Chin people

The Chin peoples (Burmese: ချင်းလူမျိုး; MLCTS: hkyang: lu. myui:, pronounced [tɕɪ́ɰ̃ lù mjó]) are collection of ethnic groups native to the Chin State, Myanmar that speak the Kuki-Chin-Mizo languages, which are closely related but mutually unintelligible. The Chin identity, as a pan-ethnic identity, is a modern construction, shaped by British rule, Christian missionary influence, and post-independence ethnic politics that has built upon older tribal and regional identities.

Chin (ချင်း, MLCTS: khyang:) is a pseudo-exonym, a Burmese language adaptation of the Asho Chin word khlong or khlaung, which means "man" or "person."^[7] Burmese speakers approximated the Asho Chin word, and began to apply the exonym to all nearby groups residing in the Arakan Mountains and Chin Hills.^[7] The Burmese term first appeared in stone inscriptions dating to the reign of King Kyansittha in the 11th century.^[8]

The term "Chin" is not universally accepted by all groups living in Chin State nor by all Kuki-Chin groups.^[7] Groups in the north prefer the ethnonym Zo, while related ethnolinguistic groups in India prefer the terms Zomi or Mizo.^[7][9]

During the era of British rule, the colonial government used the compound term 'Chin-Kuki-Mizo' to group the Kukish language speaking peoples, and the Indian government inherited this nomenclature.^[10][11][12] The Burmese government classifies the Chin as a "national race" comprised of 53 sub-groups that predominantly live in Chin State.^[13]

The Chin peoples predominantly live in the western part of Myanmar, stretching from the Singu Plateau to the Arakan Mountains, encompassing Chin and Rakhine States, Bago, Magwe, and Sagaing Region.^[9] Major cities like Yangon and Mandalay are also home to big Chin communities.^[7] Some of the Chin live in Rakhine State and most of them are Cumtu, Asho, Kongtu and Laitu. The Chin in Rakhine State live in Myebon, Minbya, Ann, Thandwe and Gwa, and are majority Cumtu Chin.

Due to political instability in Myanmar, many Chin have migrated to Bangladesh, India, Thailand, Malaysia, and the United States as refugees.^[9][14] American Baptist, British, and Swedish Lutheran church groups have helped relocate thousands of Chin people. 20,000 Chin people refugees are living in Malaysia. Several thousands more are scattered in North America, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand.^[15]

The Chin people who flee from Burma usually enter the United States directly from Thailand, Malaysia, and India. Leaving Myanmar is often illegal, dangerous, and costly. Refugees with limited means flee by boat, car, or on foot, while those with more resources may travel by air.^[16] Human smugglers, or brokers, typically charge around US$1,000 per person to cross borders. If caught by either Burmese or foreign authorities, refugees risk imprisonment and mistreatment, including beatings. In refugee camps—mainly in Thailand—families are advised that having children may improve their chances of resettlement in the United States. As a result, many young Chin parents arrive in the U.S. needing immediate employment to support their families.^[17][18]

An estimated 60,000 to 100,000 Chin refugees live in India, primarily in Mizoram. Due to restrictions on freedom of movement imposed by the SPDC, many flee Myanmar without documents and seek refuge across the border.^[19][20] While Mizoram initially welcomed the Chin, growing numbers led to backlash and deportations among local Mizos. The Young Mizo Association (YMA), which promotes Mizo identity, previously ordered Chin refugees to leave and assisted police in forced evictions—actions that violated the principle of non-refoulement.^[21][22] Chins in Mizoram live without legal status, making them vulnerable to arrest, detention, and exploitation. They face challenges accessing livelihoods, healthcare, and shelter, and often live on the margins of society.^[23][24]

Ancestors of the Chin are believed to have originated between the Yangtze and Yellow Rivers in northwestern China.^[9] They migrated to the Chindwin River valley during the first millenium, before populating the Kale-Kabaw, Yaw, and Myittha valleys.^[9] During the 12th and 13th centuries, they made contact with Burmese kingdoms, and subsequently moved to the highlands, where fertile land was scarce.^[9] The scarcity of land resources created a clan-oriented society among the Chin.^[9] By the 19th century, the Falam clan controlled most of the Chin peoples.^[9] In the pre-colonial era, the Chin peoples were not a unified pan-ethnic group, and were instead were organized into independent clans, tribes, and villages with their own dialects and customs.

Following the Third Anglo-Burmese War in 1885, the British annexed Chin-speaking areas as part of British Burma. British administrators grouped diverse hill tribes under umbrella terms like “Chin,” “Kachin,” and “Karen” for ease of governance and classification. The label “Chin” became an administrative and ethnographic category, applied to many ethnolinguistic groups across what are now Chin State, Sagaing Region, and Rakhine State. Christian missionary activity (especially by American Baptists) and colonial census practices helped reinforce this collective identity.

The newfound democracy in Chin State ended abruptly in 1962 with the onset of military rule under Ne Win in Burma.^[14] The 1974 Burmese constitution granted statehood to Chin State, which had previously been administered as Chin Special Division since Burma's independence in 1948.

