Zomi Identity: Midangte Hong Ciamtekna Diklo Pawlkhat
I. Thuphatna: Zomi Koi Pan Hong Pai
Zomi koi pan hong pai, hong piangkhia cih bel ei lak ah gen kul vet nawn lo thu hi. Ciimnuai mi khempeuh in ih pianna Pupi Progenitor pen Pu ZO ci in upna kinei a, ZO khangsimna ih nei hi. Tua Zo khang sungah kihel teng tu ni in Zomi ki ci a, akkhiatna Zo people hi lel hi. Bang mah nial ding thu om lo hi. Zomi scholar or Chin scholar ei mi sungah Dr. Vum Ko Hau, Dr. Vum Son, Rev. Khup Za Go, Rev. Sing Khaw Khai, etc. te in Zomi = Zo People cih thukim uh hi. Tua mahbang in ih sanggam Mizo te zong Zo people mah hipah lel hi. Amau zongh Pu Zo pan a piang mah in ki um a thuciamtekna nei uh hi. Adang Yaw, Asho, Cho, etc. te zongh Zo mah tawh kibanga, ih sanggam te mah ahi uh hi.
Nidang in Sen gam pan a lal suk pawk ki hih tuak hi. Ahihhang khat ah Sen gam pan lal h’ang ci ni Sen kumpi nam ding khawnga ki upmawh te pawlpawl bel khiatna nei lo zel hi. Gth: Chin dynasty, Zhou dynasty cih khawng te le ei ih kisai na bang mah om kilkel lo hi. Ei pen lai or civilization nei lo te; ahihkei leh amansuak te ih hi hi. Lam khat pan in tangthu nei mel lo pawl ih hi hi.
Nung in US Census 2010 ah Pu King Mang te pawl makaihna tawh Zomi akici mimal 2000 khawng, census sungah kiciamtek cihthu ih za hi. American te’n Zomi akici minam te hong bang ci ciamtek identify tam maw? Zomi cih pen tuhun khangthak te’n akhiatna, ih pianna, ngeina, etc. tangthu ih theih ding thupi mah mah ding hi.
II. British te’ Hong Ciamtekna
British te’n 1890s sung ei Zogam hong sim na sungah ei lam te tawh kido masa a, hong zawh khit uh ciang kilemna leh daihna pacification abawl khittak uh ciang, Ciimnuai Chronicle pen anthropological research hong bawl uh hi. Tangthu ciamtekna lai anei lo minam t’a dingin The Chin Hills Gazetteer ana bawl uh kician mah mah hi. Tu dong mah tua bek ih et kak ding ih nei a, ei lam pan Zolai, Kawllai tawh ahizong bangmah ciamtekna ih nei kei hi. British colonial te’n Ciimnuai mi ten nam thum in hong khen uh a: Sizang, Sukte, le Kamhau ahi hi (Chin New: Siyin, Sokte, Kan how).
Ei saklam teng in ih pianna Pu Zo pan hi a, Ciimnuai pan khang khia ih hihna thu hong ciamteksak uh hi.Tua banah Chin mi te in amau le amau Zo mi ki ci in ci in hong ciamtek uh hi. Zomi tawh kisai bangmah buaina om lo hi.
III. Lehman le kamphenpa Lian Uk thutheih
1957 kum in Illinois state, University of Illinois, Studies of Cultural Regularities department pan in Lehman akici pa hong pai in, Laimi te (Zomi ut lo) Lian Uk kha thum sung May-July, 1957 a train khit ciangin, technical linguistic translator sem sak in Chin Hill tangthu hong kan hi. Amah pen anthropologist khat in minthang hi. Hibanga, Illinois Univ. fund tawh hong kipan a Zomi te thu culture, biakna, ngeina, pianna hong kanding a kipat pen lungdamhuai mah mah na pi, ei lam peuh mah hong pai kha lo banah, Zomi cih khiatna a ut ut in phen mawk uh hi. Ciimnuai mi te pianna them zongh kan lo pi in, adang te mah tawh kibang lel hi ci in gelh mawk mawk hi. Ama ngaihsutna hiam? Ami trained pa Lian Uk upmawhna hiam?
