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Mizoram is a state in Northeast India, with Aizawl as its seat of government and capital city. The name of the state is derived from "Mizo", the self-described name of the native inhabitants, and "Ram", which in the Mizo language means "land." Thus "Mizo-ram" means "land of the Mizos". Within India's northeast region, it is the southernmost landlocked state, sharing borders with three of the Seven Sister States, namely Tripura, Assam and Manipur. The state also shares a 722-kilometre (449 mi) border with the neighbouring countries of Bangladesh and Myanmar.
The history of Mizoram encompasses the history of Mizoram which lies in the remotest part of northeast India. It is a conglomerate history of several ethnic groups of Chin people who migrated from Chin State of Burma. But information of their patterns of westward migration are based on oral history and archaeological inferences, hence nothing definite can be said. The recorded history started relatively recently around the mid-19th century when the adjoining regions were occupied by the British monarchy. Following religious, political and cultural revolutions in the mid-20th century majority of the people agglomerated into a super tribe, Mizo. Hence the officially recognised settlement of the Mizos became Mizoram.
Lunglei district is one of the eleven districts of Mizoram state in India. As of 2011 it is the second most populous district in the state, after Aizawl. It is also the largest district in Mizoram with an area of 4,572 square kilometres (1,765 sq mi).
Mizoram Presbyterian ChurchSynod is the largest Christian denomination in Mizoram, northeast India. It was a direct progeny of the Calvinistic Methodist Church in Wales. It was the first church in Mizoram and is now one of the constituent bodies of a larger denomination Presbyterian Church of India (PCI), which has its headquarters in Shillong, Meghalaya. The administrative body called the Mizoram Synod has its headquarters at Mission Veng, Aizawl. As the first church, it remains the largest denomination in Mizoram.
The Presbyterian Church of India (PCI) is a mainline Protestant church based in India, with over one and a half million adherents, mostly in Northeast India. It is one of the largest Christian denominations in that region.
James Herbert Lorrain, or Pu Buanga, was a Scottish Baptist missionary in northeast India, including Mizoram, Assam, and Arunachal Pradesh. He and Frederick William Savidge reduced the Lushai language to writing—devised an alphabet using Roman lettering and phonetic form of spelling based on Hunterian system translation; compiled grammar and dictionaries for missionary activities and clerical administration.
William Williams was a Welsh Presbyterian missionary to Khasi Hills, northeast India, in the late 19th century. He was a son of a ship captain in Nanternis, a small village in Wales. Following his father's footstep he became a sailor for five years. Then he took a profession in carpentry for two years. After graduating in theology from East London Missionary Training Institute he became a pastor. Pursuing his ambition he became a missionary of the Welsh Calvinistic Methodist Foreign Mission to Khasi people in India from 1887 until his death. He died of typhoid in 1892.
Synod Hospital, Durtlang is a general hospital and nursing school in Aizawl, Mizoram, India. The hospital is widely known among Mizo people as "Durtlang Hospital". It is managed and governed by the Mizoram Presbyterian Church Synod. The hospital was established in 1928 by the Calvinistic Methodist Church as a nursing institute. It is the second hospital established, and the largest non-governmental hospital in Mizoram. It has a registered capacity of 355 beds.
Aizawl Theological College is an ecumenical seminary of the Presbyterian Church in Aizawl, Mizoram, India. It is affiliated to the Senate of Serampore College (University). The college is owned by the Mizoram Presbyterian Church and administered by the Mizoram Synod through its Theological Education Board. Hundreds of pastors and church leaders have received their academic training and ministerial formation under the standards laid down by the Senate of Serampore College since its inception in 1907.
Education in Mizoram consists of a diverse array of formal education systems ranging from elementary to university, from training institution to technical courses. The Government of India imposes mandatory education at least up to the basic level. For this public schools are made free of fees, and provided with free textbooks and school lunch.
Christianity is the largest religion in Mizoram. The majority 87% of Mizoram population are Christian in various denominations, predominantly Presbyterian. More than 98% of the Mizos are Christians by faith. The Government of Mizoram declared that Christianity plays a very important role among the daily life of Mizo community and therefore further declared that Christianity as the religion of the state. The culture of Mizoram is mainly influenced by Christianity. Hence, Christianity was given a special status on the state by the government while maintaining a minimum level of secular environment & approach. In June 2018, the government of Mizoram including Vanlalruata, president of anti-corruption organisation-turned-political party, People's Representation for Identity and Status of Mizoram claim that Mizoram is a Christian state. Hindus form a small minority (3.55%) mainly of Manipuris and there are also around (7.93%) Buddhists according to the 2001 census, mostly made up from Chakma settlers of Arakan origin. There are about 8,000 mostly ethnic Mizo followers of a Judaic group Bnei Menashe, who claim descent from the biblical Menasseh. Muslims make up about 1.1% of the state population.
