Cultural Continuity and Change: A Study of the Gadaba Tribe

The study takes up the dynamics of cultural continuity and change in the indigenous Gadaba tribe of hilly areas of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh, India. The Gadabas are the descendants of longstanding traditions, language, clothing and ceremonies, and represent the strength of tribal identity in the face of socio-economic changes. The research explores the tribe's efforts to preserve their cultural ways and to respond to external influences including modernization, state policies, education and migration through ethnographic methods, historical analysis and oral stories. The study emphasizes the following features of cultural continuity (dance forms such as Dhemsa, traditional weaving, clan-based social structures, and language use) and emergents (youth aspirations, livelihood patterns, and language use). The paper's analysis of these interwoven themes brings a new perspective to the ongoing debates on indigenous resurgence, identity negotiation, and globalization's effects on tribal communities in modern India.