Angami festival of Khoupfhünyi, a celebration dedicated to young girls and women marked by sharing, feasting and togetherness, was celebrated at Khuochiezie, Kohima, on September 11.
Morung Express News
Kohima | September 11
The traditional Angami festival of Khoupfhünyi, a celebration dedicated to young girls and women marked by sharing, feasting and togetherness, was celebrated at Khuochiezie, Kohima, on September 11.
The celebration was organised by the Angami Women Organisation (AWO), with Minister for Women Resources Development and Horticulture, Salhoutuonuo Kruse as the special guest.
Khoupfhünyi is traditionally associated with blessings, prosperity and the well-being of women and girls. The festival is observed through the exchange of food, communal feasting, special offerings, games, songs and other activities that reflect values of generosity, love, care and harmony within the community.
Speaking at the celebration, Kruse appreciated the AWO for bringing the Angami community together and for organising Khoupfhünyi for the first time. She also endorsed the proposal to include the festival in the government calendar as a restricted holiday, saying that such a recognition would help promote unity and cooperation among the Angamis.
Explaining the significance of the festival, the Minister said Khoupfhünyi is essentially a festival dedicated to women and girls, during which special attention is given to making them feel valued and cherished. Traditionally, the occasion involved wearing new clothes, enjoying special food and delicacies, playing games, singing songs, and activities such as hunting and fishing by both men and women.
Kruse said Angami ancestors placed particular importance on women and the girl child and expressed their care through various practices associated with the festival. While many traditional rituals are no longer followed in the same manner after the community embraced Christianity, she noted that the practice of coming together and feasting continues to preserve an important part of Angami identity.
She stressed the need to protect and promote the community’s cultural heritage at a time when modernisation and development are rapidly changing traditional ways of life.
Referring to the State government’s development initiatives under Chief Minister Dr. Neiphiu Rio, Kruse said the government remained committed to inclusive development, strengthening infrastructure and expanding education and employment opportunities for young people.
She also highlighted the role of culture and tourism in creating livelihood opportunities and presenting Nagaland’s rich cultural identity to the outside world. In this connection, she pointed to the annual Hornbill Festival as an important platform for showcasing the State’s traditions and cultural diversity.
Kruse said the different customs and traditions associated with Khoupfhünyi across the various Angami ranges could be brought together and documented to further strengthen the community’s sense of unity.
She also underlined the important role of women and girls in building peaceful and progressive families and communities, saying the festival provides an opportunity to recognise and celebrate their contributions.
The Minister further called for greater efforts to document traditional knowledge, customs and community stories, cautioning that valuable aspects of the Angami heritage could gradually disappear if they were not preserved and passed on to future generations.
Highlighting the connection between culture and tourism, she said preserving and promoting Nagaland’s traditions would become increasingly important as the State seeks to expand tourism and generate greater livelihood and revenue opportunities.
“Let this festival strengthen the bonds of unity, friendship and brotherhood among our community and beyond,” Kruse said, extending her greetings to those gathered for the celebration and wishing peace, prosperity, good health and happiness to every family.
During the programme, Kruse released the AWO publication Cultural Footprints: Give to Gain.
Also speaking at the programme, Angami Public Organisation (APO) president Thejao Vihienuo thanked the AWO for organising the festival and said the APO had identified August 28 as Khoupfhünyi Day.
He said the APO plans to approach the government with a proposal to have the day officially incorporated into the government calendar as a restricted holiday.
The celebration brought together women and girls from the four Angami ranges, who brought traditional dishes prepared at home and exchanged them with one another, adding to the spirit of sharing and togetherness.
