The Dukpas and Tamangs: Cultural Heritage
and Social Life in the Buxa Dooars
Dr. Partha Sarathi Mandal,
State Aided College Teacher, Category I,
Department of English,
Lilabati Mahavidyalaya,
West Bengal, India.
Abstract: The Himalayan foothills and the Buxa Dooars region of West Bengal are
home to a rich tapestry of ethnic communities, among which the Dukpas and
Tamangs stand out for their distinct cultural identities, historical
migrations, and socio-religious traditions. The Dukpas, historically linked to
Bhutan and linguistically derived from the Tibetan word “Drugpa,” have
inhabited the Buxa region since the Anglo-Bhutanese Treaty of Sinchula in 1865.
Their lives are marked by unique social structures, vibrant festivals,
traditional attire, and distinctive culinary and ritual practices, reflecting a
fusion of Bhutanese heritage and adaptation to the Indian environment.
Similarly, the Tamangs, a Tibeto-Burmese ethnic group originally concentrated
in Nepal and Tibet, migrated to the Dooars and Alipurduar regions, often as tea
plantation workers during the colonial period. Endogamous and organized into
multiple clans, the Tamangs maintain a strong cultural memory through elaborate
rituals, mask dances, and Buddhist festivals, blending Bonism and Lamaism. Both
communities demonstrate resilience, preserving their intangible cultural
heritage amid socio-economic and environmental changes. Studying the Dukpas and
Tamangs offers valuable insights into the dynamics of migration, cultural
retention, and adaptation, highlighting the broader narrative of ethnic
diversity, historical transitions, and socio-cultural plurality in West
Bengal’s Himalayan frontier.
Keywords: Dukpa, Tamang, Migration,
Fusion, Narrative
With reference to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled
Tribes Lists (Modification) Order, 1956 in the state of West
Bengal, the Dukpas were categorised as one of the sub-branches of the Bhutias.
Anthropologically, they are one of the subcategories of the Mongoloids. In view
of this, it is obligatory to state that the word called “Dukpa” derives from
the Tibetan word “Drugpa”. It is a corrupt and non-grammatical version of the
original word “Drugpa”, over the years this linguistic evolution/semantic
change took place. In the Tibetan language, “Druk” means dragon while “Pa” is a
substitution for residents. Therefore, in compliance with the Tibetan and
Bhutanese mythology the word “Druk” symbolises both “Thunder Dragon” and the
national symbol of Bhutan. A particular creed called “Dukpa” is known to exist
in the Himalayan region. In the district of Alipurduar, the Dukpas
predominantly inhabit Chunavati, Tashi Gaon, Adma, Lepchakha sprawling along
the Buxa Dooars region. The Treaty of Sinchula was signed on November 11, 1865
and pursuant to the terms and conditions of this Anglo-Bhutan agreement, Bhutan
approved the British control over territories in the Assam Duars and Bengal
Duars vis-à-vis about 80,000 kilometres of Dewangiri (Deothang) came under the
British control in exchange for an annual subsidy of 50,000 rupees, before the
British annexation of these territories they were the sovereign parts of Bhutan
and were known as Pasakha. Despite the change in rulership, this ethnic group,
i.e., the Dukpas, originally hailing from Bhutan, started living in the Buxa
Dooars region as its inhabitants. Although the gotra (clan identity) of the hospitable and simple Dukpas is
unknown, they were originally divided into two main groups viz., Sharchop
(community of eastern Bhutan) and Ngalop (community of western Bhutan). In the
conventional Dukpa society, men intrinsically depend on the women. Mainly the
female members of the family exclusively perform the day-to-day works vis-à-vis
they are also held responsible for the maintenance of account books, management
of domestic chores, governance of property ownership rights etc. However, the
Dukpas are not governed by matrilineal social structure like the Rabhas and the
Garos. Although meat and rice (their staple food) constitute the dominant
portion of the standard diet of the Dukpas, they also love to consume corn,
millet and other green vegetables. Savoury tomato and chilly chaats are also
their favourite food items.
In addition, they also
drink tea mixed with salt and butter and a homemade stimulant called chhang (a millet-based welcome drink). Doma (areca nut and betel leaf with a
dash of lime) is an integral part of the Dukpa culture. They have considerable
similarities with the Bhutias in terms of dress. The Dukpa women love to wear
the exquisite, attention-grabbing and expensive ornaments such as dopchu (bangles), sinchu (earrings), zuki
(rings), koma (brooches), sungkhobs (pendants and amulets), bjuru (necklace) etc. Gho is the traditional and standard
menswear in the Dukpa society; men also like to wear half pants while the
womenfolk particularly love to wear toego
or tego (a long-sleeved, short
jacket-like garment) and kira (a
hand-woven fabric belt). Each person carries chuppi (assault knife) and patang (a straight, single-edged steel blade)
at the waist conveying their expertise in tactical warfare. Gho forms one pouch-like area in the
upper part of it, which is conventionally used for carrying food bowls and a
small stiletto. The guardians play no prominent role in the Dukpa marriages.
