The population of Dai is over about 1 million. They have been living in the beautiful and richly endowed tropical and sub-tropical flatlands for a long time. Xishuangbanna, Dehong Prefecture, Menglian and Jinggu counties in Simao,Gengma and Shuangjiang counties in Lincang Prefecture, Xinping and Yuanjiang counties of Yuxi Prefecture, and Jinping county in Honghe Prefecture are the regions where the Dais live in compact communities.

The Dai is an ethnic group with a long history .Their ancestors were one tribe of the Baiyue people. The Dai people were addressed differently in different periods of time such as "Shan", "Jinchi", and "Baiyi". They call themselves "Dai ", "Daile", or "Daiya". "Dai" means "people who ardently love freedom and peace ". The Dai nationality is divided into three branches, the Han Dai, the Shui Dai and the Huayao Dai.