RGU AITS team revisits Lubrang village

A team from Rajiv Gandhi University’s (RGU) Arunachal Institute of Tribal Studies (AITS), comprising faculty members and scholars, revisited the Brokpa community of Lubrang village in Dirang circle of West Kameng district on 26 and 27 January.

The revisit was a part of the outreach initiative of the institute under its research project on ‘Documentation of endangered languages, oral narratives, and cultures of lesser-known tribal communities of Arunachal Pradesh’, under

 the Centre for Endangered Languages (CFEL), conducted in collaboration with the North Eastern Council.

“Under this project, a monograph titled ‘Ethnographic profile of the Brokpa (Monpa) of Arunachal Pradesh’, edited by Dr Tarh Ramya and co-authored by Dr Kaling Dabi, Dr Kombong Darang and Tailyang Nampi, and a dictionary titled ‘Brokpa English Dictionary’, edited by Dr Mechek Sampar Awan, are the outcomes of the month-long fieldwork carried out in May 2022,” the AITS informed in a release.

While handing over copies of the monograph and the dictionary to the community, project director Prof S Simon John expressed gratitude to the Brokpa community. “The copies were received by Lubrang GPC Pasang Norbu and Tsering Drema from Lubrang, Rinchin Drakpa from Broksarthang and Dorjee Tsering from Nyukmadung, on behalf of the community,” the release said.

“Prof John thanked the community for wholeheartedly supporting the research team, and extended special appreciation to Dorjee Phuntso, Monpa Mimang Tsogpa president Dorjee Yangzom, assistant professor at Dorjee Khandu Govt College in Tawang, for providing essential guidance when the research team initially engaged with the community,” it said, and also thanked “Tashi Khandu’s and Yishi Phuntso’s families of Lubrang village and Karma Wangchu’s family of Nyukmadung for their warm hospitality in hosting the research team at their homes.”

The AITS also thanked the Lubrang GPC and Pem Kessang “for the arrangements and coordination with the community.”

Prof John sought more involvement of the community in the AITS’ endeavour to preserve and promote mother languages, and AITS Professor Dr Tarun Mene spoke on the role of the AITS-CFEL in the preservation and promotion of endangered tribal languages in Arunachal and how native speakers can become champions in saving their languages from extinction.

“The survival of any language depends on the willingness to speak one’s mother tongue,” Prof John said.

“The revitalisation of tribal languages is essential for ensuring the continuation and transmission of culture, customs, and history, and saving one’s mother tongue from extinction is crucial to ensure the protection of the cultural identity and dignity of the community and safeguard their traditional heritage,” he added.

Brokpa is one of the lesser-known languages under the Monpa ethnic identity of Arunachal. According to the UNESCO’s Language Vitality and Endangerment Framework (2003), the Brokpa (Monpa) language is a ‘critically endangered language’ due to its limited number of speakers, the AITS informed.

“Their culture is in danger of extinction, since the majority of community members are gradually abandoning their traditional customs and practices,” the release added