Dr. Temsüla Ao (1945–2022) was a distinguished poet, ethnographer, and educator from Nagaland. A Padma Shri and Sahitya Akademi awardee, she spent decades teaching English at NEHU before documenting Naga oral traditions and female experience through works like Laburnum for My Head and Ao‑Naga Oral Tradition. Her writing captures cultural transformation and resilience in Northeast India.