Ethnohistory, Ethnography, and Cultural Aspects of the Tribes in the Rampachodavaram Agency Division, Andhra Pradesh, India

Abstract

The present study explores the ethnohistoric and historiographic information available on various aspects of the culture and society of the tribes of the Rampachodavaram Agency Division. A total of seven tribal communities inhabit this division: Konda Kammara, Konda Dora, Konda Kapu, Konda Reddi, Koya, Valmiki, and Parange Porja. The study focuses on the ethnohistory and socio-cultural mobility of these tribes in the Rampachodavaram Agency Division. The fragmented accounts of tribal ethnohistory provided by anthropologists and historians over the past century do not adequately address several issues, particularly the historical affinities of the tribes and the multiplicity of designations for a single tribe across different regions. The contributions of both tribal and non-tribal groups to the cultural dynamics of the division highlight a long process of socio-cultural homogenization in the Rampachodavaram Agency Division, Andhra Pradesh, India