Boys and girls can marry according to their own choice. No additional ceremony
is observed after marriage. Although nothing is known about widow remarriage
and polygamy among the Dukpas, divorce is based on common terms and conditions.
The separation can take place for various reasons such as domestic violence,
marital strife etc. A divorcing spouse enters into a stipulation and agreement
that whoever remarries first is liable to pay compensation to the other party. Post-divortium child custody is given to
the mother. Various socio-religious rituals do not have much importance in the
life of the Dukpas. The Lamas usually name the newborn after three, five or
eleven days of birth. Death ceremonies play an important role in social and
family life. After hearing the news of the death, at least one person from
every family in the village arrives at the house of the deceased with chhang to offer condolences. Before
fixing the proper day for cremation in compliance with the ancient manuscripts
of the Lamas, everyone guards the dead body with devotion. This surveillance
takes place after dividing the villagers into multiple teams. After cremation,
the Lamas visit the house of the deceased and perform rituals for a period of
21 days; soulful prayers are also offered for the eternal peace of the departed
soul. During the worship rituals, the valuables of the deceased such as gold,
silver, money etc. are arranged on the ason
(a puja seat) because according to the scriptures, the material property of the
deceased belongs to the soul. A part of this wealth is also taken home by the
Lamas. In order to facilitate the journey of the departed soul, a bamboo stick
is made as a symbol of a boat and placed on the edge of a nearby waterbody
along with Buddha’s heart touching quotes after 21 days. The famous quotes of
Lord Buddha are written on a long white cloth and after tying to a long bamboo
pole, it is buried under a high ground near the house, the cloth flutters like
a flag marker. The Dukpas strongly believe that this custom is a simple way to
drive away the evil spirits and ghosts. In all their rituals beef or pork,
rice, fruits and stimulant drinks are served mandatorily among the guests. The
strictness of cleanliness and impurity is not seen among them. The main
festivals of the Dukpas are Nimlo, Lhosar, Jaimand and Thiugap. Nimlo is
basically a Christmas festival. They celebrate this festival in the last week
of December according to their own tithi
(auspicious dates). Archery competition, dances etc. are held during this
festival for about four to five days, sacred ghee lamps are lit on Nimlo in every house to mark the greatness
and everlasting magnitude of the Buddha.
Lhosar is the New Year festival. It is celebrated
for 7-8 days. Everyone wears new clothes during this festival in February or
March. Yenya is the beginning of the monsoon festival. Two weeks before Durga
Puja, a special holy bath takes place before sunrise among the Dukpas around
the appearance of a particular star. The Dukpas manage to survive on the hill
slopes by doing little farming and porter work. They also earn their livelihood
by daily labour and animal husbandry. After the acquisition of the Buxa region
by the British as part of the Pasakha-administration, the sub-divisional
headquarters were established at Buxa. However, since the shift of the
sub-divisional headquarters to Alipurduar, the region has been gradually
falling behind. From the time when the khas
land occupied by the Dukpas was acquired in 1944 and handed over to the Forest
Department, their livelihood has been facing terrible inconveniences. Ever
since the introduction of a three-tier Panchayati Raj system at Buxa region in
1998, the development efforts of the Dukpas have progressed a lot. Today a few
Dukpas are also able to get education up to graduate level and many of them are
working as government employees. However, it could be argued that more
effective and well planned initiatives are the need of the hour for the substantial
holistic development of the Dukpas in different sectors viz., education,
health, transport and communication, preservation of the mnemonics of their
intangible cultural heritage, drinking water crisis solution etc. The state
must take noble agendas to promote and excel the glorious cultural sovereignty
of the Dukpas vis-à-vis the bountiful geographical
diversity of this Dukpa-dominated area at national and international level.
Tourism can help boost economy in this region.
On the
other hand, the Tamang people are a
Tibeto-Burmese ethnic group. They are one of the subcategories of the
Mongoloids. There is disagreement among the researchers about their origin. A
group of scholars argue that the Tamangs were engaged as cavalrymen in the army of the mighty Tibetan ruler Songtsen Gampo.
Etymologically, the word called Tamang is made up of two words —— “Ta” which
means horse and “Mang” which means rider or trader. It could be assumed that
the Tamangs were associated with the business of horse riding/trading.
