Zogam (or Land of Zo People) known as Zoland, Lushai Hills, Kuki Hills, lies in the northwest corner of the Mainland Southeast Asia landmass. This is the traditional ancestry homeland of the Zo people or Zomi who lived in this area before the colonial period under British rulership. Regions of Southeast Asia

Geography

Physical

Zogam is bounded in the East by Burma, North by India and in the West and South by Bangladesh. The country is made up of many hill ranges, and is known for its rich bio-diversity. Its territory, approximately in size, in

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

, India and Bangladesh. It does not include Asho settlements in Lower Burma and Masho settlements in the Arakan (Burma). The area extends from latitude 25° 30' North in the Somra tracts facing Mount Saramati, and in Nagaland across the Namtakik River and the North Cachar Hills, to about 20° 30' North Latitude. The longitudinal extension is between 92° 10' East and 94° 20' east. The North-South length of the Zoram is roughly and East-West is generally about wide. The land occupied by the majority of the Zo people extends from a latitude of about 25 degrees 30 minutes North in the Somra Tracts facing Mt. Saramati, and in Nagaland across the Namtaleik River and the North Cachar Hills, to about 20 degrees 30 minutes North. The Asho live further south of the Arakan Yomas, Irrawaddy valleys and Pegu Yomas (below Procne and Sandaway). All these areas fall between 92 degrees 10 minutes East and 94 degrees 20 minutes East. The north-south length of the Zo country is roughly and it is generally about wide. The majority of the people occupy the Indo-Burman ranges, a series of parallel mountain chains trending north-south along the India-Burma boundary. The mountain ranges are a continuation of the Naga and Patkoi hills, extending as far south as Arakan Yomas. Fast Zogam lies in the eastern part of these mountains and is higher than the western mountains (West Zogam or Mizoram). The highest peaks in these ranges are Ngulluvum, Innbuk. Thuamvum (Kennedy peak), Lentlang, Kharantlang, Rungtlang, and Arterawttlang (Mt. Victoria), which is the highest peak in Zo country at . The other peaks are in average about high. In West Zogam the highest peak is Phawngpui (Blue Mountain), which is . At the north and south ends of Zo country the land is less rugged and rises from . The capital of West Zogam, Aizawl, lies at above sea level, whereas Tiddim (

Tedim Tedim (, , ( Zo: ''Tedim Khawpi'', pronounced ; is a town in and the administrative seat of Tedim Township, Chin State, in the north-western part of Burma. It is the second largest town in Chin State. The town's four major boroughs (''vengte'') a ...

), the capital of East Zogam, is at . The valleys between ranges are mostly v-shaped gorges, and there are very few flat areas to serve as, agricultural land. Because the elevations can vary quite extensively temperatures also vary greatly. In the valleys of the larger rivers, such as the Run or Manipur Rivers, the climate is sub-tropical.

Climate

away, however, at an elevation of and at the top of mountain ranges, the climate is rather moderate. The climate is "monsoon" and rain falls from May to October. Average rainfall for the year is between . Average yearly rain in Aizawl is , Lunglei , Tedim , and Kanpetlet . In one year Tedim had 118 rainy days and Kanpetlet 127 days. Summer temperatures range between 17 and 29 °C, and winter temperatures are between 3 and 24 °C. Some places, like the town of Tedim, are chilly in winter and temperatures can drop below the freezing point in the night and frost form on the grass. Snow falls very rarely, and when it does the people call "the mountain has vomited".

Culture

One Zo folksong delineates the area of Zogam as follows:

''Penlehpi leh Kangtui minthang,'' ''A tua tong Zota kual sung chi ua;'' ''Khang Vaimang leh tuan a pupa'' ''Tongchiamna Kangtui minthang aw''

Translation:

(The famous Penlehpi and Kangtui Between the two is the Zomi country The Southern King and our forefathers Made an agreement at the famous Kangtui)

This old folk song tells of the area of the Zomi ancestral homeland, for Penlehpi is a Burmese word for the Bay of Bengal and Kangtui is identified with Tuikang (Chindwin River).ST Hau Go, 'Our People, Our Language, and Our Culture', Rangoon University Chin Cultural and Literature Sub-Committee by the Mizo Union, Aizawl, 26 April 1947, p.8 Preferred book: "The Untold Story of Zomi" (T. Zokhai, 2018). Zogam is within the land inhabited by the Zo State in Myanmar and further the land inhabited by the Zomi in India and Bangladesh. Chinland is the founding name for the whole Zomi inhabited areas of land spread across three political and separate country/international boundaries. Lairam is another name used by the townships the Southern Chin State in Myanmar. Zogam tributary tribes who too called their land according to their own dialects. And all of them put together makes up a Greater Chinmi or Zomi(i.e. Zo People). Zogam covers # the Whole Chin State, # Plain chins (lower lands), # Some part of Bangladesh until it reaches to the Bay of Zogam (Bay of Bengal), # Mizoram # Manipur (Churachanpur). Therefore, Zogam is an indigenous identity of the Chin peoples together with the Kukis (Thado), Lushai (Lusei or

Mizo Mizo may refer to: *Mizo people, an ethnic group native to north-eastern India, western Myanmar (Burma) and eastern Bangladesh *Mizo language, a language spoken by the Mizo people *Mizoram, a state in Northeast India *Lusei people, an ethnic group ...

), Pawi, Khalkha, Phalam and all Chinmi. Chinland (Zoram) thus equals to all the lands inhabited by these hill tribes collectively known as Chin people (Zomi), and they comprise the Laimi, Tedimmi, Mara, Khumi, Zophei, Senthang, Lautu, Zotung, Manipur, Thado, the Zou, Simte, Paite, Milhiem and other tributary tribes.

Endnotes

External links