Myanmar

Dictionary: Myan·mar (myän-mär', -mär')

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Myanmar

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A country of southeast Asia on the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea. Site of ancient Mon and Burman kingdoms, Burma was a province of British India from 1886 to 1937 and a separate crown colony from 1937 to 1948, when it gained its independence. The civilian government was overthrown by a military coup in 1962 and again in 1988. The country was officially renamed Myanmar in 1989. Yangon (formerly Rangoon) is the capital and the largest city. Population: 47,400,000.

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5min Related Video: Myanmar

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Britannica Concise Encyclopedia: Myanmar

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Country, Southeast Asia, on the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea. Area: 261,228 sq mi (676,577 sq km). Population (2006 est.): 47,383,000. Capitals: official, Naypyidaw (near Pyinmana), proclaimed 2006; historical, Yangôn (Rangoon), 1948 – 2006. Inhabitants are chiefly Burman; others include Chin, Shan, and Karen. Languages: Burmese (official), many indigenous languages. Religions: Buddhism, traditional beliefs, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism. Currency: kyat. Myanmar may be divided into five main regions: the northern mountains, the western ranges, the coastal plains, the central lowlands, and the Shan Plateau in the east. Major rivers are the Irrawaddy and the Salween. The tropical climate is greatly influenced by the monsoons of southern Asia. Only about one-sixth of this largely mountainous land is arable. It has a centrally planned, developing economy that is largely nationalized and based on agriculture and trade. Rice is the most important crop and principal export; teak is also important. Myanmar is ruled by a military regime; its head of state and government is the chairman of the State Peace and Development Council, assisted by the prime minister. The area was long inhabited, with the Mon and Pyu states dominant from the 1st century BC to the 9th century AD. It was united in the 11th century under a Burmese dynasty that was overthrown by the Mongols in the 13th century. The Portuguese, Dutch, and English traded there in the 16th – 17th century. The modern Myanmar (Burmese) state was founded in the 18th century by Alaungpaya. Conflict with the British over Assam resulted in a series of wars, and Myanmar fell to the British in 1885. Under British control, it became Burma, a province of India. It was occupied by Japan in World War II and became independent in 1948. The military took power in a coup in 1962 and nationalized major economic sectors. Civilian unrest in the 1980s led to antigovernment rioting that was suppressed by force. In 1990 opposition parties won in national elections, but the army continued in control. Trying to negotiate for a freer government amid the unrest, Aung San Suu Kyi was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991.

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British History: Burma

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Burma was ruled by the Alaungpaya dynasty from 1752 to 1885. Initially, the dynasty was expansionary, conquering (although failing to hold) Thailand. However, it was severely checked and ultimately defeated by a counter-expansionary drive coming from the British in India. The British conquest of Burma was piecemeal, beginning in 1826 and not reaching completion until 1885. Originally ruled as a province of British India, the country was given its own administration in 1937. Between 1942 and 1945, Burma was overrun by the Japanese. After the war, hopes continued in the Colonial Office for a restoration of British dominance. However, an Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League had arisen to organize large-scale popular resistance to the Japanese. Now it was turned against the British. On 4 January 1948, the Independent Republic of Burma came into existence.

Buddhism Dictionary: Burma

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South-east Asian country now officially known as Myanmar. Buddhism may have been introduced here by one of Aśoka's missions, and it has been present among the native Mons people from the early centuries ce. The Burmese chronicles claim that Buddhaghoṣa visited the country and established a tradition of Pāli scholarship. The Pāli name for the Mon country to the south is Rāmañña, and the Sinhalese chronicles relate that when the Sinhalese ordination lineage died out King Vijayabāhu I (1059-1114) of Sri Lanka sent to Rāmañña (Burma) for monks to re-establish the Saṃgha. From the 5th to the 15th century the dominant power in the region was the Khmer Empire, in which various forms of Mahāyāna Buddhism were popular. King Anawrahtā (1044-77) unified the country by conquering the southern part and gave his allegiance to the Theravāda, although it is likely the Theravāda was dominant even before then. Anawrahtā's capital, Pagān, was sacked by the Mongols in 1287 and the city with its many thousand pagodas and temples was abandoned. The country was not united again until 1752, but soon afterwards was conquered by the British and became part of the British Empire until it was granted independence in 1948 when U Nu became the first Prime Minister. Attempts to develop a form of ‘Buddhist Socialism’ with Buddhism as the state religion ultimately failed when General Ne Win led a coup in 1962 from which time onwards the country has been ruled by a military junta (SLORC). The regime is not hostile to Buddhism, which remains strong, and 85 per cent of the population are Theravāda Buddhists. However, Buddhist pro-democracy advocates, such as Aung Suu Kyi, have been placed under house arrest and human rights abuses are commonplace. The country presently remains isolated from the international community.

Columbia Encyclopedia: Myanmar

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Myanmar (myän'mär, mēän'mär') or Burma (bûr'mə), officially Union of Myanmar, republic (2005 est. pop. 42,909,000), 261,789 sq mi (678,033 sq km), SE Asia. It is bounded on the west by Bangladesh, India, and the Bay of Bengal; on the north and northeast by China; on the east by Laos and Thailand; and on the south by the Andaman Sea. The traditional capital and by far the largest city is Yangon (Rangoon), but in late 2005 the government began transferring many government ministries to a new capital at Naypyidaw, near Pyinmana, in central Myanmar.

