Comparative map showing the distributions of the various Andamanese peoples in the Andaman Islands- early 1800s versus present-day (2004). To be noted is the movement of the Jarawa from their original siting to the western coastlines; the confinement of the Onge and Great Andamanese to isolated settlements, and the complete extinction of the Jangil. Only the Sentinelese territory remains intact.

The Andamanese is a collective term to describe the peoples who are the aboriginal inhabitants of the Andaman Islands and Nicobar Islands, located in the Bay of Bengal. The term includes the Great Andamanese, Jarawa, Onge, Sentinelese and the extinct Jangil. Anthropologically they are usually classified as Negritos, represented also by the Semang of Malaysia and the Aeta of the Philippines. They have lived on the Andaman Islands for at least 60,000 years and had very little contact with external societies for nearly all this period. This comparatively long-lasting isolation and separation from external influences is perhaps unequalled, except perhaps by the aboriginal inhabitants of Tasmania. Image File history File links Andamanese_comparative_distribution. ... Image File history File links Andamanese_comparative_distribution. ... This article or section may be confusing for some readers, and should be edited to be clearer or more simplified. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Jarawa are an isolated people native to the Andaman Islands of the Bay of Bengal, south of India. ... The Onge (also Ongee) are one of the Andamanese indigenous peoples of the Andaman Islands, located in the Bay of Bengal. ... Great Andamanese is a collective term used to refer to related groups or tribes of indigenous peoples who lived throughout most of the Great Andaman archipelago, the main and closely-situated group of islands in the Andaman Islands. ... The Jangil (also Rutland Jarawa) were one of the Andamanese indigenous peoples of the Andaman Islands, located in the Bay of Bengal. ... The Sentinelese (also Sentineli, Senteneli, Sentenelese, North Sentinel Islanders) are one of the Andamanese indigenous peoples of the Andaman Islands, located in the Bay of Bengal. ... The term indigenous peoples has no universal, standard or fixed definition, but can be used about any ethnic group who inhabit the geographic region with which they have the earliest historical connection. ... This article or section may be confusing for some readers, and should be edited to be clearer or more simplified. ... Map of Nicobar Islands The Nicobar Islands are an island chain in the eastern Indian Ocean, and are part of India. ... A map showing the location of the Bay of Bengal. ... Great Andamanese is a collective term used to refer to related groups or tribes of indigenous peoples who lived throughout most of the Great Andaman archipelago, the main and closely-situated group of islands in the Andaman Islands. ... The Jarawa are an isolated people native to the Andaman Islands of the Bay of Bengal, south of India. ... The Onge (also Ongee) are one of the Andamanese indigenous peoples of the Andaman Islands, located in the Bay of Bengal. ... The Sentinelese (also Sentineli, Senteneli, Sentenelese, North Sentinel Islanders) are one of the Andamanese indigenous peoples of the Andaman Islands, located in the Bay of Bengal. ... The Jangil (also Rutland Jarawa) were one of the Andamanese indigenous peoples of the Andaman Islands, located in the Bay of Bengal. ... Initiation rite of the Yao people of Malawi Anthropology (from the Greek word , man or person) consists of the study of humanity (see genus Homo). ... The Negritos include the Ati, the Aeta and at least 4 other tribes of the Philippines, the Semang of the Malay peninsula, and 12 Andamanese tribes of the Andaman Islands. ... The Semang are the Pygmy-sized Negritos of the Malay peninsula. ... The Aeta are an indigenous people who live in scattered, isolated mountainous parts of the Philippines. ...

However, this changed in the mid-1800s after the British established penal colonies. Increasing numbers of Indian and Karen settlers arrived, encroaching on former territories of the Andamanese. Today only the Sentinelese, who live exclusively on North Sentinel Island, have been able to completely maintain their independent state, resisting attempts to contact them. The Jarawa have also managed to remain substantially apart from the later colonisers and settlers; other Andamanese groups have had more extensive contacts, resulting in drastic reductions in territory and numbers, with several peoples becoming extinct altogether. Beginning of the Napoleonic Wars (1805 - 1815). ... A Penal Colony is a colony used to detain prisoners and generally use them for penal labor in an economically underdeveloped part of the states (usually colonial) territories, and on a far larger scale than the prison farm. ... ကရင္‌လူမ္ယုိး Total population 7,400,000 Regions with significant populations Myanmar: 7,000,000 Thailand:  400,000 Language Karen Religion Buddhism, Christianity, Animism Related ethnic groups Padaung The Karen (Burmese: ; MLCTS: ), also known in Thailand as the Kariang (Thai: ) or Yang, are an ethnic group in Myanmar (Burma) and Thailand. ... Outline map of the Andaman Islands, with the location of North Sentinel Island highlighted (in red). ...

Until the 19th century, their habit of killing all shipwrecked foreigners and the remoteness of their islands prevented modification of their culture or language. Cultivation was unknown to them, and they lived off of hunting indigenous pigs, fishing, and gathering. Their only weapons were the bow, fishing nets and harpoons. The Andamanese are one of only two tribal groups (the other being the Ake pygmies) who are unable to make fire. Instead they keep embers and smouldering logs alive in clay containers. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... A bow is ancient weapon that shoots arrows powered by the elasticity of the bow. ... Fishing with a net. ... Whaling harpoon. ...

See also

• Andamanese languages