Angami Naga

This article is about the ethnic group in Nagaland. For other uses, see Angami (disambiguation).

Angami Naga

Angami Naga woman in traditional attires
Regions with significant populations
Nagaland (Kohima District · Chümoukedima District · Dimapur District)
Languages
Tenyidie · Keyho · Dzu-o
Religion
Majority: Predominantly Christianity in modern times Traditionally: Pfütsana Minority: Pfütsana
Related ethnic groups
Tenyimi (Chakhesang Naga · Mao Naga · Poumai Naga · Maram Naga · Rengma Naga · Zeme Naga)

The Angamis are a major Naga ethnic group native to the Northeast Indian state of Nagaland. They predominantly inhabit the Kohima District and are also found in Chümoukedima District and Dimapur District of Nagaland.^[1] There are four regional divisions of the Angamis, namely Chakhro Angami, Northern Angami, Southern Angami and Western Angami. The now separated Chakhesangs were previously known as the Eastern Angamis.^[2]

Etymology

The Angamis traditionally identify themselves through village affiliations and more broadly as part of the Tenyimi group, a collective ethnolinguistic designation shared with several related Naga ethnic groups.

The origin of the term Angami is an exonym. Scholars have suggested that the name may derive from Shüngamei or Ngami, terms reportedly used by neighbouring communities such as the Mao Nagas, Poumai Nagas, Maram Nagas and the Meiteis to refer to the Angami people. Over time, the term was adopted and anglicised in British colonial ethnographic and administrative records as Angami.^[3]

Origin

The origins of the Angami, like the rest of the Nagas, are preserved primarily through oral traditions. The Angamis trace their ancestry to Makhel, a historic settlement under present-day Senapati District of Manipur, which is regarded as a common point of dispersal for the Tenyimis and several other Naga ethnic groups.^[3]

Kigwema and Viswema are considered the oldest ancestral settlements of the Angami Nagas. According to Angami oral tradition, many villages later branched out from these two settlements.^[4]

Distribution

The territory of the Angamis is mostly located in the present Kohima, Chümoukedima and Dimapur Districts of Nagaland with a part of its territory also lying in the Niuland District of Nagaland and Senapati District of Manipur. The territory is divided into four regions:

Southern Angami

Main article: Southern Angami

This region also known as Japfüphiki is bounded on the south by the Mao Nagas, on the southwest by the Maram Nagas, on the west by the Zeliangrongs, on the northwest by the Western Angamis, on the north by the Northern Angamis, on the northeast by the Chokri Chakhesangs and on the southeast by the Khezha Chakhesangs.^[5]

The urban and rural centres are:

• Viswema, Jakhama, Kigwema, Khuzama, Phesama, Kidima, Mima, Mitelephe, Pfuchama, Kezoma, Kezo Basa, Kezo Town and Sakhabama (formerly Chakhabama).

Western Angami

This region is bounded by the Zeliangrongs on the west, on the southeast by the Southern Angamis, on the east by the Northern Angamis and on the northwest by the Chakhro Angamis.^{[citation needed]}

The urban and rural centres are:

• Khonoma, Jotsoma, Dzüleke, Sechü Zubza, Mezoma, Sechüma, Kiruphema, Peducha, Mengujüma and Thekrejüma.

Northern Angami

This region is bounded by the Western Angamis on the west, on the south by the Southern Angamis, on the east by the Chakhesang Nagas, the northeast by the Sümi Nagas, on the north by the Rengma Nagas and on the northwest by the Western Sümis.^{[citation needed]}

The urban and rural centres are:

• Kohima, Kohima Village, Chiephobozou, Chiechama, Nachama, Tuophema, Zhadima, Kijümetouma, Tsiemekhuma, Chüziema, Chedema, Meriema, Nerhema, Gariphema, Dihoma, Rüsoma, Tsiesema, Tsiesema basa, Seiyhama, Botsa and Phekerkrie.

Chakhro Angami

Mostly settled in the flatlands around the Districts of Chümoukedima, Dimapur and Niuland.^[6]

The urban and rural centres are:

• Chümoukedima District: Chümoukedima, Medziphema, Sovima, Kirha, Tenyiphe I, Tenyiphe II, Virazouma, Vidima, Rüzaphema, Seithekema, Pherima, Piphema, Sirhima, Toulazouma, Diphupar 'B' ^{[citation needed]}and Sodzülhou.

