The Andaman Islands are home to theAndamanese, a group of indigenous people made up of a number of tribes, including theJarawa andSentinelese.[1] While some of the islands can be visited with permits, entry to others, includingNorth Sentinel Island, is banned by law. The Sentinelese are generally hostile to visitors and have hadlittle contact with any other people. The Indian government and coast guard protect their right to privacy.[2]
In the 13th century, the name of Andaman appears in LateMiddle Chinese asʔˠanH dɑ mˠan (晏陀蠻, pronouncedyàntuómán in modernMandarin Chinese) in the bookZhu Fan Zhi byZhao Rukuo.[3] In Chapter 38 of the book,Countries in the Sea, Zhao Rukuo specifies that going from Lambri (Sumatra) to Ceylon, an unfavourable wind makes ships drift towards the Andaman Islands.[3][4][better source needed] In the 15th century, Andaman was recorded as "Andeman Mountain" (安得蠻山, pronouncedāndémán shān in modern Mandarin Chinese) during thevoyages of Zheng He in theMao Kun map of theWu Bei Zhi.[5]
The oldest archaeological evidence for the habitation of the islands dates to the1st millennium BC. Genetic evidence suggests that the indigenousAndamanese peoples share a common origin, and that the islands were settled sometime after 26,000 years ago, possibly at the end of theLast Glacial Period, when sea levels were much lower reducing the distance between the Andaman Islands and the Asian mainland,[6] with genetic estimates suggesting that the two main linguistic groups diverged around 16,000 years ago.[7] Andamanese peoples are a genetically distinct group highly divergent from other Asians.[8][9]
The Andaman Islands in the Bay of Bengal were said to be inhabited bywolf-headed people, who were depicted in a "book of wonders" produced in Paris in the early 15th century.
Rajendra I took over the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.[10] He used the Andaman and Nicobar Islands as a strategic naval base to launch an expedition against theSriwijaya Empire. TheCholas called the island Ma-Nakkavaram ("great open/naked land"), found in theThanjavur inscription of 1050CE. European travellerMarco Polo (12th–13th century) also referred to this island as 'Necuverann' and a corrupted form of the Tamil name Nakkavaram would have led to the modern name Nicobar during the British colonial period.[11]
In 1789, theBengal Presidency established a naval base andpenal colony onChatham Island in the southeast bay ofGreat Andaman. The settlement is now known asPort Blair (after theBombay Marine lieutenantArchibald Blair who founded it). After two years, the colony was moved to the northeast part of Great Andaman and was named Port Cornwallis after AdmiralWilliam Cornwallis. However, there was much disease and death in the penal colony and the government ceased operating it in May 1796.[12][13]
In 1824, Port Cornwallis was the rendezvous of the fleet carrying the army to theFirst Burmese War.[14] In the 1830s and 1840s, shipwrecked crews who landed on the Andamans were often attacked and killed by the natives and the islands had a reputation forcannibalism. The loss of theRunnymede and theBriton in 1844 during the same storm, while transporting goods and passengers between India and Australia, and the continuous attacks launched by the natives, which the survivors fought off, alarmed theBritish government.[15] In 1855, the government proposed another settlement on the islands, including aconvict establishment, but theIndian Rebellion of 1857 forced a delay in its construction. However, because the rebellion led to the British holding a large number of prisoners, it made the new Andaman settlement and prison urgently necessary. Construction began in November 1857 at Port Blair using inmates' labour, avoiding the vicinity of a salt swamp that seemed to have been the source of many of the earlier problems at Port Cornwallis.[citation needed]
TheBattle of Aberdeen was fought on 17 May 1859 between theGreat Andamanese tribe and the British. Today, a memorial stands in Andaman water sports complex as a tribute to the people who died in the battle. Fearful of British intentions and with help from an escaped convict fromCellular Jail, the Great Andamanese attacked the British settlement, but they were outnumbered and soon suffered heavy casualties. Later, it was identified that an escaped convict namedDudhnath Tewari had changed sides and informed the British about the tribe's plans.[16][17][18]
In 1867, themerchantmanNineveh waswrecked on the reef of North Sentinel Island. The 86 survivors reached the beach in the ship's boats. On the third day, they were attacked with iron-tipped spears by naked islanders. One person from the ship escaped in a boat and the others were later rescued by aBritish Royal Navy ship.[19]
For some time, sickness and mortality were high, butswamp reclamation and extensive forest clearance continued. The Andaman colony became notorious with the murder of the ViceroyRichard Southwell Bourke, 6th Earl of Mayo, on a visit to the settlement (8 February 1872), by aPathan fromAfghanistan,Sher Ali Afridi. In the same year, the two island groups Andaman andNicobar, were united under a chief commissioner residing at Port Blair.[14]
The Ross Island prison headquarters, 1872Great Andamanese women and children, with an occasional man 1876
From the time of its development in 1858 under the direction of James Pattison Walker, and in response to the mutiny and rebellion of the previous year, the settlement was first and foremost a repository forpolitical prisoners. The Cellular Jail at Port Blair, when completed in 1910, included 698 cells designed for solitary confinement; each cell measured 4.5 by 2.7 m (15 by 9 ft) with a single ventilation window 3 metres (10 ft) above the floor.[20]
