Assam's history goes back to the ancient times. The base of this history can be found in Vedic literature, Tantric literature, Assamese folklore and Buddhist literature. The history of Assam is the history of a confluence of peoples from the east, west and the north; the confluence of the Indo-Aryan, Austro-Asiatic and Tibeto-Burman cultures. Politically, it has been invaded, but has never served as a vassal or a colony to an external power till the advent of the Burmese in 1821 and subsequently the British in 1826. The history of Assam is known from many sources. The Ahom kingdom of medieval Assam maintained chronicles, called Buranjis, written in the Ahom and the Assamese languages. History of ancient Assam comes from rock inscriptions and the many copper plates and royal grants the Kamarupa kings issued during their reign. Protohistory is reconstructed from folklore, epics like Mahabharata, and two medieval texts compiled in the Assam region—the Kalika Purana and the Yogini Tantra.
However, first reference of Assam is found in the epics and the religious legends. The Aryans belonging to the priestly (Brahmin) and warrior classes found their way into Assam in very early times. Numerous places referred in the epics, like Mahabharata etc. are now identified with sites in this state.
Assam has been an inseparable part of India since centuries, though details of its history & origin have lost in times. As interpreted by some scholars, the term ‘Assam’ is taken from the Sanskrit term ‘Asoma’ which means matchless or unequaled. According to the current studies, the term has been originated from the original name of the Ahoms, the people who ruled the land for about 600 years before its invasion by the British. In the times of yore, different races like Austric, Mongolian, Dravidian and Aryan have ruled the state.
Known as 'Kamarupa' or 'Pragjyotish' in the period of the Epics, Assam is inhabited by human civilisation since about 2000 BC. The people of Assam consists of the migrants from Burma and China. They settled in Assam after the mongoloid migration. Mongoloids came from Punjab through Bihar and North Bengal. Henceforth, Assam presents a blend of Mongol-Aryan culture. It is believed that, the early history of Assam belonged to be of the Varman dynasty. The reign of this dynasty extended from 400 AD to 13th century. Huien Tsang is said to have visited Assam during the rule of Kumar Bhaskar Varman in the 7th century BC. The Ahoms are said to have ventured into Assam in about 1228 AD. By 15th century the kingdoms of Ahom and Koch were established. This period witnessed a change in all the sections of life in Assam.
Ahom Kingdom weakened in the later part of the 18th century, due to internal conflict. The Burmese ran over the political authority in Assam, thus invoking British intervention to subdue the Burmese. After a conflict between the Burmese and the English, peace was regained by the treaty of Yandaboo in 1826. The British then set out to organise the administration, transport and communication. Besides the various changes, the British constructed the railways; introduced of tea plantation, discovered of coal and oil etc.. All this proved fruitful to the British during the World War II. In the post Independence period of India, Assam witnessed several separation of territories. In 1948, NEFA (Arunachal Pradesh) was separated. In 1963 Nagaland was separated. In 1972 Meghalaya and in 1987 Mizoram.
The inscriptions on stone and copper show that there was a succession of Hindu dynasties. The Ahoms ventured into Assam in about 1228 AD. By 15th century the Ruins of Kachari Kingdomkingdoms of Ahom were established. In 1228 AD the Ahoms (a Shan tribe from which the name Assam is probably derived) crossed the Patkoi Mountains from Burman and by the sixteenth century absorbed the Chutiya and Kachari kingdoms and subdued the neighboring hill tribes. During the latter part of the sixteenth century, the Ahoms revolted a succession of Mughal invasions. The kingdom of the Ahom reached its height under Rudra Xingha.
During the latter half of the sixteenth century, the Assamese saint and teacher, Shankara Deva, motivated the Vaishnavites, who wanted to reform the practices of Tantric Hinduism and to limit the privileges of the Brahmins attached to the Ahom Court. Shankara Deva`s Vaishnavism appealed to the tribal base on which the Ahom had erected their state because of their denial of caste privilege. From 1979, under the leadership of religious leaders the disaffected population of the kingdom took part in a series of rebellion against the Ahom rule. The leader of this rebellion was Ragha Maran. It is said that his two wives also had participated in the battle.
After victory his son, Ramakata became the king. At the request of king Gaurinath Xingha the Governor General of British India, dispatched a mission to the Ahom capital to restore peace. As a result peace was restored but civil strife persisted. Meanwhile the Burmese in 1817, took advantage of the rebellion within the Ahom nobility. They came at the invitation of the Governor, conspired against the king and killed many in Assam over a period of five years. Fearing danger of extinction in their territory, the British drove the Burmese from the Brahmaputra Valley, and seized the Ahom kingdom in 1826. In 1838, all of northeast India became part of the Bengal Presidency of British India. The British dismantled the Ahom ruling structure and employed educated Bengali Hindus and made Bengali the official language.