Land and People

The most densely populated part of the country is the valley of the Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) River, which, with its vast delta, is one of the main rice-growing regions of the world. Mandalay, the country's second largest city, is on the Ayeyarwady in central Myanmar. The Ayeyarwady basin is inhabited by the Burmans proper, a Mongolic people who came down from Tibet by the 9th cent. and now represent nearly 70% of the mainly rural population. The valley is surrounded by a chain of mountains that stem from the E Himalayas and spread out roughly in the shape of a giant horseshoe; the ranges and river valleys of the Chindwinn (a tributary of the Ayeyarwady) and of the Sittoung and the Thanlwin, or Salween (both to the E of the Ayeyarwady), run from north to south.

In the mountains of N Myanmar (rising to more than 19,000 ft/5,790 m) and along the India-Myanmar frontier live various Mongolic peoples; the most important are the Kachins (in the Kachin State in the north) and the Chins (in the Chin State in the west). These peoples practice shifting cultivation (taungya) and cut teak in the forests.

Between the Bay of Bengal and the hills of the Arakan Yoma is Rakhine State, a narrow coastal plain with the port of Sittwe, which is home to the Rakhines. In E Myanmar on the Shan Plateau is Shan State, home of the Shans, a Tai people closely related to the Thai who, at nearly 10% of the population, are Myanmar's largest minority. South of Shan State are the mountainous Kayah State and Kayin State; the Karens, who inhabit this region, are of Tai-Chinese origin, and many are Christians. South of Kayin State is the Tanintharyi region, a long, narrow strip of coast extending to the Isthmus of Kra. At its northern end is the port of Mawlamyine, Myanmar's third largest city.

Most of Myanmar has a tropical monsoon climate; however, N of the Bago Hills around Mandalay is the so-called Dry Zone with a rainfall of 20 to 40 in. (51-102 cm). On the Shan Plateau temperatures are moderate. Theravada Buddhism is the religion of about 90% of the population; there are Christian and Muslim minorities. Burmese (the tongue of the Burmans) is the official language, but each of Myanmar's ethnic minorities has its own language; in all, over 100 languages are spoken.

Economy

Myanmar suffered extensive damage in World War II, and some sectors of its economy have not yet fully recovered. About 70% of the population works in agriculture and forestry, and rice accounts for about half of the agricultural output. Other important crops are pulses, sesame, peanuts, and sugarcane. Myanmar also produces illegal opium in the northeast (bordering China, Laos, and Thailand), part of the "Golden Triangle"; heroin produced in the country's laboratories contributes to the black-market trade. Myanmar's forests, which are government-owned, are the source of teak and other hardwoods. Fishing is also important.

The country is rich in minerals. Petroleum is found east of the Ayeyarwady in the Dry Zone. Tin and tungsten are mined in E Myanmar; the Mawchi mines in Kayah State are also rich in tungsten. In Shan State, northwest of Lashio, are the Bawdwin mines, the source of lead, silver, and zinc. Coal, copper, natural gas, and iron deposits have also been found in Myanmar. Gems (notably rubies and sapphires) are found near Mogok. Since the 13th cent., Myanmar has exported jade from the Hunkawng valley in the north to China.

Aside from food processing, other manufacturing industries include wood and wood products, construction materials, pharmaceuticals, fertilizer, natural gas, and textiles and clothing. Exports include gas, wood products, pulses, fish, rice, clothing, jade, and gemstones. The chief imports are fabric, petroleum products, fertilizer, plastics, machinery, transportation equipment, construction materials, crude oil, food products, and edible oil. The country's chief trade partners are Thailand, China, Singapore, and India. Myanmar's developing economy, depressed by political turmoil, began to recover in the 1980s with increased private activity and foreign investment, but efforts to liberalize the economy stalled in the late 1990s.

Government

The chairman of the State Peace and Development Council, the military junta that rules Myanmar, serves as head of state. The government is headed by the prime minister. Myanmar's 1974 constitution was suspended in 1988, when a military junta assumed power. The process of drafting of a new constitution began in 1994, was suspended in 1996, and resumed in 2004; however, it did not included participation of the democratic opposition. The new constitution was adopted in 2008 after a referendum that was tightly controlled by the military. Administratively, the country is divided into seven divisions and seven states.

History

Early History through World War II

Myanmar's early history is mainly the story of the struggle of the Burmans against the Mons, or Talaings (of Mon-Khmer origin, now assimilated). In 1044, King Anawratha established Burman supremacy over the Ayeyarwady delta and over Thaton, capital of the Mon kingdom. Anawratha adopted Theravada Buddhism from the Mons. His capital, Pagan, "the city of a thousand temples," was the seat of his dynasty until it was conquered by Kublai Khan in 1287. Then Shan princes predominated in upper Myanmar, and the Mons revived in the south.

In the 16th cent. the Burman Toungoo dynasty unified the country and initiated the permanent subjugation of the Shans to the Burmans. In the 18th cent. the Mons of the Ayeyarwady delta overran the Dry Zone. In 1758, Alaungapaya rallied the Burmans, crushed the Mons, and established his capital at Yangon. He extended Burman influence to areas in present-day India (Assam and Manipur) and Thailand. Myanmar was ruled by his successors (the Konbaung dynasty) when friction with the British over border areas in India led to war in 1824.

