The Zomi people are one of the main groups of the Zo (Kuki-Chin-Mizo-Zomi) tribes. They live in mostly the India–Myanmar border, as well as in Bangladesh.[1][2] The Zomis were divided into two by the Indian government as Kuki and the Myanmar government as Chin. The Zomi tribes that are called Kuki are the Paite, Vaiphei, Zou, Gangte and Simte and the Zomi tribe that is called Chin is the Tiddim/Tedim. They call themselves Zomi and they speak their own language. The Zomi language is basically the language of the Tedim/Tiddim and is related to the Paite language.

Diaspora

As of 2018, the Zomi are the second-largest ethnic group in the Burmese diaspora in the United States.[3] Between 7000 and 9000 Zomi live in Tulsa, Oklahoma, which is referred to as "Zomi Town" within the Burmese diaspora.[4] The concentration of Zomi in Tulsa is related to the fact that the Zomi are a largely Christian ethnic group and faced persecution in Myanmar under the military dictatorship.[1] The resettlement of Zomi refugees to Tulsa was in part catalyzed by Dr. Chin Do Kham, who moved to Tulsa in the 1970s to study at Oral Roberts University, a Christian institution in southern Tulsa.[5]

References

  1. 1 2 "Zomi USA: How a city in Oklahoma became home to an ethnic group from Southeast Asia". NBC News. 2016-12-06. Retrieved 2024-01-02.
  2. ↑ George, Sam (2019-01-15). Diaspora Christianities: Global Scattering and Gathering of South Asian Christians. Fortress Press. p. 173. ISBN 978-1-5064-4706-3.
  3. ↑ Mung, Daniel (2018). The promised land : Zomi diaspora in Tulsa (Thesis).
  4. ↑ Krishna, Priya (2022-06-27). "In Tulsa, a Burmese Cooking Tradition Takes the Spotlight". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-01-02.
  5. ↑ Writer, TIM STANLEY World Staff (2013-10-16). "Former ORU professor, Myanmar native Chin Do Kham dies at 54". Tulsa World. Retrieved 2024-01-02.
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