The Akas and their Intangible Cultural Heritage
Key Takeaways
Food:
Maize and millets are the staple food of Akas. They eat food made with powder maize and millets with different types of boiled roots, boiled meat and local vegetables. One of the typical foods is a kind of rice pancake or ‘Peethe’ which is made from powdered rice, prepared inside a banana leaf called Sanan. Sanan is a wild species of barley and they put the ingredient in this barley leaf and boil it in water. They also eat a lot of different species of local beans. Kaji Kara, a type of bean dish, is a special food item. Local cuisine also includes ingredients such as ginger, sesame. Rice, makhai, kodo (a type of millet), boiled meat are other food items.
Their popular drinks are made from fermented maize millet and rice. Locally those are called Lao Pani, Mingri and Arah.The rice wine is called Sai. The drinks are served in bamboo glasses. They have a wide variety of local vegetables unique to their ecosystem.
Attire:
The women deck up in their traditional gorgeous silver and beaded ornaments which they inherit from their mothers during marriage. Men also have elaborate traditional attire with a typical headgear called Dompi. The fixture in front is called Dumkon. They wear a shirt (Polu), a shawl (Longe), a waist band (Sarcha), necklaces (Tafon), sword (Kasa roson), a leg band made of beads (Bisam) and a cloth cover from below the knee till the ankle (Bepu).
Crafts:
Weaving:
The Aka women are expert weavers. They weave their own clothes on simple back strapped looms. The Aka women weave on loin looms to make their own clothes. A wide variety of multi-colored motifs adorn their traditional red jackets. The different motifs are created with inspiration drawn from nature and their own imagination. They also use animal motifs in their designs such as elephants, snakes, horses, etc. Their typical motif is that of a flower with angular petals which is called Korophul. The arrow design is called Menarche and mountain design is called Gung.
Basketry:
Akas are skilled in making different kinds of baskets made of bamboo and cane for different utilities such as carrying rice, for storing grains, and for carrying other items. The baskets are called Noh. The cane straps are called Chusu and the big sized rice basket is called Kicheno which is also a unit of measurement for rice stored in granaries.
Traditional hair accessories of Aka women Traditional attire of Aka women Drink serving spoon of Akas Authentic food platter of Akas Aka women preparing their local liquor Aka Priest Backstrap loom of Aka Basketry of Aka
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