David Evan Jones, Mizo name Zosaphluia was a Welsh missionary in Mizoram, India, connected to both the Mizoram Presbyterian Church and the Baptist Church of Mizoram.
Zairema was a Presbyterian minister, and a pioneer in theology and literature among the Mizo people of northeast India. He was the first Mizo to obtain the degrees of BSc and BD. He died of cardiac problem on the morning of 17 December 2008 at his residence in Aizawl at the age of 91. He is best remembered as the "father of Mizoram Synod".
Mary Winchester, or Zolûti to Mizos, (1865–1955) was a Scottish girl who was captured and held hostage by the Mizo tribes of Mizoram, India, in 1871, and rescued by the British expedition in 1872. This historic event marked the beginning of British rule in Mizoram that lasted until the Indian Independence in 1947. Indirectly, it also paved the way for Christian missionaries to introduce Christianity among the Mizos.
Frederick William Savidge was a pioneer English Christian missionary in northeast India. He and James Herbert Lorrain brought Protestantism to Mizoram, and some parts of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. Together they were entirely responsible for the creation of written language in Mizo, beginning of literacy, origin of formal education and establishment of churches in Mizoram. They devised the original Mizo alphabets based on Roman script, prepared the first book and dictionary in Mizo, started the first school among the Mizos. Mizoram has become the most Christian populated state in India. As a professional educator Savidge was single-handedly responsible for introducing quality education in Mizoram. He is deservedly known as the Father of Mizo Education.
Edwin Rowlands was a Welsh Christian missionary in northeast India and Burma. He was a professional teacher, singer, composer, poet, translator and literary figure among the Mizo people. He was regarded as the most beloved of all British missionaries in Mizoram. He was more popularly known as Zosapthara. He made the major hymns in Mizo and Khumi which are still in use. He modified the original Mizo alphabet and his system became the standard in Mizo language. He created written language for Khumi people in Burma, and for Bhil people in Maharashtra. His literary works are the foundation of Mizo literature. He was the first administrator of education in Mizoram as Honorary Inspector of Schools. Despite objection from various corners he married Thangkungi, a Mizo girl.
The history of Christianity in Mizoram covers the origin and development of all forms of Christianity in Mizoram since the British occupation at the end of the 19th century. Christianity arrived as a consequence of tribal warfare, raids of British plantations, and the ensuing punitive British military expedition called the Lushai Expedition of 1871. The subsequent annexation of the erstwhile Lushai Hills to the British Empire opened the gateway for British Christian missions to evangelise the Mizo people.
Zoramthanga is an Indian politician who is serving as the 5th Chief Minister of Mizoram since 2018 and from 1998 to 2008. He is also the president of Mizo National Front (MNF) party. He represents the Aizawl East I constituency in the Mizoram Legislative Assembly since 2018 and Champhai constituency from 1998 to 2008.
Lalsawma is an Indian social worker, writer and a Christian missionary and Pastor of the Mizoram Presbyterian Church. His contributions are reported in the reconciliation efforts between the Government of India and the Mizo National Front (MNF) on two occasions. In the wake of the March 1966 Mizo National Front uprising, the Mizoram Presbyterian Church Synod appointed missionaries for peace talks with MNF in 1969 and Lalsawma was one of two missionaries who contacted the MNF leaders. In 1982, he was again a member of the three-men delegation who held talks with MNF which, untimaltely, led to the Mizo Accord of 1986. He has written several articles and is the author of the book, Four Decades of Revivals, the Mizo Way. The Government of India awarded him the fourth highest civilian honour of the Padma Shri, in 2005, for his contributions to Indian society.
Laltluangliana Khiangte is a Mizo academic, playwright and poet of Mizo literature. He was the principal of the Serampore College and a former professor at Pachhunga University College and the North Eastern Hill University. He is presently serving as the senior most professor at the Department of Mizo at Mizoram University. He is a recipient of the Pu Buanga Award, the highest literary award of the Mizo Academy of Letters. The Government of India awarded him the fourth highest civilian honour of the Padma Shri, in 2006, for his contributions to Indian literature.
References
- ↑ Lloyd, J. Meirion (1991). History of the church in Mizoram: harvest in the hills. Synod Publication Board. p. 180.
- ↑ Vehicles of Grace and Hope: Welsh Missionaries in India 1800-1970 - Page 82 D. Ben Rees - 2002 "JONES, David Evan (1870-1947) A minister of religion, pioneer missionary and translator. ... Some five months after his arrival D. E. Jones established a school on the veranda of his small house within the Mission Veng or .."
- ↑ The Independent Obituary 1998
