Kosaka (2000) reports 6,000–8,000 Lachi speakers in Vietnam, and 2,000 in China. The Lachi of
Maguan County, China are currently classified as
Zhuang (Li 2000), while the Lachi of
Malipo County, China, along with the Qabiao, are classified as
Yi. The Lachi of Vietnam have official status as a separate ethnic group.
China The Lachi of China live in various locations in
Maguan County (马关县),
Yunnan, which is located in
Wenshan Zhuang and Miao Autonomous Prefecture (文山壮族苗族自治州) near the border with
Hà Giang Province, Vietnam. According to American linguist Jerold A. Edmondson, the Lachi of China are thought to have moved to their present location during the
Qing Dynasty from places in Vietnam called Maibu 麥布, Maidu 麥督, and Maiha 麥哈. Other Lachis are also found scattered in Yanshan, Qiubei, Xichou, and Malipo counties. The subdivisions, with their respective locations, are as follows:
Flowery Lachi (
autonym: '''') • Jinchang Township 金厂镇 • Zhongzhai 中寨 • Sanjiajie 三家街
Chinese Lachi (
autonym: '''') • Jiahanqing Township 夹寒箐乡 • Niulongshan 牛龙山 • Dujiaozhai 独脚寨 • Shi'er Daohe 十二道河 • Laozhai 老寨 • Renhe Township 仁和镇 • Baishiyan 白石岩 • Shiqiao 石桥 • Huomuqing 火木箐
Pocket Lachi (
autonym: '''') • Nanlao Township 南捞乡: Busu 布苏
Red Lachi (
autonym: '''') • Xiaobazi Township 小坝子镇 • Tianpeng 田棚 • Laqie 拉劫 / Laqi 拉气
Vietnam The Lachi live mostly in
Xín Mần District and
Hoàng Su Phì District,
Hà Giang Province,
Vietnam. There are also many Lachi living in
Bắc Quang District in southern
Hà Giang Province, which is outside their home district of
Hoàng Su Phì. Since the Lachi dialects of Vietnam have many Chinese loanwords, the Lachi of Vietnam must have migrated from areas to the north in China (Kosaka 2000). Similarly, the Lachi of
Maguan County, Yunnan, China just across the border believed that their ancestors had migrated from Ami Prefecture 阿迷州, which is now
Kaiyuan, Yunnan. The Lachi people are an officially recognized ethnic group in Vietnam, and are divided as such (Kosaka 2000, Edmondson 2008):
Long Haired Lachi (
autonym: '''') • Bản Phùng, Hoàng Su Phì District — largest village; regarded as cradle site
Black Lachi (
autonym: '''') • Bản Díu,
Xín Mần — speakers have shifted to the
Nùng language White Lachi (
autonym: ''''; language possibly extinct) • Bản Pắng, Hoàng Su Phì District — speakers have shifted to the
Nùng language, the regional lingua franca • Bản Máy, Hoàng Su Phì District — speakers have shifted to the
Nùng language, the regional lingua franca Lachi is also spoken in (Kosaka 2000): • Tân Lợi hamlet (Thôn Tân Lợi),
Bắc Quang District,
Hà Giang Province — formed through a secondary migration from Tân Lập village (Xã Tân Lập), which is now called Xã Tân Thành. • Chí Cà,
Xín Mần District,
Hà Giang Province •
Bắc Hà District,
Lào Cai Province — descended from Bản Phùng migrants; can no longer speak Lachi (e.g., in Thôn Núng Choáng, Xã Nàm Sán) •
Mường Khương District,
Lào Cai Province — descended from Bản Phùng migrants; can no longer speak Lachi Kosaka (2000) describes the following migratory route that took the Lachi of Bản Phùng, Hoàng Su Phì District to other locations, all in
Bắc Quang District,
Hà Giang Province. • Bản Phùng, Hoàng Su Phì District • Xã Tân Lập (now called Xã Tân Thành) • Xã Yên Bình • Xã Vĩ Thượng • Xã Xuân Giang (later divided into two parts, including Nà Khương, which has the higher concentration of Lachi people) The
Maguan County Gazetteer 马关县志 (1996) lists the following locations in Vietnam with ethnic Lachi. • Manyou 曼忧 • Manpeng 曼棚 • Manban 曼班 • Manmei 曼美 • Jiga 鸡嘎 • Hualong 花隆 • Mengkang 猛康 ==Grammar==