• Dimapur District: Kuda, Phevima, Signal Angami

• Niuland District: Tsiepama, Viphoma and parts of Seithekema^{[citation needed]}.

Former Eastern Angami

The former Eastern Angamis have separated and are now recognised as the Chakhesang Nagas.^{[citation needed]}

Culture and society

Traditional Angami society was historically organized around autonomous village-states, each maintaining distinct clan genealogies and oral records of settlement.

Captain Butler and assembled Nagas; seated left to right: Lt. Ridgeway, Capt. Butler, Angami Naga interpreter Sezele of Chephama, Mikir coolie. Standing left to right: Angami Naga, Inspector of Police, Angami Naga Dotsole of Chedema, Angami Naga, Rengma Naga, Commander in Chief Manipur Army, (sacred tree with skulls), ?, 2 Rengma Nagas, Dr Brown - Political Agent, Manipur

Cuisine

Galho is a popular Angami cuisine made from a mixture of rice, Himalayan knotweed, vegetables, and meats (pork or beef), etc.^[7][8] Rice is an important part of their diet.^[9]

Religion

The majority of Angami Naga follow the Christian faith, whilst only .77% follow animism.^[9]

• Christianity

Christian missionary activity among the Angami began in the late 19th century. The first missionary to work among the Angami Nagas was the American Baptist missionary Rev. C. D. King and his wife, who established the mission work at Kohima in 1881. Today, the majority of Angami Nagas identify as Christian, predominantly adhering to Baptist Christianity.^[10]

• Other religions

The traditional Angami religion is known as Pfütsana or Krüna. Although more than 99% of the Angamis are Christian, they are among the few Nagas with a surviving indigenous religious minority. According to the 1991 Census of India, there were 1760 practitioners of Pfütsana, a figure which declined to 884 in the 2001 census. Practitioners are concentrated in several villages in the southern part of Kohima District. In 1987, the religious organisation Japfüphiki Pfütsana was established to preserve and institutionalise indigenous Angami religious practices.^[11]

Festivals

• Sekrenyi

Main article: Sekrenyi

The Angamis celebrate a ten-day festival called Sekrenyi. A purification festival is observed to wash off past sins.

• Te–l Khukhu

Main article: Te–l Khukhu

Te–l Khukhu is a festival that falls on the 13th of Chünyi (July). It is a time of giving and sharing food with each other. This is the only festival dedicated to girls. Gone were the days when different animistic rituals were performed, but with the advent of Christianity, the rituals were no longer performed. Today, it is celebrated as a time of get-togetherness and sharing with the dear and near ones.^[12]

• Other Festivals

Other notable festivals include Terhünyi, Ngonyi, Chadanyi, and Kerunyi.^[13]

Language

Further information: Angami language

There are several dialects of the Angamis, the most prominent being Khwüno Dialect (around Western Angami area), Kewhi Dialect (in the Northern Angami area) and Viswe Dialect or Keyho Dialect (in the Southern Angami area). Tenyidie is the prestige dialect, used for publications and taught in the schools.^[14]

Notable people

Main article: List of people of Angami descent

Gallery

• 
  Angami Kichuki (Morung)
• 
  Angami Naga girl in her traditional attires
• 
  Angami women
• 
  Angami Naga family
• 
  Angami Nagas performing a traditional dance
• 
  Angami Naga man in his traditional attires

See also

• List of Naga ethnic groups
• Angami Baptist Church Council
• Angami name
• Angami Public Organization
• Angami Women Organization
• Index of Angami-related articles

