Assimilation of Tai language to Assamese

Tai is a dominant migrant ethnic group in South-East and
adjoining South Asia and Tai-Ahoms are the largest Tai
community in the Assam. The assimilation of Tais into
Assamese society has been a gradual process.
Language, religious and political assimilation took place
in phased manner. In this article we are looking into the
aspects of Tai language assimilation in to Assamese.

Tai-Ahoms entered Assam from Moung Mao Kingdom in
South China through the Shan states of Burma in the
early part of the thirteenth century. Tai-Ahoms
established their kingdom in north-eastern part of
present-day India by conquering small rulers of Morans,
Borahis, Chutiya, Kacharis and Bhuyan Chiefs. They
ultimately made Kamrup a part of their kingdom. With the
enlargement of their kingdom, the proportion of Tais
within their kingdom became small and also they came
into extensive contact with Hindu culture and the
Assamese language.

Though Tai was the initial language of the kingdom,
Assamese language started playing a bigger role
primarily for administration. Influence of Hinduism
encouraged the ruling Tais to use more Sanskrit-based
words which later on became part of the Assamese
language. Moreover civil wars also led to weakening of
the influence Tai language in Assam, though the
language did not almost disappear until the nineteenth
century. It was kept alive by the deodhai and bailung
pandits. Over time, Ahoms had to use Assamese
language for their day to day administrative work and Tai
for the religious activities mainly based on Buddhism.

Even the names of Ahom kings themselves bear the
testimony of assimilation  of Tai language and Assamese
over time. The first twelve kings of Ahom dynasty only
had their Tai-Ahom names. The thirteenth king, Siu-Tam-
La was given Assamese name 'Swargadeo Jayadhwaj
Singha'. He was also known as 'Bhogoniya Roja'
because of his flight from capital after defeated by Mir
Jumla. However, it was the ascension of Siu-Dang-Pha
also known as 'Bamuni Kunwar' as he was raised a
Brahmin family, marks the first major contact of the
Ahoms with the Assamese mass. After the Burmese war
and annexation of the Ahom kingdom by the British, the
two last kings, Purondar Singha and Jogeswar Singha,
had only Assamese names. Historical documentations
also showed that there were many nick names such as
Bhogonia Roja, Noria Roja, Lora Roja, Burha Roja, Khura
Roja for the Ahom kings. The Assamese naming of the
kings were the result of a natural process due to
increasing number of Assamese subjects during the 16th
and 17th centuries. By now it is a hard fact that almost all
Tai-Ahoms speak Assamese language.

The Tai language had faced many problems of survival.
During the British rule and even before that, the Tais
were cut off from their origin in South China and sister
clans in Burma. The assimilation was completed during
the British rule as in 1931 the administration deliberately
dropped the name 'Ahom' from the official census list and
since then they were termed as Assamese. The trouble
continued with three language formula after India's
independence. They had to learn Assamese, Hindi and
English and there were no schools to teach Tai at the
primary level. The religious pundits had to learn Pali as
most of them were Buddhist. This had made things more
complicated.

Efforts are being made to keep the Tai language alive in
Assam. The work of Ban-Pub-Lik-Moung-Tai, an
organization Upper Assam is commendable in this
direction. The question still persists: Will the Tai-Ahoms
would be able preserve their language?

Contributed by Mrs. Dipti Kalita. Mrs Kalita has done
Masters of Science. She is a freelance writer based in
Jorhat, Assam, India.