News Highlights
President candidate Droupadi Murmu became the first person from santhal tribes to achieve this glory.
Santhal Tribes
- Santhal is the third largest Scheduled Tribe community in the country after Gond and Bhil.
- Distribution – The Santhal population is mostly distributed in Odisha, Jharkhand and West Bengal.
- Odisha
- Mayurbhanj, has one of the largest concentrations of the tribe.
- Santhals are found in Keonjhar and Balasore, other than in Mayurbhanj district.
- Origin of Name
- According to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Research and Training Institute (SCSTRTI), Bhubaneswar, the word Santhal is derived from two words: santha meaning calm and peaceful and ala meaning man.
History of Santhal Tribes
- Initially the Santhals had led a nomadic life.
- Gradually, they came to settle down on the Chota Nagpur plateau.
- Towards the end of the 18th century, they migrated to the Santhal Parganas of Bihar and then they came to Odisha.
Literacy and Language
- Santhals speak Santhali which has its own script called Ol Chiki invented by Pundit Raghunath Murmu.
- Ol Chiki
- Santhali in the Ol Chiki script has been included in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution.
- Ol Chiki is the medium of instruction in many schools across the State
Content Source : The Hindu