The Indians imprisoned here referred to the island and its prison asKala Pani ("black water"),[21] named forkala pani, the Hindu proscription against travelling across the open sea. Incarceration on the Andamans thus threatened prisoners with the loss of theircaste, and resultant social exclusion;[22] a 1996 film set on the island took that term as its title,Kaalapani.[23] The number of prisoners who died in this camp is estimated to be in the thousands.[24] Many more died of harsh treatment and the strenuous living and working conditions in this camp.[25]
The Viper Chain Gang Jail onViper Island was reserved for extraordinarily troublesome prisoners and was also the site of hangings. In the 20th century, it became a convenient place to house prominent members of India's independence movement.[26][27]
Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Island in 2004Andaman Islands
The Andaman and Nicobar Islands wereoccupied by Japan duringWorld War II.[28] The islands were nominally put under the authority of theArzi Hukumat-e-Azad Hind (Provisional Government of Free India) headed bySubhas Chandra Bose, who visited the islands during the war, and renamed them asShaheed (Martyr) & Swaraj (Self-rule). On 30 December 1943, during the Japanese occupation, Bose, who was allied with the Japanese, first raised the flag of Indian independence. GeneralLoganathan, of theIndian National Army, was Governor of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, which had been annexed to the Provisional Government. According to Werner Gruhl: "Before leaving the islands, the Japanese rounded up andexecuted 750 innocents."[29]
At the close of World War II, the British government announced its intention to shut down the penal settlement. The government proposed to employ former inmates in an initiative to develop the island's fisheries, timber, and agricultural resources. In exchange, inmates would be granted return passage to the Indian mainland, or the right to settle on the islands.J H Williams, one of the Bombay Burma Company's senior officials, was dispatched to perform a timber survey of the islands using convict labor. He recorded his findings in 'The Spotted Deer' (published in 1957 byRupert Hart-Davis).
In April 1998, American photographer John S. Callahan organised the first surfing project in the Andamans, starting fromPhuket in Thailand with the assistance of Southeast Asia Liveaboards (SEAL), a UK owned dive charter company.[citation needed] With a crew of international professional surfers, they crossed the Andaman Sea on the yachtCrescent and cleared formalities in Port Blair. The group proceeded to Little Andaman Island, where they spent ten days surfing several spots for the first time, including Jarawa Point near Hut Bay and the long right reef point at the southwest tip of the island, named Kumari Point. The resulting article inSurfer Magazine, "Quest for Fire" by journalist Sam George, put the Andaman Islands on the surfing map for the first time.[32] Footage of the waves of the Andaman Islands also appeared in the filmThicker than Water, shot bydocumentary filmmakerJack Johnson.[citation needed] Callahan went on to make several more surfing projects in the Andamans, including a trip to the Nicobar Islands in 1999.[citation needed]
In November 2018,John Allen Chau, an Americanmissionary, traveled illegally with the help of local fishermen to theNorth Sentinel Island off the Andaman Islands chain group on several occasions, despite a travel ban to the island. He is reported to have been killed.[33] Despite some relaxation introduced earlier in 2018 to the stringent visit permit system for the islands, North Sentinel Island was still highly protected from outside contact. Special permission to allow researchers and anthropologists to visit could be sought.[34] Chau had no special clearance and knew that his visit was illegal.[34][33]
Although a less restrictive system of approval to visit some of the islands now applies, with non-Indian nationals no longer required to obtain pre-approval with a Restricted Area Permit (RAP), foreign visitors must still show their passport at Immigration at Port Blair Airport and Seaport for verification. Citizens of Afghanistan, China and Pakistan, or other foreign nationals whose origin is any of these countries,are still required to obtain a RAP to visit Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Similarly, citizens ofMyanmar who wish to visitMayabunder orDiglipur must also apply for a RAP. In these cases, the permits must be pre-approved prior to arrival in Port Blair.[35]
On 26 December 2004, the coast of the Andaman Islands was devastated by a 10-metre-high (33 ft) tsunami following the2004 Indian Ocean earthquake, which is the longest recorded earthquake, lasting for between 500 and 600 seconds.[36] Strong oral tradition in the area warned of the importance of moving inland after a quake and is credited with saving many lives.[37] In the aftermath, more than 2,000 people were confirmed dead and more than 4,000 children were orphaned or had lost one parent. At least 40,000 residents were rendered homeless and were moved to relief camps.[38] On 11 August 2009, a magnitude 7 earthquake struck near the Andaman Islands, causing a tsunami warning to go into effect. On 30 March 2010, a magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck near the Andaman Islands.
