Tai Man people belonging to the Man ethnic group live in north-east India, especially Assam State. Tai Man people lived in Assam State, dispersed in the Karbi Arleng District and North Cachar District. A small number may live in Tinsuria. An additional 585 Man people live in the state of Meghalaya, primarily in the West Garo Hills. They have small pockets of people in China and Thailand, but most are in Myanmar.
The name Man literally means 'a Burmese immigrant '. K S Singh says, 'Legend has it that they came to this part along with an invading army and were afterwards recruited as sepoys to fight the Garos in the second decade of the nineteenth century. Those who settled down in the Garo hills after relinquishing their duty as sepoys took women from other communities as their wives and formed a separate community. They married Koch, Hajong, Assamese and Bengali women, but they never encouraged marriage with the Muslims.'
Over time, because of their mixing with other communities, the Man emerged as a distinct people group, and all links to their origins in Myanmar have long been forgotten. Their Tai language has also been lost. They have 'completely forgotten their original language and have adopted Assamese as their mother tongue and use the Assamese script. They sometimes use Bengali and Hindi to communicate with others. The Man have been Assamised largely into the greater Assamese culture.’
Although most Tai Man people say they are Buddhists, Hinduism has influenced their religious belief system and is gradually taking over. 'The life cycle rituals they perform demonstrate much similarity with those of the neighboring caste Hindus of Assam and Meghalaya. The marriage, however, is solemnized by a Buddhist monk or pathak reciting hymns from the Pali scripture. '
Despite growing Hindu influence, approximately half of the Tai Man continue to profess Theravada Buddhism. There is also a large percentage of professing Christians among them.
There are Tai Man Christians today in India, a remnant that does not have the resources or motivation to reach the rest of their ethnic group.
Pray for the Holy Spirit to give the Tai Man people teachable and understanding hearts.
Pray that a strong movement of the Holy Spirit will bring entire Tai Man families into a rich experience of God’s blessing.
Pray for Tai Man families to be drawn by the Holy Spirit to seek forgiveness, and to understand the adequacy of Christ’s work on the cross.
Pray for teams of believers to do sustained, focused prayer for the Lord to open the hearts of Tai Man family leaders to experience God’s blessing through a movement of family-based discovery Bible studies.
Scripture Prayers for the Tai Man in India.
Peoples of the Buddhist World, Asia Harvest, Copyrighted © Used with permission
Profile Source: Joshua Project |
Other PDF Profile |
People Name General | Tai Man, Shan |
People Name in Country | Tai Man |
Pronunciation |
tie MAHN
|
Alternate Names | Burmese Shan; Cha Shan; Dai; Great Thai; Ngio; Nyaw; Red Shan; Sen; Sha; Sham; Shyam; Tai Jai; Tai Long; Tai Luang; Tai Neua; Tai Yai; Tai Yay; Tairong; Tairung; Thai Yai; Turung; Yunnanese Shan; टाई मान, शान |
Population this Country | 6,900 |
Population all Countries | 4,647,000 |
Total Countries | 4 |
Indigenous | Yes |
Progress Scale | 2 ● |
Unreached | No |
Frontier People Group | No |
Pioneer Workers Needed | |
People ID | 18205 |
ROP3 Code | 113721 |
ROP25 Code | 307858 |
ROP25 Name | Tai Phake (Phake) |
Country | India | |||||||||
Region | Asia, South | |||||||||
Continent | Asia | |||||||||
10/40 Window | Yes | |||||||||
National Bible Society | Website | |||||||||
Persecution Rank | 11 (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking) | |||||||||
Total States on file | 9 | |||||||||
Largest States |
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Districts | Interactive map, listing and data download | |||||||||
Specialized Website | South Asia Peoples |
Country | India |
Region | Asia, South |
Continent | Asia |
10/40 Window | Yes |
National Bible Society | Website |
Persecution Rank | 11 (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking) |
Total States | 9 |
Assam 3,500 | |
Mizoram 1,500 | |
Meghalaya 1,200 | |
Delhi 400 | |
Arunachal Pradesh 200 | |
West Bengal 40 | |
Maharashtra 30 | |
Gujarat 10 | |
Andaman and Nicobar 10 | |
Website | South Asia Peoples |
Primary Religion: | Buddhism |
Major Religion ▲ | Percent * |
---|---|
Buddhism |
76.07 %
|
Christianity (Evangelical Unknown) |
21.90 %
|
Ethnic Religions |
0.00 %
|
Hinduism |
1.60 %
|
Islam |
0.21 %
|
Non-Religious |
0.00 %
|
Other / Small |
0.07 %
|
Unknown |
0.15 %
|
* From latest India census data. Current Christian values may substantially differ. |
Primary Language | Phake (4,000 speakers) | |||||||||||||||
Language Code | phk Ethnologue Listing | |||||||||||||||
Language Written | Yes ScriptSource Listing | |||||||||||||||
Total Languages | 19 | |||||||||||||||
Secondary Languages (only 15 largest shown) |
|
Primary Language | Phake (4,000 speakers) |
Language Code | phk Ethnologue Listing |
Total Languages | 19 |
Secondary Languages (only 15 largest shown) | |
Assamese 1,000 | |
Marathi 500 | |
Mizo 200 | |
Khamyang 60 | |
Garo 30 | |
Karbi 20 | |
Rabha 10 | |
Punjabi, Eastern 10 | |
Nepali 10 | |
Hindi 0 | |
Meitei 0 | |
Boro (India) 0 | |
Tiwa 0 | |
Khasi 0 | |
Pnar 0 | |
People Groups | Speaking Phake |
Primary Language: Phake
Bible Translation Status: Translation Started
Resource Type ▲ | Resource Name | Source |
---|---|---|
Audio Recordings | Audio Bible teaching | Global Recordings Network |
Photo Source | Copyrighted © 2024 Kerry Olson All rights reserved. Used with permission |
Map Source | People Group data: Omid. Map geography: UNESCO / GMI. Map Design: Joshua Project |
Video Source | Asia Harvest |
Profile Source | Joshua Project |
Data Sources | Data is compiled from various sources. Learn more. |