The lively Hornbill Festival of Nagaland is an annual culturally rich event, which occurs from December 1 to 10 in the Northeastern state of Nagaland every year.
The festival is named after the Hornbill bird, which is highly respected and considered sacred by the Naga people.
Nagaland, known as the ‘Land of Festivals’, hosts the grand Hornbill celebration annually. The State Tourism of Arts and Culture Department, Government of Nagaland, organises the festival.
Hornbill, an eagerly- awaited festival, draws thousands of curious travellers from around the world. The festival unites 17 Naga tribes in a traditional cluster, also referred to as the Festival of Festivals, promotes intercultural harmony.
Tourists have the opportunity to explore the architecture of the tribal huts and the culture and livelihood of the local people. They can also observe drums, gongs, costumes and wooden carvings. A key attraction of the festival is the Traditional Naga Morungs Exhibition, showcasing an arrangement of flowers.
There are some interesting facts about the festival. Below are some of them:
Kohima is not the location for the Hornbill Festival: Kohima, being Nagaland’s Capital, is not the main venue of the Hornbill Festival. The main venue is the Naga Heritage village in Kisama, some 12 kilometres south of Kohima.
The festival is named after the Hornbill bird, which isn’t even the state bird: The state bird of Nagaland is the Blyth’s tragopan, an endangered species of pheasant. The Hornbill is worshipped by the Nagas, as evidenced by the tribal traditions, dances and songs.
The venue has 16 gates: The 16 gates represents 16 major tribes that make up the majority of Nagaland’s population.
Celebrates Statehood day on the day of inauguration: Dr. S Radhakrishnan declared Nagaland the 16th state of the Indian Union on Dec 1 in 1963.
