Languages spoken in the Republic of India belong to several language families, the major ones being the Indo-Aryan languages spoken by 78.05% of Indians and the Dravidian languages spoken by 19.64% of Indians; both families together are sometimes known as Indic languages. Languages spoken by the remaining 2.31% of the population belong to the Austroasiatic, Sino–Tibetan, Tai–Kadai, and a few other minor language families and isolates. According to the People's Linguistic Survey of India, India has the second highest number of languages (780), after Papua New Guinea (840). Ethnologue lists a lower number of 456.
Manipur, historically known as Kangleipak, is a state in northeast India, with the city of Imphal as its capital. It is bounded by the Indian states of Nagaland to the north, Mizoram to the south and Assam to the west. It also borders two regions of Myanmar, Sagaing Region to the east and Chin State to the south. The state covers an area of 22,327 km2 (8,621 sq mi). The official and most widely spoken language is Meitei language. Native to the Meitei people, it is also used as a lingua franca by smaller communities, who speak a variety of other Tibeto-Burman languages. Manipur has been at the crossroads of Asian economic and cultural exchange for more than 2,500 years. This exchange connects the Indian subcontinent and Central Asia to Southeast Asia, East Asia, Siberia, regions in the Arctic, Micronesia and Polynesia enabling migration of people, cultures and religions.
Meitei, officially known as Manipuri, is a Tibeto-Burman language of northeast India. It is the official language and the lingua franca of Manipur as well as one of the 22 official languages of the Indian Republic, included in the 8th Schedule to the Indian Constitution. Native to the Meitei people, it is spoken by around 1.8 million people, predominantly in the state of Manipur, but also by smaller communities in the rest of the country and in parts of neighbouring Myanmar and Bangladesh. It was used as a court language in the historic Manipur Kingdom.
The Meitei people, Meetei people, or Manipuri people is an ethnic group native to Manipur. They form the largest and dominant ethnic group of Manipur in Northeast India. They speak Meitei language, one of the 22 official languages of the Indian Republic and the sole official language of Government of Manipur. The Meiteis primarily settled in the Imphal Valley region in modern-day Manipur, though a sizeable population has settled in the other Indian states of Assam, Tripura, Nagaland, Meghalaya, and Mizoram. There is also a notable presence of Meitei people in the neighbouring countries of Myanmar and Bangladesh. The Meitei ethnic group represents about 53% of Manipur's population.
The Meitei Pangals, also known as the Pangals or the Meitei Muslims or the Manipuri Muslims, are a group of Muslims who speak Meitei language as their native tongue. They live mainly in Manipur. The term "Pangal" simply means "Muslim" in Meitei language. Various historical sources have different dates for when Islam first entered Manipur. However, the date all sources seem to confirm as definitive is 1606 AD. The origin of the Pangal community is equally varied.
Bishnupriya Manipuri, also known as Bishnupriya Meitei or simply as Bishnupriya, is an Indo-Aryan lect belonging to the Bengali–Assamese linguistic sub-branch. It is a creole of Bengali language and Meitei language and it still retains its pre-Bengali features. It is spoken in parts of the Indian states of Assam, Tripura and Manipur as well as in the Sylhet Division of Bangladesh. It uses the Bengali-Assamese script as its writing system. Bishnupriya Manipuri, being a member of the Eastern Indo-Aryan languages, was evolved from Magadhi Prakrit. So, its origin is associated with Magadha realm. The Government of Tripura categorized Bishnnupriya Manipuri under the "Tribal Language Cell" of the State Council of Educational Research and Training. Its speakers are also given the "Other Backward Classes" status by the Assam Government and notably, there is no legal status of the Bishnupriyas in Manipur. In the 2020s, the Bishnupriya speaking people started demanding that the Assam Government should give them the status of “indigenous people” of Assam and treat the same like other indigenous communities of the state.
The Manipuri Dance, also referred to as the ManipuriRaas Leela, is a jagoi and is one of the eight major Indian classical dance forms, originating from the state of Manipur. The dance form is imbued with the devotional themes of Madhura Raas of Radha-Krishna and characterised by gentle eyes and soft peaceful body movements. The facial expressions are peaceful mostly expressing Bhakti Rasa or the emotion of devotion, no matter if a dancer is Hindu or not. The dance form is based on Hindu scriptures of Vaishnavism and is exclusively attached to the worship of Radha and Krishna. It is a portrayal of the dance of divine love of Lord Krishna with goddess Radha and the cowherd damsels of Vrindavan, famously known as the Raas Leela.
