Margin and Centres: Essays on the Oral Traditions of North East India by Prof. A. C. Kharingpam is a significant scholarly contribution to the study of indigenous knowledge systems, culture, and identity in the North Eastern region of India. The book brings together a collection of insightful essays that explore how oral traditions function as living archives of history, memory, and social values among the diverse communities of the region.
Prof. Kharingpam critically examines the dynamic relationship between the “margins” and the “centres,” highlighting how voices from the periphery have often been overlooked in mainstream academic discourse. Through detailed analysis of myths, folktales, legends, rituals, songs, and storytelling practices, the author demonstrates that oral traditions are not merely forms of entertainment but powerful tools of cultural transmission and resistance. These traditions preserve ancestral wisdom, ethical systems, and collective experiences shaped by geography, migration, conflict, and coexistence.
One of the book’s strengths lies in its interdisciplinary approach, drawing from literature, anthropology, history, and cultural studies. Prof. Kharingpam skillfully contextualizes North East India within broader national and global frameworks while maintaining the uniqueness of its cultural expressions. The essays also engage with contemporary issues such as identity politics, marginalization, modernization, and the threat posed to oral traditions by rapid social change and digital influence.
Written in a clear, engaging, and scholarly tone, the book is accessible to students, researchers, and general readers alike. It not only deepens the understanding of North East India’s rich intangible heritage but also challenges dominant narratives that often silence indigenous perspectives.
Overall, Margin and Centres stands as an important academic work that re-centres oral traditions as vital sources of knowledge and cultural continuity, reaffirming their relevance in both historical interpretation and modern discourse.