Ne Win remained in power until 1988, when nationwide protests against the regime erupted.^[14] These uprisings, commonly known as the 8888 Uprising—named after the date they began, 8 August 1988—were met with a violent crackdown by the military government.^[14] The government's response resulted in the deaths of approximately 3,000 people within a matter of weeks and led to the imprisonment of many more.^[14] It was during this period of resistance that the Chin National Front (CNF) and its armed wing, the Chin National Army (CNA), gained momentum.^[14] In 2012, the CNA negotiated a ceasefire with the Burmese military. In 2015, the CNA became a signatory to the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA).^[25]

Chin State voters overwhelmingly voted for the National League for Democracy in the 2020 Myanmar general election.^[13]

Following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, Chin residents participated in anti-coup protests,^[13] and the CNA resumed fighting against the Burmese armed forces.^[26] Ongoing conflict has displaced 160,000 people – more than one third of Chin State’s population – either internally or across the Indian border.^[13] Rival Chin insurgent groups, such as the CNA and the Chin Brotherhood, the latter of which is allied with the Arakan Army, have engaged in infighting.^[13] Many Chins fled to the Indian state of Mizoram following the coup in Myanmar. Despite the Indian government's directives, the Mizoram government sheltered over 10,000 Chin refugees, citing ethnic and historical ties. Mizoram Chief Minister Zoramthanga stated:^[27]

Myanmar areas bordering Mizoram are inhabited by Chin communities who are ethnically our Mizo brethren... Mizoram cannot remain indifferent to their suffering today. India cannot turn a blind eye to this humanitarian crisis unfolding right in front of us in our own backyard.

This sentiment was echoed across the state. The YMA built refugee camps and coordinated donations of food, clothing, and funds from across Mizoram.^[28][29][30]

The Chin peoples are divided into six main tribes, namely the Asho, Cho (Sho), Khumi (M'ro), Laimi, Mizo (Lushai), and Zomi, which can be further distinguished by at least 60 different sub-tribal categories.^[31] The Chin have adopted clan names based on their ancestral origins; for instance the Sizang have adopted a common clan name, Siyin.^[9] Chin politics and society remain largely based on tribal affiliation, which has translated into rivalry or division among different Chin communities.^[13]

Chin cuisine is typified by abundant use of vegetables, and meat is typically boiled and served with vegetables.^[9] Rice, corn, and millet are common staple foods.^[9] The Chin have faced severe famines due to an ecological phenomenon called mautam.^[9] The Chin brew a homemade alcohol called zu, which plays a ritual role in Chin culture.^[32] Alcohol abuse is common among male Chin refugees.^[32] Chin elders also consume nicotine juice called thibur, which is carried in small gourd containers.^[32]

There are several traditional dresses such as Matu, Falam, Tedim, Zo, Tapong, Zotung, Mindat, Daa Yindu (Kanpetlet), Mara, etc. The main colors use for these traditional dresses are red, green and black. Accessories such as bracelets, necklaces, hairpins and rings also play a huge role when it comes to traditional clothing as they complete the overall looks of the Chin. Chin people do not wear these clothes in daily life. They wear these on special occasions like Sundays, weddings, Chin National Day and other important occasions.^[33][34]

The Chin celebrate Christian holidays like Easter and Christmas.^[9]

The Chin National Day is celebrated annually on 20 February, which is the day the Chin peoples abolished the slavery system or chieftainship. The first Chin National Day was celebrated in 1951 at Mindat.^[35] People display many traditional dance such as bamboo dance,^[36] sarlamkai (conquest dance), khuangcawi (a lady is lifted by a crowd), ruakhatlak and many other dances from each group. One of the big events on Chin National Day is the traditional wrestling (lai paih).^[37] There is also Miss competition from each town or city in Chin State. Other events, such as fashion shows and singing also take place in Chin National Day.^[38] Traditional food, such as sabuti (hominy corn soup) and chang (rice cake) are served.

Wrestling is a part of the Chins' sporting traditions.^[39]

Chin United F.C. represents the Chin people in Burmese association football. The club play in the Myanmar National League.

The Chin peoples speak a variety of related but mutually unintelligible Kuki-Chin languages, which are conservative in maintaining Proto-Tibeto-Burman phonology, including preservation of many initial and final consonants.^[7] Several Chin languages are facing extinction due to competing local and national languages, such as Lamtuk, which is being displaced by Hakha Chin and Burmese.^[7] Multilingualism is common among the Chin, who invariably speak a native language, a nearby local language, and the national language, like Burmese.^[7][9]

Ethnologue lists 49 languages in this group, of which 20 contain the word "Chin" in their name.^[40] The following are widely-spoken Chin languages:

• Tedim Chin, with an estimated 411,000 speakers^[41]
• Thado Chin, with an estimated 346,100 speakers^[42]
• Hakha Chin, with an estimated 210,410 speakers^[43]
• Falam Chin, with an estimated 107,900 speakers^[44]
• Asho Chin, with an estimated 174,000 speakers^[45]
• Khumi Chin, with an estimated 64,000 speakers^[46]
• Mara Chin, with an estimated 62,400 speakers^[47]
• Zotung Chin, with an estimated 40,000 speakers^[48]
• Matu Chin, with an estimated 40,000 speakers^[49]

