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[replace with] Marma, The second largest ethnic
[replace with] minority group in Bangladesh. Most Marmas live in the three hill
[replace with] districts of Rangamati, Bandarban
[replace with] and Khagrachhari. Some Marmas,
[replace with] however, live in the coastal
[replace with] districts of cox's bazar and
[replace with] Patuakhali. These Marmas name
[replace with] themselves rakhain and many consider
[replace with] them as a separate ethnic community.
[replace with] According to the 1991 census, the
[replace with] number of Marmas in Bangladesh is
[replace with] 157,301.
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[replace with] Historical Background:
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[replace with] Marmas belong to the Mongoloid race. They are
[replace with] relatively short and have prominent
[replace with] cheekbones. They have yellow
[replace with] complexion, black hairs, small eyes,
[replace with] and snub noses. They speak in
[replace with] Arakanese dialect and their language
[replace with] is written in Burmese characters.
[replace with] Marma language belongs to the Burma-Arakan
[replace with] group within the broad
[replace with] classifications of Tibet-Burma
[replace with] languages. In recent times, Marmas
[replace with] in urban areas and nearby
[replace with] settlements speak the corrupt local
[replace with] language of Chittagong.
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[replace with] The word 'Marma' originates from the Burmese
[replace with] word 'myanma', which means 'Burmese
[replace with] nationals' and is pronounced as
[replace with] marma by the people of the
[replace with] chittagong hill tracts. The
[replace with] ancestors of the Marma people used
[replace with] to live in Pegu city of Burma long
[replace with] before it was invaded in 1599 by
[replace with] Mahappinnagi, the commander of the
[replace with] Army of the king of arakan. The
[replace with] people of Pegu were known as Talaing
[replace with] or Tai Luang meaning greater Tai, a
[replace with] branch of the great Tai race, which,
[replace with] according to some historians, lived
[replace with] in southern and central China as
[replace with] early as 2200 BC. Some researchers
[replace with] opine that the Buddhists of Arakan
[replace with] now known as Marmas and maghs are
[replace with] the same group of people. The Marma
[replace with] people of Chittagong Hill Tracts,
[replace with] however, do not like to identify
[replace with] themselves with Maghs. They consider
[replace with] that Maghs were originally pirates
[replace with] and that Marmas, far from being
[replace with] pirates, hated this occupation.
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[replace with] Socio Economic Aspects:
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[replace with] Livelihood: Agriculture is the main occupation
[replace with] of Marmas. jhum cultivation is their
[replace with] primary agricultural pursuit. They
[replace with] also supplement their food
[replace with] requirement by gathering tree
[replace with] leaves, roots, and tubers from hill
[replace with] forests. Small-scale homestead
[replace with] gardening is also common among them.
[replace with] Other important economic activities
[replace with] of Marmas include basketry, brewing
[replace with] and wage labor. Weaving is a very
[replace with] common activity of Marma women.
[replace with] Marmas were not market oriented in
[replace with] the past. Their economic activities
[replace with] and production system were geared to
[replace with] their subsistence. Only recently
[replace with] have they become involved in trade
[replace with] and commerce. Produces of the Marma
[replace with] people are sold mostly through
[replace with] middlemen. Some Marma families now
[replace with] operate small retail stores.
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[replace with] Social System:
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[replace with] Lifestyle: The houses of Marma people are made of bamboo,
[replace with] wild grass and straw. These are
[replace with] built on elevated bamboo or wooden
[replace with] platforms (machang). Every room of
[replace with] the house is a bed room-cum-store.
[replace with] The space underneath the machang is
[replace with] used for various purposes such as
[replace with] keeping livestock, storing fuel
[replace with] wood, or accommodating handlooms for
[replace with] weaving. Some houses, however, are
[replace with] made of mud and built without
[replace with] machangs. Rice and boiled vegetables
[replace with] are major food items of the Marma
[replace with] people. 'Nappi' a paste of dried
[replace with] fish, is a favourite. They enjoy
[replace with] rice bear and smoke indigenous
[replace with] cigars.
