Kachins

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The Kachin peoples (Kachin: Ga Hkyeng, lit. 'red soil'; Burmese: ကချင်လူမျိုး, pronounced [kətɕɪ̀ɰ̃ lù mjó]) are a collection of diverse ethnolinguistic groups inhabiting the Kachin Hills in northern Myanmar's Kachin State, as well as Yunnan Province in China, and the northeastern Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh and Assam. Approximately 1.5 million Kachin people live in this region. In contemporary usage, the Kachin peoples typically refer to a specific grouping of four to six ethnicities: the Jingpo, the Zaiwa, the Lashi/Lachik, the Lawngwaw/Maru, and to a lesser extent, the Rawang and the Lisu. Kachin identity is heterogenous and diverse, as it encompasses various ethnolinguistic groups who share overlapping territories, but do not all share coherent cultural practices and integrated social structures. Some definitions distinguish Kachin and Shan (Tai) peoples though some Kachin people have demonstrated the over-simplicity of the concept of lineage-based ethnic identity by culturally "becoming Shans". The most widely spoken Kachin language is Jingpho, which serves as a regional lingua franca. Jingpho has a number of dialects and is written using a Latin-based script developed in the late 19th century. A version in Burmese script was later created. Various dialects are also spoken in southwestern China and northeastern India, where it is called Singpho. In neighbouring China, "Kachin" is interchangeably used with "Jingpo", who comprise the largest subgroup.