The Akha hill tribe people in Thailand are amongst the shyest of all the Thai ethnic minority groups, they are also the most resistant to assimilation into the mainstream of the society in Thailand.
Although the Akha have no written language, family ancestry is very important and most members of the Akha hill tribes are able to recite the male line of their family back to the "beginning".
Reciting 65 generations of family ancestors, together with many colorful legends, proverbs and rituals is usually reserved for very special occasions in the Akha hill tribe community. All Akha trace back their family tree back to a common ancestor of all the Akha and when a male Akha recites his family tree, he always include "Dzoe Tah Pah" as a family member, some 65 generations ago.
Similar as their family history, their migration routes have been recited from generation to generation. The Akfa hill tribes originated in Mongolia, traveling through Tibet and Nepal to settle down in the Yunnan province of Southern China. later on some groups traveled further and settled in Laos, Vietnam and Thailand. Legends from the Akha hill tribes in all these countries are extremely similar, despite the lack of a written language.
