Wokha District (Pron:/ˈwəʊkə/) is a district of Nagaland state in India. It is the home of the Lotha Nagas. Gastronomically, it known for its variety of fermented bamboo shoots (bastenga). It holds an important place as the roosting site of the migratory Amur Falcon. Geologically, it has known oil deposits.
In 1844, the first official colonial exploration in the Lotha Naga area was carried out by Captain Brodie. The first recorded meeting between a European and the Lothas was with Lieutenant Biggs in the year 1841. During the British colonial expansion into the Naga Hills, Wokha was designated the district headquarters initially. Two years later, it was shifted to Kohima in 1878, and Wokha was reduced to a sub-division in the colonial administration. The sub-divisional administration shifted its headquarters to Mokokchung further relegating Wokha in the colonial administration.
In 1957, when the Naga Hills Tuensang Area (NHTA) was formed, Wokha became a sub-division under the Mokokchung District.
The currently defined Wokha District was created in 1973 when the sub-division was separated from Mokokchung District along with six administrative circles. The first census of the new district in 1981 counted the population to be 57,583.
Wokha District is located in the midwest part of present state of Nagaland. It is surrounded by Mokokchung District to its northeast, Zunheboto District to its southeast, Tseminyü District to its south, Niuland District on its southwest and the Golaghat plains of Assam to the west.
It covers an area of 1,628 sq. km. which equals around 9.82% of the total area of Nagaland. Of the total area, 35.74% comes under subtropical hill zone, 23.64% under subtropical plain zone and 40.59% in the mild tropical hill zone. The average altitude of the Wokha (Upper Range) is 1000-1500m above sea level; Bhandari (Lower Range) is 400-1000m above sea level. While Baghty town is at an altitude of 304.30m above sealevel, Wokha town is the highest town at 1313.69m.