The Mara are the native inhabitants of

Mizoram Mizoram () is a state in Northeast India, with Aizawl as its seat of government and capital city. The name of the state is derived from "Mizo people, Mizo", the endonym, self-described name of the native inhabitants, and "Ram", which in the Mizo ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, native to

northeastern India , native_name_lang = mni , settlement_type = , image_skyline = , image_alt = , image_caption = , motto = , image_map = Northeast india.png , ...

, primarily in the

Mara Autonomous District Council Mara Autonomous District Council (MADC) is one of the three Autonomous District Councils within Mizoram state of India. It covers Siaha subdivision and Tipa subdivision of Siaha district. Primarily, an autonomous administrative government me ...

of the state of

, where they form the majority of the population. The Maras are related to Kuki and

Mizos The Mizo people ( Mizo: ''Mizo hnam'') are an ethnic group native to the Indian state of Mizoram and neighbouring regions of Northeast India. The term covers several related ethnic groups or clans inside the Mizo group. All Mizo tribes and cla ...

in India and Kachin,

Karen Karen may refer to: * Karen (name), a given name and surname * Karen (slang), a term and meme for a demanding woman displaying certain behaviors People * Karen people, an ethnic group in Myanmar and Thailand ** Karen languages or Karenic l ...

, Shan and Chins in Myanmar. Significant numbers of Maras also live in the southwestern and south-central parts of

Chin State Chin State (, ) is a state in western Myanmar. The Chin State is bordered by Sagaing Division and Magway Division to the east, Rakhine State to the south, Bangladesh to the south-west, and the Indian states of Mizoram to the west and Manipur t ...

(Burma) 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 ...

- the contiguous area of Mara area in India mostly separated by Kolodyne /

Chhimtuipui The Chhimtuipui river, also known as the Chhimmtuipi Lui or Kaladan river, is a river of Mizoram, northeastern India. It flows in a southerly direction through Myanmar. Geography The river is the biggest river in Mizoram by volume. It originate ...

Beino Beino - Qboula ( ar, بينو - قبولا) is an area in the Akkar District, Akkar district in Lebanon. Beino has a total area of around 20 Square kilometers with a population of 2500. History In 1838, Eli Smith noted the villages as ''Binu'' a ...

river, which forms an international boundary. They have gone by a number of tribal names to the outside world. The Mara were earlier known as ''Magha'', ''Miram'', ''Baungshel'', ''Maring'', ''Zyu'' or ''Zao/Zho'', ''Khuangsai''. Additionally they were known as ''Lakher'' by the Tlaikao/

Lushai The Mizo people (Mizo: ''Mizo hnam'') are an ethnic group native to the Indian state of Mizoram and neighbouring regions of Northeast India. The term covers several related ethnic groups or clans inside the Mizo group. All Mizo tribes and clan ...

, ''Miram'' by the Lai, and ''Shendu'' by the Khumi, Dai, Shô,

Matu The Matu District is a district in Mukah Division, Sarawak, Malaysia. Before Mukah Division was established, Matu was within Sibu Division. There are more than 20 villages in the district, with Melanau Melanau or ''A-Likou'' (meaning River ...

, and Rakhaing people. The new name ''Mara'' was added to the List of Scheduled Tribes in Mizoram state in 1978, replacing the old name. They constitute a distinct tribal group in the

Siaha Siaha (official name given by the Mara Autonomous District Council, popularly known as Saiha) is a census town in Siaha district in the Indian north-eastern state of Mizoram. It is the Headquarters of the Mara Autonomous District Council, on ...

Saiha district Siaha District is one of the eleven districts of Mizoram state in India. The district is bounded on the northwest by Lunglei district, on the north and west by Lawngtlai District and on the south and east by Myanmar. The district occupies an ...

of Mizoram, while also occupying the northern part of

Paletwa township Paletwa Township ( my, ပလက်ဝမြို့နယ်) is a township of Matupi District in the Chin State of Myanmar. It consists of Paletwa and Sami towns and Paletwa is the administrative center for the township. Also known as Arakan Hil ...

and

Matupi township Matupi Township ( my, မတူပီမြို့နယ်; also Madupi Township) is a township of Matupi District in the Chin State of Burma (Myanmar).

, western and southern part of Thlantlang township, and the southern part of

Hakha township Hakha Township ( my, ဟားခါးမြို့နယ်) is a township of Hakha District in the Chin State of Burma. It surrounds the city of Hakha, the state capital. It became part of Falam District until Hakha District was formed by the ...

. They refer to themselves as "Maras".Dr K. Zohra, Ph.D, An introductory notes to Mara District of South Mizoram, India.

References

External links

Chakhei.com : The first town portal in Maraland
{{Authority control Kuki tribes Scheduled Tribes of India Ethnic groups in India Ethnic groups in Myanmar