Historically, the Chin peoples were animists, professing a belief in good and evil spirits that inhabited natural phenomena.^[9] The Chin also worshipped a powerful supreme god, Pathian, who is believed to command the universe.^[9] Gayals were commonly sacrificed during religious rituals.^[9]

In the late 1800s, the first Christian missionaries arrived in Chin State, and began converting the Chin to Christianity.^[17] Due to the work of the Baptist Arthur E. Carson, their efforts were successful, and today the majority of Chin are Christians, with most belonging to Protestant denominations, especially Baptist.^[50][51] Christianity grew from 35% in 1966 to 90% in 2010.^[52] Christian Chins have faced religious persecution from the military government in predominantly Buddhist Myanmar.^[53][54]

Several Chin tribes, including the Asho Chin, are majority Buddhist.^[55] Other Buddhist Kuki-Chin-speaking ethnic groups, like the Taungtha people in Magway Region, do not self-identify as Chin.^[56]

Since the late 20th century, a group of Chin, Kuki, and Mizo peoples have claimed descent from Bnei Menashe, one of the Lost Tribes of Israel and have adopted Judaism.^[57]

Since the 1962 military coup by Ne Win, the Chin—an mostly Christian minority in a predominantly Buddhist Myanmar—have faced systemic ethnic and religious persecution.^[58][59] The Tatmadaw and successive military juntas, including the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) have committed widespread abuses, including forced labor, torture, arbitrary detention, and extrajudicial killings.^[60] Fear of retaliation and restrictions on movement and the press have made it difficult for Chin to speak out.^[61] These conditions have driven many to flee to India, Thailand, and Malaysia, often without legal protection or refugee status.^[62][63]

Myanmar’s report to the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) claims legal protections for human rights under its constitution and penal code.^[64] However, these legal guarantees are frequently violated. Several countries, including the United States, Poland, and New Zealand, have called for Myanmar to end abuses against minorities like the Chin.^[65]

Although Myanmar is not party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, it is still bound by other international obligations that protect the right to life.^[66][67][68] Despite this, the SPDC and Tatmadaw continue to commit extrajudicial killings in Chin State with impunity.^[69] Human Rights Watch and the Chin Human Rights Organization (CHRO) have documented killings, including children and women, for suspected opposition ties.^[70][71]

Myanmar's legal code prohibits arbitrary arrest and guarantees legal representation, but these rights are often ignored.^[72][66] Chin detainees report being beaten, tortured, and denied basic needs, including clean food and water, while held in unsanitary and overcrowded prisons.^[73][74]

Despite Myanmar’s ratification of the 1930 Forced Labour Convention, forced labor remains widespread.^{[75][76][77][68]} Chin civilians are often forced to construct military buildings, carry supplies, or serve as porters under threat of violence.^[78][79] A 2011 study using household interviews found that 92% of Chin households surveyed experienced forced labor, and 76% were forced to build infrastructure. Thirty-six reported detentions.^[80][81]

• Gokhothang, Guite prince from Mualpi, also known as Goukhothang, Go Khaw Thang, Go Khua Thang, or Kokutung (the latter being the name used by the historians Carey and Tuck). He is the only Zomi prince whom the neighboring Meitei (Manipur) kingdom ever acknowledged as Raja (or Ningthou in Metei language). His powerful dominion included over seventy cities, towns, and villages.^[82] He became known as the leader of all Zo people.^[83]
• Pau Cin Hau, Zomi prophet who lived c. 1859 and created a script for the Zo people named Zo tuallai. He also founded the Laipan religion, which was very popular among the Zo people before the arrival of American missionaries.
• Khai Kam Suantak (c. 1867), Chin leader that ruled over the largest fiefdom in the Chin Hills. Khai Kam College in Kalemyo was named in his honor, although it had since been renamed Kale College.
• Zoramthanga, boxer who won a bronze medal at the 1990 Bombay Boxing World Cup.
• Taik Chun, soldier and recipient of Aung San Thuriya medal, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry and bravery.
• Henry Van Thio, politician and vice-president of Burma.
• Cheery Zahau, human rights and women's right activist, feminist, politician, writer, development and peace leader. She is the founder and leader of "Women's League of Chinland" and winner of UNDP's N-Peace Awards 2017.
• Thet Mon Myint, Burmese Myanmar Academy Award-winning actress
• Benjamin Sum, singer and runner up of Myanmar Idol season 4
• Esther Dawt Chin Sung, singer and winner of Myanmar Idol season 4

• Chin Student Association
• Kuki

Media related to Chin people at Wikimedia Commons

• Tongdot English – Zomi/Chin Online dictionary
• English – Zomi/Chin Online dictionary
• Human Rights Watch Report on Persecution of Chins
• Report on Chin People Seeking Refuge in Mizoram Archived 2016-06-04 at the Wayback Machine