Atong (Ethnologue ISO 639-3: aot)

Atong and its Speakers

The Atong people are considered part of the Garo tribe, although many Atong speakers do not use Standard Garo for communication. They speak Atong, a speech variety closely related to Garo, yet distinct in many respects.

Linguistically, Atong is a Tibeto-Burman language spoken in Meghalaya state in northeast India and adjacent areas in Bangladesh. It is mainly spoken in South Garo Hills and West Khasi Hills districts of Meghalaya, and in parts of southern Kamrup district of Assam.

Atong is closely related to Garo, Koch, Rabha, and Bodo. It is also spoken in the lower Someswari Valley (along the Simsang River) in southeastern Garo Hills and neighboring areas.

The majority of Atong speakers live in villages such as Siju, Rongsu, Badri, Rongru Asim, and Chitmang.

Sociolinguistic Status of Atong

Since Atongs have not been officially recognised as a subdivision of the Garo, they do not have a separate ethnic or linguistic status under the Government of India. Widespread bilingualism among Atong speakers has led to significant mutual intelligibility between Atong and Garo. Like other natural languages, Atong remains a valuable means of communication for the its speakers.

Most Atong speakers are Christians, and Garo is regarded as the more prestigious language. As the Bible has been translated in Garo but not into Atong, Garo is used in all church services.