Angami

The Angami are a Naga ethnic group native to Nagaland in northeastern India. They are one of the largest Naga communities, concentrated in and around Kohima and its surrounding hills.

They speak the Angami language, part of the Naga languages within the Sino-Tibetan family; most Angami people are also fluent in Nagamese and other languages of Nagaland. The society is organized around village communities with hereditary chiefs and an ancestral morung, a traditional men’s dormitory that historically served as a social and ceremonial center.

Historically, Angami villages maintained rivalries and practiced inter-village warfare and headhunting before substantial British contact and Christian missionary activity brought social change. Today, Christianity is the dominant religion among the Angami, with Baptist denominations playing a major role, although some indigenous beliefs persist in ceremonies and cultural practices.

The Angami are known for Sekrenyi, their major spring festival, which features purification rites, song, dance, and feasting. The region gained strategic prominence during World War II, when Kohima and surrounding hills were the site of the Battle of Kohima (1944), a turning point in the war and a significant part of Naga and Indian history.

In modern Nagaland, Angami communities participate in state politics, education, and agriculture while maintaining cultural traditions at the village level and adapting governance to include both customary authorities and contemporary civic institutions.