Singpho Hills
This article has been extracted from THE IMPERIAL GAZETTEER OF INDIA , 1908. OXFORD, AT THE CLARENDON PRESS. |
Note: National, provincial and district boundaries have changed considerably since 1908. Typically, old states, ‘divisions’ and districts have been broken into smaller units, and many tahsils upgraded to districts. Some units have since been renamed. Therefore, this article is being posted mainly for its historical value.
Singpho Hills
A tract of hilly country lying to the south-east of Lakhimpur District, Assam, inhabited by the Singphos, or Kachins as they are called in Upper Burma. Their original home seems to have been near the sources of the Irrawaddy, but they have gradually moved southwards, crossing the Hukawng valley and the Patkai range, and have entered the valley of the Brahmaputra. The Singphos first settled in Assam towards the end of the eighteenth century, their villages being located on the Buri Dihing and on the Tengapani east of Sadiya. By degrees they assumed a state of semi-independence, and offered some resistance to our troops when Upper Assam came under British rule. It was then found that their villages were full of Assamese slaves, and no less than 6,000 were released by Captain Neufville, the officer in command. The Singphos live in small villages, several of which usually own a quasi-allegiance to one chief. Their houses are raised on piles, and are often 100 feet in length by 20 broad, with an open balcony at the end where the women of the family sit and work. They form a large element in the population of the Hukawng valley which lies to the south of the Patkai range.
