Cannibalism, human sacrifice and the mechanism of social adjustment: A case study on the Lyngngam of Meghalaya
Author(s): Phida-ri-ing Kharsyntiew
Abstract: Human sacrifices and cannibalism have been documented in certain tribes of Northeast India often linked to religious rituals, ancestor worship and tribal warfare. Human sacrifices were often made to appease the Gods, ancestors or spirits. Head were taken as trophies it was also done to ensure fertility and prosperity. The Lyngngam community inhabiting the western part of the central Meghalaya plateau is considered to be highly backward and the name ‘Lyngngam’ itself which is derived from the word Langam means people who are very isolated and remote. The Lyngngam have always considered themselves as being the sub-group of the Khasi and there are a number of Lyngngam clans who are present in the established Khasi and Garo clans. An interesting myth about these people is their association with the practiced of cannibalism. The notion of cannibalism of the Lyngngam is so popular that they have often been described by the other Khasi groups as Lyngngam bam briew, literally meaning the ‘Lyngngam who consumes human flesh’. Although so much has been portrayed about their cannibalistic practice in different writings about the Lyngngam, there has not been a single objective attempt to document the practice or record oral references about it. The paper will try to bring out the various narratives preserved in the memories of the people to get a closer examination on ‘cannibalism’ and human sacrifice among the Lyngngam as a constructed myth or a reality of the past.
Phida-ri-ing Kharsyntiew. Cannibalism, human sacrifice and the mechanism of social adjustment: A case study on the Lyngngam of Meghalaya. Int J Hist 2025;7(10):105-109. DOI: 10.22271/27069109.2025.v7.i10b.542
