Rinpi
Rinpi, previously Rimpi, is a village in Hakha township, Chin State, Myanmar.
History
Rinpi village is said to have been established by the five sons of Pu Ral Thang, of the Khualsim tribe. This tribe came into Simpi around 1570-1580 AD and settled at Simpi Village. The tribal chief, Pu Ral Thang, had five sons with his first wife; the eldest was Pu Hriam Ee and the youngest was Mi Ee. After his first wife's death Pu Ral Thang married a second wife, whom disliked his sons. She requested her husband that either send them away or kill them, otherwise she would divorce him.
Pu Ral Thang was reluctant to harm his sons and did not know how to send them away. After two attempts to abandon his sons in the forest, from which they returned, Pu Ral Thang sadly took his five sons to the river Phauva, which, in the rainy season, is narrow and deep. It forms the boundary between Falam and the Hakha township area. At noon that day, Pu Ral Thang threw his sons into the river, but the current took them to the other side. Even though they wanted to go back home, they couldn't get back across the river and were forced to settle on the other side of the Phauva. A few months later, in spring, his sons still not having come back, Pu Ral Thang went to observe the area. He went to the other side of the Phauva River and met them there. They named that place Hmunhlipi. "Hmun" stands for "the place where father and sons met". "Hli" stands for "they were the sons of the first wife", and Pi means "the place they came from was Simpi".
There is a story behind the Rinpi song "Hai par thing sang cung in, hrin hniang man thlau ai u, khua hlan nu ei huat cu kan rak tuar hringhran ee". This song refers to the hardships of being abandoned by their step mother's cruelness. Hmunhlipi became prosperous year after year until it contained over 50 households. During this time Pu Ral Thang's eldest son Pu Hriam Ee had two sons of his own, who were named Pu Cio Kip and Pu Bawi Tiam.
Pu Cio Kip inherited Pu Hriam Ee and the land of Hmunhlipi become Pu Cio Kip possession. The chieftainship also derived through Pu Cio Kip generation. There was a story that how Pu Cio Kip became the chief of the land. According to their concept at that time, the man who shot a big animal was great and honored. In order to pass the chief possession, Pu Hriam Ee asked his son to hunt animal in the deep forest. They killed the kitten of wild pig and big mouse. In size the mouse was bigger. So Pu Bawi Tiam chose big mouse for his own. Only the kitten of wild pig was left for Pu Cio Kip. But in their concept, mouse was nothing, even a women and child can catch. But for wild pig, regardless of the size, its name is greater. Only a man with arrow and spear can kill them. There is a trandition in the society, at the first mountain of the village, they shout their name to be heard by the villager that who killed what! When the time came, they shouted 'Pu Cio Kip killed the wild pig, Pu Bawi Tiam killed the mouse". Their father Pu Hriam Ee was impressed by Pu Cio Kip, and Pu Cio Kip inherited his father land.
Cio Kip and Bawi Tiam name became clan name in further generation. Until 1956, only Pu Cio Kip clan generation could became village chief. No one from other clan could not become the village chief. When parliamentary system was introduced in Myanmar and chieftainship was abolished. From that time, other clan could serve as village chief. The decision was made at Falam in 1948 February 20, that day become "Chin National Day" in now a day.
Hmunhlipi to Rimpi
Due to a tribal war in Chinland territory, Hmunhlipi village was also forsaken and the Hmunhlipi people had to run for their lives. Some went to the Plain area around the Kalay valley. When the situation had become more stable, Pu Cio Kip's generation returned to find their old place again. In this year he had a son which they named "Zo Kaar", which means "after passing through the deep forest and through hardships from the plain, they managed to come to their home in a cold mountainous place". They named their new settlement as "Riimpi".
The Chinland people had no literature before the British occupied the territory, so the name of the village was not written down throughout its history. In 1894, Major Newland invented "Lai literature based on the English alphabet", printed in 1897, and having over 600 pages. Subsequently, the American Baptist Missionary Authur E. Carson & Laura came to Chinland in 1899 and Chin literature was further developed. The village name was first written down by Tuck & Carey, in "The Chin Hill", Vols.1 and 2 as "Rimpi". This was the name also used by the British government.The pronunciation of "Riim" in Chin and "Rim" in English was the same. So Riimpi was written as "Rimpi".
Rimpi to Rinpi
Rinpi people called themselves "Riimpi" and when the British colonel rule over the land. The British government wrote their name as "Rimpi". In English pronunciation "Rim" is the same with local pronunciation "Riim". Thus, the original name "Riimpi" became " Rimpi " in written.
Since the Union of Myanmar, established on February 12, 1947, Chinland become one of the state in Myanmar. Chinland was ruled by Chin Affair Council. In 1965, the president of Chin Affair Council Pu Son Khua Lian visited the village and he ordered the village headman Pu Phir Kio and his secretary Pu Kep Luai, to write the village name as "Rinpi", which is the closest approximation to its Burmese pronunciation. This has now become its official name "Rinpi". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Pu_Tlei_Zarh_le_Pi_Ci_Caan.jpg
Geography
Rinpi is situated in Chin State, Myanmar. Original names (with diacritics) is Rinpi. Geonames ID 1298739 and its place mark was added on 1993 December 21. Its is coordinated at 22 degree, 46minutes latitude, and 93 degree, 46 minutes longitude. its altitude is 1056.