Environment and Ethnicity in India, 1200–1991 (Cambridge Studies in Indian History and Society, Series Number 4)

Drawing on a rich collection of sources, Sumit Guha demonstrates how the ideology of indigenous cultures, developed in recent years out of the notion of a pure and untouched ethnicity, is in fact rooted in nineteenth-century racial and colonial anthropology. Challenging this view, he traces the processes by which the apparently immutable identities of South Asian populations took shape, and how these populations interacted with civilizations beyond their immediate vicinity. His penetrating critique will make a significant contribution to the history of South Asia and to the literature on ethnicity. Drawing on a rich collection of sources, Sumit Guha's 1999 book reconstructs the history of the forest communities in western India to explore questions of tribal identity and the environment. In so doing, he demonstrates how the ideology of indigenous cultures, developed out of the notion of a pure and untouched ethnicity, is in fact rooted in nineteenth-century racial and colonial anthropology. As a challenge to this view, the author traces the processes by which the apparently immutable identities of South Asian populations took shape, and how these populations interacted politically, economically and socially with civilizations outside their immediate vicinity. While such theories have been discussed by scholars of South-East Asia and Africa, this study examines the South Asian case. Sumit Guha's penetrating and controversial critique will make a significant contribution to that literature [Cover]......Page 1 1 From the archaeology of mind to the archaeology of matter......Page 8 Introduction......Page 19 2 Subsistence and predation at the margins of cultivation......Page 48 3 State formation in the highland forests 1350-1800......Page 80 4 The peoples of the Sahyadri under Marathas and British......Page 101 6 The central Indian forest under early British rule......Page 148 7 Identities and aspiration - not noble savage but savage noble......Page 168 8 The high colonial period and after - new patterns of authority and power......Page 182 9 From sanctuaries to safeguards: policies and politics intwentieth-century India......Page 200 Afterword......Page 220 Bibliography......Page 222 Index......Page 234 1. From The Archaeology Of Mind To The Archaeology Of Matter -- 2. Subsistence And Predation At The Margins Of Cultivation -- 3. State Formation In The Highland Forests 1350-1800 -- 4. The Peoples Of The Sahyadri Under Marathas And British -- 5. The Central Indian Forest From Mughal Suzerainty To British Control -- 6. The Central Indian Forest Under Early British Rule -- 7. Identities And Aspiration -- Not Noble Savage But Savage Noble -- 8. The High Colonial Period And After -- New Patterns Of Authority And Power -- 9. From Sanctuaries To Safeguards: Policies And Politics In Twentieth-century India. Sumit Guha. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 204-215) And Index. This 1999 book reconstructs the history of forest communities in western India to explore questions relating to identity and the environment. It demonstrates how the ideology of indigenous cultures, developed out of the notion of a pure and untouched ethnicity, is rooted in racial and colonial anthropology. This penetrating critique will contribute significantly to the literature. As K. Sivaramakrishnan recently pointed out, one of the persistent ironies of postcoloniality 'has been the way elites assuming the task of building a national culture and providing it with a liberatory/progressive history have turned to modes of knowledge and reconstruction produced in the colonial period'.