A Short Note On State Symbols Of Assam

Assam is a beautiful state in northeastern India known for picturesque landscapes, hills, forests and diverse wildlife. Assamese and Bodo are the official languages of Assam, and it shares its borders with West Bengal, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura, apart from Bhutan and Bangladesh. Assam has a state animal, state bird, state flower, state tree, etc. Let’s learn more about the state symbols of Assam.

State festival of Assam

Assam’s state festivals are known as Bihu. In Assam, these festivities take place in the months of Bohag (Baisakh, in the middle of April), Maagh (in the middle of January), and Kaati (in the middle of February) (Kartik, the middle of October). Since the olden days, the Bihus have indeed been honoured in Assam. Each Bihu corresponds to a specific period in the farming calendar. The Bohaag Bihu occurs at the start of the seeding season, the Kaati Bihu, which occurs at the end of sowing and transplanting paddy, and the Maagh Bihu, which occurs at the end of the harvest season.

State Flower

Assam’s state flower is the foxtail orchid. Also known as Kopou Phul, it is generally found in China, Indonesia, North-East India, the Philippines, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, and Myanmar. Foxtail orchids get their name from their tightly packed and tiny group of flowers, also called inflorescences. In the winter, inflorescences appear on this plant. The blossoms are white with faint crimson dots and have a lovely perfume. It’s no surprise, then, that orchids play an essential role in Assamese culture. The flower symbolises love, fertility, joy, and affection in particular. It is particularly prominent during Assam’s largest celebration, Bohag Bihu.

State Bird

The state bird of Assam is a white-winged wood duck. The gregarious white-winged wood duck is a social bird. The state bird of Assam is known as ‘Deo Hans’ in Assamese.  For someone who could never see the white-winged wood duck in the wild can now do this at the Assam State Zoo.

These can be found in heavily forested tropical evergreen forests. The nesting and breeding season lasts from July to October. The best time to lay eggs is between April and July. The nest was constructed in a tree hole. Roughly 800 of Assam’s state birds may be discovered in the wild. The white-winged duck may be found primarily in eastern Assam and the neighbouring areas of Arunachal Pradesh, India.

State Animal

The state animal of Assam is the one-horned rhinoceros. The one-horned rhinoceros is a threatened species. Assam in India has the biggest population of one-horned rhinos. According to recent data, the world’s population of one-horned rhinos is around 3000. There are almost 2000 of them in Assam alone.

The skin of the Rhinoceros unicornis is grey or greyish-brown in colour, with many loose folds and tubercles, giving it an armour-plated appearance. Heavy folds before and behind the shoulders and in front of the thighs split the skin of a one-horned rhinoceros into two huge shields. A distinguishing feature of this rhinoceros is that the fold in front of the shoulders does not extend across the back.

State motto

The motto of Assam is ‘ hail mother Assam’. In Assamese, it is known as ‘joi Aai axom’

State song 

The state song of Assam is ‘ O Mur Apunar Desh’. It is also a traditional song of Assam. It was originally composed by Lakshminath Bezbarua. The tune of this song was composed by Kamala Prasad Agarwala. This state song is one of the most popular and finest poems written by Lakshminath Bezbarua. It was published in an Assamese magazine known as Bahi in 1909.

State dance 

Sattriya is the state dance of the state of Assam. It is one of the most popular classical dance forms of India. The origins of this dance are related to Krishna-centred Vaishnavism monasteries located in Assam. It is a dance as well as a drama performance. The attribution of this dance form is made to the 15th century Bhakti movement. It is also dedicated to saint Mahapurush Srimanta Sankardev.

State Tree

In India’s northeastern states, the Hollong tree is well-known. It can grow to be 150 feet tall and is one of the tallest trees in the North-East of India. It flowers from June to July. The bark’s oleoresin is said to have healing effects. It is mostly used in the construction of houses for its lumber. It is the state tree of Arunachal Pradesh and is a medium hardwood tree.

Conclusion 

Assam is a state in northeastern India, located in the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys and south of the eastern Himalayas. Assam tea and silk are two of the state’s most well-known products. Assam is the first state in whole Asia for the first drilling location of oil. There are many popular animal species found in Assam, such as the one-horned rhino, white-winged wood duck, water buffalo, tigers, and many other birds. It is one of the last remaining wild habitats for Asian elephants.