Tribal Museum

The Tribal Museum is in the premise of the Dr Ram Dayal Munda Tribal Research Institute. The museum recently unveiled a sculpture of Dr R. D. Munda near the entrance gate to celebrate and recognise the contribution of the Padma Shri and Sahitya Natak Akademi Award recipient.  This Jharkhand-born academician served as the Vice-Chancellor of Ranchi University and was a member of the Rajya Sabha. He was a renowned regional music exponent, and a pioneering activist of the tribal movement in Jharkhand. 

The museum's main attractions are the dioramas of the different tribes of Jharkhand. The theme of this diorama is that of a nuclear family and their traditional ways of living. Each tribe has been depicted partaking in their traditional occupation. The dioramas cover both the storeys of the building. There is a plaque displaying the details pertaining to each tribe—population of the tribe as registered during the census of 2001 and 2011, languages spoken, native districts, and traditional occupation. 

The walls on the first floor of the museum are adorned with photographs taken by Malay Kumar. These photographs are mostly of people living in the rural parts of Jharkhand. They attempt to showcase the life and culture of the different tribes in their traditional setting—their traditional occupation, their art and music, their forms of celebration, and festivals. 

The Institute of Forest Productivity, Ranchi has created informatics that have been placed on the walls of the second floor, interspersed between the dioramas. They have information on the many trees/plants that are native to the forests of Jharkhand and also mention their medicinal properties. A cupboard with specimens of the some of the herbs has also been displayed. 

The interior of the museum has been designed keeping in mind the theme of tribal culture/lifestyle. Pictured here is a mural that showcases the reliance and significance of the tribal society on nature. It also highlights the importance of dance and music in the fabric of tribal life. 

'Bir' means forest, and 'Hor' means human. The Birhor tribe is believed to be a nomadic tribe that moves from one place to another in small groups, practising its traditional occupation of hunting small animals. They are adept at the craft of making ropes, procuring and selling honey and wax. (This excerpt is taken from the book, Aadim Janjatiyaan which was published by the Welfare Department, (undivided) Bihar Government in 1993.

The plaque under the diorama reads: 

Population – 7574 (in 2001) and 10726 (in 2011) 

Place – Ranchi, Hazaribag, Chatra, Koderma, Giridih, Bokaro.

Language – Birhori

Traditional Occupation – Making ropes and net. Trapping and hunting monkey, rabbit, mouse, and titir.

The plaque under the diorama reads - 

Population – 347 (in 2001) 487 (in 2011)

Place – Sahebganj, Gumla, Simdega, Garhwa, Godda, Palamu

Language – Banjari

Traditional Occupation – selling goods pertaining to women and children and collecting herbs to prepare medicines

The plaque under the diorama reads - 

Population – 744850 (in 2001) 928289 (in 2011)

Place – Ranchi, East Singbhum, West Singbhum, Dhanbad, Bokaro, Saraikela Kharsawan

Language – Ho

Traditional Occupation – Agriculture settlers

The plaque under the diorama reads - 

Population – 196 (in 2001)  221 (in 2011)

Place - Hazaribag, Bokaro, East Singbhum

Language – Austro-Asiatic Family

Traditional Occupation – Agriculture settlers

Across the first floor, smaller glass cases are interspersed between the dioramas displaying the tribal families. These cases display a collection of different tools all related to the culture of the tribal population—traditional musical instruments, tools, etc. Pictured here is one such collection of tools and instruments.