People of India : Communities, segments, synonyms, surnames and titles

The People of India Project, a massive exercise carried out by the Anthropological Survey of India, has generated a wealth of information on the hundreds of communities which exist in this country. These communities are presented in an alphabetical order for easy reference, and the subjects covered in each case include culture, location, language, script, biological variation, food habits, rituals, work practices, educational level and impact of development.

One dimension of the People of India Project has been to explore and establish as completely as possible the ethnographic configuration of all communities across the country and their segments and other indicators. For this purpose information available in historical, ethnographic and census literature has been scrutinized, changes in nomenclature noted and a definitive list of all communities prepared. Similarly, a list of basic units within a community, the memory of which is growing dim and the number of which is declining, has been drawn up for purposes of documentation, archival storage and analysis. Based on first-hand ethnographic surveys and secondary sources, this comprises segments, including all exogamous units, synonyms, titles and surnames.

What emerges is at first glance an overwhelming number of disparate communities (2795) and segments (65,000). But at another level they seem to fall into a pattern suggesting different levels of perception of identity and status. The commonalities of nomenclature suggest a wide range of interaction and sharing among communities in the linguistic regional context.

This volume is an essential work of reference for anthropologists, sociologists, social historians, legislators and development agencies.