Encyclopaedia on Munda tribe lies forgotten

Ranchi: German missionary Reverend John Baptist Hoffmann left behind a rich legacy for the Munda tribe. Towards the end of his life, Hoffmann started working on a Mundari dictionary - Encyclopaedia Mundarica, whose publication started soon after his death and is a monumental work: 15 volumes comprising the whole culture and civilization of the Munda people.
However, not many are aware that a "full-fledged encyclopaedia" on the tribe exists. The original manuscript is untraceable and printed copies are hard to come by.
"Rev Hoffmann was the first person to conduct exhaustive research on the tribe and produce a masterpiece. It is quite disappointing that people are not well-acquainted with the work despite Jharkhand being a tribal state," said Fr Emmanuel Baxla, director of Camil Bulcke Research Institute.
The work was first published on November 28, 1928, a day after Hoffmann died in Germany. The voluminous treatise features in-depth information on the Munda tribe. Written in Roman script, the book describes mundari language, its grammar, phonetics, customs and social structure.
"Rev Hoffmann conducted in-depth research to understand the social structure and customs of the Munda tribe when the British were facing frequent revolts in the Chhotanagpur region due to encroachment of Munda land by local landlords. He was the first to propose changes by codifying the previously unwritten land laws of the tribe to the British and even asked them to undertake a land survey in 1902. The survey ultimately gave way to the CNT act of 1908, which is still in force today," said Fr Ajay Sorenge, Ranchi Jesuits, Sadbhavna.
The encyclopaedia, however, now lies collecting dust. "Only research scholars and other missionaries ask for a copy of the book. The book's original manuscript is untraceable. It took me four months to locate a print version of the book in Delhi," said Santosh Kiro, HOD of St Xavier's college mass communication department.
KC Tudu, HOD of the tribal and regional languages department of Ranchi university believes that a translation of the book should be made available.
"No one has taken the initiative to translate the work into local languages. The encyclopedia faces the threat of becoming another scholarly work, away from the reach of the general public," Tudu said.