The Santhal community is in the spotlight after a political alliance nominated one of its leaders for the Presidential election, Droupadi Murmu, for the election to the highest Constitutional post of India.

Santhal Tribe

• Santhal, also spelt as Santal, literally means a calm, peaceful man. Santha means calm, and ala means man in the Santhali (also spelt as Santali) language.
• Santhals are the third largest Scheduled Tribe community in India after Gonds and Bhils.
• The Santhali population is mostly distributed in Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal.

Historical background

• The Santhals were a nomadic stock before they chose to settle in the Chotanagpur plateau.
• By the end of the 18th century, they had concentrated in the Santhal Parganas of Jharkhand (earlier Bihar).
• From there, they migrated to Odisha and West Bengal.

Demographic details

• Tribal communities, outside the Northeast, generally have lower levels of literacy.
• But the Santhals have higher – a result of a pro-school education awareness since at least the 1960s – literacy rate compared to other tribes in Odisha, Jharkhand and West Bengal.
• Many of the community have entered the creamy layer of Indian society.
• For example, Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren is a Santhal.
• The incumbent Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAGI) Girsh Chandra Murmu, who was the first Lt Governor of the UT of Jammu and Kashmir, is also a Santhal.

Cultural features of Santhals

(1) Religion

• Despite their social upliftment, the Santhals are usually connected to their roots.
• They are nature worshippers and could be seen paying obeisance at Jaher (sacred groves) in their villages.
• River Damodar holds a special place in the religious life cycle of a Santhal.
• When a Santhal dies, his or her ashes and bones are immersed in the Damodar for a peaceful afterlife.
• Their traditional dress includes dhoti and gamuchha for men and a short-check saree, usually blue and green, for women, who generally put on tattoos.

 (2) Society

• Various forms of marriage are accepted in the Santhal society – including elopement, widow remarriage, levirate, forced (rare) and the one in which a man is made to marry the woman he has impregnated.
• Divorce is not a taboo in the Santhal society. Either of the couple could divorce the other.

(3) Artforms

• Santhals are fond of their folk song and dance that they perform at all community events and celebrations.
• They play musical instruments like kamak, dhol, sarangi and flutes.
• Most Santhals are agriculturists, depending on their farmlands or forests.
• Their homes, called Olah, have a particular three-colour pattern on the outer walls.
• The bottom portion is painted with black soil, the middle with white and the upper with red.

(4) Language

• Their tribal language is called Santhali, which is written in a script called Ol chiki, developed by Santhal scholar Pandit Raghunath Murmu.
• Santhali language belongs to the Munda group.
• Santhali written in OI-Chiki script is recognised as one of the scheduled languages in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution.

Back2Basics: Santhal Rebellion

• The Santhal rebellion also known as Santhal Hool was a revolt by the Santhal in present-day Jharkhand, India, against the British East India Company and the Zamindari System.
• It began on June 30, 1855, and the East India Company declared martial law on November 10, 1855, which lasted until January 3, 1856, when martial law was lifted.
• The insurrection was put down by the Presidency soldiers.
• The four Murmu Brothers – Sidhu, Kanhu, Chand, and Bhairav – spearheaded the revolt.

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