Kohima, situated in the south at an altitude of 1444m above sea level, occupies pride of place as the capital city of Nagaland. Sharing its borders with Dimapur and Peren District in the West, Zunheboto and Phek District in the East, Manipur State in the South and Tseminyu District in the North. One of the oldest among the eleven districts of the state, Kohima is the first seat of modern administration as the Headquarters of Naga Hills District (then under Assam). When Nagaland became a full fledged state on 1st December, 1963, Kohima was christened as the capital of the state. Since then, parts of Kohima district have been carved out four times – the first in 1973 when Phek District was created, then in 1998 Dimapur was carved out and declared as a separate district. In 2004, Peren District was created and it was for the fourth time that Kohima district once again gave birth to one of the youngest districts in the state called Tseminyu District in the year 2021.
The name Kohima derives its name from “KEWHIRA” which is the name of the village where Kohima town is located. Kohima village , also called ‘Bara Basti’ is the second largest village in Asia and forms the North-Eastern part of Kohima Urban area today.
Demographics:
As of 2011 Census, Kohima district has a population of 267,988 . Males constitute 138,966 of the population and females 129,022. Kohima has an average literacy rate of 85.23%, higher than the national average of 74.04 %: male literacy is 88.69 % and female literacy is 81.48 %. In Kohima, 36,286 of the population is under 6 years of age with boys constituting 18,297 of the population and girls, 18,007.
The People:
The main indigenous inhabitants of Kohima District are the Angami Nagas . But Kohima being the capital city, it is a cosmopolitan city with a pot pouri of all the tribes of Nagaland as well as mainland India residing here.
Climate:
Kohima features a more moderate version of a humid subtropical climate. Kohima has a pleasant and moderate climate – not too cold in winters and pleasant summers. December and January are the coldest months when frost occurs and in the higher altitudes, snowfall occurs occasionally. During peak summer months from July-August, temperature ranges an average of 80-90 Fahrenheit. Heavy rainfall occurs during summer.
Topography:
Kohima is located at 25º40’N 94º07’E 25.67ºN 94.12ºE. It has an average elevation of 1261 metres (4137 feet) and covers an area of 1,463 sq. km, with a density of 213 per sq. km2 Kohima town is located on the top of a high ridge and the town serpentines all along the top of the surrounding mountain ranges.