📷 Image: Wikimedia Commons / Diliff
National
Oxford University to Return Remains of 39 Naga Ancestors, Handover Date Under Discussion
✍️ India Today
🗓 08 Sep 2026, 08:47 PM
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Oxford University has agreed to repatriate the remains of 39 Naga ancestors, with the exact handover date still being negotiated.
Oxford University announced that it will return the skeletal remains of 39 individuals belonging to the Naga community, which were collected during the British colonial era, to India.
The move comes after persistent appeals from the Nagaland state government and cultural organisations seeking the repatriation of their ancestors' remains held at the university's Pitt Rivers Museum.
Representatives from Oxford and Nagaland are presently finalising the logistics and a specific handover date, which is expected to be set later this year.
The return is viewed as an important step in addressing historical grievances and restoring cultural dignity for the Naga people.
Both parties hope the repatriation will deepen ties between the institutions and foster further collaboration on heritage preservation.
The move comes after persistent appeals from the Nagaland state government and cultural organisations seeking the repatriation of their ancestors' remains held at the university's Pitt Rivers Museum.
Representatives from Oxford and Nagaland are presently finalising the logistics and a specific handover date, which is expected to be set later this year.
The return is viewed as an important step in addressing historical grievances and restoring cultural dignity for the Naga people.
Both parties hope the repatriation will deepen ties between the institutions and foster further collaboration on heritage preservation.