Shifting Faith Among Indigenous People in Arunachal Pradesh, India: Revisiting Greenfeld's Civilizational Framework

Authors

• M. Amin Khan, Independent ScholarFollow

Keywords

indigenous religions; civilizational resilience; cultural continuity; Christianity; Arunachal Pradesh; other religions and persuasions

Abstract

This paper examines changing religious demography in Arunachal Pradesh through Liah Greenfeld's theory of civilization as a self-generating and self-reproducing symbolic reality. Using decadal Census data (1971–2011), it traces the demographic decline of Indigenous/Tribal religions classified under “Other Religions and Persuasions” (ORP) alongside the widespread growth of Christianity and the more limited growth of Hinduism. The analysis argues that these demographic shifts reflect more than religious conversion; they reveal differential capacities for cultural reproduction. Whereas civilizations endowed with codified first principles and enduring institutions sustain continuity across generations, Arunachal Pradesh's largely localized and orally transmitted indigenous traditions have proven less resilient against religious expansion and the influx of Western modern values. Demographic change thus serves as an indicator of civilizational resilience, demonstrating how the erosion of indigenous religious communities reflects broader processes of cultural discontinuity, assimilation, and civilizational transformation.

Recommended Citation

Khan, M. Amin (2026) "Shifting Faith Among Indigenous People in Arunachal Pradesh, India: Revisiting Greenfeld's Civilizational Framework," Comparative Civilizations Review: Vol. 95: No. 95, Article 14.
Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/ccr/vol95/iss95/14