References

1. "The Constitution (Scheduled Tribes): Order, 1950". Ministry of Law and Justice (India). Archived from the original on 20 September 2017. Retrieved 23 April 2015.
2. "Chakhesang". www.neiipa.com. Archived from the original on 20 January 2026. Retrieved 4 January 2025.
3. Hutton, J. H. (1921). The Angami Nagas. London: Macmillan and Co.
4. Terhiija, Viya; Sarmah, Priyankoo; Samudravijaya, K. (2018). "Acoustic Analysis of Vowels in Two Southern Angami Dialects". Proceedings of Oriental COCOSDA 2018. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
5. "From 1926 to 2026: Maram-Angami celebrates a century of unity". The Morung Express. 11 April 2026. Retrieved 26 April 2026.
6. "Chakhroma Public Org to observe 150th anniversary in November". The Morung Express. 14 July 2024. Retrieved 26 April 2026.
7. Dey, Kallol (3 April 2018). "Naga cuisine: Organic is a way of life for Nagas". Indian Express. Archived from the original on 25 August 2025. Retrieved 4 May 2022.
8. Kesangunuo (30 July 2017). "Recipe of Galho – Yummy Rice Dish from Nagaland". Roots and Leisure. Archived from the original on 11 March 2026. Retrieved 4 May 2022.
9. Dr. Nabarun Purkayastha. "Social Life of Angami Naga: A Study" (PDF). Shikshan Sanshodhan : Journal of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences. pp. 12, 10. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 May 2024. Retrieved 9 April 2026.
10. "History Of NBCC". Nagaland Baptist Church Council. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
11. Dey, Kallol (7 January 2018). "In Christian Nagaland, indigenous religion of pre-Christian Nagas withstands test of time". The Indian Express. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
12. "Viswema celebrates Te–l Khukhu festival". Eastern Mirror Nagaland. 7 July 2017. Archived from the original on 22 January 2025. Retrieved 22 December 2020.
13. Neihu, Ketholeno (18 July 2018). "Kerunyi - a festival of the Angamis to mark the beginning of paddy transplantation". NE Zine. Retrieved 16 January 2026.
14. "'We must live our language'". The Morung Express. 23 March 2026. Retrieved 26 April 2026.

Further reading

• Alban von Stockhausen: Imag(in)ing the Nagas: The Pictorial Ethnography of Hans-Eberhard Kauffmann and Christoph von Fürer-Haimendorf. Arnoldsche, Stuttgart 2014, ISBN 978-3-89790-412-5.
• Durkheim, E. and Mauss, 1963. Primitive Classification. (trans. R. Needham), London, Free Press.
• Edsman, C.M., 1987. 'Fire', The Encyclopaedia of Religion, vol. 5, ed. by M. Eliade. pp. 340–46. New York, Macmillan Publishing Company.
• Hutton, J.H., 1969. The Angami Nagas, Bombay, Oxford University Press. (first published in 1921 by Macmillan & Co. London).
• Joshi, Vibha. A Matter of Belief: Christian Conversion and Healing in North-East India (Berghahn Books; 2012) 298 pages; a study of Christian conversion and the revival of traditional animist culture among the Angami Naga.
• Rudhardt, J., 1987. 'Water', The Encyclopaedia of Religion, vol. 15, ed. by M. Eliade, pp. 350–61. New York, Macmillan Publishing Company.
• Stirn, Aglaja & Peter van Ham. The Hidden world of the Naga: Living Traditions in Northeast India. London: Prestel.
• Oppitz, Michael, Thomas Kaiser, Alban von Stockhausen & Marion Wettstein. 2008. Naga Identities: Changing Local Cultures in the Northeast of India. Gent: Snoeck Publishers.
• Kunz, Richard & Vibha Joshi. 2008. Naga – A Forgotten Mountain Region Rediscovered. Basel: Merian.
• Jonathan Glancey.2011.Nagaland- A journey to India's Forgotten Frontier. Faber and Faber
• Peseyie, Mhasileno; Gaur, Rashmi (2024). "Reimaging of the Angami Collective Cultural Identity: Kenyü and Customary Law in the Select Angami Folktales". Asian Ethnicity. 25 (4): 738–57. doi:10.1080/14631369.2024.2351432.
• Peseyie, Mhasileno; Gaur, Rashmi (2025). "Masculinity beyond the Warrior 'Savage': (Re)Thinking Warriors as Elite Indigenous Masculinity in Select Angami Folktales". Contemporary South Asia. 33 (3): 419–31. doi:10.1080/09584935.2025.2493045.

External links