Chakpa language

Chakpa (Meitei) is a Sino-Tibetan language that was spoken in the Imphal Valley of Manipur, India. It belonged to the Luish branch of the Sino-Tibetan family. Chakpa speakers have been shifted to that of Meitei language.² Varieties of the language included Sengmai and Andro.³

Chakpa was spoken in villages such as Andro, Sekmai (Sengmai), Phayeng, Khurkhul and Chairel, all of which are now Meitei-speaking villages.²

Loi (or Lui; hence "Luish") is a Meitei exonym that includes Chakpa. Although Chakpa are typically considered to be Loi, not all Loi are Chakpa. For example, Kakching and Kwakta are Loi villages that are not Chakpa.²

Chakpa is preserved in written manuscripts that are recited by religious scholars during traditional ceremonies, such as those of the Lai Haraoba festival.²

Chakpa word lists can be found in McCulloch (1859)⁴ and Basanta (1998).⁵

The Chairel variety is documented in a word list by McCulloch (1859).⁴