Song Not a Name!

Culture and tradition is an identity that distinguishes one another from amongst the different community inhabiting the different part of the world. Every society has its own culture and tradition, and is uniquely different from another. Here I am sharing an interesting tradition being practiced by one village in Meghalaya, a state in north east India.

Here the mothers call their children not by their names but by songs assigned to each of them, a tradition carried down through generations. The children at Kongthong village of Meghalaya state are called by a specific ‘Jingrwai Iawbeis’ or lullabies, much like the birds’ tweets given to them at birth. Each child is said to have a song to his/her name, duration of which may vary from few seconds to a minute. And ofcourse, they have a regular name as others which are use for other purposes than addressing them.

Songs of each child differ not only from one another but songs of one household differ from the other. The use of song to call a person is so effective that if a child goes missing in big crowded place, the child immediately recognizes the song and comes back on hearing the call by their relatives.

Other than the mother, the song can also be used by other people to call them; however, girls cannot use the musical language to their male companion.

One thing that baffles the ethnologist is why the neighboring villages and its tribesmen have not inherited this unique tradition. It is also obscure how and when this tradition was started.