DECODING SEASONAL VARIATIONS THROUGH ARCHAEOASTRONOMY

Before calendars, ancient cultures tracked the passage of time and seasons by observing the sun’s position and its effect on the environment. This method, known as archaeoastronomy, was essential for agricultural planning, rituals, and understanding seasonal changes.The Angami Nagas, a major tribe that primarily lives in Kohima District of Nagaland similarly used the position of the sun in relation to the mountain ranges to decode seasonal changes. Many ancient cultures have different ways to comprehend seasons, likewise the ancestors of the Angami Nagas from L-Khel, Kohima Village, in the absence of the existence of calendars; seasons were established by employing various cues from nature. They studied the position of the sun which gave inference of the best time for sowing seed and harvesting of crops. Their knowledge of the seasons also came by observing the trees, plants and flowers.The paper titled, “Decoding seasonal variations through archaeoastronomy” is aimed to ascertain the credibility of such techniques, and if such practices can still be employed in establishing seasonal variations despite the current alarming rate of climate change.