Khamti people

Khamti Shan

Diorama of Khamti people in Jawaharlal Nehru Museum, Itanagar
Total population
(70,000 (est.))
Regions with significant populations
Myanmar, India
Languages
Khamti, Burmese, Assamese, other
Religion
Theravada Buddhism
Related ethnic groups
Thai people, Shan people

The Khamti (Burmese: ခန္တီးရှမ်းလူမျိုး; also spelt Hkamti Shan) or Tai Khamti (Thai: ชาวไทคำตี่, Chao Tai Kam Dtee) as they are also known, are a sub-group of the Shan people found in the Sagaing Division, Hkamti District in northwestern Burma as well as Lohit district of Arunachal Pradesh in India. Smaller numbers can be found in parts of Assam as well as the East Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh. As of 1990 their total population was estimated to be around 70,000, but in 2000 it was recalculated that it actually stood at 13,100, of which 4,235 live in Burma. The tribe's name is also spelled Khampti by the Assamese.

The Khamti who inhabit the region around the Tengapani basin were descendants of migrants who came during the 18th century from the Bor-Khampti region, the mountainous valley of the Irrawaddy. The Khamti possess East Asian features.

The Tai-Khamti are followers of Theravada Buddhism. The Tai-Khampti adopted a script of Shan origin, known as Lik-Tai for their language. Their mother tongue is known as Khamti language.

The Khamti society is divided into classes, each signifying distinct status in the social hierarchy. The chiefs occupy the highest positions, followed by the priests, who wield considerable influence over all ranks. In the past, the slaves constituted the lowest rank.

The name "Chao Tai Kam Dtee" should be written as "Chao Tai Kham Tee"

The Tai-Khamti are very strong believers of Theravada Buddhism. Every house has a prayer room and they pray every morning and evening by offerings flowers (nam taw yongli) and food (khao tang som). They are peace-loving people.