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[replace with] Social Structure: Marmas are divided into several clans. Each
[replace with] clan is named after the place from
[replace with] where it migrated. The material
[replace with] culture of the Marma society
[replace with] includes many basic tools and
[replace with] weapons of primitive societies.
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[replace with] Traditional
[replace with] Dress: Marma men and women typically wear 'thami'
[replace with] (sarong) and 'angi' (blouse).
[replace with] However, the angi used by the men is
[replace with] more a waistcoat than a blouse.
[replace with] Marmas make their own dresses using
[replace with] traditional weaving technology,
[replace with] although many now purchase common
[replace with] Bangali dresses from the market.
[replace with] They usually do not wear shoes, but
[replace with] this tradition, too is not in vogue
[replace with] now thanks to increased association
[replace with] with other peoples. Kitchen utensils
[replace with] in a Marma family are mostly earthen
[replace with] or made of bamboo and wood. Many
[replace with] families, however, use aluminum
[replace with] wares like pots, pans, plates and
[replace with] glasses. Marma men drink wine and
[replace with] play card games in leisure time.
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[replace with] Family Structure: The nuclear family is predominant in the Marma
[replace with] community. Although the husband is
[replace with] the head of the household, the wife
[replace with] also has a significant role in the
[replace with] family. kinship ties are quite
[replace with] strong in the Marma society. Such
[replace with] ties are both affinal and
[replace with] consanguineous. The property
[replace with] inheritance, in general, follows the
[replace with] old Burmese line of inheritance
[replace with] called Thamohada. Both sons and
[replace with] daughters inherit parental
[replace with] properties. The 'auroth' (most
[replace with] favourite) child gets the ownership
[replace with] of the house and has to take care of
[replace with] the parents. In recent times,
[replace with] however, inheritance of landed
[replace with] property follows a rule according to
[replace with] which the property is distributed in
[replace with] the ratio of 2:1 between sons and
[replace with] daughters.
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[replace with] Rituals: Marmas believe that their birth, death and all
[replace with] activities in life take place under
[replace with] the influence of a supernatural
[replace with] power, which they try to satisfy
[replace with] through their rites and rituals.
[replace with] They are Buddhists in faith. Animism
[replace with] is also in practice among them. They
[replace with] perform all the important Buddhist
[replace with] religious festivals and also various
[replace with] rituals and worships to satisfy
[replace with] different gods. Dreams have a very
[replace with] strong influence in decision making
[replace with] in their everyday life.
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[replace with] Marriage is a very important part of the
[replace with] social life of Marmas. Cross cousin
[replace with] marriages and monogamy are
[replace with] predominant features of this
[replace with] society. Polygamy is also allowed.
[replace with] Child marriage is practically
[replace with] forbidden. Pre-marriage love is
[replace with] common. Both men and women have
[replace with] equal rights to divorce although the
[replace with] final settlement is to be made in
[replace with] the court of karbari (village
[replace with] leader) or of the headman (mouza or
[replace with] area leader).
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[replace with] Communal Administration: The traditional political administrative
[replace with] system in the Marma community is a
[replace with] three-tier one. Village level
[replace with] administration is headed by a
[replace with] karbari. The mouza level is headed
[replace with] by a headman and the circle level is
[replace with] headed by the circle chief (Raja).
[replace with] The main responsibilities of the
[replace with] village karbari, the mouza headman,
[replace with] and the circle chief are collection
[replace with] of jhum tax. In addition, each is
[replace with] entrusted with various
[replace with] socio-cultural responsibilities
[replace with] including mitigation of disputes,
[replace with] pronouncing judgements, and
[replace with] maintaining law and order at their
[replace with] respective levels of administration.
[replace with] [Sadat Ullah Khan] |
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