Chakmas, The the largest ethnic group of Bangladesh. They also call
themselves Changmas. They are concentrated in the central and northern
parts of the chittagong hill tracts where they live amidst several
other ethnic groups. Exact population figures are lacking but the most
reliable estimates put their number at 140,000 in 1956 and 230,000 in
1981. According to the 1991 population census, there were about
253,000 Chakmas. More than 90 percent of them are concentrated in
rangamati and khagrachhari districts. About 100,000 Chakmas also live
in India, particularly in the states of Arunachal, Mizoram and
Tripura. Small groups have settled in other countries as well. The
first written reference to Chakmas of the Chittagong Hill Tracts dates
from about 1550 AD when the Portuguese map maker Lavanha indicated on
the earliest surviving map of Bengal that Chakmas lived in a
settlement on the karnafuli river. Two main theories have been put
forward about the earlier history of Chakmas. Both assume that they
migrated to their present homeland. The most convincing theory links
Chakmas with central Myanmar and arakan, and with groups such as the
Sak (Chak, Thek) who live in the Chittagong hills and Arakan. The
other theory, for which historical