Manipuri phrasebook

Manipuri (ꯃꯅꯤꯄꯨꯔꯤ ꯂꯣꯟ), also known as Meitei (ꯃꯩꯇꯩ ꯂꯣꯟ) or Meetei (ꯃꯤꯇꯩ ꯂꯣꯟ), is the sole official language, lingua franca and primary tongue in Manipur, as well as one of the additional official languages of Assam and a recognised educational and literary language of Tripura. It is also one of the 22 official “scheduled languages” of Republic of India, legally recognised by the Indian Constitution. It is also spoken in Northeastern Bangladesh and Western Myanmar. It is the only Indian language whose literature was developed under the care of royal patronages, from the Sino-Tibetan family. You will find your journey easier while travelling India to and from Myanmar, by speaking this language, as Manipur is the only land route in India where the India–Myanmar–Thailand Trilateral Highway is properly developed.

This language holds the third place among the fastest growing languages of India, along with Gujarati, following Hindi (first place) and Kashmiri (second place).

The importance of Manipuri for its cultural and economic aspects is high as Manipur has been at the crossroads of Asian economic and cultural exchange for more than 2,500 years, connecting the Indian subcontinent and Central Asia to Southeast Asia and East Asia, enabling migration of people, cultures and religions.

Manipuri is the most spoken Indian language from the Sino-Tibetan family. It uses the traditional Meitei script and Bengali script and has its earliest records of existence dating back to 1445 BCE (3500 years ago).