VAID'S ICS – Best UPSC Anthropology Coaching in Delhi Since 1985

Comprehensive Classroom Course · Admissions openRegister now
+91 93113 37737
  • +91-93113 37737, +91-99999 46748
  • 73(FF), Old Rajender Nagar Market, Delhi - 110060
  • MON to SUN 9.00 am - 6.00 pm
Facebook Youtube Instagram
Menu
Enquire Now
Home/Anthropology/Mains PYQ/2018/Paper II/Tribal India
UPSC MainsAnthropology Optional Paper II 2018 10 Marks Model Answer Available

Distinctive Cultural Features of Andaman Island Tribes — 2018 Paper II

Question · 2018 · Paper II · 10 Marks

Distinctive cultural features of tribes of Andaman islands

Model Answer

VAID ICS

Approach

  • Demand of Question: Identify the distinctive economic, technological and socio-cultural features of the indigenous tribes of the Andaman Islands.
  • Structuring the Response: Briefly locate the major groups, then discuss subsistence, technology, settlement, social organization and cultural isolation.
  • Key Dimensions to Cover: Great Andamanese, Jarawa, Onge, Sentinelese, hunting-gathering, marine adaptation, bows, canoes, mobility and indigenous knowledge.

Model Answer

Introduction: The indigenous peoples of the Andaman Islands include the Great Andamanese, Jarawa, Onge and Sentinelese, historically characterized by small populations, relative isolation and close adaptation to tropical forest and marine environments.

Distinctive cultural features:

  1. Hunting-gathering economy: Traditionally depended upon:
    • wild pig hunting;
    • fishing;
    • shellfish;
    • honey;
    • tubers and forest produce.
  2. Marine adaptation: Coastal resources formed an important part of subsistence, supported by knowledge of tides, reefs and marine ecology.
  3. Simple but specialized technology: Characteristic implements included:
    • bows and arrows;
    • spears;
    • baskets;
    • canoes/rafts;
    • fishing implements.
  4. Mobility: Settlement patterns were traditionally flexible and related to seasonal resource availability.
  5. Small-scale social organization: Kinship and face-to-face relations formed the basis of community life, with relatively limited institutionalized hierarchy.
  6. Distinct languages and traditions: Andamanese groups possess highly distinctive linguistic and cultural traditions.

Thus:

Island ecology → Resource specialization → Distinctive cultural adaptation

Conclusion: The Andaman tribes represent distinctive forest-marine adaptations, but their cultures are dynamic and must not be portrayed as unchanged “primitive survivals.”

2026 Dravidian language family and its tribal speakers. 2026 Buddhist tribes of India. 2026 Nature-Man-Spirit-Complex. 2026 Make a critical appraisal of Surajit Sinha's line of argument that tribes and castes may not be isolated social categories, but are a part of the great Indian civilization.

Want feedback on your answer?

Join the Anthropology workshop or get structured answer-writing guidance from VAID ICS.

Join Workshop Contact VAID ICS

UPSC Anthropology Optional 2018 — Paper II

28 questions

5(c) Agrarian social structure

10 Marks150 words
Syllabus: Paper II > 5.1 Indian Village > Agrarian relations in Indian villages
2018Paper IIVillage India, Urbanisation & Social ChangeModel answer available

1(c) Endangered Languages

10 Marks150 words
Syllabus: Paper II > 2. Demographic profile of India > Linguistic elements and their distribution
2018Paper IIIndian Society, Caste & CivilizationModel answer available

5(e) Modernization

10 Marks150 words
Syllabus: Paper II > 5.3 Indigenous and exogenous processes of socio-cultural change > Modernization
2018Paper IIVillage India, Urbanisation & Social ChangeModel answer available

1(d) OBCs among non-Hindu communities

10 Marks150 words
Syllabus: Paper II > 7.1 Problems of exploitation and deprivation of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes
2018Paper IIIndian Society, Caste & CivilizationModel answer available

1(b) Philosophy behind Purusharthas

10 Marks150 words
Syllabus: Paper II > 3.1 Structure and nature of traditional Indian social system > Purushartha
2018Paper IIIndian Society, Caste & CivilizationModel answer available

5(b) Tribe and scheduled tribe

10 Marks150 words
Syllabus: Paper II > 6.1 Tribal situation in India > Definition and scheduling of tribes
2018Paper IITribal IndiaModel answer available

5(a) Youth dormitory as an institution

10 Marks150 words
Syllabus: Paper II > 6.1 Tribal situation in India > Social institutions of tribal societies
2018Paper IITribal IndiaModel answer available