The Treaty of Yandabo (1826) forced Myanmar to cede to British India the Rakhine and Tanintharyi coasts. In a second war (1852) the British occupied the Ayeyarwady delta. Fear of growing French strength in the region, in addition to economic considerations, caused the British to instigate the third Anglo-Burman War (1885) to gain complete control of Myanmar. The Burman king was captured, and the remainder of the country was annexed to India. Under British rule rice cultivation in the delta was expanded, an extensive railroad network was built, and the natural resources of Myanmar were developed. Exploitation of the rich oil deposits of Yenangyaung in central Myanmar was begun in 1871; the export of metals also became important.

Until the 20th cent. Myanmar was allowed no self-government. In 1923 a system of "dyarchy," already in effect in the rest of British India, was introduced, whereby a partially elected legislature was established and some ministers were made responsible to it. In 1935 the British gave Myanmar a new constitution (effective 1937), which separated the country from British India and provided for a fully elected assembly and a responsible cabinet.

During World War II, Myanmar was invaded and quickly occupied by the Japanese, who set up a nominally independent Burman regime under Dr. Ba Maw. Disillusioned members of the Burmese Independent Army (which the Japanese had formed secretly before the war to assist in expelling the British) under Aung San formed an anti-Japanese resistance movement, the Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League (AFPFL). Allied forces drove the Japanese out of Myanmar in Apr., 1945.

Independence and Civil Strife

In 1947 the British and Aung San reached agreement on full independence for Myanmar. Most of the non-Burman peoples supported the agreement, although the acquiescence of many proved short-lived. Despite the assassination of Aung San in July, 1947, the agreement went into effect on Jan. 4, 1948. Myanmar became an independent republic outside the Commonwealth of Nations. The new constitution provided for a bicameral legislature with a responsible prime minister and cabinet. Non-Burman areas were organized as the Shan, Kachin, Kayin, Kayah, and Chin states; each possessed a degree of autonomy.

The government, controlled by the socialist AFPFL, was soon faced with armed risings of Communist rebels and of Karen tribespeople, who wanted a separate Karen nation. International tension grew over the presence in Myanmar of Chinese Nationalist troops who had been forced across the border by the Chinese Communists in 1950 and who were making forays into China. Myanmar took the matter to the United Nations, which in 1953 ordered the Nationalists to leave Myanmar. In foreign affairs Myanmar followed a generally neutralist course. It refused to join the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization and was one of the first countries to recognize the Communist government in China.

In the elections of 1951-52 the AFPFL triumphed. In 1958 the AFPFL split into two factions; with a breakdown of order threatening, Premier U Nu invited General Ne Win, head of the army, to take over the government (Oct., 1958). After the 1960 elections, which were won by U Nu's faction, civilian government was restored. However, as rebellions among the minorities flared and opposition to U Nu's plan to make Buddhism the state religion mounted, conditions deteriorated rapidly.

In Mar., 1962, Ne Win staged a military coup, discarded the constitution, and established a Revolutionary Council, made up of military leaders who ruled by decree. While the federal structure was retained, a hierarchy of workers' and peasants' councils was created. A new party, the Myanmar Socialist Program party, was made the only legal political organization. The Revolutionary Council fully nationalized the industrial and commercial sectors of the economy and imposed a policy of international isolation.

Insurgency became a major problem of the Ne Win regime. Pro-Chinese Communist rebels-the "White Flag" Communists-were active in the northern part of the country, where, from 1967 on, they received aid from Communist China; the Chinese established links with the Shan and Kachin insurgents as well. The deposed U Nu, who managed to leave Myanmar in 1969, also used minority rebels to organize an anti-Ne Win movement among the Shans, Karens, and others in the east. However, in 1972, U Nu split with minority leaders over their assertion of the right to secede from Myanmar.

By the early 1970s the various insurgent groups controlled about one third of Myanmar. Ne Win and other top leaders resigned from the military in 1972 but continued to retain power. A new constitution, providing for a unicameral legislature and one legal political party, took effect in Mar., 1974. At that time the Revolutionary Council was disbanded and Ne Win was installed as president. Economic strife and ethnic tensions throughout the 1970s and 80s led to antigovernment riots in 1988, which caused Ne Win to resign from office. The series of governments that followed failed to restore order, and the military seized control under the name of the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC); some 3,000 were killed when the demonstrations were suppressed. In June, 1989, the military government officially changed the name of the country from Burma to Myanmar.

In elections held in May, 1990, the National League for Democracy (NLD) won a large majority of assembly seats. However, the SLORC declared the election results invalid and arrested many leaders and members of the NLD. Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of the NLD, had been placed under house arrest in 1989; she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991. In 1992, General Than Shwe became head of the junta and assumed the position of prime minister; many political prisoners were released, most martial law decrees were lifted, and plans to draft a new constitution were announced. However, there was little evidence that the army was prepared to return the government to civilian control. A UN General Assembly committee unanimously condemned the military regime for its refusal to surrender power to a democratically elected parliament.