According to many, any particular area bordering Nepal and Tibet was the
original home of the Tamangs, they were principally concentrated in the central
hilly region of Nepal/Tibet. They have been referred to since ancient times in
various Nepalese and colonial historical records under a variety of names viz.,
Bhote, Mulmi, Lama etc. In the Tibetan language, “Mul” means border while “Mi”
substitutes for human beings. As a whole Mulmi means border people. However, in
view of the modern researchers the Tamangs were originated from the Nepalese
descendants. The Tamangs living in Alipurduar and Dooars principally due to the
political upheaval in Nepal started settling there, first as immigrants and
with the passage of time they became the part and parcel of India —— during the
Colonial period when the Britishers established tea plantations in various
parts of this region the Tamangs started working as tea workers and forest
labourers over there. In today’s context, they are engaged in different
fields/professions.
The Tamangs are endogamous human groups and in
view of Krishnapriya
Bhattacharya they are divided into different exogenous clans viz.,
Moktan, Yonjan, Lopchan, Thing, Bomyan, Bat, Pakkrin, Grangden,
Syangbo, Waiba, Thokaz, Jhinba, Dong, Titung, Gyapok, Domjan, Bropchan, Negi,
Golay, Kalden, Ghisingh,
Singon, Remba, Nyasum, Chungma, Syangden etc. The renowned scholar further
opines that their surnames are mainly borrowed from gotras (clan identities). Ethnotraditionally, the word/designation called
“Tamang” is primarily used as surnames in their community however; the title
called “Lama” is also widely used among them. In view of this it is obligatory
to state that the word/designation called “Lama” does not necessarily endorse
any gotra, it is a basically a
religious title. In the Tamang sociocultural milieu, Tamba plays the role of an important personality. The
Tambas are experienced veterans and they are supposed to have vast and
exclusive knowledge about ancestral history, ethnic cultural heritage, clan
identities, stories of valour and kinship etc. According to popular legends,
there are 12 main original castes and 18 sub castes among the Tamangs. However,
later the combined numbers of other sub tribes added up to 134. In compliance
with the conventional Tamang cultural nuances a child is named after 3 days of
birth in a special ceremony called thapsang
or naru bon. After this, at the age of 6 months, an elderly person in
the family showers blessings on the little baby after giving a gift of gold or
silver coins to the newly clothed child. This ceremony is known as kan chwaba or kan waba (rice feeding ceremony). Moreover, the male children are
shaved at the age of 3 to 5 years, which is carried out by the child’s maternal
uncle. This is known as chewar or
hair cutting ceremony.
There is no prevalence
of dowry system in marriage. The most important ceremony of marriage is bagdan (engagement). In the presence of
the dignitaries of the society, the guardian of the bride conscientiously
arranges gold or silver coins, rice, fruits, etc. and hands over them to the
groom’s guardian and in due course of time formally announces the names of the
bride and groom. The announcement further mentions that the engagement was
declared with the consent of all, from the vines of the Himalayas to the fish
of the sea. It is further stated that even if the rights of all the property of
the bride are surrendered to the husband, the bride would likely to possess
solo rights over the bones of her body. After following reciprocal obligations
between the two clans as per the groom’s ability three additional ceremonies
are also celebrated to send gifts to the daughter’s house in view of the
age-old social customs. These social functions are known as maowali, dudhooli and dhhokouli.
Last rites of a woman cannot be carried out unless her engagement is announced.
Although there were age-old tradition of
carrying out shraddhaanushthaan after
forty-nine days of death but nowadays there is custom of performing the last
rites after the death of thirteen days also. The shraddhaanushthaan is traditionally known as ghewa (kaj-kriya). This ritual is performed under the supervision
of the Chief Lama and his assistants. Special prayers are offered at the deceased’s
house every day until ghewa is
completed. Ghewas can be divided into
four categories:
1)
Ghewa ( concentrating on the reading of
Tripitaka for a period of eighteen hours)
2)
Khoi Pa ( focusing on the reading of Tripitaka
for a period of twelve hours)
3)
Dingpa Tho ( the Lamas carry out the noble task of
reading Tripitaka for a period of three hours)
4)
So Ghewa ( a childless couple performs a special
religious ritual before death)
Today, a few Tamangs
have converted to other religions, but most of them are Buddhists. However,
their Buddhism is a combined version of Bonism and Lamaism. For this particular
reason, the religious doctrines of the Tamangs are largely affected by the viscosity
of Tantrism. Various religious festivals viz., Domang, Wang, Ngyune, Kangyur,
Lhosar and Buddha Jayanti are also celebrated with devotional fervour in the
Tamang society. Dance plays a very significant role in their socio-religious
life particularly the special dance forms add extra flavour to their glorious cultural tradition. Dance numbers
symbolically represent life, death, recreation, harmony and the phenomenal
natural world. The iconic dance numbers of the Tamangs are known as bakpa (mask dance), jungba, choi, syabru, mhane, saigole, mhendo, ghyan, torma mharso, bonbo etc. While performing the
incredible bakpa dance the artists
wear mask made of wood and are also adorned with colourful costumes and yak
tail hair. A typical Buddhist Tamang orchestra consists of various musical
instruments such as gyaling, dungchen, kangling, dungkar (conch
shells), drillbu (handbells), silnyen (vertical cymbals), damphu etc. At night, the fire is lit
and dances are performed around it. The speciality of jungba dance sessions is that it only takes place in daylight and
mask is not used in this particular subcategory of Tamang dance forms. Choi is the funeral dance number. This
dance is performed when the dead body is carried to the crematory ground in a
lotus position on a temple-shaped bier. Sonam Lhosar is the New Year’s Day
festival of the Tamang people. All India Tamang Buddhist Association since its
formation in 1981 has served the Tamang community. It is a non-profit
organisation and its headquarters is located in Darjeeling.
