Indian Tribal Folklore: The Biyot Tripathy Collection
This is the largest single collection of Indian tribal folklore comprising myths, legends, tales, songs and lore. This is an entirely original collection made through fieldwork among the tribal people of Orissa in India. Recorded on 208 cassettes, which are now also available in CDs, the material has been transcribed in Oriya script running to about 17000 pages, which are classified in terms of individual items for the convenience of researchers and scholars. The classification system is an improved version of the system followed by the Archives of Traditional Music and Folklore of Indiana University at Bloomington, where it is housed. The improvement has been made with the sole purpose of making the material visible and rendering it easy of access for the scholar.
Orissa is an eastern state of India with a very rich tribal heritage, with about 62 tribes living in its forests and hills, often difficult of access. They speak as many languages and dialects, but many of them can speak Oriya (the language of the state) or Desia (a mix of Oriya and the language of the tribe). Many tribal villages can be reached only on foot through jungle paths. A small number of tribes still live a nomadic life, moving from forest to forest. They can only be found at remote weekly markets where they come to sell the jungle produce they have gathered and to buy provisions. While they live in varying habitats in varying states of civilization, their rich intangible heritage is embedded in their oral traditions, which needed to be recovered and preserved.
Acculturation by the global mainstream society, although it is inevitable, as tribal desires have become affixed to it, has become so invasively rapid that in another generation the rich oral heritage of our tribal people will be lost. Already, the younger generation, with access to radio, TV, movies, and mainstream education, has lost access to their heritage. After the passing of the present older generation, this rich material will be irrecoverably lost. Hence, there is urgency for such collections.
Biyotkesh Tripathy (formerly, Professor of English at Utkal University, Orissa, India), the prime mover of this collection, started in the late 1990s on a project which he called "From the Margin to the Centre: Mythology and Folklore of the Tribal People of Orissa." With singular dedication he is still continuing his work. He took as his associate, Dr E. Raja Rao (formerly, Professor of English at Berhampur University, Orissa, India). He chose the other members of his team from among college teachers of the tribal regions he targeted. These teachers are still working with him with dedication. The transcriber was Mr Fani Bhusan Pothal, Lecturer in English (Nudadiha College of Mayurbhanj, Orissa, India).
Material Placement and Availability
All the material is now available at the following places:
- Archive of Traditional Music and Folklore, University of Indiana at Bloomington, Bloomington 47405-2501, Indiana, USA. Tel: (812) 335-8632.
Contact Person: Marilyn B. Graf, Archivist. E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Academic Consultant: Prof. Daniel Reed. E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
2. Prof. Biyotkesh Tripathy E-mail: <This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.>
1018A Nayapalli, Bhubaneswar 751 012, Orissa, India
Tel: (91) (0)674-2562325.
Copies of the material will be placed with other libraries and archives of the world in course of time.
The following material is available at both the places:
- 208 cassettes and their CDs. These are numbered serially in standard numerals.
- 17000 pages of transcripts.
- Cassette Content Detail (CCD): Lists classified details of each material recorded in a cassette along with field details.
- Transcript Page Continuity List (PCL): Lists pages serially, indicating the serial number of the cassette in which the material is recorded.
- Cassette Serial List (CSL): Lists cassettes serially, indicating the page numbers of the transcript where the material has been transcribed.
At present the following material has been uploaded:
- Cassette Content Details (CCD in 3 above) of all the cassettes have been uploaded so that the entire Biyot Tripathy Collection becomes visible and available for perusal. Download (Zipped: Two Excel files)
- Translations of the material will be placed in regular installments on this website.