The Andaman Archipelago is an oceanic continuation of the BurmeseArakan Yoma range in the north and of theIndonesian Archipelago in the south. It has 325 islands which cover an area of 6,408 km2 (2,474 sq mi),[39] with theAndaman Sea to the east between the islands and the coast of Burma.[13]North Andaman Island is 285 kilometres (177 mi) south of Burma, although a few smaller Burmese islands are closer, including the three Coco Islands.
The climate is typical of tropical islands of similar latitude. It is always warm, but with sea breezes. Rainfall is irregular, usually dry during the north-east monsoons, and very wet during the south-west monsoons.[43]
Tropical forest, Shaheed IslandMangrove trees on the beach, Havelock Island
The Middle Andamans harbour mostly moistdeciduous forests. North Andamans is characterised by the wet evergreen type, with plenty of woody climbers.[citation needed]
The natural vegetation of the Andamans is tropical forest, withmangroves on the coast. The rainforests are similar in composition to those of the west coast of Burma. Most of the forests are evergreen, but there are areas of deciduous forest on North Andaman,Middle Andaman,Baratang and parts ofSouth Andaman Island. The South Andaman forests have a profuse growth ofepiphytic vegetation, mostly ferns and orchids.
The Andaman forests are largely unspoiled, despite logging and the demands of the fast-growing population driven by immigration from the Indian mainland. There are protected areas onLittle Andaman,Narcondam, North Andaman and South Andaman, but these are mainly aimed at preserving the coast and the marine wildlife rather than the rainforests.[44] Threats to wildlife come from introduced species including rats, dogs, cats and the elephants ofInterview Island and North Andaman.
Scientists discovered a new species of green algae species in the Andaman archipelago, naming itAcetabularia jalakanyakae. "Jalakanyaka" is a Sanskrit word that means "mermaid".[45]
Andaman forests contain 200 or more timber producing species of trees, out of which about 30 varieties are considered to be commercial. Major commercial timber species are Gurjan (Dipterocarpus spp.) andPadauk (Pterocarpus dalbergioides). The following ornamental woods are noted for their pronounced grain formation:
Padauk wood is sturdier than teak and is widely used for furniture making.
There areburr wood andbuttress root formations in Andaman Padauk. The largest piece of buttress known from Andaman was a dining table of 13 ft × 7 ft (4.0 m × 2.1 m). The largest piece of burr wood was made into a dining table for eight.
TheRudraksha (Elaeocarps sphaericus) and aromatic Dhoop-resin trees also are found here.
The Andaman Islands are home to a number of animals, many of them endemic. Andaman & Nicobar islands are home to 10% of all Indian fauna species.[46] The islands are only 0.25% of the country's geographical area, but has 11,009 species, according to a publication by theZoological Survey of India.[46]
Thebanded pig (Sus scrofa vittatus), also known as the Andaman wild boar and once thought to be an endemic subspecies,[47] is protected by the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 (Sch I). Thespotted deer (Axis axis), theIndian muntjac (Muntiacus muntjak) and thesambar (Rusa unicolor) were all introduced to the Andaman islands, though the sambar did not survive.
Interview Island (the largest wildlife sanctuary in the territory) in Middle Andaman holds a population of feralelephants, which were brought in for forest work by a timber company and released when the company went bankrupt. This population has been subject to research studies.
