Kohima
Template:Infobox Indian jurisdiction
Kohima (Hindi: कोहिमा) is the hilly capital of India's north eastern border state of Nagaland which shares its borders with Burma. It lies in Kohima District and is also one of the three Nagaland towns with Municipal council status along with Dimapur and Mokokchung.
Kohima is so called because the Britisher could not pronounce "kewhira" (the name of the village). "Kew Hi Ra" means "the land where all travellers are welcome". Earlier, Kohima was known as "Thigoma", meaning "the place where all travellers are eaten".[citation needed]
History
The British incursions into the Naga territory beginning in the 1840s met with stiff resistance from the independence loving Nagas who had never been conquered by any empire before. The stiffness of the resistance can be gauged by the fact that it took nearly four decades for the British to conquer a territory that is less than 10,000 square kilometres (the eastern region was left free). Kohima was the first seat of modern administration as the Headquarters of Naga Hills District (then under Assam) with the appointment of G.H. Damant as Political Officer in 1879. When Nagaland became a full fledged state on 1 December 1963, Kohima was christened as the state capital.
In 1944 during World War II the Battle of Kohima along with the simultaneous Battle of Imphal was the turning point in the Burma Campaign. For the first time in South-East Asia the Japanese lost the initiative to the Allies which they then retained until the end of the war. This hand-to-hand battle and slaughter prevented the Japanese from gaining a high base from which they might next roll across the extensive flatlands of India like a juggernaut.[1]
Kohima has a large cemetery for the Allied war dead maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. The cemetery lies on the slopes of Garrison Hill, in what was once the Deputy Commissioner's tennis court which was the scene of intense fighting, the Battle of the Tennis Court. The epitaph carved on the memorial of the 2nd British Division in the cemetery
When You Go Home, Tell Them Of Us And Say,
- For Their Tomorrow, We Gave Our Today
has become world-famous as the Kohima poem. The verse is attributed to John Maxwell Edmonds (1875–1958), and is thought to have been inspired by the epitaph written by Simonides to honour the Greek who fell at the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC.[2]
Demographics
As of 2001[update] India census,[3] Kohima had a population of 78,584. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Kohima has an average literacy rate of 75%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 79%, and female literacy is 70%. In Kohima, 13% of the population is under 6 years of age.
The main indigenous inhabitants of Kohima district are the Angami Nagas, and the Rengma.
Today the town's population compose of all the 16 tribes of Nagaland. The population of the Angamis and Aos are the largest in present day Kohima urban area.
Greater Kohima which includes Kohima Village, Jakhama and Jotsoma along with Kohima town is the second largest urban area of Nagaland after Dimapur-Chumukedima. It has a population of about 99,795. [citation needed]
Geography and climate
 | This section's factual accuracy is disputed. (October 2010) |
| Climate data for Kohima | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 21 (70) |
23 (73) |
27 (81) |
29 (84) |
29 (84) |
29 (84) |
29 (84) |
29 (84) |
29 (84) |
28 (82) |
25 (77) |
22 (72) |
27 (80) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 4 (39) |
7 (45) |
11 (52) |
15 (59) |
18 (64) |
21 (70) |
22 (72) |
21 (70) |
20 (68) |
17 (63) |
10 (50) |
5 (41) |
14 (58) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 13.7 (0.54) |
35.4 (1.39) |
61.6 (2.43) |
101.5 (4.00) |
159.2 (6.27) |
334.4 (13.17) |
371.7 (14.63) |
366.9 (14.44) |
259.7 (10.22) |
127 (5.0) |
36 (1.4) |
10.1 (0.40) |
1,877.2 (73.89) |
| [citation needed] | |||||||||||||
Due to its elevation, Kohima features a more moderate version of a humid subtropical climate. Kohima has a pleasant and moderate climate - not too cold in winters and pleasant summers. December and January are the coldest months when frost occurs and in the higher altitudes snowfall occurs occasionally. During the height of summers, from July–August, temperature ranges an average of 80-90 Fahrenheit. Heavy rainfall occurs during summer
Kohima is located at 25°40′N 94°07′E / 25.67°N 94.12°E.[4] It has an average elevation of 1261 metres (4137 feet).
The town of Kohima is located on the top of a high ridge and the town serpentines all along the top of the surrounding mountain ranges as is typical of most Naga settlements.
'Kohima village' called 'Bara Basti' or 'large village',which is the second largest village in Asia forms the northeastern part of Kohima urban area today. The Bara Basti is divided into 'khels' or localities. There are four of them, namely - Tsütuonuomia, Lhisemia, Dapfütsumia and Pfuchatsumia. They are termed shortly as T, L, D, and P Khel respectively.
The Nagaland State Museum is exhibits gateposts, statues, pillars, and jewelry. A ceremonial drum which looks like a dug-out war canoe is exhibited in a separate shed. The basement of the museum has birds and animals of the North-Eastern hill states.
Localities
Colonies in Kohima (officially recognised as well as non-recognised ones)
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References
- ^ Bert Sim, Mosstodloch, Aberdeenshire, Scotland: Pipe Major of the Gordon Highlanders at Kohima: his home is named "Kohima." -- RJWilliams, Slingerlands, NY/USA
- ^ The Kohima 2nd Division Memorial
- ^ Template:GR
- ^ Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Kohima
Mission Compound Mission Road
External links