Kachari Kingdom

The Kachari (Pron: kəˈʧɑ:rɪ) Kingdom (known as the Dimasa Kingdom in medieval times) was a powerful kingdom in medieval Assam, India. It established its political center in the Brahmaputra valley, but over the course of its history it migrated south over the North Cachar Hills(Dima Hasao) and had its finale in the Barak valley. At the time of British occupation, the country had divided into two regions: Tularam Hasnu Senapati's domain in the hills which became North Cachar Hills ( Dima Hasao District ) and Govinda Chandra Hasnu's domain in the valley that ultimately became the greater Cachar district, both in Assam.

The origin of the Kachari Kingdom is not clear. According to tradition, the Kacharis Dimasas had to leave the Kamarupa Kingdom in the ancient period due to political turmoil. As they crossed the Brahmaputra river some of their compatriots were swept away down river and came to be called Dimasa (Dima-basa), sons of the great river Dima, the Dhansiri river.Dimasa had a tradition of worshiping Kechai Khaiti, the goddess in Sadiya. According to a legend constructed at the time the royal family was Hinduized at Maibong, the royal family descends from Ghatotkacha, the son of Bhima of the Mahabharata fame, and Hidimbi a princess of the Dimasa people.

South Asia

South Asia or Southern Asia is a term used to represent the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan SAARC countries and, for some authorities, adjoining countries to the west and east. Topographically, it is dominated by the Indian Plate, which rises above sea level as Nepal and northern parts of India situated south of the Himalayas and the Hindu Kush. South Asia is bounded on the south by the Indian Ocean and on land (clockwise, from west) by West Asia, Central Asia, East Asia, and Southeast Asia. The terms "Indian subcontinent" and "South Asia" are sometimes used interchangeably.

The current territories of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka form the countries of South Asia. In addition, with deviating definitions based on often substantially different reasons, the British Indian Ocean Territory, Mauritius, and the Tibet Autonomous Region are included as well. South Asia is home to well over one fifth of the world's population, making it both the most populous and the most densely populated geographical region in the world. The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation(SAARC) is an economic cooperation organisation in the region which was established in 1985 and includes all eight nations comprising South Asia.

Kachari

Kachari is a generic term applied to a number of ethnic groups, predominantly in Assam, speaking Tibeto-Burman languages or claiming a common ancestry. The Kachari denotes tribes like Bodo, Dimasa, Sonowal, Rabha, Lalung (tiwa), Rabha, Garos and Tripura tribes (debbarmas, reangs, jamatia) which have their common origin. They were first classified by S. Endle as the Kacharis. They are considered to have reached the Brahmaputra valley via Tibet and settled in the foothills of the eastern Himalayan range which includes the whole of Assam, Tripura, North Bengal and parts of Bangladesh.

Kachari or Cachari may refer to:

Dima Hasao district

Dima Hasao (Assamese: ডিমা হাছাও জিলা) (Pron: ˈdɪmə həˈsaʊ) district — earlier called North Cachar Hills district (Assamese: উত্তৰ কাছাৰ পাৰ্বত্য জিলা) — is an administrative district in the state of Assam in north-eastern India. As of 2011 it is the least populous district of Assam (out of 27). "Dima Hasao" means "Dimasa Hills" in the Dimasa language.

History

Dima Hasao District district was a part of Dimasa Kachari Kingdom before 1832. The kingdom was extended from Jamuna in the North to the foot-hills of Lushai Hills in the south and from the Kopili in the west to the Angami and Katcha Naga hills beyond the Dhansiri in the east. The Dimasa Kachari kings had their capitals successively at Dimapur, Maibang, Kashpur, and, lastly, at Horitikor (Karimganj district near Badarpur). In 1830, the Dimasa king Gobinda Chandra Hasnu was assassinated by his own general Gambhir Singh, after that the British annexed the southern part of the kingdom on 14 August 1832 under the doctrine of Lapsi. The rest was ruled by last Dimasa General Tularam. In 1837, a portion of Tularam's kingdom was further annexed to the British Empire and constituted into a sub-division of Nagaon district in 1837 with Headquarter at Asalu. In 1854, on the death of Tularam, the remaining portion of his kingdom was finally annexed to the British Empire and added to the Asalu sub-division.

Dimasa people

The Dimasa people (or Dima-basa, and also called Dimasa-Kachari ) are a group of people in Assam, in Northeastern India. Dimasa mythology says that they are the children of Bangla Raja (Earthquake God) and the great divine bird Arikhidima. Bangla Raja's six sons— Sibrai, Doo Raja, Naikhu Raja, Waa Raja, Guyung Brai Yung, and Hamyadao and Arikhidima are their ancestors, and in Dimasa belief, are ancestral Gods. They are called Madai in Dimasa. Evil spirits born of the seventh egg of Arikhidima are responsible for disease, suffering and natural calamities.

Ancient Dimasa tradition maintains that sixty thousand ( 60,000 ) Moon months (Lunar months) ago, they left their ancestral land when it suffered a severe drought. After a long wandering, they settled at Di-laobra Sangibra, the confluence of the Brahmaputra and Sangi or Di-tsang. There they held a great assembly. The place is in the present West Bengal area where the River Ganga and the Brahmaputra join, and where the Kacharis established their first Seat. Over time, their kingdom over large territories.