During the mid-1990s the military government signed cease-fires with the insurgent ethnic minorities except the Karen; the government launched a major offensive against their stronghold in E Myanmar along the Thai border in 1997. Aung San Suu Kyi was released in 1995 and became active as an opposition leader; the military government denounced her and harassed her followers. In Jan., 1996, Khun Sa, a major opium lord and leader of a private army, surrendered and allowed government troops to enter his jungle headquarters; it was speculated that he might have been granted amnesty and allowed to continue drug activities in return for ending his insurgency.

In 1997 the SLORC changed its name to the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC). Myanmar moved toward closer political and economic relations with neighboring India and Thailand in the 1990s, and in 1999 it was accepted as a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Human-rights groups continued to report numerous abuses, including the jailing of trade unionists and the increased use of members of ethnic minority groups as forced laborers, and harassment of and crackdowns on the opposition were regular occurrences. In Nov., 2000, the International Labor Organization called for sanctions against Myanmar because of the country's use of forced labor, but significant economic measures were not imposed because they would be barred by the World Trade Organization, to which Myanmar belongs.

Aung San Suu Kyi was again placed under house arrest from Sept., 2000, to May, 2002. Although many of her supporters had hoped that her 2002 release signaled a new attitude on the part of the SPDC, talks between Aung San Suu Kyi and the government, which had begun during her confinement, did not resume as expected. As she increased her criticism of the SPDC in 2003, her motorcade was attacked in May, her supporters were blamed for the violence, and she and other NLD leaders again placed in detention or under house arrest. The renewed repression led to new international sanctions and criticism of the government; like the earlier sanctions, these did not have a significant effect, in large part because of significant trade with and investments from China, Thailand, India, and Singapore. A number of NLD leaders were freed beginning in November. Meanwhile, in Aug., 2003, Gen. Khin Nyunt, who headed military intelligence, succeeded Than Shwe as prime minister; the latter remained head of the junta.

In May, 2004, the government convened a constitutional convention, but the NLD boycotted the convention because of Aung San Suu Kyi's continuing detention. The convention adjourned in July. Khin Nyunt, who was regarded as one of the more moderate SPDC members, was forced from office in Oct., 2004. Lt. Gen. Soe Win replaced him. Khin Nyunt was subsequently (2005) secretly tried on corruption and bribery charges and given a suspended sentence.

The country did not suffer significant damage as a result of the Dec., 2004, Indian Ocean tsunami. The government reconvened the constitutional convention in Feb., 2005, but adjourned it again at the end of March. The government arrest of Shan leaders on treason charges in Feb., 2005, following a government call for Shan forces to disarm, led the Shan that had signed a 1995 cease-fire with the government to resume their struggle and declare (May, 2005) Shan State independent. In Nov., 2005, the government announced that the capital would be moved to near Pyinmana from Yangon and that it had begun relocating ministries there. The move was presented as a transfer of the government to a more central location, but outside observers regarded it as an attempt to relocate to a more isolated and secure site.

The constitutional convention was again reconvened from Dec., 2005, to Jan., 2006, from Oct., 2006, to Dec., 2006, and from July to Sept., 2007, which the government announced that it had completed its work of writing the detailed guidelines for a new constitution. Under the guidelines the military would control important government ministries and sizable blocks of legislative seats. Meanwhile, in Apr., 2006, the government accused the NLD of having ties to terrorist groups, a charge the NLD denied. The International Committee of the Red Cross, which usually raises issues of concern confidentially with national governments, publicly criticized Myanmar's military regime of major human rights abuses in June, 2007.

In May, Lt. Gen. Thein Sein became acting prime minister; Soe Win, the prime minister, was seriously ill, and died in October. Fuel price rises in Aug., 2007, led to antigovernment demonstrations that came to involve large numbers of Buddhist monks; the protests continued into September. That month, however, the government brutally suppressed the demonstrations and arrested some 3,000 (the official figure). In Feb., 2008, the government announced that the new constitution was completed and that a national referendum on it would be held in May. The proposed constitution was not published, however, until April.

In May, 2008, Cyclone Nargis devastated areas of Myanmar bordering the Andaman Sea, especially in the Ayeyarwady delta and greater Yangon regions. An estimated 138,000 persons were killed, and rebuilding costs were estimated at $1 billion. The junta initially appeared reluctant to accept international aid and for a time refused international help in distributing the aid. Despite the cyclone, the constitutional referendum went ahead as scheduled (with a two-week delay in devastated areas); the vote, criticized internationally as a sham, overwhelming approved the charter, which entered into force later in the month. In Nov., 2008, Myanmarese oil-and-gas exploration ships in disputed waters in the Bay of Bengal were confronted by the Bangladeshi navy; both nations subsequently withdrew their vessels.

Bibliography

See F. N. Trager, Burma: From Kingdom to Republic (1966); M. Htin Aung, A History of Burma (1967); H. Tinker, The Union of Burma (4th ed. 1967); N. Bixler, Burma: A Profile (1971); E. D. Smith, Battle for Burma (1979); D. Steinberg, Burma's Road to Development (1981); M. Smith, Burma: Insurgency and the Politics of Insurgency (1991); T. Myint-U, The River of Lost Footsteps (2006).

Geography: Myanmar

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(myahn-mahr, meye-ahn-mahr)

The official name for Burma since 1989.

Dialing Code: Burma (Union Of Myanmar)

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The international dialing code for Burma (Union Of Myanmar) is: 95

Maps: Myanmar

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Local Time: Myanmar

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It is 1:12 AM, November 23, in Myanmar.

