Kawlrama Mizote | |
|---|---|
 Mizo or Lushai Chin attire shown in the National Races Village,Yangon, Myanmar. | |
| Total population | |
| 400,000[a][1] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Languages | |
| Religion | |
| Christianity | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
TheLusei(Mizo) people in Myanmar, historically theBurma National Lushais (Burmese:မြန်မာနိုင်ငံရှိ လူရှည်/လူရှိုင်း(မီဇိုး)လူမျိုးများ) areMyanmar citizens with full or partialMizo ancestry. Although various Mizo tribes have lived inMyanmar for past centuries, the first wave of Mizos migrated back to Myanmar in the mid-19th to the 20th centuries.[2]
The Mizo people do not influence the rest of Myanmar culturally, butMizoram, the native land of the Mizos, has helped refugees from Myanmar since 1962, afterMyanmar's first coup. It was more noticeable after the8888 Uprising in 1988 and thecoup and civil war in 2021.[3] They have also raised funds, and the Chinlung Chuak Artists, a band of Mizo and Burmese singers, fundraise for the displaced in Myanmar.
The number of Mizos is estimated to be 250,000-400,000 in Myanmar. Over 200,000 reside in the town ofKalay. They are part of theMizo diaspora and the largerZo community.
The early Burmese Mizo people, historically referred to as Lu Shaing (Burmese: လူရှိုင်း), Lu Shay (Burmese: လူရှေ/လူရှည်), and Kalinkaw (Burmese: ကလင်ကော့), were known to have resided in theKabaw Valley, along theIndo–Burmese border. Historical records suggest that during their time in the Kabaw Valley, they recognized theBurman's sovereignty over the region and allied with local forces. Notably, a 1972 Burmese encyclopedia mentions that in the year 1823, 800 Mizos joinedMaha Bandula'scavalry, contributing to the defense of theKhampat area from foreign incursions, including by constructing and safeguarding defensive walls.[4]
The first census taken in the Chin Hills occurred in 1896 and showed 20 Mizo villages with 608 houses. In 1914, another wave of Mizos migrated, led by Kapmawia fromChamphai district. Most Burmese Mizos have a military background. Around the 1940s in theBritish Lushai Hills (present-day Mizoram), it was considered popular to join theBurmese Army.[5] Hence, there were 500 Mizos in the Burmese Army in 1947, and that number grew to 3,000 in 1960.
C. Khuma (Challiankhuma), an Army Officer serving in Burma, wrote a tragic love story calledMemiau Sanapui (Maymyo Clocktower) in 1946. It was published by the Burma Lushai Association in 1950. This tragedy was perhaps the first Mizo fiction ever printed and published outside Mizoram.Irrawaddy Luikamah (At theBank of the Irrawaddy) byJames Dokhuma was also written.[6]
The first Mizo town in Myanmar founded by Mizo migrants isLetpankone, inSagaing Region; in Mizo, it is known asSainguauva khua.
In a government-led estimation in 1972, there were 83 Mizo villages with 5,736 homes, with 33,554 people, in Myanmar.[7]
Most Burmese Mizos areChristians and speakMizo andBurmese.Chapchar Kut, a famous Mizo festival, is one of those that are celebrated publicly inKalay.[8]
It has introduced some Mizo dishes to Myanmar such as these:
Most Mizos in Myanmar officially identify with theChin ethnic group. However, theAnti-Fascist People's Freedom League once encouraged Mizos to come fromMizoram and to settle in Myanmar. The same was true for theManipuris as well. Some thought that those were tactics to let the party gain votes.[9][10]