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{{original research|date=April 2021}}
{{Infobox ethnic group
| group = Rabha
| image = Rabha Tribal lady.jpg
| population = c. 3,57,000
| regions = {{flag|India}}
| region1 = [[Assam]]
| pop1 = 2,96,189
| region2 = Meghalaya
| pop2 = 32,662
| region3 = West Bengal
| pop3 = 27,820
| languages = [[Assamese language|Assamese]]{{*}}[[Rabha language|Rabha]] (Native){{*}}[[Bengali language|Bengali]]
| religions =
| related = [[Bodo-Kachari people|Boro-Kachari peoples]]
| footnotes =
| website =
| native_name =
| native_name_lang =
}}
The '''Rabha''' are a Tibeto-Burman community indigenous to the Indian states of [[Assam]], [[Meghalaya]] and [[West Bengal]].<ref>"Rabha, Bodo and Garo, all of which belong to a close-knit group of Tibeto-Burman languages."{{harvcol|Joseph|2006|p=1}}</ref> They primarily inhabit the plains of [[Lower Assam]] and the [[Dooars]], while some are found in the [[Garo Hills]]. Most of the Rabhas of Dooars refer to themselves as Rabha, but some of them often declare themselves as Kocha.<ref>"There stills exist another group of Rabhas called the Kocha or Koch"{{harvcol|Joseph|2006|p=2}}</ref>

The Rabha community have a rich, multi-faceted and distinct culture of their own. The agricultural practices, food habit and belief systems of the Rabhas reflect a conglomeration of features from both the Aryan and Mongoloid culture. The Rabha society is matrilineal. The village economy is based on agriculture and both men and women work in the fields. The women love to wear colorful clothes that they weave themselves and they wear a lot of beads and silver ornaments. The Rabhas are non-vegetarians and rice is their staple food.

The traditional economy of the Rabhas in general, is based on agriculture, forest based activities and weaving. In the past, the Rabhas used to practice shifting cultivation. They continued to cultivate the land with Gogo or bill-hook. Later they took up the job of settled cultivation and started cultivation with plough. Besides cultivation, hunting was also an old practice of Rabha people. Weaving was a traditional occupation of the Rabha women.

The Rabhas are mostly found in Lower Assam on the south bank of the Brahmaputra, in the districts of [[Goalpara district|Goalpara]] and [[Kamrup district|Kamrup]]. Some are found in the north bank districts of [[Baksa district|Baksa]], [[Udalguri district|Udalguri]] and [[Kokrajhar district|Kokrajhar]]. In Meghalaya, the Rabhas mainly live in [[West Garo Hills district|West Garo Hills]] and [[East Garo Hills district|East Garo Hills]] districts. In West Bengal, the Rabha inhabit the district of [[Alipurduar district|Alipurduar]].

[[File:Rabha Tribal Lady.jpg|thumb|Rabha Tribal Lady]]
== Language ==
The [[Rabha language]] is closely related to neighbouring Boro and Garo, as well as many other Sino-Tibetan languages of Assam. They have 11 dialects: 1) Maithori, 2) Rongdani,3) Pati, 4) Dahori, 5) Dotla, 6) Halua, 7) Betolia, 8) Hanna, 9) Sunga, 10) Modahi, 11) Kocha Rabhas. These all are Rabhas but some of them have loss their mother tongues. Some of them have totally died out. But the Rongdani, Maithori and Kochas dialects are still used by Koch-Rabhas.<ref>"There are eight sub-branches of the Rabhas. Among them Maitori, Rangdani and Koch or Kocha are the major sub-divisions of the Rabhas. They have been maintaining language and culture."{{harvcol|Basumatārī|2010|p=8}}</ref> The Rabha language is only spoken by a minority of the Rabhas, most of whom speak [[Assamese language|Assamese]] in Assam and [[Bengali language|Bengali]] in West Bengal.

==See also==
* [[Rabha language]]
* [[Rabha Hasong Autonomous Council]]
* [[Bishnuprasad Rabha]]
* [[Assamese language]]
* [[Himalayan Languages Project]]

==References==
'''Citations'''
{{reflist}}
'''Bibliography'''
{{refbegin}}

* {{Citation
|surname1 = Mitra
|given1 = A.
|year = 1953
|title = West Bengal: District Handbooks: Jalpaiguri
|publisher = Govt. of West Bengal
|ISBN = 
}}
*{{Cite book|last=Basumatārī|first=Phukana Candra|title=The Rabha Tribe of North-East India, Bengal and Bangladesh|year=2010|publisher= Mittal Publications}}
*{{Cite book|last=Joseph|first=Umbavu|title=Languages of the Greater Himalayan Region, Volume 1 Rabha|year=2006|publisher= Brill}}
{{refend}}

== Further reading ==
* Saha, Rebatimohon (1987) "Jalpaiguri Jelar Koch-Rabha Samaj" (in Bengali) published in Ananda Gopal Ghosh edited ''Madhuparni'', Special issue on Jalpaiguri District.
* Raha, M.K. (1974) "The Rabhas of Western Duars: Structural Analysis of a Changing Matrilineal Society", Bulletin of the Cultural Research Institute, Vol. 10 (1 & 2).
* Ghosh, Saumitra (1990) "Vanbasi Rabhara" (in Bengali) Desh, Vol 57 (12), January 20.
* Roy Choudhury, B. (1970) "Social Mobility Movement among the Rabhas of North Bengal", Man in India, Vol 50 (1).
* Gupta, Pabitra Kumar (1977) "Uttarbanger Rahba Samaj O Dharmasanskar Aandolon", (in Bengali) in Madhuparni: Special North Bengal Issue, 1977.
* Sarma, Dr. Nabin Ch (2006) "Oral Songs of Tribal Communities of Assam" a project of Assam Sahitya Sabha, Assam Institute of Research for Tribals and Scheduled Castes

{{Scheduled tribes of India}}
{{Scheduled tribes of West Bengal}}

[[Category:Social groups of Assam]]
[[Category:Tribes of Assam]]
[[Category:Tribes of West Bengal]]
[[Category:Sino-Tibetan-speaking people]]
[[Category:Indigenous peoples of South Asia]]
[[Category:Hindu ethnic groups]]
[[Category:Social groups of West Bengal]]
[[Category:Scheduled Tribes of Meghalaya]]
[[Category:Scheduled Tribes of Assam]]
[[Category:Scheduled Tribes of West Bengal]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Northeast India]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in South Asia]]

Rabha people - Revision history

KellyePoindexter: brief added layout based on references and fixed typos

imported>Homogenie at 01:39, 8 August 2021