Currency: Myanmar

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Myanmar Kyat

Statistics: Burma

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Background:

Britain conquered Burma over a period of 62 years (1824-1886) and incorporated it into its Indian Empire. Burma was administered as a province of India until 1937 when it became a separate, self-governing colony; independence from the Commonwealth was attained in 1948. Gen. NE WIN dominated the government from 1962 to 1988, first as military ruler, then as self-appointed president, and later as political kingpin. In September 1988, the military deposed NE WIN and established a new ruling junta. Despite multiparty legislative elections in 1990 that resulted in the main opposition party - the National League for Democracy (NLD) - winning a landslide victory, the junta refused to hand over power. NLD leader and Nobel Peace Prize recipient AUNG SAN SUU KYI, who was under house arrest from 1989 to 1995 and 2000 to 2002, was imprisoned in May 2003 and subsequently transferred to house arrest. After the ruling junta in August 2007 unexpectedly increased fuel prices, tens of thousands of Burmese marched in protest, led by prodemocracy activists and Buddhist monks. In late September 2007, the government brutally suppressed the protests, killing at least 13 people and arresting thousands for participating in the demonstrations. Since then, the regime has continued to raid homes and monasteries and arrest persons suspected of participating in the pro-democracy protests. The junta appointed Labor Minister AUNG KYI in October 2007 as liaison to AUNG SAN SUU KYI, who remains under house arrest and virtually incommunicado with her party and supporters. Burma in early May 2008 was struck by Cyclone Nargis which official estimates claimed left over 80,000 dead and 50,000 injured. Despite this tragedy, the junta proceeded with its May constitutional referendum, the first vote in Burma since 1990, setting the stage for the 2010 parliamentary elections.

Location:	Southeastern Asia, bordering the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal, between Bangladesh and Thailand
Geographic coordinates:	22 00 N, 98 00 E
Map references:	Southeast Asia
Area:	total: 678,500 sq km land: 657,740 sq km water: 20,760 sq km
Area - comparative:	slightly smaller than Texas
Land boundaries:	total: 5,876 km border countries: Bangladesh 193 km, China 2,185 km, India 1,463 km, Laos 235 km, Thailand 1,800 km
Coastline:	1,930 km
Maritime claims:	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Climate:	tropical monsoon; cloudy, rainy, hot, humid summers (southwest monsoon, June to September); less cloudy, scant rainfall, mild temperatures, lower humidity during winter (northeast monsoon, December to April)
Terrain:	central lowlands ringed by steep, rugged highlands
Elevation extremes:	lowest point: Andaman Sea 0 m highest point: Hkakabo Razi 5,881 m
Natural resources:	petroleum, timber, tin, antimony, zinc, copper, tungsten, lead, coal, marble, limestone, precious stones, natural gas, hydropower
Land use:	arable land: 14.92% permanent crops: 1.31% other: 83.77% (2005)
Irrigated land:	18,700 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources:	1,045.6 cu km (1999)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):	total: 33.23 cu km/yr (1%/1%/98%) per capita: 658 cu m/yr (2000)
Natural hazards:	destructive earthquakes and cyclones; flooding and landslides common during rainy season (June to September); periodic droughts
Environment - current issues:	deforestation; industrial pollution of air, soil, and water; inadequate sanitation and water treatment contribute to disease
Environment - international agreements:	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94 signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:	strategic location near major Indian Ocean shipping lanes

Population:	48,137,741 note: estimates for this country take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2009 est.)
Age structure:	0-14 years: 25.3% (male 6,193,263/female 5,990,658) 15-64 years: 69.3% (male 16,510,648/female 16,828,462) 65 years and over: 5.4% (male 1,121,412/female 1,493,298) (2009 est.)
Median age:	total: 28.2 years male: 27.7 years female: 28.8 years (2009 est.)
Population growth rate:	0.783% (2009 est.)
Birth rate:	16.97 births/1,000 population (2009 est.)
Death rate:	9.23 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Net migration rate:	NA (2009 est.)
Urbanization:	urban population: 33% of total population (2008) rate of urbanization: 2.9% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
Sex ratio:	at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2009 est.)
Infant mortality rate:	total: 47.61 deaths/1,000 live births male: 53.78 deaths/1,000 live births female: 41.07 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:	total population: 63.39 years male: 61.17 years female: 65.74 years (2009 est.)
Total fertility rate:	1.89 children born/woman (2009 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:	0.7% (2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:	240,000 (2007 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:	25,000 (2007 est.)
Major infectious diseases:	degree of risk: very high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vectorborne diseases: dengue fever and malaria water contact disease: leptospirosis animal contact disease: rabies note: highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has been identified in this country; it poses a negligible risk with extremely rare cases possible among US citizens who have close contact with birds (2009)
Nationality:	noun: Burmese (singular and plural) adjective: Burmese
Ethnic groups:	Burman 68%, Shan 9%, Karen 7%, Rakhine 4%, Chinese 3%, Indian 2%, Mon 2%, other 5%
Religions:	Buddhist 89%, Christian 4% (Baptist 3%, Roman Catholic 1%), Muslim 4%, animist 1%, other 2%
Languages:	Burmese, minority ethnic groups have their own languages
Literacy:	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 89.9% male: 93.9% female: 86.4% (2006 est.)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):	total: 8 years male: 8 years female: 8 years (2001)
Education expenditures:	1.2% of GDP (2001)

