Thangkhals:Who Are They?

OUR DIALECT IS OUR IDENTITY "THANGKHAL FORUM is a discussion forum for the development of the THANGKHAL tribe in Manipur-North East India & abroad.The Thangkhal tribe belongs to one of the ‘Chin-Kuki-Mizo- Zomi’ family of Tibeto-Burman race. They believed they were the descendants of the progenitor ‘Zo’ or ‘Jo’, or ‘Chou’.The Suktes and Tedims (Tiddims) called them as 'Sim Mi’, which simply means 'Northerners'. However, the Thangkhal, themselves were also known as ‘Zo-Mi’ in the olden days. Literally, “THANGKHAL” derived from the combination of “THAANG”, which means ‘a hilly region’, and “KHALH”, means “a dense form of fog”. Another root word of ‘Thangkhal’ is ‘Thaang-Kaai Gam’, which means a land of mountainous ranges surrounded by a thick forest, where no man ever trodden in. The land of abundant fruits and the productivity of agriculture yields high. A land where people could maintain their livelihood easily.Though the Thangkhals fulfill all the necessary criteria for tribe recognition, undoubtedly they could not achieve the status of Recognised Tribe so far. This clearly shows the Government pay no attention towards the redresses of the Thangkhals, who were on the verge of extinction. Further, the Thangkhals does not want their old-aged practices – Thangkhal dialect, customs, traditions and their cultures to vanish on earth. Instead, they want to preserve ‘Thangkhal Dialect' which is the sole identity of the Thangkhal peoples. ::::: Long Live THANGKHAL !!!!!