Women’s integral role in Traditional Knowledge Systems (TKS): insights from the Wancho community of Arunachal Pradesh, India
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.55779/ng61502Keywords:
agrobiodiversity, culturally embedded practices, ethnic identities, indigenous knowledge, jhum cultivation, tribal communitiesAbstract
This study documents the role of women in the Traditional Knowledge Systems (TKS) of the Wancho community in Arunachal Pradesh, India, with particular emphasis on plant use, agrobiodiversity, and culturally embedded practices. The research is based on fieldwork conducted in Longding district using semi-structured interviews with 100 informants (50 women and 50 men) aged 18–60 years. Interview data were analysed through qualitative thematic grouping to identify recurring domains of women’s knowledge and practice. The results indicate that Wancho women play central roles in household-level plant processing and food preparation, wild plant gathering, home garden management, jhum cultivation, and seed selection and conservation of plant genetic resources. These activities contribute substantially to household food security, maintenance of agrobiodiversity, and intergenerational transmission of indigenous knowledge. Despite operating within a predominantly patriarchal social structure, women function as key custodians of locally embedded ethnobotanical knowledge. The findings are specific to the Wancho context and highlight the importance of incorporating gender-sensitive perspectives in the documentation and conservation of traditional knowledge systems at the community level.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Tonlong WANGPAN, Sumpam TANGJANG, Luk Bahadur CHETRY
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