The Tai Khamyangs

The Tai Khamyangs, a subgroup of the great Tai people, are numerically a small Tai Buddhist tribe of Assam. They are the followers of Theravada Buddhism. Based on oral history, formerly they resided in the Khamyang valley, along the Nongyang Lake in the Patkai Mountains in present day Myanmar. In the beginning of the 19th century they left their settlement in the Patkai and immigrated to Assam. The Tai Khamyangs possess a rich socio-cultural heritage and an enormous amount of indigenous knowledge (IK) traditions. In this book, an attempt has been made to briefly study the social and cultural life of the people as well as document their traditional health care system. Living a synchronized life and maintaining a constant interaction with nature has enabled them to meticulously observe, scrutinize and exploit the rich plant resources around them. As a result, they have developed important IK of utilizing the vast available plant resources. Amongst them the knowledge and mode of utilizing different medicinal plants in their traditional health care system is the most important. There is an urgent need for in-depth scientific studies and proper documentation of their IK traditions.