author
J. P. (James Philip) Mills
1890–1960
An Indian Civil Service officer who became one of the best-known early ethnographers of the Naga peoples, he wrote closely observed studies that still draw readers interested in Northeast India and the history of anthropology. His work blends administrative experience, field research, and a lasting curiosity about language and social life.
1 Audiobook
The Lhota Nagas
by J. P. (James Philip) Mills
About the author
Born in 1890, James Philip Mills was educated at Winchester College and Corpus Christi College, Oxford before joining the Indian Civil Service in 1913. Much of his career was spent in Assam and the Naga Hills, where he served in posts including Mokokchung and Kohima and developed a deep, long-term interest in the communities he was working among.
Alongside his official duties, he produced detailed ethnographic studies of Naga groups, including books such as The Lhota Nagas. These works helped make his name as a scholar of Northeast India and show the close, sometimes complicated link between colonial administration and anthropology in his era.
After retiring from the Indian Civil Service in 1947, he became a Reader at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London. He also served as President of the Royal Anthropological Institute from 1951 to 1953. Mills died in 1960, and he is still remembered for writing that preserved a rich record of Naga societies, languages, and customs.