Khamti people

     The Khamti, or Tai Khamti, Thai: (ชาวไทคำตี่, Chao Tai Kam Dtee) as they are also known, are a sub-group of the Shan people found in the Sagaing Division, Hkamti District in northwestern Burma as well as Lohit district of Arunachal Pradesh in India. Smaller numbers can be found in parts of Assam as well as the East Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh. As of 1990 their total population was estimated to be around 70,000, but in 2000 it was recalculated that it actually stood at 13,100, of which 4,235 live in Burma. The tribe's name is also spelled as Hkamti by the Burmese and Khampti by the Assamese.

         

The Khamti who inhabit the region around the Tengapani basin were descendants of migrants who came during the 18th century from the Bor-Khampti region, the mountainous valley of the Irrawaddy. The Khamti possess East Asian features.

The Tai-Khamti are followers of Theravada Buddhism. The Tai-Khampti adopted a script of Shan origin, known as Lik-Tai for their language.Their mother tongue is known as Khamti language