Chinese Lhoba People

The Lhoba is currently the smallest officially recognized in China. They are divided between the Yidu , which is classified as one of the three sub-tribes of the Mishmi, and the Boga'er , a sub-tribe of the . Both groups, also found in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, collectively form a population of around 10,500. The term "Lhoba", however, is only limited to these groups living on the Chinese side of the Indo-Chinese border.

The Lhoba live in southeastern Tibet, notably in Mainling, Medog, Lhunze and Nangxian counties of Nyingchi Prefecture in southeastern Tibet. Additionally, a small number live in Luoyu, southern Tibet. Many more live in south of the Tibetan border in Dibang Valley in Arunachal Pradesh, where they engage in traditional agriculture and hunting. Until the , the Lhoba had no written language. Even though a romanized alphabet was developed for them, there are many elderly Lhoba who can neither read or even count. The occupation of Tibet also brought many changes to traditional Lhoba culture. Most significantly, it helped to integrate the Lhoba with the dominant Tibetan culture and began to put an end to the rigid class system, by which the Lhoba were divided into two distinct castes – aristocrat and peasant – which were not allowed to intermix.

Customs and dress

Many customs, habits and dress of different clan members may vary. The Lhoba men in Luoyu wear knee-length black jackets without sleeves and buttons made out of sheep's wool. They wear helmet-like hats either made from bearskin or woven from bamboo stripes or rattan laced with bearskin. They also wear ornaments that include earrings, necklaces made of beads, and bamboo plugs inserted into the ear lobe. The Lhoba women wear narrow-sleeved blouses and skirts of sheep's wool. The weight of the ornaments the womenfolk wear is a symbol of their wealth, which includes shells, silver coins, iron chains bells, silver and brass earrings. Both sexes usually go barefooted. Their dress are quite similar to the Tibetan costume. The Idu men wear a sword and waterproof cane helmet, and a chignon on their hair and shields made of buffalo hide. Yidu weaponry includes straight Tibetan sword, dagger, bow and poisoned arrows.

Among the Yidu Lhoba , one of the sub-tribe is the Bebejia Mishmi. Female members of Bebejia Mishmi are expert weavers and make excellent coats and blouses.

The Idu houses are divided into a number of rooms for use of every married person. Unmarried girls and boys sleep in separate rooms. A fireplace occupies the centre of the room, round which the inmates sleep. The Idus are polygamous and each wife has their own rooms in the house. The family is organised in patriarchal principles. Inheritance of widows are exceptional as compared to a mother.

The wooden pillow of the master of the house is considered taboo to the inmates of the house as it is considered improper to sit upon it. Guests are not allowed to enter the room of the master of the house. The animal skulls preserved in the house are considered to be sacred.

The slash and burn method of cultivation, known as Jhum, is the main stay of the Idus, and clearing of land is carried for every three to five years. The important crops they raised are paddy, arum, tapioca, millet and maize. Rice is the staple food supplemented by millet maize and tapioca. They also take leafy vegetables, beans, gourd, sweet potato etc. Animal flesh is considered taboo to Idu woman. The Yidu also consume "Yu", a locally brewed rice beer, and rice beer prepared by a woman during her period is taboo to a priest.

The Idu calendar was based upon the menstrual period of the women and dating is done by untying one each from a number of knots put on a piece of string. Traditional village panchayat settles all internal disputes among the tribe.

Culture and religion

Few Lhoba know the Tibetan language. In the past, when there was no writing, the Lhobas kept track of history through telling their descendants and tying knot codes about their past. Their literature also poses a significant influence on their Tibetan counterparts.

They engage in barter trade in the Tibetan, trading goods like animal hides, musk, bear paws, dye and captured game for farm tools, salt, wool, clothing, grain and tea from Tibetan traders. As a result of constant trading with the , they have been increasingly influenced by the Tibetans in their dress. Many Lhobas have converted to Tibetan Buddhism in the recent years as they traded in the monasteries, thus frequently mixing with their indigenous Animist beliefs, which had traditionally deep roots in the tiger. Others remain Animistic, more commonly among those in Arunachal Pradesh, and their pilgrim centre of the community lies at Atho-Popu in Dibang valley. The stories about immigration mentioned is along the banks of twelve rivers in Dibang Valley, the clustered area known as Cheithu-Huluni. Among the Yidu, they traditionally believed that "Inni" is their supreme god.

Festivals such as Reh are celebrated to control the peace and prosperity of the people. This is meant to appease the deities, who were traditionally believed to control the peace and prosperity of the people, which is the thought behind the celebration of the Reh festival. The celebration with great fan-fare and the performance of priest dance marks the ending of the festival.

There are four variants of funerals among the Yidu Lhoba , and people of different social status would choose to conduct either of the four different variants. In all variants, the ''Igu'' priest would recite mourning songs for the dead. Mithuns are being sacrificed in the ''Yah'' variant of the funeral, which lasts for three to four days.

The young boys are trained to hunt at an early age. However, women had low status in society and had no inheritance rights from their husbands or fathers. The Lhoba also enjoy a subtropical/warm temperate climate.

Cuisine

Lhoba cuisine varies across regions. Staple foods are dumplings made of maize or millet flour, rice or buckwheat. In places near Tibetan communities people have tsampa, potatoes, buttered tea and spicy food. Being heavy drinkers and smokers, at celebrations the Lhobas enjoy wine and singing to observe good harvests and good luck. The buttered tea is their favourite drink. However, due to the lack of salt, they had suffered endemic , caused by poor living conditions. Many were either born deaf or mute. Their population went down in decline until recent years due to this disease. Due to their low population, many of them either intermarried with the Tibetans or with the tribal groups of Arunachal Pradesh, notably the Monpa.

History

The area which the modern Lhoba lived today was known as Luoyu in medieval texts. Luoyu came under the control of Tibet from the 7th century onwards and came under frequent subjugation from the Tibetans.

Since the coming of liberation , followed by the Tibetan rebellion in 1959, the Chinese government has significantly improved their living condition. Since then, they were treated as equals by society. Now they are well represented in government at regional, county, district and township levels. Production was boosted and people's living standards and general health improved with loans and relief extended by the government. Previously were serfs, the Lhoba received land, farm implements and draught animals.

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