Laitu language explained

Laitu "လေးတူ" (Letu Chin) is a Kuki-Chin language of Burma. It is partially intelligible with Sumtu Chin. In Sittwe District, Rakhine State, Laitu is spoken in Minbya, Mrauk-U, and Myebon townships, and is also spoken in Paletwa township, Chin State. Laitu has 91-96% lexical similarity with Sumtu Chin and Songlai Chin, 85-89% similarity with Chinbon Chin, and 82-84% lexical similarity with Asho.^[1]

Dialects

Ethnologue lists the following dialects of Letu. Dialects differ by stream (creek).

• Panmyaunggyi Stream (Laitu)
• Phuntha Stream (Doitu,Kongtu)
• Yangon-Sittwe Asia Highway areas of both Minbya township and Myebon township. (Laitu)

Added by the representative of these two areas.

• Sen Stream (Doitu, Kongtu)
• Laymro River (Mang Un, Song, and Laitu)

This version is updated on 2024 October 11.

Notes and References

1. Web site: 2016 . Myanmar . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20161010180533/http://www.ethnologue.com/country/MM/languages . 2016-10-10 . Ethnologue: Languages of the World.