Guide · 7 min read
How many tribes are in Nagaland? Every tribe at the Hornbill Festival
Quick answer: Nagaland officially recognises 17 tribes (often described as “sixteen-plus”, because counts vary with how sub-tribes are grouped). Every December 1–10, all of them gather at the Hornbill Festival at Kisama Heritage Village, each tribe in its own morung, each with its own dances, dialect and dress.
The tribes of Nagaland
| Tribe | Home district / region | Festival |
|---|---|---|
| Angami | Kohima, Dimapur | Sekrenyi (February) |
| Ao | Mokokchung | Moatsü (May) |
| Konyak | Mon | Aoleang (April) |
| Sümi (Sema) | Zunheboto | Tuluni (July) |
| Chakhesang | Phek | Tsükhenyie (May) |
| Pochury | Phek | Yemshe (October) |
| Rengma | Tseminyü | Ngada (November) |
| Sangtam | Kiphire | Amongmong (September) |
| Phom | Longleng | Monyü (April) |
| Chang | Tuensang | Naknyulem (July–August) |
| Khiamniungan | Noklak | Miu (May) |
| Yimkhiung | Shamator | Metemneo (August) |
| Kuki | Peren, Dimapur | Chavang Kut (November) |
| Lotha | Wokha | Tokhu Emong (November) |
| Kachari | Dimapur, Peren | Bushu (January–February) |
| Tikhir | Kiphire, Noklak | Tôhlü (November) |
| Zeliang | Peren | Hega (February) |
There are also communities beyond the recognized list, the Sumi, the Anāl, the Makury and others, which is why you will see both “16” and “17” in print. English is the state’s official language precisely because so many distinct languages are spoken: the tribes do not share a common mother tongue.
What you actually see at the festival
At Kisama, each tribe maintains a morung, a traditional house built in that tribe’s style, from that tribe’s materials, which doubles as its base during the festival. Walking the morung row is the best anthropology lesson in India: the Konyak morung carries the tattoos and log drums of the old headhunting days; the Angami morung is neat and thatched; the Chang morung towers.
In the arena, each tribe takes its turn, the spear dances of the east, the graceful milkmaid steps of the west, war yells, reed instruments, and full traditional dress from feathered hornbill headdresses to red-and-black woven shawls, each pattern distinct to its tribe.
How to meet the tribes properly
Come in the morning for the arena, then spend the afternoon in the morungs with tea and rice beer, talking. That is where the festival actually lives. Our Hornbill Festival guide explains the daily rhythm, and the Festivals of Nagaland calendar shows when each tribe celebrates at home in its own village, the quieter, deeper version of the same cultures.
Explore every tribe
Deep-dive pages for each community, their homeland, their own festival, their morung at Kisama:
Ao · Angami · Chakhesang · Chang · Khiamniungan · Konyak · Kuki · Lotha · Phom · Pochury · Rengma · Sangtam · Sümi · Yimkhiung · Zeliang · Kachari · Tikhir
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