The

Meitei people The Meitei people, also known as Meetei people,P.20: "historically, academically and conventionally Manipuri prominently refers to the Meetei people."P.24: "For the Meeteis, Manipuris comprise Meeteis, Lois, Kukis, Nagas and Pangal." are a Ti ...

(), also called

Manipuri people The Meitei people, also known as Meetei people,P.20: "historically, academically and conventionally Manipuri prominently refers to the Meetei people."P.24: "For the Meeteis, Manipuris comprise Meeteis, Lois, Kukis, Nagas and Pangal." are a Ti ...

(), are one of the minority ethnic groups in

Nagaland Nagaland () is a States and union territories of India, state in the northeast India, north-eastern region of India. It is bordered by the Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh to the north, Assam to the west, Manipur to the south, and the Naga Sel ...

state. They were living in the region before the formation of the Indian state of "Nagaland".

History

THE KOHIMA STONE INSCRIPTION ERECTED BY KING GAMBHIR SINGH OF MANIPUR KINGDOM AS THE TESTIMONY OF MEITEI DOMINANCE IN NAGALAND

After losing Meitei influence in the

Naga hills The Naga Hills, reaching a height of around , lie prominently on the border of India and Myanmar. They are part of a complex mountain system, and the parts of the mountain ranges inside the States and territories of India, Indian states of Naga ...

for some time due to the Manipuri-Burmese military conflicts, Meitei King Raja

Gambhir Singh Chinglen Nongdrenkhomba (1788–1834), also known as Raja Gambhir Singh, was a ruler of the Manipur Kingdom. Biography He was a son of Chingthang Khomba. He succeeded his nephew Yumjaotaba in April 1821 during the seven years devastation. H ...

(), also known as Chinglen Nongdrenkhomba (), the ruler of

Manipur Kingdom The Manipur Kingdom, also known as Meckley, was an ancient kingdom at the India–Burma frontier. Historically, Manipur was an independent kingdom ruled by a Ningthouja dynasty, Meitei dynasty. But it was also invaded and ruled over ...

conquered the whole

Naga Hills The Naga Hills, reaching a height of around , lie prominently on the border of India and Myanmar. They are part of a complex mountain system, and the parts of the mountain ranges inside the States and territories of India, Indian states of Naga ...

with his military power of Manipur Levy. He defeated the

Angami Naga The Angamis are a major Naga ethnic group native to the Northeast Indian state of Nagaland. They predominantly inhabit the Kohima District, Chümoukedima District Chümoukedima (), previously spelled Chumukedima, formerly known as Sama ...

tribes of

Kohima Kohima (; Tenyidie: Kewhira ()) is the capital of the North East Indian state of Nagaland. With a resident population of almost 100,000, it is the second largest city in the state. Kohima constitutes both a district and a municipality. The m ...

. To mark his victory over the

Naga people Nagas are various Tibeto-Burman languages, Tibeto-Burman ethnic groups native to northeastern India and northwestern Myanmar. The groups have similar cultures and traditions, and form the majority of population in the Indian state of Nagaland ...

, the historic

Kohima Stone Inscription The Kohima Stone or Gambhir Singh's Stone is a historical Meitei stone inscription monument, erected by Meitei King Gambhir Singh (Chinglen Nongdrenkhomba) of Manipur (princely state) in Kohima, the capital of Nagaland. It was erected in 1833 ...

() was erected in 1833 CE as a mark of Meitei conquest and supremacy over the Naga Hills in 1832 CE. In 1896 CE, James Johnstone noted in his documents that the Meiteis (alias Manipuris) were highly respected and warmly welcomed as special and honoured guests by the Naga people in almost every village, during the time when Britishers couldn't go inside the Naga realm without having the risk of being killed. He also noted that the Meiteis (Manipuris) used to collect tributes from the Naga villages, as a mark of rule over them. In case if a Meitei was attacked or killed by the Nagas, the particular village was immediately attacked and destroyed, besides taking huge taxes for the deed. Many Naga people knew the

Meitei language Meitei (; ) also known as Manipuri ), is a Tibeto-Burman language of northeast India. It is the official language and the lingua franca of Manipur and an additional official language in four districts of Assam. It is one of the scheduled ...

(alias

Manipuri language Meitei (; ) also known as Manipuri ), is a Tibeto-Burman language of northeast India. It is the official language and the lingua franca of Manipur and an additional official language in four districts of Assam. It is one of the scheduled ...

). The Naga villages had both

as well as their local language names.

Geographical distribution

Meiteis in Nagaland have sizeable populations in Kuda (Half Nagarjan), Burma Camp, Phom Colony, Y. Zhimo Colony, Metha Colony, West Yard Manipuri Colony, Manipuri Colony near Samaan Ghat and Ghorapatti villages in

Dimapur district Dimapur District (Pron:/ˌdɪməˈpʊə/) is a district of Nagaland state in India. With an area of about , it is the smallest district in the state of Nagaland. History Assam lease Dimapur to Nagaland In 1918, Dimapur was leased to then Nag ...

Language and literature

Historically, most Naga villages had names in both

(alias

) as well as their local languages. Many Naga people knew the

. Nagaland's St Joseph University annually organises " Manipuri poetry day" on full-moon day of the lunar month 'Mera' according to the

Meitei calendar The Meitei calendar () or the Manipuri calendar () or the Kangleipak calendar () or the Maliyapham Palcha Kumshing () is a lunar calendar used by the Meitei people of Manipur for their religious, agricultural and other cultural activities. New mo ...

. The event helps in the development of

poems, promoting

Meitei literature Meitei literature, also known as Manipuri literature, is literature written in the Meitei language of Manipur. An ancient institution of learning, the ''Luwang Nonghumsang'', later known as the ''Pandit Loishang'', collected sources of indige ...

, to a certain extent.

Culture

Clothing

The Meitei people of Nagaland produced a unique "Meetei waistcoat" () for showing the Meitei ethnic identity, among the rest of the people of the state, in 2022. It was led by the Dimapur Meetei Council.

Bad treatments

Negligence by the government

Meitei people are facing negligence by the

Government of Nagaland The Government of Nagaland also known as the State Government of Nagaland, or locally as State Government, is the governing authority of the India state of Nagaland and its Districts of Nagaland, 17 districts. It consists of an executive branch ...

. They have no land ownership rights. They also face difficulty in getting documents such as OBC, PRC (Permanent Residential Certificate) and

domicile Domicile may refer to: * Home, a place where someone lives * Domicile (astrology), the zodiac sign over which a planet has rulership * Domicile (law), the status or attribution of being a permanent resident in a particular jurisdiction See also * ...

certificates. They cannot get state

government job The public sector, also called the state sector, is the part of the economy composed of both public services and public enterprises. Public sectors include the public goods and governmental services such as the military, law enforcement, Infr ...

s except for driver and technical posts. They have no alternative except private jobs or doing businesses for their living.

Banning of Meitei owned vehicles

In 2016, there were incidents of banning transportation of vehicles owned by Meiteis (Manipuris) in Nagaland. Regarding this issue, the Manipur State Police DGP talked to the Nagaland State Police DGP to look into the matter. The latter assured that he would take care of it.

Associations and organizations

* Dimapur Meetei Council * Dimapur Meitei Union

References

Other websites

{{Authority control Meitei people History of India Ethnic groups in India Discrimination History of Nagaland People from Nagaland Politics of Nagaland Culture of Nagaland