The correct answer is: b) Largely understandable with some differences.
Mizo is a language spoken by the Mizo people in Northeast India and in neighboring areas of Myanmar. It is a member of the Kuki-Chin-Mizo language family, which also includes languages such as Lushai, Hmar, and Pawi.
There are several dialects of Mizo, which are largely mutually intelligible. However, there are some differences in vocabulary and pronunciation between the dialects. For example, the word for “water” is “chhuah” in the central dialect of Mizo, but it is “chhua” in the eastern dialect.
The differences between the dialects of Mizo are not as great as the differences between, for example, the dialects of Chinese. Speakers of different dialects of Mizo can usually understand each other without too much difficulty.
Here is a brief explanation of each option:
- Option a) Mutually unintelligible: This is not the case for the dialects of Mizo. Speakers of different dialects of Mizo can usually understand each other without too much difficulty.
- Option b) Largely understandable with some differences: This is the correct answer. Speakers of different dialects of Mizo can usually understand each other, but there are some differences in vocabulary and pronunciation between the dialects.
- Option c) Essentially the same with minor regional variations: This is not the case for the dialects of Mizo. There are some significant differences between the dialects, although they are all mutually intelligible.
- Option d) Completely distinct languages: This is also not the case for the dialects of Mizo. They are all dialects of the same language, although there are some significant differences between them.