Mazie Nakhro
If the Nagas did not just pop out from inside a cave, where did they come from? Do they have a traceable biological relationship to the human race? This article is an attempt to initiate that quest.
Mythological legends on common ancestry
The oldest known written document links the human ancestry to a flood (The Gilgamesh Epic, dated around 2700 - 2500 BC). This is a Mesopotamian legend which says that the council of the gods decided to flood the whole earth in order to destroy mankind in a distant past. So the righteous Utnapishtim was ordered to build a huge ark. The flood destroyed everything except Utnapistim’s family and a few other people, plus all kinds of animals. After 6 days, the ark landed on a mountain top. Thus the legend implies that these flood survivors became the ancestors of many peoples.
A similar legend is preserved in a Matsya Purana of ancient India, which supposedly occurred about 3000 BC (Romila Thapar, The Penguin History of Early India, p. 99). The legend says that god Vishnu warned Vaivasvata Manu, a pious king, of a great flood and told him to build a boat to carry his family and the seven sages of antiquity. The flood came and carried the boat on to a mountain peak. When the water finally subsided, Manu safely returned home along with the others. The progeny of Manu became the ancestors of many lineages.
Anthropologists maintain that there are over 250 such legends from nations such as Egypt, Iran, Ireland, Indonesia, Australia, China, Russia, Greece, America, Mexico, etc. Expectedly, each ethnic group introduced their hero as the focus in their legend and embellished their story with their own mythologies.
Proponents of various theories often argue back and forth about what legend could have borrowed from what source. But the overwhelming similarities among the flood legends found around the globe indicate that they came from a common source--a shared catastrophic flood event when the survivals became the ancestors of many lineages.
Anti-mythological source on common ancestry
First, modern genetic studies have confirmed that all people groups come from one common human stock. The only differences are relating to insignificant traits such as skin color, hair type, and facial features.
Second, anti-mythological believers such as the Jews, the Christians, and the Muslims cite their ancient Scriptures to prove that a catastrophic flood actually did occur during the time of Noah, the ninth generation from Adam (Quran Sura 11:40-44; 23:27; 54:11-14; 71:26-27; Genesis 6 – 9; Matthew 24:38; 2 Peter 2:5). This flood event is generally dated around 3000 BC.
They further assert that only eight people were saved from an ark which eventually landed on a mountain top in Mesopotamia. And the three sons of Noah became the ancestors of all peoples on the earth.
Who are the descendants of Noah’s sons?
The Hebrew Bible says this: “Now the sons of Noah who went out of the ark were Shem, Ham, and Japheth... These three were the sons of Noah, and from these the whole earth was populated” (Gen 9:18-19).
Hamitic People: Africans and Dravidians
Scholars have traced the descendants of Ham into Africa and also into the Mediterranean, the Indian subcontinent and South Pacific regions. The name “Ham” means “hot” and indicates that Hamitic Africans and Dravidians migrated to hot climates. As they traveled toward tropical heat in the South, the melanin, an enzyme found in everyone, probably resulted in a higher level, causing their skin to be darker while protecting them from sunburn. The Hamitic people were the founders of the first recorded civilizations in Upper Egypt, Babylon and Harrapa in North India.
Japhetic People: Europeans and Indo-Aryans
The descendants of Japheth have been traced to the European and the Aryan people, mainly of Europe, and also into central Asia, Iran and North India. The name “Japheth” means “extend” or “expand” and prophetically indicates the nature of this people (Gen 9:27). And history is noticeably proof to the fulfillment of that prophetic blessing.
As the Japhetic families migrated toward cooler, cloudier climates in the North, the melanin possibly remained less active and did not spread much to the top layers of their skin, leaving their skin pale.
Semitic People: Jews, Arabs and Orientals
According to Moses’ account, Shem is called “the father of all the children of Eber” (Gen 10:21). From the phrase “of Eber” comes the word “Hebrews.” Thus, the Hebrew race has descended from Eber in two branches: of Peleg and of Joktan (Gen 10:25).
The descendants of Peleg settled in West Asia. From the lineage of Peleg came Abraham who became the father of Isaac and Ishmael. From Isaac came the Jews but from Ishmael came all the Arabs (Gen 16:1-12). Although the descendants of Joktan make the bigger half of the Hebrew race, only little is mentioned about them in the Hebrew Scriptures (Gen 10:26-29).
The Joktanite migration route and early settlements are mentioned in the immediate context: “The region where they lived stretched from Mesha toward Sephar, in the eastern hill country” (Gen 10:30).
The word “Mesha” in Hebrew means “departure,” which probably refers to Joktan’s point of departure from the Peleg’s clan. Joktan’s caravan took their departure point somewhere on the Iranian plateau, or in central Asia, and that departure point (mesha) became the starting point of Joktanite settlement. Joktan’s clan was certainly the first to scout the ancient Silk Road, which later became the main road of settlement into East Asia.
The phrase “towards Sephar” is a translation of the Hebrew word “sepharah,” but it literally means “toward a numerous population.” Instead of a name, if we take the word’s meaning, we find a prophecy for the numerous populations that now exist in China and throughout the oriental countries. The phrase “in the eastern hill country” is a translation of “har ha-kedem,” but the literal Hebrew meaning is “the mountain of the orient.”
So the paraphrase translation of Genesis 10:30 can be rendered as follows: “And their dwelling place shall be from the departure point, as you go towards a numerous population, the mountain of the orient.” Chinese history affirms that the early pioneers came into the Eastern plains of China from the West, migrating along the Silk Road route. This verifies the accepted dating of early settlements in the Huang He (Yellow River) Valley of North China around 2200 B.C.
Ancient Nagas among the Joktanite tribes
The fact that Joktan’s thirteen sons migrated East with each of their families probably explains that the Oriental people make the largest population in the world: Mongolians, Chinese, Tibetans, Nepalese, Japanese, Koreans, Filipinos, Vietnamese, Malays, Laotians, Cambodians, Thais, Indonesians, etc. These major people groups may be considered as the distant relatives of the Nagas.
As a people of Mongoloid descent, the Nagas possibly had blood ties with the people of Bhutan, the Kiratas of Nepal, and even the Kinnaures of Himachal Pradesh.
But perhaps the closest siblings of the Nagas could be traced to other surrounding northeastern tribes of India. They all share striking similarities in their physical appearance and color, culture and customs. Even the fact that most of them ate almost anything in order to survive suggests that they went through similar migratory needs. Religiously, they were not so attracted to idol worship since they held a deep animistic belief in spirit-beings and nature. But broadly speaking, the Nagas, along with other East Asian people groups, came from a Joktanite tribe of Shem, one of Noah’s son, who lived some 5000 years ago.
