Mapping Memories

The tribes of Nagaland

The Chang Tribe

Tuensang district · Festival: Naknyulum (announced annually (July tradition))

At the Hornbill Festival: The Chang morung is unmistakable for its great carved log drums and the fire-tending ceremony they demonstrate.

Traditional dress and craft

Chang women wear heavy coin-and-bead necklaces over red-and-black cloth; men carry the dao and wear hornbill-feather headgear.

What to know about the Chang

The Chang of far-eastern Tuensang celebrate Naknyulum, the victory-and-harvest festival, with whole-village feasting and drumming that shakes the morung floor.

Meet the Chang in person

Visit their morung at the Hornbill Festival (December 1–10, Kisama), afternoons are for conversations, not performances. Or travel to Tuensang district for Naknyulum in announced annually (July tradition), the same culture at home scale. Our [tribes guide](/journal/hornbill-festival-tribes/) covers every community, and the [festivals calendar](/journal/festivals-of-nagaland/) maps the year.

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