The Phai are an

ethnic group An ethnicity or ethnic group is a group of people with shared attributes, which they collectively believe to have, and long-term endogamy. Ethnicities share attributes like language, culture, common sets of ancestry, traditions, society, re ...

in Thailand and Laos. They are one of two sub-groups of the

Lua people The Lua people () are a minority ethnic group native to Laos, although there is now a sizable community living in Thailand. ''Luaʼ'' is their preferred Exonym and endonym, autonym (self-designation), while their Lao people, Lao neighbours tend ...

(the other one being the Mal).

Name Variation

The Phai are also commonly referred to as Prai, Phay, Thung Chan Pray, Kha Phay,Ethnologue report for Laos
/ref> and Pray. In Laos they are also referred to as Htin.

Language

The Phai speak a language also called ''Phai'', which belongs to the

Khmuic The Khmuic languages are a branch of the Austroasiatic languages spoken mostly in northern Laos, as well as in neighboring northern Vietnam and southern Yunnan, China. Khmu is the only widely spoken language in the group. Homeland Paul Sidwell ...

branch of

Austroasiatic languages The Austroasiatic languages ( ) are a large language family spoken throughout Mainland Southeast Asia, South Asia and East Asia. These languages are natively spoken by the majority of the population in Vietnam and Cambodia, and by minority popu ...

There are several dialects called ''Phai'', that are sometimes hardly mutually intelligible.

Geographic Distribution

*Population in Laos: 15,000 in

Phongsali Phongsali or Phongsaly () is the capital of Phongsaly Province, Laos. It is the northernmost provincial capital in Laos. Languages Climate Phongsali has a subtropical highland climate (Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate cla ...

and Xaignabouli Provinces There are also dozens of Prai villages in Thailand.

References

{{Ethnic groups in Laos Ethnic groups in Laos Ethnic groups in Thailand Khmuic peoples