Rethinking ‘Hill‐Valley Divide’ in Darjeeling District, India: An Autoethnographic Approach to Highland Identities

ABSTRACT This research examines the Hill‐Valley divide in Darjeeling district, West Bengal, India, where Nepali‐speaking hill communities coexist with Bengali‐speaking valley populations. It argues that this division is a colonial construct, shaped by British policies that romanticised the hills as a ‘mini‐England’ while separating them from the valley administratively and culturally. After independence, this divide has significantly influenced ethnic identity and resource allocation discourses. Employing autoethnography, the study draws on autoethnographic narratives with fieldwork conducted in Darjeeling, Kurseong and Siliguri. It critiques Western epistemologies, particularly the concepts of verticality and valley‐centric ontology, which frame hills and valleys as inherently oppositional. The research emphasizes that altitude‐related divides are mental constructs amplified by colonialism, rather than natural phenomena. The findings reveal how colonial interventions and political agendas entrenched societal divides, marginalizing highland identities, and emphasize the need for a more empathetic approach to understanding the complex dynamics between the hilly and valley regions of the district.