Charaideo

26.933°N 94.7481°E / 26.933; 94.7481

Mausoleum of Ahom royals of Assam, India.

Charaideo or Che-Rai-Doi (Literally: the shining city on the hills in Ahom language[1]) is a town in Charaideo district, Assam, India and was also the first capital of the Ahom kingdom established by the first Ahom king Chao Lung Siu-Ka-Pha in 1253.[2] Even though the capital moved to other places over the course of the 600 years of rule, Charaideo remained the symbol of Ahom power. It is now known for its collection of maidams, tumuli or burial mounds of the Ahom kings and Ahom royalty.

It is about 30 km from Sivasagar town located in Charaideo district.

Etymology

Charaideo (also Ahom: Che-Rai-Doi; Charai-khorong), the permanent settlement of the first Ahom king Chaolung Sukaphaa, was earlier called Che-Tam-Doi-Phi (literally City-Hill-God) meaning "city of the sacred hill".[3][4][5][6] The name Charaideo originated from Tai-Ahom word Che Rai Doi or Doi Che Rai which means the shining city on the hillsThe Che-Rai-Doi Assamised into Charaideo or Charai-khorong.[7][8][9][10] According to Tai-Bailung-Mohong Buranji (a manuscript in Tai), Sukaphaa was buried in his capital city Che-Rai-Doi.[11][12]

History

Before the arrival of Sukaphaa the place was a place of worship for local tribes like Moran, Borahi. Though the capital of the Ahom kingdom moved many times, Charaideo remained the symbolic center. It contains sacred burial grounds of Ahom kings and queens and is also the place of ancestral Gods of the Ahoms. The Ahom kings and Queens were buried after extensive and long royal burial rituals. The tombs Maidam of Ahom kings and queens at Charaideo hillocks resemble the shape of the pyramids and are objects of wonder revealing the excellent architecture and skill of the sculptors and masons of Assam of the medieval days.

The actual number of Maidam were more than 150 but only 30 Maidams are protected by the Archaeological Survey of India and Assam State Archaeology Department, and the remaining Maidams are unprotected. Most of these unprotected Maidams are encroached by people and getting damaged. The biggest unprotected Maidam is the Bali Maidam near Nimonagarh. This Maidam is called Bali Maidam, because while British plundered it, they got obstruction from excess sands (Bali) in the surrounding of the Maidam.

Nomination for UNESCO World Heritage Site

Charaideo Maidams is the Ahom equivalent of the Egyptian Pyramids. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has chosen the Maidams from 52 sites across India for the UNESCO nomination. The maidams represent 13-19 century CE- late medieval mound burial tradition of the Tai Ahom community in Assam. The Ahom dynasty lasted for around 600 years till British annexed Assam in 1826. [13]


See also

Notes
  1. built his first capital on a permanent basis on a small hill including the high fcot-hill area adjacent to that of Lang-Ku-Ri Deo. ... Tai Che-Rai-Doi, Assamised into Charaideo or Charai-khorong and Sans- kritized into Bihagachal… Gogoi, Padmeswar (1968). The Tai and the Tai kingdoms: with a fuller treatment of the Tai-Ahom kingdom in the Brahmaputra Valley. Dept. of Publication, Gauhati University. pp. 264 & 265.
  2. (Phukan 1992, p. 53)
  3. Gogoi, Padmeswar (1968). The Tai and the Tai kingdoms: with a fuller treatment of the Tai-Ahom kingdom in the Brahmaputra Valley. Dept. of Publication, Gauhati University. pp. 264 & 265.
  4. Bezbaruah, Ranju; Banerjee, Dipankar; Research, Indian Council of Historical (2008). North-East India: interpreting the sources of its history. Indian Council of Historical Research. p. 117. ISBN 9788173052958.
  5. Gohain, Birendra Kr (1999). Origin of the Tai and Chao Lung Hsukapha: A Historical Perspective. Omsons Publications. pp. 72 & 73.
  6. Pan-Asiatic Linguistics: Proceedings of the Fourth International Symposium on Languages and Linguistics, January 8-10, 1996. Institute of Language and Culture for Rural Development. 1996. p. 1023.
  7. Texts and Contexts in Southeast Asia: Proceedings of the Texts and Contexts in Southeast Asia Conference, 12-14 December 2001. Universities Historical Research Centre. 2003. pp. 73 & 74.
  8. Centre, UNESCO World Heritage. "Moidams – the Mound-Burial system of the Ahom Dynasty". UNESCO World Heritage Centre.
  9. Moidams – the Mound-Burial system of the Ahom Dynasty, Archaeological Survey of India Guwahati Circle
  10. "Charaideo Maidams". www.assaminfo.com.
  11. gogoi, Pushpadhar 1998, An evaluation of original Tai Culture Heritage ... (PDF), sealang.net
  12. Hazarika, Nagen 2004, Ahom language: It's typology language contact ... (PDF), sealang.net
  13. "Pyramid-like Ahom burial mounds in Assam to vie for UNESCO World Heritage Site tag". The Hindu Bureau. The Hindu. 21 January 2023. Retrieved 22 January 2023.

References
  • Phukan, J. N. (1992). "The Tai-Ahom Power in Assam". In Barpujari, H. K. (ed.). The Comprehensive History of Assam. Vol. 2. Guwahati: Assam Publication Board. pp. 49–60.


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