Achang people

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Achang

Achang woman's dress
Total population
~29,000
Regions with significant populations
People's Republic of China, mostly concentrated in Yunnan province, smaller population in Burma
Languages
Achang, Xiandao (SIL, khan31tao31), Burmese, and Southwestern Mandarin
Religion
Theravada Buddhism, Taoism, and a mixture of animism and ancestor worship.
Related ethnic groups
Bamar, Rakhine, Marma, and other Sino-Tibetan peoples

The Achang (Chinese: 阿昌族; pinyin: Āchāngzú), also known as the Ngac'ang (their own name) is an ethnic group. They are one of Tibeto-Burman languages speaking people. They form one of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China. They also live in Myanmar, where they're known as Maingtha (Burmese: မိုင်းသာလူမျိုး) in Shan State and Ngochang in Kachin State.

The Achang number 27,700, of whom 27,600 are from Yunnan province, mainly in Lianghe County of Dehong Autonomous Prefecture. The Achang speak a Burmish (Burmese-related) language called Achang,^{[citation needed]} but there is no indigenous writing system to accompany it. Chinese characters are often used instead. Many Achang also speak the Tai Lü language, mainly to make commercial transactions with Dai people.^[1]

Speaking a distinct dialect, the Husa Achang (戶撒) living in Longchuan County (also in Dehong) consider themselves to be distinct and filed an unsuccessful application in the 1950s as a separate nationality. The Husa were more Sinicized than other Achang. For example, Confucian-styled ancestral memorial tablets are common in Husa homes. Most traditional Husa believe in a mixture of Theravada Buddhism and Taoism.