The Dukpa and Tamang
communities of West Bengal exemplify the rich cultural and historical diversity
that defines the Himalayan foothills and the Buxa Dooars region. Both groups
have navigated centuries of migration, settlement, and socio-political change
while preserving distinct identities rooted in language, religion, and
traditional practices. The Dukpas, originally from Bhutan, carry forward a
legacy of Bhutanese-Tibetan heritage reflected in their festivals, attire,
cuisine, and socio-cultural organization, all adapted to the environmental and
historical realities of the Buxa region. Similarly, the Tamangs, with their
origins in Nepal and Tibet, have maintained their endogamous clan structures,
religious practices, and vibrant festival traditions, including mask dances and
ritual ceremonies, illustrating resilience in the face of historical upheaval and
economic migration.
Despite modern challenges
such as land acquisition, changing economic patterns, and limited access to
education and healthcare, both communities have demonstrated remarkable
adaptability. Initiatives like education programs, government welfare schemes,
and the promotion of intangible cultural heritage have begun to support their
social and economic development, though further focused efforts are necessary.
The preservation of their languages, rituals, and festivals is not merely a cultural
endeavor but also a way to strengthen community cohesion and identity.
Studying the Dukpas and
Tamangs reveals broader insights into the interplay of migration, adaptation,
and cultural preservation in multi-ethnic regions. Their histories and contemporary
experiences underscore the importance of recognizing and supporting indigenous
and migrant communities as vital contributors to India’s cultural mosaic.
Ultimately, these communities stand as living testaments to resilience,
diversity, and the enduring significance of heritage in shaping identity.
Works Cited
Government of India. The Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes
Lists (Modification) Order, 1956. Ministry of Social Justice and
Empowerment, Government of India. PDF document detailing ST lists including
Dukpa in West Bengal.
Census of India. Tables on Scheduled Tribes, Part V-A(ii),
Vol-XVI, West Bengal & Sikkim. Registrar General & Census
Commissioner, India, 1961. Includes Dukpa in West Bengal ST list.
Roy, S. “History of Presence of Dukpa Tribe in Buxa.”
Research Dimensions, vol. 2, no. 9,
Jan. 2015. PDF. Scholarly article on Dukpa settlement and origin, including
Tibetan “Drukpa” meaning.
Dukpa Community Report. Dukpa Living Heritage Festival.
Lepchakha Village Cultural Report, Buxa Tiger Reserve, Nov. 2024. PDF detailing
lifestyle, culture, festivals, and crafts of the Dukpa tribe.
“A Study among the Drukpas of Buxa Duar Region, West Bengal.” NomadIT IUAES Conference Paper, 2013.
Online conference paper on Dukpa adaptation to environment and cultural
practices.
Ugen Dukpa. History of Dukpas and Their Present
Situation in the Darjeeling Hills and Buxaduar Region. International
Journal of Science and Research (IJSR), vol. 10, issue 1, Jan. 2021. Article on
Dukpa history, customs, and settlement patterns.
Tamang Tribe. Tribal Research Institute – Sikkim. Web
page on traditional dress, food, dance, and festivals of the Tamang community
in Sikkim (including cultural traits also seen in West Bengal Tamangs).
National Museum (Nepal).
“Tamang.” National Museum, Kathmandu
Government Archives, 28 Feb. 2020. Web document on Tamang social structure,
festivals, and rituals.
Global First Nations. “Tamang People.” Indigenous Peoples
Repository, overview of Tamang historical marginalization, musical traditions,
and identity maintenance.
Lepchakha Intangible
Cultural Heritage (ICH). Enchanting
Heritage of Dukpa Tribe in Lepchakha. Cultural heritage page on Dukpa
cuisine, crafts, festival music, and dances.
Bhattacharya,
Krishnapriya. Tribal Bengal: Life in the
Sub-Himalayan Terai Duars. Niyogi Books, 2007.
---. Silent Departure: A Study of Contemporary Tribal Predicament in Bengal
Duars. B.R. Publishing Corporation, 2009.