MEMBA
Location:
West Siang and Upper Siang Districts.
General Information:
They inhabit mainly in the Mechukha (
West Siang district) and Tuting (Upper Siang district)
area of the state. Their dialect called as Tsangla belongs
to the Bodic group of Tibeto-Burman language and the script
they use is called Hikor. They have a class of chiefs and class
of commoners. In marriage polyandry is prevalent among them.
Agriculture is the mainstay of life. They practice dry method
of cultivation and grow mainly millet, maize, barley and cotton.
However, rearing of animal is one of their primary Occupations.
Maize and millet are their staple food. Milk and milk products are
important items of their foods. Preparation of tea with milk,
salt and butter is their specialty
They are Buddhist by religion and follow the Mahayana Sect. Their
main festival is Sonam Losar related to New Year and celebrate
in the month of January. Dhruba and Manna are also the main festivals.
They perform colorful dances and pantomimes. The men are expert
in mask making and painting.
They have a tradition of barter systems and do interborder trade,
inter-village trade and inter community trade. Their cloths are mainly woolen.