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According to Dalton (1978), Bhumij means ‘the children of
the soil’. According to my informant, the word is etymologically
Bhum-jo "the people originating from Bhum areas are Singhbhum,
Bhirbhum, Dhalbhum etc., Dalton (1978) also claims that the Bhuij
are the original inhabitants of Dalbhum, Bharabhum, Patkum and
Bagamundi. According to Dalton(1978) all the Zamindars of the area
were of the Munda tribe. There are among the Bhumij called Sardar
ghatwals, who are proprietors of estates.
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The Bhumij claim that they are descendants of the Rajah of
Barabhum. Dalton (1978) gives the following legend: North Varaha
and Kes Varaha were brothers. They quarrelled with their father,
the Rajah of Virat and in the quarrel, Kes Varaha killed his
father. He gave a horse and a pair of umbrellas to his elder
brother and told him that he could take the entire land which he
could ride within a day and nightAccordingly, North Varaha
mounted the horse and rode a circle of eight yojanas in the
given time. This land was named Bharatbhum. It is believed that
the horse’s hoof prints are still seen on the Southern slopes
of the hills.
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In the Manbhum and Singhbum districts during the British rule,
the captains of the local army were the Bhumij.
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According to Risely (1981), the Bhumij of West Bengal and Orissa
claim higher rank in the Brahminical caste hierarchy. They
worship the Hindu Gods in addition to their deities. The Bhumij
who own large tracks of land call themselves Rajputs. They have
Brahmins as their family priests. Some of them use Rajput titles
also. The Bhumij in West Bengal have adopted the Bengali
language in place of their own language.
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2.
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Gods and festivals
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According to Risely (1981), the ancient Kolarians (i.e., Mundas)
worshipped the mountain in the form of a stone
smeared with vermilion in a sacred grove near the village. The
worshipping place is called sarna-which consists of jungle trees
consiered tobe the residence of the primeval forest where the
tribes lived. Later they worshipped six different Gods. They are
1. Jahir buru, 2. Karakata, 3. Baghut or Bagh But, 4. Gram-Deota
and Deoghali, 5. Buru and 6. Kudra or Basaychandi (Risely 1981).
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According to my informant, the following five Gods are
worshipped now in Orissa. They are 1. Pu:sporob, 2. Sarai boNga,
3. Buru boNga,
4. ba boŋga
and 5. Ha ambui
boŋga.
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1. Pu:s porob:This is the God of makara Sankranti, which is
celebrated in the month of January.
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2. Sarai boŋga:This is the God believed to protect the cattle. He is worshipped
in the cow she byoffering chicken in the mont of November.
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3. Buru boŋga:This is amountain God. Previously, people went to a particular
mountain in Bihar to worship on a particular day. Now they do
the wroship in their houses themselves by offering ram and
chicken. This worship takes place in the month of December.
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4. Ba boŋga:
A branch with the flowers of sarjon daru ‘sal tree’ is
brought home and worshipped in the festival of this God. No
offering is made in the worship. In Bihar, people dance after
the worship, which is called basusun ‘flower dance’.
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5. Haambui
boŋga:The ancestors of a family are worshipped. Rice
and race (juice prepared out of cooked rice) are offered.
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