You must have visited many villages, but have you ever heard of a village where people have their kitchen in one country and their bedroom in another country? In other words, you can say that where people eat food in one country and go to sleep in another country. You must be feeling a little strange to hear all this, but let us tell you that such a unique village is in India and as beautiful as this village is, the story of this unique place is also unique. The name of this village is Longwa, which is located in Mon district of Nagaland, and the specialty of this village is that half of the village comes in India and half in Myanmar. It is one of the biggest villages in Mon district and sits on the India-Myanmar international border. Some locals from this village are even enrolled in the Myanmar Army. The village is situated in the dense forests of the Mon district and is inhabited by the Konyaks tribe, who are considered extremely dangerous. The Konyaks are usually famous for their tattooed faces and bodies.
Another special thing about this village is that the tradition of beheading the enemy was practiced here for centuries, which was banned in 1940. Konyaks are also known as headhunters. They often fought in the neighboring villages to capture land and power. Before 1940, these people used to cut off the heads of their opponents to occupy their clan and were the excellent collectors of enemy skulls. However, in 1940, headhunting was banned altogether. After 1969, the headhunting incident is not believed to have taken place in these tribal villages. Most of the villages of these tribals were on the top of the hill so that they could keep an eye on the enemies. Konyak are artisans and skilled craftsmen. They are experts in making excellent wood carvings, necklaces, headgear, head brushes, etc. Some people of the tribe still have brass skull necklaces at home that symbolize that they have been part of battles and have taken these heads during those battles. The people of this village have citizenship of both the countries, India and Myanmar, and they can travel to both countries without passport-visa.
It is said that after not knowing how to divide this village into two parts, the officials decided that the boundary line would go through the village, but it would not have any effect on Konyaks. The message on the border pillar is written in Burmese on one side and in Hindi on the other side.
It is said that the chief practice prevails among the Konyaks. The chief or hereditary king of Longwa village is also called Angh and he is considered the head of many villages. The most intriguing fact is that the Angh has 60 wives and he rules over 70 villages, which is extended up to Myanmar and Arunachal Pradesh. The border of India and Myanmar passes through the village chief’s house and therefore it is said that the village chief eats food in India and sleeps in Myanmar.
Image Source - Flickr
Another special thing about this village is that the tradition of beheading the enemy was practiced here for centuries, which was banned in 1940. Konyaks are also known as headhunters. They often fought in the neighboring villages to capture land and power. Before 1940, these people used to cut off the heads of their opponents to occupy their clan and were the excellent collectors of enemy skulls. However, in 1940, headhunting was banned altogether. After 1969, the headhunting incident is not believed to have taken place in these tribal villages. Most of the villages of these tribals were on the top of the hill so that they could keep an eye on the enemies. Konyak are artisans and skilled craftsmen. They are experts in making excellent wood carvings, necklaces, headgear, head brushes, etc. Some people of the tribe still have brass skull necklaces at home that symbolize that they have been part of battles and have taken these heads during those battles. The people of this village have citizenship of both the countries, India and Myanmar, and they can travel to both countries without passport-visa.
Image Source - Flickr
Image Source - Flickr
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