Lai people

The total population of the group was around 1,700,000 in 1991.[1] The name Laimi often refers to Chin people who live in the Chin Hills or Central Chin which are Hakha, Thantlang, Falam, etc.[2]

Red region is Chin state

Chin state is 13,907 square miles. Border by Sagaing Division to the east, Magway Division to the south-east, Rakhine State to the south, and Mizoram to the west.[2] According to the 2014 Myanmar population and housing census the population of Chin state is about 478,801, 47.95% male, and 52.05% female.[3] Hakha is the capital city of Chin state and there are nine townships: Hakha, Htantlang, Falam, Tiddim, Tonzang, Matupi, Mindat, Kanpalet, and Paletwa. Each township have their own subtribe and there are about 53 subtribes. There are about 45 dialect of the Chin language.[4] Of these, the most widely spoken dialects are estimated and they are:[5]

1. Tedim Chin 344,000 speakers
2. Falam Chin an estimated 107,300 speakers
3. Hakha Chin 125,000 speakers
4. Matu Chin 100,000 speakers

"Each dialect is so distinct that people who speak different dialects will not likely understand each other".[4]

The Lai who are living in the Lai Autonomous District of Mizoram are a segmented community of the much larger Lai (Hakha) population of Burma and elsewhere to whom whatever name may be given. They share common ancestry with those of any Mongoloid race in the Northeast India. Further back, a historic tradition has it that Lai people had once lived in China. They migrated through the Tibetan mountains moving further towards the East to become a major tribal group in the Chin Hills of Burma from where same few came to the present habitat (Mizoram) in the beginning of the 18th century or earlier.

The Lai are also believed to be from the main tree of the Qin Dynasty. The Bible which is commonly used in Chin Hills is called the Lai-Hakha Bible. It is also said that the word Shendoo or Shendu, which was frequently used to denote the Lakher (Mara) in the Britisher's record, were said to be the offspring of Lai. F. Chhawnmanga, a retired District Adult Education Officer, under the State Government of Mizoram, who has conducted an extensive personal interview with some chiefs of Lakher, tells. The Lakher chief Mr. Kilkhara of Saiha and Tawngliana of Serkawr Villages were the descendants of Lianchi and Alkheng respectively of Hlawnchhing family of Hakha. They spoke Lai language. However, after coming down to Mizoram, their names were translated into Lakher dialect and themselves Kikhaw and Thylai. The above arguments seem to be supported by the statement of Vumson, thus: They are the same people as Shendoo to whom Col. Lewin made constant reference in his various works and are still called Shendoo by the Arakanis. There are many common clan names like Hlawnchhing, Chinzah, Khenglawt, Thianhlun, etc. which are found between the Lai and Maras. This is an indication of the fact that Lai and Mara were the same people. Apart from the above-mentioned groups, there are other linguistic groups that were found to have the same culture and customs, speak a similar language with the Lai. These groups do qualify for Lai in terms of social, cultural and linguistic. Those groups are Bawm and Tlanglau living in the western part of Mizoram and Bangladesh.

The first Christian missionary's are Arthur Carson and his wife Laura arrived Hakha on March 15, 1899. Today, the majority of Chin are Christian.