In the modern era, where technology is expanding at an unprecedented pace and people are exploring the possibility of Lunar inhabitation and leveraging Artificial Intelligence to perform tasks using machines that actually require human intelligence, it seems impossible to accept the fact that there is a place where people live in the Paleolithic era? What may seem strange to us, is the truth of the Sentinelese tribe, residing in the Bay of Bengal on the remote island of North Sentinel, is that they have not only avoided any contact with the outer world but stand as a warrior for their island if anyone tries to enter it.

A thick forest-like umbrella that prevents the world from knowing or gathering any information about this island. The funny part is that some don’t even know how many people actually call the island their home.

North Sentinel Island has many interesting facts to know about. No wonders, if you haven’t heard of North Sentinel Island, not many individuals are aware of it. North Sentinel Island is one of the largest islands amongst the cluster of islands within the Bay of Bengal and is part of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands (India).

Geography

The North Sentinel Island is approximately the same size as New York’s Manhattan Island, about 59.6 km2. The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake tilted the tectonic plate under the island, lifting it by one to two meters. Large tracts of the surrounding coral reefs were exposed and became permanently dry land or shallow lagoons, extending all the island’s boundaries—by as much as one kilometer on the west and south sides. It is surrounded by coral reefs, and lacks natural harbors. The entire island, other than the shore, is forested. There is a narrow, white-sand beach encircling the island, behind which the ground rises 20 meters.

Flora and Fauna

The island is largely covered in tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forest. Due to the lack of surveys, the exact composition of the terrestrial flora and fauna remain unknown. Maurice Vidal Portman in his 1880s expedition to the island, reported an open, “park-like” jungle with numerous groves of bulletwood and Malabar silk-cotton trees.

Indian boars are apparently found on the island and serves as a major food source for the Sentinelese, with reports by Portman referring to a “huge heap” of pig skulls near a Sentinelese village. North Sentinel Island, is also considered a globally Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International, as despite the lack of surveys, the pristine habitat likely supports a diversity of birdlife.

A large coral reef is known to circle the island, and mangroves are also known to fringe its banks. Sea turtles also, occur near the island and likely to be a part of diet for the Sentinelese. Sharks and Dolphins were also sighted on a survey near the island.

Sentinelese Tribe

Sentinelese are believed to owning this tiny island for almost 60,000 years. Their language is totally unknown and it doesn’t hold any similarity with other tribes in the Andaman Island. The most interesting fact about these human beings are that they have not yet discovered how to create fire!! Which means, they are still living in Stone age, representing the past of human race. The Sentinelese are among the last of the isolated communities left in the world who live without any communication with globalized civilization. Their exact population is still unknown; it is believed to be between 50 and 500.

Fascinating facts

• The Sentinelese are one among the few tribes in the entire world that have been truly isolated.
• Visiting the North Sentinel Island is prohibited by the Indian government.
• The Sentinelese tribe survived the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake.
• There is no data regarding the actual population of the island.
• Anthropologists and researchers consider that the Sentinelese are descendants of Africa, resulting in theories that the island was settled by vacationers from the west coast of Africa.
• Sentinelese language is not known by anyone outside of their community.
• The lifestyle of the tribes is very unique. They still collect food in the forest for hunting. They also use coastal water as a way of seafood.
•  They make boats that are too narrow and described as “too narrow to fit two feet”.
• Weapons and tools used by the Sentinelese are mostly made of stone and animal bones. 
• The Indian navy, which repeatedly patrols the Andaman Island chain, has an official coverage known as “eyes on, hands-off.” Military members watch the island to make sure that no outsiders enterprise to its shores whereas they staying away from the Sentinelese people.
• Sentinelese are known for killing any guests visiting them. On several previous expeditions and rescue operations, they have killed all the people visiting them.
• Sentinelese don’t accept gifts from outsiders; however, they have developed great liking for coconuts, though, they don’t know how to grow them on their own. On several previous occasions they have accepted coconuts as gifts.