Natural Resources Utilisation and Settlement Pattern in Hilly District of Assam (West Karbi Anglong and Dima Hasao) : An Ethnoarchaeological Study
The environment has always played a crucial role in shaping the lives of early humans. Understanding this relationship is vital for defining how human societies interact with their surroundings. Northeast India holds a pivotal role in the study of archaeology, particularly in understanding the archaeology of South and Southeast Asia. Its strategic geographical position has historically facilitated the exchange of cultural elements from South Asia and South East Asia. The region's rich diversity of plants, coupled with favourable climatic conditions, makes it an ideal location for early plant domestication and food production. However, this region's past societies and prehistoric settlements have been largely overlooked. Therefore, this research aims to use an ethnoarchaeological approach to shed light on the social and economic aspects of prehistoric societies in the region. The research is a comprehensive study aimed at understanding the man and environment relation in prehistoric societies, with a focus on resource utilisation by comparing the still evident role of natural resources among the present ethnic groups in the hilly region of Assam, mainly West Karbi Anglong and Dima Hasao (Mikir Hills and North Cachar Hills). The study also tries to explore signatures left behind by the occupations and activities of this rural community that can potentially be identified on archaeological sites and associated settlement activities. Lastly, the work tries to link rural communities to the physicality of the landscape, seasonality, climate, and the village's overall context and evaluate the local environment's constraints on modern plant and animal husbandry. The central hypothesis is that the prehistoric inhabitants of Northeast India, particularly in the North Cachar Hills and West Karbi Anglong region, followed diverse subsistence patterns utilising the surrounding environmental resources.
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