Country name:	conventional long form: Union of Burma conventional short form: Burma local long form: Pyidaungzu Myanma Naingngandaw (translated by the US Government as Union of Myanma and by the Burmese as Union of Myanmar) local short form: Myanma Naingngandaw former: Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma note: since 1989 the military authorities in Burma have promoted the name Myanmar as a conventional name for their state; this decision was not approved by any sitting legislature in Burma, and the US Government did not adopt the name, which is a derivative of the Burmese short-form name Myanma Naingngandaw
Government type:	military junta
Capital:	name: Rangoon (Yangon) geographic coordinates: 16 48 N, 96 09 E time difference: UTC+6.5 (11.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Nay Pyi Taw is administrative capital
Administrative divisions:	7 divisions (taing-myar, singular - taing) and 7 states* (pyi ne-myar, singular - pyi ne); Ayeyarwady, Bago, Chin, Kachin, Kayah, Kayin, Magway, Mandalay, Mon, Rakhine, Sagaing, Shan*, Tanintharyi, Yangon
Independence:	4 January 1948 (from the UK)
National holiday:	Independence Day, 4 January (1948); Union Day, 12 February (1947)
Constitution:	3 January 1974; suspended since 18 September 1988; a new constitution was approved on 10 May 2008; note - new constitution will take effect when a new parliament is convened following elections scheduled for 2010
Legal system:	based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:	18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:	chief of state: Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) Sr. Gen. THAN SHWE (since 23 April 1992) head of government: Prime Minister, Lt. Gen THEIN SEIN (since 24 October 2007) cabinet: Cabinet is overseen by SPDC; military junta assumed power 18 September 1988 under name State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) elections: none
Legislative branch:	a unicameral People's Assembly or Pyithu Hluttaw consisting of 485 seats with members elected by popular vote was elected in 1990 but was never seated; according to the terms of the constitution approved on 10 May 2008, a bicameral Pyidaungsu Hluttaw consisting of an upper house with a maximum of 224 seats and a lower house with a maximum of 440 seats will be selected in elections in 2010 elections: last held 27 May 1990, but Assembly never allowed by junta to convene (junta has announced plans to hold elections in 2010) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NLD 392 (opposition), SNLD 23 (opposition), NUP 10 (pro-government), other 60
Judicial branch:	remnants of the British-era legal system are in place, but there is no guarantee of a fair public trial; the judiciary is not independent of the executive
Political parties and leaders:	National League for Democracy or NLD [AUNG SHWE, AUNG SAN SUU KYI]; National Unity Party or NUP (pro-regime) [TUN YE]; Shan Nationalities League for Democracy or SNLD [HKUN HTUN OO]; and numerous other smaller parties
Political pressure groups and leaders:	Ethnic Nationalities Council or ENC (based in Thailand); Federation of Trade Unions-Burma or FTUB (exile trade union and labor advocates); National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma or NCGUB (self-proclaimed government in exile) ["Prime Minister" Dr. SEIN WIN] consists of individuals, some legitimately elected to the People's Assembly in 1990 (the group fled to a border area and joined insurgents in December 1990 to form parallel government in exile); Kachin Independence Organization or KIO; Karen National Union or KNU; Karenni National People's Party or KNPP; National Council-Union of Burma or NCUB (exile coalition of opposition groups); United Wa State Army or UWSA; Union Solidarity and Development Association or USDA (pro-regime, a social and political mass-member organization) [HTAY OO, general secretary]; 88 Generation Students (pro-democracy movement) [TOE KYAW HLAING] other: several Shan factions
International organization participation:	ADB, APT, ARF, ASEAN, BIMSTEC, CP, EAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OPCW (signatory), SAARC (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US:	chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires MYINT LWIN chancery: 2300 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-3344 FAX: [1] (202) 332-4351 consulate(s) general: New York
Diplomatic representation from the US:	chief of mission: Charge d'Affaires Larry M. DINGER embassy: 110 University Avenue, Kamayut Township, Rangoon mailing address: Box B, APO AP 96546 telephone: [95] (1) 536-509, 535-756, 538-038 FAX: [95] (1) 650-306
Flag description:	red with a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing 14, white, five-pointed stars encircling a cogwheel containing a stalk of rice; the 14 stars represent the seven administrative divisions and seven states

