Khamti Shan New Testament (2023)

Overview

The Khamti Shan New Testament is the complete New Testament in the Khamti language, published in 2023 by Wycliffe Bible Translators and available via YouVersion/Bible.com (ID 3589). An audio edition accompanies the text. The Khamti-speaking people straddle the Myanmar-India border, and this translation serves communities in both countries — the large Khamti diaspora in Arunachal Pradesh and Assam (India) as well as the ancestral homeland population in Sagaing Division and Kachin State (Myanmar).

Language and People

Khamti (ISO 639-3: kht; autonym: Hkamti) is a Southwestern Tai language of the Tai-Kadai family, closely related to Thai, Lao, and the other Shan languages of the Salween-Irrawaddy highlands. The Khamti developed their own script — Lik Tai — derived from Northern Shan writing systems and used in traditional Buddhist manuscripts and ceremonial contexts.

The Khamti people are concentrated in two zones:

  • Myanmar: The ancestral territory of Hkamti Long ("Great Place of Gold"), a rump state in the upper Irrawaddy valley that emerged from the Möng Kawng principality after its annexation by the Konbaung dynasty in 1796. Hkamti Long comprised seven small principalities (Lokhun, Mansi, Lon Kyein, Manse-Hkun, Mannu, Langdao, Mong Yak and Langnu) governed by a Saopha (traditional Shan chief) and was notably never brought under direct British rule. By the late 19th century, Kachin demographic expansion had absorbed much of the Hkamti Shan population in the region. The modern Khamti in Myanmar are concentrated in Hkamti District, Sagaing Division and the Myitkyina-Mogaung area of Kachin State.
  • India: The Khamti are a recognized Scheduled Tribe in Arunachal Pradesh, concentrated in Namsai district and Changlang district (the Tengapani basin), with smaller communities in Lakhimpur, Dhemaji, and Tinsukia districts (Assam). India's 2011 census recorded 16,944 Khamti. Myanmar estimates vary widely (8,000–200,000 claimed), reflecting different counting methodologies.

The Khamti are Theravada Buddhists; monasteries serve as centers of literacy (in Lik Tai script) and cultural transmission. Christianity has a limited but present minority in both Myanmar and Indian Khamti communities, making this NT a resource for those communities.

Publishing and Organizations

Published by Wycliffe Bible Translators, Inc. (2023). The translation is available with audio on YouVersion/Bible.com (ID 3589).

References