Assam is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of 78,438 km2 (30,285 sq mi). It is the second largest state in northeastern India by area and the largest in terms of population. The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur to the east; Meghalaya, Tripura, Mizoram and Bangladesh to the south; and West Bengal to the west via the Siliguri Corridor, a 22-kilometre-wide (14 mi) strip of land that connects the state to the rest of India. Assamese and Boro are the official languages of Assam. Meitei (Manipuri) is the official language of Hojai district and the entirety of the Barak Valley districts, while Bengali is an official language in the three districts of Barak Valley.
Bihu is of three types and it is an important cultural festival unique to the Indian state of Assam – 'Rongali' or 'Bohag Bihu' observed in April, 'Kongali' or 'Kati Bihu' observed in October or November, and 'Bhogali' or 'Magh Bihu' observed in January. The festivals present an admixture of Tibeto-Barman, Austroasiatic and Indo-Aryan traditions entwined so intricately that it is impossible to separate them—festivals which are uniquely Assamese to which all communities of Assam had contributed elements. The Rongali Bihu is the most important of the three, celebrating spring festival. The Bhogali Bihu or the Magh Bihu is a harvest festival, with community feasts. The Kongali Bihu or the Kati Bihu is the sombre, thrifty one reflecting a season of short supplies and is an animistic festival.
The Bihu dance is an indigenous folk dance from the Indian state of Assam related to the Bihu festival and an important part of Assamese culture. Performed in a group, the Bihu dancers are usually young men and women, and the dancing style is characterized by brisk steps and rapid hand movements. The traditional costume of dancers is centered around the red color theme, signifying joy and vigour.
Mājuli or Majuli is a large river island located in Assam, India. It is formed by the Brahmaputra River to the south and east, the Subansiri River to the west and an anabranch of the Brahmaputra River called Kherkutia Xuti to the North.
Assamese cuisine is the cuisine of the Indian state of Assam. It is a style of cooking that is a confluence of cooking habits of the hills that favour fermentation and drying as forms of preservation and those from the plains that provide extremely wide variety of fresh vegetables and greens, and an abundance of fish and meat. Both are centred on the main ingredient — rice. It is a mixture of different indigenous styles with considerable regional variations and some external influences. The traditional way of cooking and the cuisine of Assam is very similar to South-East Asian countries such as Thailand, Burma (Myanmar) and others. The cuisine is characterized by very little use of spices, little cooking over fire, and strong flavours due mainly to the use of endemic exotic fruits and vegetables that are either fresh, dried or fermented. Fish is widely used, and birds like duck, pigeon, squab, etc. are very popular, which are often paired with a main vegetable or ingredient; beef used to be eaten before British colonialism, and some continue to do so. Preparations are rarely elaborate. The practice of bhuna, the gentle frying of spices before the addition of the main ingredients so common in Indian cooking, is absent in the cuisine of Assam. The preferred oil for cooking is the pungent mustard oil.
Bodo–Kacharis is a name used by anthropologist and linguists to define a collection of ethnic groups living predominantly in the Northeast Indian states of Assam, Tripura, and Meghalaya. These peoples are speakers of either Bodo–Garo languages or Assamese. Some Tibeto-Burman speakers who live closely in and around the Brahmaputra valley, such as the Mising people and Karbi people, are not considered Bodo–Kachari. Many of these peoples have formed early states in the late Medieval era of Indian history and came under varying degrees of Sanskritisation.
Barua is a common Assamese surname shared by the Assamese communities much like Aroras of Punjab.
The culture of Assam is traditionally a hybrid one, developed due to cultural assimilation of different ethno-cultural groups under various political-economic systems in different periods of its history.
Magh Bihu (also called Bhogali Bihu or Maghar Domahi is a harvest festival celebrated in Assam, North-East India, which marks the end of harvesting season in the month of Magh. A bonfire is lit for the ceremonial conclusion and prayer to the God of Fire.
Jolpan, or snacks, are often served at breakfast in the cuisine of Assam, although they may also be served at Bihu festivals or weddings. The word jolpan includes all the preparations namely jolpan, pitha, laru and tea. Other common items served for breakfast may include roti, luchi, ghugni and sometimes paratha etc. Jolpan are also found in Bengal. The word literally derives from "water and betel leaf" but can mean any snack.
The Sonowal Kachari are one of the indigenous peoples of the state of Assam in Northeast India. They are of Tibeto-Burman origin, and are closely associated with the other ethnic groups of Assam, which are commonly referred to as Kachari.
Jogesh Das was an Indian short-story writer and novelist from Assam. He was born in 1927. He won the Sahitya Akademi Award for his book Prithivir Oxukh. He was also associated with many cultural organization including the Asom Sahitya Sabha.
Saikia was a Paik officer of the Ahom militia who led a hundred paiks. The Koch kingdom had a similar system in place. As it was a purely administrative position, the title holder could belong to diverse ethnic groups or religions. Today, this title is used as a surname by Assamese people of various ethnic origins. The post of Saikia in the Paik system was higher in rank to the Bora but lower in rank to the Hazarika.
The Chutia people are an ethnic group that are native to Assam and historically associated with the Chutia kingdom. However, after the kingdom was absorbed into the Ahom kingdom in 1523–24, the Chutia population was widely displaced and dispersed in other parts of Upper Assam as well as Central Assam. They constitute one of the core groups that form the Assamese people.
The Barman Kacharis are an indigenous community of Northeast India and are a subsection of the Dimasa people in Barak Valley but claim to a separate group in Brahmaputra Valley. They are mainly found in the districts of Lower Assam and in Barak Valley like Cachar, Hailakandi and Karimganj and some parts of Arunachal Pradesh. Barman Kachari is Dimasa convert group of North-East India. Since the 2002 Amendment act, many Barman Kacharis in Assam are referred to as 'Barman'. They are sparsely found in Brahmaputra valley.
The Kamrupi people are a linguistic group that speak the Kamrupi dialects of Assamese and are found in the colonial Kamrup district region of Assam, India.
Hinduism is the dominant religion practised in the state of Assam. According to some scholars, it is home to some of the most complex and poorly understood traditions in Hinduism. People follow traditions belonging to Shaivism, Shaktism, Tantra, and an indigenous form of Vaishnavism called Ekasarana Dharma; taken together the practitioners constitute around 61% of the state population as per the 2011 Census. Hindus form a majority in 17 out of the 29 districts of Assam. By region, there is a significant diversity among the ethnic groups that profess the Hindu faith, traditions, and customs. As per as 2011 Census, In Brahmaputra valley of Assam, Hindus constitute 62% of the population, the majority being ethnic Assamese. In the autonomous Bodoland region of Assam, Hindus constitute 71.3% of the region's population, most being of the Bodo tribe. In the Barak valley region of southern Assam, Hindus constitute 50% of the region's population, most being ethnic Bengalis. The Hill Tribes of Assam, particularly the Karbi people of Karbi Anglong and Dimasa people of Dima Hasao, are mainly Animism.
Sonowal is a designation of the gold-washers of Assam. They were previously addressed as Xunia thakur.
Dimasa is section of KACHARI community. It belongs to Boro-Garo language family. It is mother tongue to around 500,000 Dimasa population. Large section of Sanskritised Dimasa speak Assamese language e.g. Sonowal Kachari, Thengal Kachari, Moran Kachari, Matak Kachari.