Economy - overview:	Burma, a resource-rich country, suffers from pervasive government controls, inefficient economic policies, and rural poverty. Despite Burma's increasing oil and gas revenue, socio-economic conditions have deteriorated because of the regime's mismanagement of the economy. The economy suffers from serious macroeconomic imbalances - including rising inflation, fiscal deficits, multiple official exchange rates that overvalue the Burmese kyat, a distorted interest rate regime, unreliable statistics, and an inability to reconcile national accounts to determine a realistic GDP figure. Most overseas development assistance ceased after the junta began to suppress the democracy movement in 1988 and subsequently refused to honor the results of the 1990 legislative elections. In response to the government of Burma's attack in May 2003 on AUNG SAN SUU KYI and her convoy, the US imposed new economic sanctions in August 2003 including a ban on imports of Burmese products and a ban on provision of financial services by US persons. Further, a poor investment climate hampers the inflow of foreign investment. Foreign investors have shied away from nearly every sector except for natural gas and power generation. The business climate is widely perceived as opaque, corrupt, and highly inefficient. The most productive sectors will continue to be in extractive industries - especially oil and gas, mining, and timber - with the latter causing significant environmental degradation. Other areas, such as manufacturing and services, are struggling with inadequate infrastructure, unpredictable import/export policies, deteriorating health and education systems, and endemic corruption. A major banking crisis in 2003 shuttered 20 private banks and disrupted the economy. As of 2008, the largest private banks operated under tight restrictions, limiting the private sector's access to formal credit. The September 2007 crackdown on prodemocracy demonstrators, including thousands of monks, strained the economy as the tourism industry, which directly employs about 500,000 people, suffered dramatic declines in foreign visitor levels. In November 2007, the European Union announced new sanctions banning investment and trade in Burmese gems, timber, and precious stones, while the United States expanded its sanctions list to include more Burmese government and military officials and their family members, as well as prominent regime business cronies, their family members, and associated companies. Official statistics are inaccurate. In July 2008 the President signed into law the Tom Lantos JADE (Junta's Anti-Democratic Efforts) Act of 2008, imposing new targeted sanctions on the regime. Published statistics on foreign trade are greatly understated because of the size of the black market and unofficial border trade - often estimated to be as large as the official economy. Though the Burmese government has good economic relations with its neighbors, better investment and business climates and an improved political situation are needed to promote serious foreign investment, exports, and tourism.
GDP (purchasing power parity):	$55.04 billion (2008 est.) $54.55 billion (2007) $52.76 billion (2006) note: data are in 2008 US dollars
GDP (official exchange rate):	$13.7 billion (2008 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:	0.9% (2008 est.) 3.4% (2007 est.) 3.4% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):	$1,200 (2008 est.) $1,200 (2007 est.) $1,100 (2006 est.) note: data are in 2008 US dollars
GDP - composition by sector:	agriculture: 40.9% industry: 19.7% services: 39.3% (2008 est.)
Labor force:	30.04 million (2008 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:	agriculture: 70% industry: 7% services: 23% (2001)
Unemployment rate:	9.4% (2008 est.)
Population below poverty line:	32.7% (2007 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:	lowest 10%: 2.8% highest 10%: 32.4% (1998)
Investment (gross fixed):	14.1% of GDP (2008 est.)
Budget:	revenues: $983.6 million expenditures: $1.775 billion (2008 est.)
Fiscal year:	1 April - 31 March
Inflation rate (consumer prices):	27.3% (2008 est.)
Central bank discount rate:	12% (31 December 2007)
Commercial bank prime lending rate:	17% (31 December 2007)
Stock of money:	$598 billion note: this number reflects the vastly overvalued official exchange rate of 5.38 kyat per dollar; at the unofficial black market rate of 1305 kyat per dollar, the stock of kyats would equal only US$2.465 billion and Burma's velocity of money (the number of times money turns over in the course of a year) would be six, in line with the velocity of money for other countries in the region (31 December 2007)
Stock of quasi money:	$216.9 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of domestic credit:	$887.7 billion (31 December 2007)
Market value of publicly traded shares:	$NA
Agriculture - products:	rice, pulses, beans, sesame, groundnuts, sugarcane; hardwood; fish and fish products
Industries:	agricultural processing; wood and wood products; copper, tin, tungsten, iron; cement, construction materials; pharmaceuticals; fertilizer; oil and natural gas; garments, jade and gems
Industrial production growth rate:	7.1% (2008 est.)
Electricity - production:	5.961 billion kWh (2006 est.)
Electricity - consumption:	4.289 billion kWh (2006 est.)
Electricity - exports:	0 kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - imports:	0 kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - production by source:	fossil fuel: 44.5% hydro: 43.4% nuclear: 0% other: 12.1% (2002)
Oil - production:	21,900 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - consumption:	43,140 bbl/day (2006 est.)
Oil - exports:	5,000 bbl/day (2006 est.)
Oil - imports:	22,180 bbl/day (2005 est.)
Oil - proved reserves:	50 million bbl (1 January 2008 est.)
Natural gas - production:	12.6 billion cu m (2006 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:	3.62 billion cu m (2006 est.)
Natural gas - exports:	9.9 billion cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - imports:	0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:	283.2 billion cu m (1 January 2008 est.)
Current account balance:	$762 million (2008 est.)
Exports:	$6.149 billion f.o.b. note: official export figures are grossly underestimated due to the value of timber, gems, narcotics, rice, and other products smuggled to Thailand, China, and Bangladesh (2008 est.)
Exports - commodities:	natural gas, wood products, pulses, beans, fish, rice, clothing, jade and gems
Exports - partners:	Thailand 44.3%, India 14.5%, China 7.1%, Japan 5.7% (2007)
Imports:	$3.589 billion f.o.b. note: import figures are grossly underestimated due to the value of consumer goods, diesel fuel, and other products smuggled in from Thailand, China, Malaysia, and India (2008 est.)
Imports - commodities:	fabric, petroleum products, fertilizer, plastics, machinery, transport equipment; cement, construction materials, crude oil; food products, edible oil
Imports - partners:	China 33.7%, Thailand 19.1%, Singapore 15.5%, South Korea 5.8%, Indonesia 5.2%, Malaysia 4.2% (2007)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:	$2.262 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
Debt - external:	$7.17 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
Currency (code):	kyat (MMK)
Currency code:	MMK
Exchange rates:	kyats (MMK) per US dollar - 1,205 (2008 est.), 1,296 (2007), 1,280 (2006), 5.761 (2005), 5.7459 (2004) note: unofficial exchange rates ranged in 2004 from 815 kyat/US dollar to nearly 970 kyat/US dollar, and by yearend 2005, the unofficial exchange rate was 1,075 kyat/US dollar; data shown for 2003-05 are official exchange rates

