Sutnga

Sutnga lies in the Jaintia Hills, a highland country overlooking the plains of Sylhet. It gave its name to the royal family of the Jaintia kingdom, whose rulers first held territory in the hills. Pnar communities inhabited the region, and local chiefs exercised authority in the hill districts. The royal house traced succession through women, a custom shared with neighbouring Khasi societies.

The Jaintia kings expanded their domain beyond the hills, particularly southwards into the plains. Nartiang served as a royal centre in the highlands, while Jaintiapur became the capital in the Sylhet plain. From the seventeenth century the kingdom played an increasingly prominent part in the affairs of the surrounding region. Its rulers adopted Hinduism while retaining the matrilineal principle by which a king was succeeded by his sister’s son.