Lehman laibu The Structure of Chin Society sung en le’ng: pg. 54, 55 na ah, Halkha te’n a lo uh nam 2 a khen: lai lo le zo lo cih pan a, sim lam le zo lam tawh akhiatna bawl tawm in, atawpna ah Zogam cih pen avawtna mual tung lam (Sim lam ahi lo zaw) ; tua pan Zomi cih ciang “mualtung mi” cihna hi ci in wrong misinterpretation bawl ta zen uh hi.
Lehman pen anthropologist minthang khat ahih le, bang hangin mihing te pianzia anthropological approach bawl lo a, lokhawh zia agricultural approach le leikiatzia geographical approach tawh Zomi te pianzia le akhiatna phen mawk hiam cih pen ka ngaihsut zawh loh thu ahi hi.
(Lehman zongh US ah adam lai dan na hi ve aw, mailing address a thei ih om le hong pia thei leu ci’n ka lungdam ding hi.)
IV. Lehman’s Wrong or Error Discovery about Zomi
Lehman wrongly discovers that zo means cold; and zo lo means hillside farms; thus, Zomi means hill people! Ooopppppssss! ! ! He poorly announces: “From a study of the use of the term zo we arrive at a fuller understanding of what the Chin mean when they call themselves zo”. p 54. What a terrible and pitiful anthropologist! !!
But he explains, “Zo lo are poorly cultivated and less productive fields, but this translation does not show ambivalent quality of the word zo” in his words; and says continually, “Chin are zo mi because they lack the civilization of the Burman, whose culture they envy…”
What a poor and ill translation of the meaning of the ZOMI who are, and believe, the very descents of their Progenitor ZO. Here Lehman absolutely ignores the anthropology of the Zomi Zo People who had their Ciimnuai civilization. Here Ciinnuai stands for a place meaning underneath the ciim trees.
In addition, Lehman says “…I shall not deal with Tiddim…” in his chapter 5, entitled Northern Chin Social Systems. Why not Tedim?? Rather he exclusively says, “My terms ‘Northern Chin Hills’ means …Falam”. p 104.
Furthermore, Lehman makes his own poor and impolite definition in a very rude manner like this “the identity of the Chin as zo-mi, ‘the backward people,’ ‘the people of the hinterland,’…” as he sees the Zo People with an ill-treatment.
Here we could see that Lehman falsely identifies the Haka Laimi as the Northern Chin people who call themselves Laimi meaning the central people; and wrongly identifies the Zomi meaning Zo people who are the real Northern People he did not reach.
V. Thukhupna
Nung in CHIN: HISTORY, CULTURE & IDENTITY laibu Mizoram University pan ki publish a, reserch paper 36 kihel a, ei lam pan Sia Puapau (Dr. Pum Khan Pau) le Lianboi Vaiphei te kihel uh hi.Atam zaw in Zomi original leh akhiatna ah buai confused ve ve tek uh a, Lehman definition le identification pen bul let diak uh cih kimu hi. Lehman in zongh kihel a amasa pen ah lai at lai hi. Alai at na ah ” Is there independent evidence for my analysis of the word zo? ci in kidong a, amah le amah “Yes,” ci in ki phal na tawh, 1957 kum a at ngei teng mah lumlet kik leuleu hi. Zomi in pen saklam Tedim area bek huam thei ding a, Haka lam peuhmah Zomi hi thei lo ding, Laimi bekmah hi thei ding, bang hang hiam cih le, Zo cih pen Laimi te a ding in amau khutnuai gam te acihna ahihman hi ci in Lehman in Zomi te thu hong kithei sak mah mah hi. Atawpna ah Zo le Chin tel ding hi in, “the word Chin might be prefered…” cih tawh khup hi.
Cihnopna ah Chin cih bel mi hong ciamtekna hi ven. Ei zongh Chin hi kei ung, ko kihel kei ung cihna hi lo a, Zomi Zo People hi ung, ka Pupi uh Zo pan a piang te hi ung cihna hi ven.
Guai, ngeitak, Zomi te ih min pen atawm pen mal nih pha hamtang ci le’ng, ih Pu Zo pen bang hang malkhat bek in ciamtek mawk mah ih hi tam?
By Philip Cope Suan Pau
ARMS: All Racial Mission & Theological Studies
Yangon, Myanmar
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