While kingdoms, towns, and temples formed one kind of society in medieval India, a very different world existed in the forests, hills, deserts, and grasslands beyond the settled agricultural areas. Here lived the tribal people, the nomads, and the pastoralists, who lived by hunting, herding, shifting cultivation, and small-scale trade. Their lives were not recorded in the chronicles of kings, but they were an important and dynamic part of Indian society.
This chapter introduces us to the tribal people and the nomadic pastoralists of India. It shows how they were organised, how they related to the settled societies and the state, and how some of them rose to great power and established their own kingdoms. By studying these groups, we gain a fuller picture of the diversity of Indian society.
Tribal societies lived in areas that were remote from the main centres of political power - in the forests and hills. The term "tribe" refers to a group of people who believe themselves to be descended from a common ancestor and who live in close association with a particular territory. Tribal people did not follow the caste system and its rules, and they did not have a formal division of labour between those who "ploughed" and those who "ruled."
Each tribe had its own form of social and political organisation. Some tribes, like the Khokhars and the Gakkhars, were pastoral nomads, while others like the Bhils, the Gonds, and the Mundas practised shifting cultivation. The tribal people usually gave their loyalty to their tribal chief, who was not always a hereditary ruler. In some tribes, the chief was elected by the members of the community.
Nomadic pastoralists moved from place to place with their herds of cattle, sheep, goats, and camels, following the availability of pasture and water. The Banjaras were the most important group of nomadic traders of the period, carrying grain and other goods over long distances in their caravans of bullocks and camels. They supplied food to armies and towns, and their caravans were a common sight on the highways.
Other pastoral groups included the Gaddi shepherds of the Himalayas, the Gujjars and Bakarwals who moved between the high mountain pastures and the plains, and the Raikas of Rajasthan. These groups were not "unemployed" or "backward"; they performed essential services by supplying animals, milk, wool, and transport to the settled society.
Many tribal groups, such as the Baigas and the Mundas, practised shifting cultivation, known as jhum or slash-and-burn agriculture. They cleared a patch of forest, cultivated it for a few years, and then moved on, allowing the forest to regenerate. This method suited the forest environment and the tribal way of life, but it brought them into conflict with forest officials and revenue officers who wanted to control the forests and collect revenue from permanent cultivation.
Some tribal groups grew strong enough to establish their own kingdoms. The most famous examples are the Gonds of central India and the Ahoms of Assam.
The Gonds lived in a large forested region called Gondwana that covered much of central India. They established a number of kingdoms, divided into clans, and each clan was headed by a raja or rai. The Gond rajas, such as those of Garha Katanga, rose to prominence in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. They imposed revenue systems, collected taxes, and patronised Brahmanas.
The Gond kingdom of Garha Katanga was founded by a raja of the Muvari clan. Its most powerful ruler was Rani Durgavati, who defended her kingdom bravely against the Mughals and died in battle in 1564. After the fall of the Gond kingdoms, their lands were incorporated into the Mughal and later the Maratha empires.
The Ahoms migrated to the Brahmaputra valley from present-day Myanmar (Burma) in the thirteenth century. They established a powerful state in Assam and ruled it for almost six hundred years, until the early nineteenth century. The Ahoms built a strong administration, raised large armies, and absorbed many local customs, though they kept their own language and religion for a long time.
Ahom administration was based on the paik system, in which the male population was organised into groups (khels) that provided labour and soldiers to the state. The Ahoms built their capital at Garhgaon and later at Sibsagar. They compiled their history in the Buranjis, written in the Ahom language and later in Assamese.
Tribal people were not isolated from the rest of Indian society. They interacted with the settled communities through trade, warfare, and marriage. Some tribal chiefs became powerful rulers who adopted the customs and religion of the settled societies, employing Brahmanas and following the caste rules, while keeping their tribal identity at the core.
The relationship between the tribes and the state was complex. Some tribal groups paid tribute or taxes to the kings, while others remained independent. The Mughals and other empires tried to extend their control over the tribal areas, sometimes through warfare and sometimes through diplomacy and marriage alliances.
With the expansion of settled agriculture and the growth of states, the tribal way of life changed. Forests were cleared, and tribal people were increasingly brought under revenue systems. Some became peasants, some were absorbed into the caste system as lower castes, and some moved deeper into the forests.
The process was not always peaceful. Tribal rebellions against revenue demands, forest laws, and forced labour were common throughout the medieval and early modern periods. These rebellions show that tribal people actively resisted the loss of their lands and their way of life.
| Tribal Group | Region | Main Activity |
|---|---|---|
| Gonds | Gondwana, central India | Settled agriculture, kingdoms |
| Ahoms | Assam, Brahmaputra valley | Established a powerful kingdom |
| Banjaras | Throughout India | Nomadic trade, carrying grain |
| Gaddis, Gujjars, Bakarwals | Himalayas | Pastoral herding |
| Bhils, Mundas | Central and eastern India | Shifting cultivation, hunting |
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Tribe | Group descended from a common ancestor, living in a particular territory |
| Shifting cultivation | Cultivating a patch of forest land and moving on (jhum) |
| Nomadic pastoralists | People who move with their herds |
| Paik system | Ahom system of labour and military service |
| Buranjis | Historical chronicles of the Ahoms |
The tribal people, nomads, and pastoralists of India formed a world that was closely connected to, yet distinct from, the settled societies of the plains. They lived in the forests and hills, organised themselves by kinship and common descent, and followed ways of life suited to their environment. Some, like the Banjaras, moved constantly with their caravans; others, like the Gonds and the Ahoms, grew powerful enough to build kingdoms of their own. As settled agriculture expanded and states grew stronger, the tribal way of life came under increasing pressure, and tribal communities resisted these changes. Together, the settled and the tribal peoples made up the rich and diverse fabric of Indian society.