The Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh has a total population of roughly 1.4 million on an area of 84,000 km2, amounting to a population density of about 17 pop./km2. Much of Arunachal Pradesh is forested. The "indigenous groups" account for about two thirds of population, while immigrants, mostly of Bengali/Hindi belt origin, account for a third.
As one of the Seven Sister States of eight if including Sikkim in India's remote north-east, it is culturally at least as much part of Southeast Asia as it is of South Asia; ethnolinguistically, it is divided between various Tibeto-Burman speaking Tribes. Monpa area bordering Bhutan to the west, the Tani and Mishmi areas in the center, Singpho/Tangsa/Yobin area bordering Myanmar to the east and the Naga area bordering Nagaland in the south. It shares a large part of its border with China and the Indian state of Assam. In between there are transition zones, such as the Bugun/Aka/Hruso/Miji/Sherdukpen area, which form cultural "buffers" between the Tibetic Buddhist tribes and the Tani hill tribes. In addition, there are isolated peoples scattered throughout the state. Within each of these cultural spheres, one finds populations of related tribes speaking related languages and sharing similar traditions. In the Tibetic area, one finds large numbers of Monpa tribespeople, with several subtribes speaking closely related but mutually incomprehensible languages, and also large numbers of Tibetans. Within the Tani area, major tribes include Nishi, which has recently come to be used by many people to encompass Bangni and even Hills Miri. Apatani also live among the Nishi, but are distinct. In the northern zone the Tagin presides as one of the major tribe extending up to the northeastern side of mechuka. In the centre, one finds predominantly Galo people, with the major sub-groups of Lare, Kargu-kardi and Pugo among others, extending to the Ramo and Pailibo areas. In the east, one finds the Adi, with many subtribes including Padam, Pasi, Minyong, and Bokar, among others. Milang, while also falling within the general "Adi" sphere, are in many ways quite distinct. Moving east, the Idu, Miju and Digaru make up the "Mishmi" cultural-linguistic area, which may or may not form a coherent historical grouping. Moving southeast, the Tai Khamti are linguistically distinct from their neighbours and culturally distinct from the majority of other Arunachali tribes; they are religiously similar to the Chakmas who have migrated from erstwhile East Pakistan. They follow the same Theraveda sect of Buddhism. The Chakmas consist of the majority of the tribal population in Diyun Circle. Districts of Lohit, Changlang and Papumpare have a considerable number of Chakmas. They speak a linguistic variant derived from Assamese. Assam also have a large population of Chakmas who reside in the district of Karbi Anglong, Nagaon and Kachar. They also exhibit considerable convergence with the Singpho and Tangsa tribes of the same area, all of which are also found in Burma. Finally, the Nocte and Wancho exhibit cultural and possibly also linguistic affinities to the tribes of Nagaland, which they border. There are also Indigenous Assamese people belonging to various indigenous Assamese communities in Arunachal Pradesh. In addition, there are large numbers of migrants from diverse areas of India and Bangladesh, who, while legally not entitled to settle permanently, in practice stay indefinitely, progressively altering the traditional demographic makeup of the state. Finally, populations of "Nepalis" and Chakmas are distributed in different areas of the state. is practiced by 13% of the population. Shown here is a statue of the Buddha in Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh.
Literacy
Literacy has risen in official figures to 66.95% in 2011 from 54.74% in 2001. The literate population is said to number 789,943. Number of literate males are 454,532 and number of literate females are 335,411.
"Others" refers to indigenous religious traditions, such as Donyi-Polo or Rangfrah. Tibetan Buddhism predominates in the districts of Tawang, West Kameng, and isolated regions adjacent to Tibet. Theravada Buddhism is practiced by groups living near the Burmese border. Out of the 101recognized tribes, 37 are having an animist majority, 23 are having a Christian majority, 15 are having a Hindu majority, and 17 are having a Buddhist majority. The remaining 8 tribes are multi-faith, i.e. do not have a dominant religion.
