Tribes & Communities

The Bhotia are a community of Niti & Mana valleys (Chamoli), Harsil (Uttarkashi). Trans-Himalayan border community (Marchha & Tolchha of Niti-Mana, Jad of Harsil) who practised seasonal migration and cross-border trade until 1962; keepers of high-valley pastoral life. Language: Bhotia / Rongba dialects, Garhwali; livelihood: historic Indo-Tibetan trade, transhumant herding, wool craft, agriculture.

The Buksa are a community of Doon & terai belt (Dehradun, Haridwar). Terai-belt Scheduled Tribe of the Doon foothills, historically forest-dependent, now largely settled cultivators. Language: Buksa / Hindi; livelihood: settled agriculture, fishing, labour.

The Jaunsari are a community of Jaunsar-Bawar (Dehradun), parts of Uttarkashi & Tehri Garhwal. Distinctive hill community governed by the traditional Khat council, famed for the Barada Nati dance and Mahasu Devta devotion; fraternal polyandry was historically practised. Language: Jaunsari (Western Pahari); livelihood: terrace agriculture, animal husbandry, forest produce.

The Raji are a community of Pithoragarh, Champawat (forest fringes). A Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG) — one of Uttarakhand's oldest forest peoples, the 'kings of the forest', numbering only a few hundred. Language: Raji (Tibeto-Burman); livelihood: historically forest-dwelling hunter-gatherers & woodcraft, now settled.

The Shauka are a community of Johar, Darma, Byans & Chaudans valleys (Pithoragarh, Munsyari). The Kumaoni Bhotia — border traders of the Johar and Byans valleys who ran the salt-and-wool trade with Tibet until 1962, custodians of the high pastures and the Kandali festival. Language: Rang / Johari, Kumaoni; livelihood: historic Indo-Tibetan trade, transhumant herding, wool craft.

The Tharu are a community of Terai (Udham Singh Nagar, Khatima). The largest Scheduled Tribe of Uttarakhand, terai forest-farmers with a rich mask-and-dance tradition and the distinctive Bajahri and Holi celebrations. Language: Tharu / Hindi; livelihood: settled paddy agriculture, fishing, forest produce.

The Van Gujjar are a community of Shivalik foothills (Rajaji), summering in the upper bugyals. Forest-dwelling nomadic buffalo herders who winter in the Shivalik deras and migrate each summer to the high-altitude bugyals with their herds. Language: Gujari; livelihood: nomadic buffalo husbandry, milk economy.