Chin State (Burmese: ချင်းပြည်နယ်; MLCTS: hkyang: pranynai, pronounced: [tɕʰɪ́ɴ pjìnɛ̀]) is a state located in western Burma (Myanmar). The 36,019-square-kilometre (13,907 sq mi) Chin State is bordered by Rakhine State in the south, Bangladesh in the south-west, Sagaing Division and Magway Division in the east, the Indian state of Manipur in the north and the Indian state of Mizoram in the west. The Chin ethnic group make up the majority of the state's 500,000 people. The capital of the state is Hakha. The state is a mountainous region with few transportation links. Chin State is sparsely populated and remains one of the least developed areas of the country. Chin State has the highest unemployment rate of 73% as per the released figures from the first official survey.
The Chin (Burmese: ချင်းလူမျိုး; MLCTS: hkyang lu. myui:, pronounced: [tɕɪ́ɴ lù mjó]) are one of the ethnic groups in Burma.
The Chins are found mainly in western part of Burma (the Chin State) and numbered circa 1.5 million. They also live in nearby Indian states of Nagaland, Mizoram and Manipur and Assam. Owing to Baptist missionaries' religious colonization, over 90% of the population practice Christianity. A small group of individuals from Mizoram claimed that they are one of the lost tribes of Israel, that of Bnei Menashe tribe; some have since resettled in that country.
The Chin people are one of the large ethnic minority groups in Burma. The Chin people are of Tibeto-Burman groups and probably came to Burma, especially the Chindwin valley in the late 9th or 10th century AD. Most Chin people moved westward and they probably settled in the present Chin State thought to be around 1300-1400. The Chin people do not have factual records of their history as the Chin practice oral traditions. The original meaning of "Chin" remains obscure; though scholars have proposed various theories, no widely-held consensus has been reached.