The islands also have a number of endemicreptiles,toads andfrogs, such as theAndaman cobra (Naja sagittifera), South Andaman krait (Bungarus andamanensis) and Andaman water monitor (Varanus salvator andamanensis).
There is a sanctuary 72 km (45 mi) fromHavelock Island forsaltwater crocodiles. Over the past 25 years there have been 24 crocodile attacks with four fatalities, including the death of American tourist Lauren Failla. The government has been criticised for failing to inform tourists of the crocodile sanctuary and danger, while simultaneously promoting tourism.[49] Crocodiles are not only found within the sanctuary, but throughout the island chain in varying densities. They are habitat restricted, so the population is stable but not large. Populations occur throughout available mangrove habitat on all major islands, including a few creeks on Havelock. The species uses the ocean as a means of travel between different rivers and estuaries, thus they are not as commonly observed in open ocean. It is best to avoid swimming near mangrove areas or the mouths of creeks; swimming in the open ocean should be safe, but it is best to have a spotter around.
The von Eickstedts in the Andamans 1926An Andamanese family on theGreat Andaman island in 2006
As of 2011[update], the population of the Andaman was 343,125,[50] having grown from 50,000 in 1960. The bulk of the population originates from immigrants who came to the island since the colonial times, mainly ofBengali,Hindustani,Telugu,[51]Tamil,Malayalam backgrounds.[52]
Tribes of Andaman
A small minority of the population are theAndamanese — theaboriginal inhabitants (adivasi) of the islands. When they first came into sustained contact with outside groups in the 1850s, there were an estimated 7,000 Andamanese, divided into theGreat Andamanese,Jarawa,Jangil (orRutland Jarawa),Onge, and theSentinelese. The Great Andamanese formed 10 tribes of 5,000 people total. As the numbers of settlers from the mainland increased (at first mostly prisoners and involuntaryindentured labourers, later purposely recruited farmers), the Andamanese suffered a population decline due to the introduction of outsideinfectious diseases, land encroachment from settlers and conflict.
Due to their isolated island location, the Andaman people have mostly avoided contact with the outside world. Their languages are a great reflection of this, with distinct linguistics that have strongmorphological features – root words, prefix, suffixes – with very little relation to surrounding geographic regions.[54]
Figures from the end of the 20th century estimate there remain only approximately 400–450 ethnic Andamanese still on the island, and as few as 50 speakers The Jangil are extinct. Most of the Great Andamanese tribes are extinct, and the survivors, now just 52, speak mostlyHindi.[55] The Onge are reduced to less than 100 people. Only the Jarawa and Sentinelese still maintain a steadfast independence and refuse most attempts at contact; their numbers are uncertain but estimated to be in the low hundreds.
The indigenous languages are collectively referred to as theAndamanese languages, but they make up at least two independent families, and the dozen or so attested languages are either extinct or endangered.
Most of the tribal people in Andaman and Nicobar Islands believe in a religion that can be described as a form ofmonotheisticanimism. The tribal people of these islands believe thatPuluga is the only deity and is responsible for everything happening on Earth.[56] The faith of the Andamanese teaches that Puluga resides on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands'Saddle Peak. People try to avoid any action that might displease Puluga. People belonging to this religion believe in the presence of souls, ghosts, and spirits. They put a lot of emphasis on dreams. They let dreams decide different courses of action in their lives.[57]
Andamanese mythology held that human males emerged from split bamboo, whereas women were fashioned from clay.[58] One version found byAlfred Reginald Radcliffe-Brown held that the first man died and went to heaven, a pleasurable world, but this blissful period ended due to breaking a food taboo, specifically eating the forbidden vegetables in the Puluga's garden.[59] Thus catastrophe ensued, and eventually the people grew overpopulated and didn't follow Puluga's laws. Hence, there was aGreat Flood that left four survivors, who lost their fire.[60][61]
Other religions practiced in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are, in order of size, Hinduism, Christianity, Islam,Sikhism, Buddhism,Jainism andBaháʼí Faith.[62][63]
The capital city of the Andaman Islands, Port Blair
Port Blair is the chief community on the islands, and the administrative centre of the Union Territory. The Andaman Islands form a single administrative district within the Union Territory, theAndaman district (the Nicobar Islands were separated and established as the newNicobar district in 1974).