The government offered incentives to European entrepreneurs to start plantations as the natives of Assam were rich and hence, unwilling to do plantation labor. The British recruited poor tribals from southern Bihar, Orissa and Andhra Pradesh. In 1874, Assam was separated from Bengal, and was comprised into a separate province with its capital in Shillong. In 1905, on the initiative of the British Viceroy of India (Lord Curzon) the province was amalgamated with east Bengal following the partition of Bengal into the west and the east. In 1912, the partition was nullified, and Assam was made a separate province once more. In the twentieth century, the government of India, offered vast tracts of land to Muslim farmers (from East Bengal) for settlement and cultivation.
However, first reference of Assam is found in the epics and the religious legends. The Aryans belonging to the priestly (Brahmin) and warrior classes found their way into Assam in very early times. Numerous places referred in the epics, like Mahabharata etc. are now identified with sites in this state.
Assam has been an inseparable part of India since centuries, though details of its history & origin have lost in times. As interpreted by some scholars, the term ‘Assam’ is taken from the Sanskrit term ‘Asoma’ which means matchless or unequaled. According to the current studies, the term has been originated from the original name of the Ahoms, the people who ruled the land for about 600 years before its invasion by the British. In the times of yore, different races like Austric, Mongolian, Dravidian and Aryan have ruled the state.
Known as 'Kamarupa' or 'Pragjyotish' in the period of the Epics, Assam is inhabited by human civilisation since about 2000 BC. The people of Assam consists of the migrants from Burma and China. They settled in Assam after the mongoloid migration. Mongoloids came from Punjab through Bihar and North Bengal. Henceforth, Assam presents a blend of Mongol-Aryan culture. It is believed that, the early history of Assam belonged to be of the Varman dynasty. The reign of this dynasty extended from 400 AD to 13th century. Huien Tsang is said to have visited Assam during the rule of Kumar Bhaskar Varman in the 7th century BC. The Ahoms are said to have ventured into Assam in about 1228 AD. By 15th century the kingdoms of Ahom and Koch were established. This period witnessed a change in all the sections of life in Assam.
Ahom Kingdom weakened in the later part of the 18th century, due to internal conflict. The Burmese ran over the political authority in Assam, thus invoking British intervention to subdue the Burmese. After a conflict between the Burmese and the English, peace was regained by the treaty of Yandaboo in 1826. The British then set out to organise the administration, transport and communication. Besides the various changes, the British constructed the railways; introduced of tea plantation, discovered of coal and oil etc.. All this proved fruitful to the British during the World War II. In the post Independence period of India, Assam witnessed several separation of territories. In 1948, NEFA (Arunachal Pradesh) was separated. In 1963 Nagaland was separated. In 1972 Meghalaya and in 1987 Mizoram.
The inscriptions on stone and copper show that there was a succession of Hindu dynasties. The Ahoms ventured into Assam in about 1228 AD. By 15th century the Ruins of Kachari Kingdomkingdoms of Ahom were established. In 1228 AD the Ahoms (a Shan tribe from which the name Assam is probably derived) crossed the Patkoi Mountains from Burman and by the sixteenth century absorbed the Chutiya and Kachari kingdoms and subdued the neighboring hill tribes. During the latter part of the sixteenth century, the Ahoms revolted a succession of Mughal invasions. The kingdom of the Ahom reached its height under Rudra Xingha.
During the latter half of the sixteenth century, the Assamese saint and teacher, Shankara Deva, motivated the Vaishnavites, who wanted to reform the practices of Tantric Hinduism and to limit the privileges of the Brahmins attached to the Ahom Court. Shankara Deva`s Vaishnavism appealed to the tribal base on which the Ahom had erected their state because of their denial of caste privilege. From 1979, under the leadership of religious leaders the disaffected population of the kingdom took part in a series of rebellion against the Ahom rule. The leader of this rebellion was Ragha Maran. It is said that his two wives also had participated in the battle.
After victory his son, Ramakata became the king. At the request of king Gaurinath Xingha the Governor General of British India, dispatched a mission to the Ahom capital to restore peace. As a result peace was restored but civil strife persisted. Meanwhile the Burmese in 1817, took advantage of the rebellion within the Ahom nobility. They came at the invitation of the Governor, conspired against the king and killed many in Assam over a period of five years. Fearing danger of extinction in their territory, the British drove the Burmese from the Brahmaputra Valley, and seized the Ahom kingdom in 1826. In 1838, all of northeast India became part of the Bengal Presidency of British India. The British dismantled the Ahom ruling structure and employed educated Bengali Hindus and made Bengali the official language.
The government offered incentives to European entrepreneurs to start plantations as the natives of Assam were rich and hence, unwilling to do plantation labor. The British recruited poor tribals from southern Bihar, Orissa and Andhra Pradesh. In 1874, Assam was separated from Bengal, and was comprised into a separate province with its capital in Shillong. In 1905, on the initiative of the British Viceroy of India (Lord Curzon) the province was amalgamated with east Bengal following the partition of Bengal into the west and the east. In 1912, the partition was nullified, and Assam was made a separate province once more. In the twentieth century, the government of India, offered vast tracts of land to Muslim farmers (from East Bengal) for settlement and cultivation.
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