Central Kuki-Chin languages

Last updated
Central Kuki-Chin
Central Chin
Ethnicity Mizo and Chin
Geographic
distribution
Myanmar and Northeast India
Linguistic classification Sino-Tibetan
Glottolog cent2330  (Central Kuki-Chin)

Central Kuki-Chin is a branch of the Kuki-Chin languages. Central Kuki-Chin languages are spoken primarily in Mizoram, India and in Hakha Township and Falam Township of Chin State, Myanmar.

Contents

Official use

Mizo is the official language of Mizoram State, India.

See also

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Gangte is an Kuki ethnic group mainly living in the Indian state of Manipur. They belong to the Zo people and are parts of the Kuki or Mizo tribe. They are a recognised tribe of Manipur, India. They are also indigenous inhabitants of Mizoram, Assam and Myanmar, and a recognised tribe under the Indian Constitution. With a population of approximately 40,000 worldwide, they primarily live in Manipur's southern Churachandpur district and neighbouring states of Meghalaya, Mizoram and Assam.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mizo people</span> Ethnic group native to northeastern India

The Mizo people, are a Tibeto-Burmese ethnic group native to the Indian state of Mizoram and neighbouring regions of Northeast India. They are related to the Kuki people and Chin people. The term Mizo covers several related ethnic groups or clans inside the Mizo group. And before 1947, The name Kuki was used by all Zo people but after Mizoram statehood was achieved, the term Mizo gained prominence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chin people</span> Ethnic group native to Myanmar and India

The Chin people are an ethnic group native to the Chin State of Myanmar, and India's northeast states. Strictly speaking, the term "Chin" only refers to the 53 sub-tribes of the Chin ethnic group, divided and recognized by the Burmese government. They speak the Kuki-Chin–Naga languages, which are often mutually unintelligible but are closely related.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kuki people</span> Ethnic group in India, Bangladesh, and Myanmar

The Kuki people are an ethnic group in the Northeastern Indian states of Manipur, Nagaland, Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram, as well as neighbouring countries of Bangladesh and Myanmar. The Kuki constitute one of several hill tribes within India, Bangladesh, and Myanmar. In Northeast India, they are present in all states except Arunachal Pradesh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zou language</span> Sino-Tibetan language of Burma and India

Zo is a Northern Kuki-Chin-Mizo language originating in western Burma and spoken also in Mizoram and Manipur in northeastern India.

Thadou or Thado Chin is a Sino-Tibetan language of the Northern Kuki-Chin-Mizo sub-branch. It is spoken mainly by the Thadou people and also the other Zo people/Kuki people tribes as their second language, as well as first in Northeast India. The speakers of this language use Meitei language as their second language (L2) according to the Ethnologue.

Strictly speaking, Lai are the people belonging to the Lai Autonomous District Council of Mizoram. Outside this area they are scattered in Mizoram and many Lai people in Mizoram more than LADC area Lai people outside LADC area some Lai people prefer the name Pawi. Some state they are same as Lusei, North-East India, Hakha, Thantlang, and Falam of Chin State, Myanmar. Lai people can also be found outside their main dominant area. From a historical point of view, Lai is one of a dominant tribe of the so-called Chin-Kuki-Mizo, the community is scattered in different parts of the world, mainly concentrating in Mizoram, Chin Hills of Burma, South Bangladesh .

Hakha Chin, or Laiholh, is a Kuki-Chin language spoken by 446,264 people, mostly in Myanmar. The total figure includes 2,000 Zokhua and 60,100 Hakha speakers. The speakers are largely concentrated in Chin State in western Myanmar and Mizoram in eastern India, with a small number of speakers in south-eastern Bangladesh.

The Aimol people are an ethnic group living mainly in Manipur and in parts of Mizoram, Tripura, Nagaland and Assam in India. They speak Aimol language which is a Kuki-Chin language. Aimol people are one of the Chin-Kuki-Mizo people.

The Kuki-Chin languages are a branch of 50 or so Sino-Tibetan languages spoken in northeastern India, western Myanmar and southeastern Bangladesh. Most speakers of these languages are known as Mizo in Mizoram and Manipur. Also, as Kukī in Assamese and Bengali and as Chin in Burmese; some also identify as Zomi. Mizo is the most widely spoken of the Kuki-Chin languages. The Kuki-Chin language has official status in both Chin State and Mizoram as Chin and Mizo respectively.

The Lai languages or Pawih/Pawi languages are various Central Kuki-Chin-Mizo languages spoken by the Lai people or Pawi. They include “ Laiṭong” (Falam-Chin) spoken in Falam district, Laiholh (Hakha-Chin) spoken around the Haka (Hakha/Halkha) capital of Chin State in Burma (Myanmar) and in the Lawngtlai district of Mizoram, India. In Bangladesh, a related language is spoken by the Bawm people. Other Lai languages are Mi-E, and the Zokhua dialect of Hakha Lai spoken in Zokhua village.

The Zo people/Kuki people are an ethnic group which inhabit areas of India, Myanmar and the Chittagong hill tracts of Bangladesh. The word Zohnatlâk/Zo is used to describe an ethnic group, which is also known as the Chin, the Mizo, the Kuki, or a number of other names based on geographic distribution, that speaks the Kuki-Chin languages. They are from same origin which is known as Sinlung. They spread throughout the northeastern states of India, northwestern Myanmar and the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh. In northeastern India, they are present in Tripura, Nagaland, Mizoram, Manipur, Meghalaya and Assam.

Falam Chin is a Kuki-Chin language in Falam Township, Chin State, Myanmar, and also in Mizoram, India.

Sakachep also known as Khelma, is a Central Kuki-Chin-Mizo language of Northeast India. Dialects are Khelma, Thangachep, and Sakachep (Ethnologue). VanBik (2009) classifies Sakachep as closely related to Hmar.

Matu, also known as Matu Chin, Batu, or Nga La, is a Kuki-Chin spoken in Matupi township, Chin State, Myanmar, and also in Mizoram, India by the Matu people. Matu is the most commonly spoken language in Matupi Township outside of Burmese language, which is the official language of Myanmar.

Bawm or Bawm Chin, also known as Banjogi, is a Kuki-Chin language primarily spoken in Bangladesh. It is also spoken in adjacent regions of Northeast India and Myanmar. The Bawms that live on the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh call their settlements "Bawmram", which literally means an area or location inhabited by Bawms.

Shö is a Kuki-Chin language dialect cluster of Burma and Bangladesh. There are perhaps three distinct dialects, Asho (Khyang), Chinbon, and Shendu.

Ranglong is an ethic people belonging to the old kuki chin, majority of Ranglong's live in the northeastern part of India, mainly in the border area's of Tripura, Assam and Mizoram. The Ranglong people live in a small and densely-packed area over three federal Indian states,(tripura, Assam and Mizoram)

Northern Kuki-Chin is a branch of Kuki-Chin languages. It is called Northeastern Kuki-Chin by Peterson (2017) to distinguish it from the Northwestern Kuki-Chin languages. VanBik (2009:31) also calls the branch Northern Chin or Zo.

References