Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book presents a discussion on the suitability of Meghalaya as the case study and on the selected method of data collection for this research. It provides an demography, governance, and administration of Meghalaya. The book discusses the historical background of inward migration and early settlement of different ethnicities in Meghalaya from South East Asia and presents an account of the history of modern-state formation in Meghalaya. It analyses men’s and women’s perceptions of matriliny and compares their points of contention on how they view their lives in the matrilineal culture. The book also discusses the shift that has taken place from a women-centred economy to the masculinised occupational culture of mining and how this transition has reduced the status of indigenous Khasi/Jaintia women.