The only commercial airport isVeer Savarkar International Airport in Port Blair. The airport is under the control of theIndian Navy. Prior to 2016 only daylight operations were allowed; since 2016 night flights have also operated.[64] A small airstrip, about 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) long, is located near the eastern shore of North Andaman nearDiglipur.[citation needed]
There are also ships from Chennai, Visakhapatnam and Kolkata.[citation needed]
M. M. Kaye's 1985 novelDeath in the Andamans[68] andMarianne Wiggins' 1989 novelJohn Dollar are set in the islands.[69] The latter begins with an expedition from Burma to celebrate King George's birthday, but turns into a grim survival story after an earthquake and tsunami.
A principal character in the novelSix Suspects byVikas Swarup is from the Andaman Islands.[70] The main protagonist ofWilliam Boyd's 2018 novelLove is Blind, spends time in the Andaman Islands at the turn of the 20th century.[71] The Andaman Islands in the period before, during and just after the Second World War are the setting for Uzma Aslan Khan'sThe Miraculous True History of Nomi Ali.[72]
^"Andaman & Nicobar".The Internet Archive. A&N Administration. Archived fromthe original on 11 June 2016. Retrieved13 February 2017.
^abChau Ju-kua: His Work on the Chinese And Arab Trade in the Twelfth And Thirteenth Centuries, Entitled Chu-fan-chï. Translated by Friedrich Hirth; William Woodville Rockhill. St. Petersburg, Printing office of the Imperial academy of sciences. 1911. p. 147.When sailing from lan-wu-li to si-lan, if the wind is not fair, ships maybe driven to a place called Yen-to-man. This is a group of two islands in the middle of the sea, one of them being large, the other small; the latter is quite uninhabited. ... The natives on it are of a colour resembling black lacquer; they eat men alive, so that sailors dare not anchor on this coast.
^Government of India (1908)."The Andaman and Nicobar Islands: Local Gazetteer". Superintendent of Government Printing, Calcutta.... In the great Tanjore inscription of 1050 CE, the Andamans are mentioned under a translated name along with the Nicobars, asNakkavaram or land of the naked people.{{cite journal}}:Cite journal requires|journal= (help)
^Andaman and Nicobar Police (29 June 2018)."For Foreign Tourists".police.andaman.gov.in. Archived fromthe original on 2 October 2018. Retrieved30 October 2021.... no RAP is required by foreigners to visit these islands, till 31.12.2022
^Radcliffe-Brown, Alfred Reginald. The Andaman Islanders: A study in social anthropology. 2nd printing (enlarged). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1933 [1906]. p. 192
^Radcliffe-Brown, Alfred Reginald. The Andaman Islanders: A study in social anthropology. 2nd printing (enlarged). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1933 [1906]. p. 220
^Radcliffe-Brown, Alfred Reginald. The Andaman Islanders: A study in social anthropology. 2nd printing (enlarged). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1933 [1906]. p. 216
^Witzel, Michael E.J. (2012). The Origin of The World's Mythologies. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 309–312
^Sawhney, Hirsh (17 October 2008)."Delhi underbelly".The Guardian.ISSN0261-3077. Retrieved15 February 2025.In the end, Vicky Rai's murder is pinned on an innocent tribesman from the Andaman Islands, and a stream of encores await. All fail to pack a punch. Swarup has attempted an ambitious, complex project that required more cooking time, fewer plot lines and liberation from the desire to write a "great Indian novel".
^Becker, Alida (4 December 2022)."The Best Historical Fiction of 2022".The New York Times.ISSN0362-4331. Retrieved15 February 2025.Set in a British penal colony in the remote Andaman Islands just before and during World War II, Uzma Aslam Khan's THE MIRACULOUS TRUE HISTORY OF NOMI ALI is a suspenseful, thought-provoking challenge to simple assumptions about enemies and friends, loyalty and betrayal. A young girl called Nomi Ali, the daughter of a prisoner whose entire family must share his incarceration, is only one of the many characters whose histories are entangled here.
Sorenson, E. Richard (1993), "Sensuality and Consciousness:Psychosexual Transformation in the Eastern Andaman",Anthropology of Consciousness,4 (4):1–9,doi:10.1525/ac.1993.4.4.1
Sen, Satadru (2009), "Savage Bodies, Civilized Pleasures: M. V. Portman and the Andamanese",American Ethnologist,36 (2):364–379,doi:10.1111/j.1548-1425.2009.01140.x
