The Khasi people are an Austroasiatic ethnic group of Meghalaya in north-eastern India with a significant population in the bordering state of Assam and in certain parts of Bangladesh.

[12] According to the Khasi mythology, U Blei Trai Kynrad (God, the Lord Master) had originally distributed the human race into 16 heavenly families (Khadhynriew Trep).

According to the myth, a heavenly ladder resting on the sacred Lum Sohpetbneng Peak (located in the present-day Ri-Bhoi district) enabled people to go freely and frequently to heaven whenever they pleased until one day they were tricked into cutting a divine tree which was situated at Lum Diengiei Peak (also in present-day East Khasi Hills district), a grave error which prevented them access to the heavens forever.

Multiple types of research indicate that the Austroasiatic populations in the Indian subcontinent are derived from migrations from Southeast Asia during the Holocene period.

The main crops produced by the Khasi people are betel leaves, areca nut, oranges, pineapples, plums, litchis, local varieties of rice and vegetables.

The traditional costume of the Khasis is known to be 'i shongkun bad i Don burom" which translates to being grand/respectful and modest.

[17] The traditional Khasi male dress is a Jymphong, a longish sleeveless coat without collar, fastened by thongs in front.

The traditional Khasi female dress is called the Jainsem or Dhara, both of which are rather elaborate with several pieces of cloth, giving the body a cylindrical shape.

Weaving Ryndia is an art passed down through the generations and treated as an occupation, providing livelihood to families in the region.

Eri silk in Meghalaya is produced from start to finish by women working from home or in clusters.

They then secure the services of a mediator to make the arrangements with the woman's family (provided that the man's clan agree with his choice).

Traditionally (though nowadays this rule is not absolutely true), a Khasi man returns to his Iing-Kur (maternal home) upon the death of his spouse (if she is a Khadduh and they both have no children).

The family names, which they call "surnames," remain in the native Khasi languages or its dialects.

In the past, the Khasis consisted of independent native states called Syiemships, where male elders of various clans under the leadership of the Chief (called U Syiem) would congregate during Durbars or sessions and come to a decision regarding any dispute or problem that would arise in the Syiemship.

The Syiems of these native states (called Hima) were traditionally elected by the people or ruling clans of their respective domains.

These Syiemships continue to exist and function till today under the purview of the Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (KHADC), which draws its legal power and authority from the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution of India.

[20] Before the arrival of Christian missionaries and post- conversion, almost all of the Khasi people practised an indigenous tribal religion.

[22][23] The first translation of the Bible into any of the languages of Northeast India was a Khasi version, published in 1891 by missionaries.

[26] A significant small number of Khasi population also adheres to Hindu and Buddhist faith.

[28] Historians suggested that the Kamakhya temple of Assam's Nilachal Hills was an ancient sacrificial site for an Austroasiatic tribal goddess, locally called or known as "Ka Mei Kha" (literally: old-cousin-mother), of the Khasi tribe[29] supported by the folk lores of these very peoples.