Lui Ngai Ni Festival Manipur

The beautiful tribe of Naga has numerous festivals that are celebrated at places wherever this ethnic group is residing. On the list of those numerous popular Naga festivals, Lui-Ngai-Ni is a popular name. Observed by the Naga clan of Manipur, Lui-Ngai-Ni is known as the seed-sowing festival. Every year, this Manipuri festival is celebrated towards the beginning of the spring season with so much zeal and ardour. The festival commemorates the season of seed sowing and is also embarks the beginning of the new year for the people of Naga clan. However, the name Lui-Ngai-Ni derives from three different types of Naga languages; the first word “Lui” stands for Luiraphanit”, which means seed sowing festival in Tangkhul language. The second word “Ngai” is a Rongmei word which also means festival and the last one “Ni” derives from Mao language which also means seed sowing festival. Basically, the Lui-Ngai-Ni festival brings the time of festivity and rejoice where the local Nagas pay their homage to the gods of crop and also pray for their good health and wealth.

Nagas of Manipur, which include Mao, Tangkhul, Moyon, Anal, Tarao, Chothe, Koireng, Thangal, Puimei, Monsang, Lamkanq, Chiru, Kharam, Maram, Poumai, Zeme, Linangmai, Rongmei, and Maring