Akha People - Akha Villages and Culture

Akha Villages and Culture

Due to rapid social and economic changes in the regions Akha’s inhabit, particularly the introduction of Western modes of capitalism, attempts to continue many of the traditional aspects of Akha life are becoming increasingly difficult. Despite these challenges, Akha people continue to practice many elements of their traditional culture with much success.

Akha society lacks a strict system of social class and is considered egalitarian. Respect is typically accorded with age and experience. Ties of patrilineal kinship and marriage alliance bind the Akha within and between communities. Village structures may vary widely from to strictly traditional to westernized, depending on their proximity to modern towns. Like many of the hill tribes, the Akha build their villages at high altitudes in the mountains.

The Akha dwellings are traditionally constructed of logs, bamboo, and thatch and are of two types; "low house," built on the ground, and "high house," built on stilts. The semi-nomadic Akha, at least those who have not been moved onto permanent village sites, do not typically build these houses as permanent residences and will often move their villages. Some say that this gives the dwellings a deceptively fragile and flimsy appearance, although they are built quite well,and the design has been tested for generations. The entrances to all Akha villages are fitted with a wooden gate adorned with elaborate carvings on both sides depicting imagery of men and women. This feature is known as a 'spirit gate' and it marks the division between the inside of the village, the domain of man and domesticated animals, and the outside, the realm of spirits and wildlife. The gates function to ward off evil spirits as well as to entice favorable ones. The carvings can also be seen on the roofs of the villager’s houses as a second measure against the control of the flow of spirit. The huts are divided by gender with specific areas for men as well as a mutually shared space. This divide is said to mimic the function of the gate.

Another important feature found in most Akha villages is a tall four-posted village swing which is used in an annual ancestor offering related to the fertility of rice. The swing is built annually by an elder called a Dzoeuh Mah.