The following outline is provided as an overview of, and topical guide to, India:
Manipuri Vaishnavism, also known as Meitei Vaishnavism, is a regional variant of Gaudiya Vaishnavism with a culture-forming role in the north-eastern Indian state of Manipur.
Meitei literature, also known as Manipuri literature, is literature written in the Meitei language of Manipur. An ancient institution of learning, the Luwang Nonghumsang, later known as the Pandit Loishang, collected sources of indigenous Meitei knowledge and philosophy until the 18th century. Writing by Meiteis is assumed to go back to the Kingdom of Kangleipak in the early 12th century. The Meitei script is a Brahmic abugida. It is known only from the Puya manuscripts discovered in the first half of the 20th century. Manuscripts of the 18th and 19th centuries were written using the Bengali alphabet. The existence of the Meitei script in the 15th-century hinges on the authenticity of an inscription dated to the reign of Senbi Kiyamba. The first printed Manipuri book, Manipurer Itihas, appeared in 1890 from the Baptist Mission Press, Calcutta. Though the kings of Manipur had established contact with the British from the middle of the eighteenth century onward the real impact of the contact came much later. Johnstone Middle English School, based on the western system of education, was started in 1885 at Imphal, and in 1891 Manipur lost its independence to the British. British domination facilitated the introduction of new systems in the civil, political and educational spheres, which hastened the process of modernization in Manipur, exposed as it was to new ideas and influences.
The Manipuri Sahitya Parishad, also termed as the Manipur Sahitya Parishad, is a literary council dedicated to the active promotion and the development of the literary works in Meitei language in India. It takes one of the vital roles for the development of the Meitei language and Meitei culture, in national as well as international levels. It has its branches in Imphal, Jiribam, Bishnupur and Thoubal inside Manipur and in Assam, Tripura and Meghalaya outside Manipur.
Assamese Brahmins are the Brahmins present in the Assamese society. There they promoted learning, Vedic religion, astrology, ayurveda and as well as imparting general vedic knowledge to the public. The Brahmins came to Assam from Videha (Mithila), Kannauj, Bengal and many other places.
Nongshaba, also spelled as Nongsaba, is a Lion God in Meitei religion (Sanamahism) and mythology. He is also regarded as a king of the gods. He is credited with producing light in the primordial universe and is regarded as the maker of the sun. He is worshipped by the people of both the Ningthouja clans as well as the Moirang clans. God Nongshaba was worshipped by the people of Moirang clan as a lineage deity and regarded as the father of God Thangching (Thangjing). He is the greatest of the Umang Lais in Ancient Kangleipak but he made his only son Thangching (Thangjing) the chief deity of Moirang.
Hinduism is one of the major religions practiced in the state of Manipur, India. Hinduism is concentrated in the Imphal Valley and other plain districts of Manipur located in the regions neighbouring Assam state. Hinduism is practiced mostly among the Meitei people, who are the predominant ethnic group of Manipur. Whilst the proportion of Manipur's population that practices Hinduism is roughly 41%, in the Manipur valley region Hindus constitute as much as 67-74% of the population. Between the 1961 and 2011 censuses of India, the share of Hindus in the state declined from 62% to 41%, while the share of Christians rose from 19% to 41%.
Yumjao Leima or Yumjao Lairembi or Yumjao Lairemma is the mother goddess of house, household, royalty, rule and power in Meitei mythology and religion. She is designated as the all time ruling Queen Mother. Legend says she assumes a human form in white clothes and blesses kings. She is one of the divine incarnations of Leimarel Sidabi.
Loyalakpa, also spelt as Loyarakpa, is a God in Meitei mythology and religion of Ancient Kangleipak. He is best known for wrestling with Khoriphaba during the Lai Haraoba festival. He is the consort of goddess Thoudu Nungthel Leima. He is one of the ten kingly gods in Meitei religion.
Pureiromba is a God in Meitei mythology and religion. He is the giver of rain and agricultural prosperity. He is one of the major Umang Lai deities. He is the Ancestor God of the Angom clan of the Meitei ethnicity.
Mongba Hanba is a forest god in Meitei mythology and religion. He is mainly worshipped in a sacred forest named Mongba Hanba Umang in the banks of the Imphal River in Manipur.
Meitei mythology or Manipuri mythology is a collection of myths, belonging to the religious and cultural traditions of the Meitei people, the predominant ethnic group of Manipur. It is associated with traditional Meitei religion (Sanamahism). Meitei myths are a part of Meitei culture and explain various natural phenomena, how the human civilization developed, and the reasons of many things happening. Most of the Meitei legends are found in the Meitei language texts.
