwani of Bengal
21st January 1972. It united the areas of the Khasi,from the Mughals and began to established
Jaintia and the Garo Hills under the leadership ofthemselves in the plains of Sylhet which lies in the
Captain Williamson A. Sangma, the state's first ChiefSouth of the Khasi country.
Minister.The Khasi Hills, what is now called Meghalaya, lay
Meghalaya, approximately 22,429 square kilometersbetween the new possession of the British in the
(8,659 square miles) in area, lies between theplains of Assam and their already occupied areas of
latitudes 251degree - 265 N and the longitudes 8549-Sylhet. David Scott, the agent to the Governor
9252 E. it is bounded by Assam in the North anGeneral for the North- East Region, planned to have
Eastern and the plains of Bangladesh in the South ancommunication between Sylhet and Guwahati. U. Tirot
West Meghalaya is divided into two mainSingh was the Syiem of Nongkhlaw. His predecessor
administrative divisions; West and East Meghalaya.had owned some duars in the plains of Assam which
The hilly state of Meghalaya has been termed aswere occupied by the British. Mr. Singh wanted them
‘a patch of beauty and grace'. It is linked to theback. David Scott agreed, he wanted to build a route
Borail Range, an offshoot of the Himalayan Mountains.to link Guwahati with Sylhet through Mr. Singhs
The sedimentary rocks that characterize Meghalaya'sterritory.
upper surface protect the hills from being washedShillong is the capital of the present state of
away during the violent monsoon.Meghalaya, and was the seat of the Government of
Meghalaya has been a very exciting subject in manyAssam from 1874 until 1905. Shillong's picturesque
respects for pre-historic investigations and researchsetting and salubrious climate were considered
works. The state is divided into four geographicalsuitable for sanatoriums and holiday homes for British
regions; the Northern Slope, the Central upland, theCivilians suffering from the sweltering heat of
Southern Slope, and the northern and Westernthe4plains. It was described a "Mini London".
Lowlands. The northern Slope has undulating Hills andCradled in the rain shadows of Shillong peak, flanked
thick forests with 'sacred groves'.by Mawpat Hill in the North and overlooking hum
At the time of the first contacts of the Khasis withDiengiei further west, Shillong lies in the midst of idyllic
the British, the Khasis had organized into 25surroundings.
principalities. The largest of these principalities. The