thumb|right|Dance of the [[Kurukh people, a tribe in eastern India]]
The Adivasi (also spelled Adibasi) are the heterogeneous tribal groups across the Indian subcontinent. and about 1.1% of Bangladesh's population (roughly 2 million, 2010 estimate).
thumb|[[Paniya people|Paniya women in Kerala]]
thumb|[[Gondi people|Gondi women in Umaria district, India]]
Claiming to be among the original inhabitants of the Indian subcontinent, many present-day Adivasi communities formed during the flourishing period of the Indus Valley Civilisation or after its decline, harbouring various degrees of ancestry from Dravidians, Indo-Aryan, Austroasiatic, and Tibeto-Burman peoples.
Adivasi studies is a new scholarly field, drawing upon archaeology, anthropology, agrarian history, environmental history, subaltern studies, indigenous studies, aboriginal studies, and developmental economics. It adds debates that are specific to the Indian context.
Definition and etymology
Adivasi is the collective term for the tribes of the Indian subcontinent, who are claimed to be the indigenous people of India. It refers to "any of various ethnic groups considered to be the original inhabitants of the Indian subcontinent". Although terms such as atavika, vanavāsi ("forest dwellers"), or girijan ("mountain people") are also used for the tribes of India, adivāsi carries the specific meaning of being the original and autochthonous inhabitants of a given region, However, the use and acceptance of the term Adivasi vary across places, communities, and contexts and do not always carry its original connotation. For instance tribals of North East India don't use the term Adivasi for themselves, rather prefer the word "Indigenous" or "Tribe". The term Adivāsi applies only to the immigrated Tea-tribes of Central India origin. although the political context differed historically under the Shah and Rana dynasties. In Sri Lanka, the Vedda people are referred as Adivasi.
The term Adivasi, is a Sanskrit word specifically coined in 1930s by the tribal political activists to give a distinct and collective indigenous identity to the tribals, alleging that Indo-Aryan and Dravidian ethnolinguistic groups are not indigenous to the land. The term was initially popularised by tribal activist organisations in present-day Jharkhand. Later, Thakkar Bapa used the word to advocate for a pan-Indian reference to the inhabitants of forests, a usage that was later adopted, although not popularly by Gandhi. Post-independence, Jaipal Singh Munda, president of the Jharkhand-based organisation 'Adivasi Mahasabha', was elected as an independent member representing tribals in the Constituent Assembly. He advocated for the term 'Adivasi' in place of 'Scheduled Tribe'. However, due to the need for legal connotation, Ambedkar rejected the use of such general socio-political terms in the Constitution by adopting 'Scheduled Tribe' for tribals and 'Scheduled Caste' for untouchables, although he advocated for Dalits. Ambedkar, responding to Munda's advocacy for 'Adivasi', clarified: "why I substituted the word "scheduled" for the word "aboriginal" the explanation is ... the word 'scheduled tribe' has a fixed meaning, because it enumerates the tribes ... the word 'Adibasi' is really a general term which has no specific legal de jure connotation, something like the Untouchables . Anybody may include anybody in the term 'untouchable' . ...by this Constitution, we are conferring certain privileges, certain rights on these Adibasis. In order that, if the matter was taken to a court of law there should be a precise definition as to who are these Adibasis, it was decided to invent, so to say, another category or another term to be called 'Scheduled tribes' and to enumerate the Adibasis under that head." However, the term Adivasi maintained its influence in public discourse as a status quo, challenging the legally designated, state-specific administrative term Scheduled Tribes. The constitution grouped these ethnic groups together "as targets for social and economic development". Since that time the tribe of India have been known officially as Scheduled Tribes.
Judicially it remarked that "India is a country of old immigrants in which people have been coming in over the last ten thousand years or so... who came mainly from the North-West, and to a lesser extent from the North-East... At one time it was believed that the Dravidians were the original inhabitants. However, this view has been considerably modified subsequently, and now the generally accepted belief is that the original inhabitants of India were the pre-Dravidian aborigines, i.e. the ancestors of the present tribals or Adivasis (Scheduled Tribes)."
In India, although the terms "Tribe" and "Adivasi" are often used interchangeably, they have distinct contextual meanings. "Tribe" refers to a social unit, whereas "Adivasi" means ancient inhabitants. The former is an anthropological term primarily associated with the social characteristics, while the latter is a socio-political term associated with the autochthonous identity and broadly used as analogous to the global usage of "Indigenous" and "Aboriginal". The use of the term Adivasi as a socio-political construct has been scholarly critiqued for overlooking the regional historical complexities of indigeneity, including migration, linguistics, anthropology, and archaeology. Hardiman, for instance, views this as "the idea that Adivasis are autochthonous, or original, inhabitants is by the fact that many such groups are known to have migrated in recorded history into the areas in which they are now found, often displacing existing inhabitants in the process... There have been so many migrations in and out of this region in past centuries that no particular jati can have genuine grounds for making such a claim."
India does not exclusively recognise Adivasis Tribes Scheduled Tribes as indigenous people of India, rather considers all Indians as indigenous to the land. Thus, India has disagreed or refused at various international forums, when there is uncertain in the concepts of indigeneity and considered same yardstick across countries for identification. For instance, although India initially ratified the International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention 107 on Indigenous and Tribal Populations Convention, 1957, in 1989, India refused to sign the ILO Convention 169. In 2007, considering all Indians as indigenous, India voted for the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in the United Nations General Assembly.
Demographics
thumb|Percent of scheduled tribes in India by tehsils by census 2011
thumb|Scheduled Tribes distribution map in India by state and union territory according to 2011 Census.
A substantial number of Adivasi tribal communities are recognised as Scheduled Tribes under the Constitution of India. Those Scheduled Tribes constitute 8.6% of India's population, while in Bangladesh they are designated as "Ethnic minority" and constitute around 1.1% of Bangladesh's population. Tribals in Jharkhand mainly follow Sarnaism, an animistic religion. Chhattisgarh has also over 80 lakh scheduled tribe population. Assam has over 40 lakh Adivasis primarily as tea workers. Adivasis in India mainly follow Animism, Hinduism and Christianity.
History
Origin
Though claimed to be the original inhabitants of India, many present-day Adivasi communities formed after the decline of the Indus Valley Civilisation, harbouring various degrees of ancestry from ancient hunter-gatherers, Indus Valley Civilisation, Indo-Aryan, Austroasiatic and Tibeto-Burman language speakers. Only tribal people of Andaman Islands remained isolated for more than 25000 years.
thumb|A Jarawa themed museum, showing casual clothing styles. The Jarawa are one of the indigenous tribes of the Andaman Islands in South Asia
Ancient and medieval period
According to linguist Anvita Abbi, tribes in India are characterised by distinct lifestyle and are outside of caste system. Although considered uncivilised and primitive, Adivasis were usually not held to be intrinsically impure by surrounding populations (usually Dravidian or Indo-Aryan), unlike Dalits, who were.