Heritage, Health and Hope: A Bibliometric Review of Scholarly Work on the Saharia Tribe

Abstract

The indigenous peoples of India are the unsung heroes of the country's history; they are culturally rich, physically strong, and all too often overlooked in the national narrative of progress. To analyse the research papers published in the Scopus database from 2000 to 2024, this study performs a bibliometric analysis. This study highlights the evolving volume of studies, authors, subjects’ area, co-occurrence networks, keyword co-occurrences, and thematic map analysis. Using data from top-cited articles, publication trends, subject area classifications, thematic mapping, and co-occurrence networks, the analysis reveals a concentrated academic focus on health-related issues particularly tuberculosis, genetic susceptibility, and malnutrition. Medicine and social sciences dominate the subject areas, with India contributing the majority of publications. Thematic and keyword analyses highlight strong clusters around public health, genetics, and tribal identity, while areas such as education, environment, digital access, and economic development remain significantly underexplored. This analysis identifies key authors, journals, and research directions, offering a foundational overview of how scholarly interest has evolved over time. The findings underscore the need for more interdisciplinary, participatory, and policy-oriented research to holistically address the complex challenges faced by the Saharia tribe. This study contributes to the tribal research discourse by mapping the existing knowledge landscape and highlighting crucial gaps for future inquiry.