Telephones - main lines in use:	503,900 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular:	214,200 (2006)
Telephone system:	general assessment: meets minimum requirements for local and intercity service for business and government domestic: system barely capable of providing basic service; cellular phone system is grossly underdeveloped with a subscribership base of less than 1 per 100 persons international: country code - 95; landing point for the SEA-ME-WE-3 optical telecommunications submarine cable that provides links to Asia, the Middle East, and Europe; satellite earth stations - 2, Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and ShinSat (2007)
Radio broadcast stations:	AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 3 (2007)
Radios:	4.2 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations:	4 (2008)
Televisions:	320,000 (2000)
Internet country code:	.mm
Internet hosts:	108 (2008)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):	1 note: as of September 2000, Internet connections were legal only for the government, tourist offices, and a few large businesses (2000)
Internet users:	40,000 (2007)

Airports:	84 (2008)
Airports - with paved runways:	total: 31 over 3,047 m: 10 2,438 to 3,047 m: 10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 9 under 914 m: 2 (2008)
Airports - with unpaved runways:	total: 53 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 9 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 30 (2008)
Heliports:	4 (2007)
Pipelines:	gas 2,228 km; oil 558 km (2008)
Railways:	total: 3,955 km narrow gauge: 3,955 km 1.000-m gauge (2006)
Roadways:	total: 27,000 km paved: 3,200 km unpaved: 23,800 km (2006)
Waterways:	12,800 km (2008)
Merchant marine:	total: 24 by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 17, passenger 2, passenger/cargo 3, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 3 (Cyprus 1, Germany 1, Japan 1) registered in other countries: 1 (Panama 1) (2008)
Ports and terminals:	Moulmein, Rangoon, Sittwe

Military branches:	Myanmar Armed Forces (Tatmadaw): Army, Navy, Air Force (Tatmadaw Lay) (2008)
Military service age and obligation:	18 years of age for voluntary military service for both sexes; forced conscription of children, although officially prohibited, reportedly continues (2007)
Manpower available for military service:	males age 16-49: 13,402,788 females age 16-49: 13,437,042 (2008 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:	males age 16-49: 9,146,312 females age 16-49: 9,520,852 (2009 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:	male: 426,110 female: 417,674 (2009 est.)
Military expenditures:	2.1% of GDP (2005 est.)

Disputes - international:	over half of Burma's population consists of diverse ethnic groups who have substantial numbers of kin in neighboring countries; Thailand must deal with Karen and other ethnic refugees, asylum seekers, and rebels, as well as illegal cross-border activities from Burma; Thailand is studying the feasibility of jointly constructing the Hatgyi Dam on the Salween River near the border with Burma; citing environmental, cultural, and social concerns, China is reconsidering construction of 13 dams on the Salween River but energy-starved Burma with backing from Thailand remains intent on building five hydro-electric dams downstream, despite identical regional and international protests; India seeks cooperation from Burma to keep Indian Nagaland separatists, such as the United Liberation Front of Assam, from hiding in remote Burmese Uplands; after 21 years, Bangladesh resumes talks with Burma on delimiting a maritime boundary in January 2008
Refugees and internally displaced persons:	IDPs: 503,000 (government offensives against ethnic insurgent groups near the eastern borders; most IDPs are ethnic Karen, Karenni, Shan, Tavoyan, and Mon) (2007)
Trafficking in persons:	current situation: Burma is a source country for women, children, and men trafficked for the purpose of forced labor and commercial sexual exploitation; Burmese women and children are trafficked to East and Southeast Asia for commercial sexual exploitation, domestic servitude, and forced labor; Burmese children are subjected to conditions of forced labor in Thailand as hawkers, beggars, and for work in shops, agriculture, fish processing, and small-scale industries; women are trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation to Malaysia and China; some trafficking victims transit Burma from Bangladesh to Malaysia and from China to Thailand; internal trafficking occurs primarily from villages to urban centers and economic hubs for labor in industrial zones, agricultural estates, and commercial sexual exploitation; military and civilian officials continue to use a significant amount of forced labor; ethnic insurgent groups also used compulsory labor of adults and unlawful recruitment of children; the military junta's gross economic mismanagement, human rights abuses, and its policy of using forced labor are the top causal factors for Burma's significant trafficking problem tier rating: Tier 3 - Burma does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so; military and civilian officials remain directly involved in significant acts of forced labor and unlawful conscription of child soldiers (2008)
Illicit drugs:	remains world's second largest producer of illicit opium with an estimated production in 2008 of 340 metric tons, an increase of 26%, and poppy cultivation in 2008 totaled 22,500 hectares, a 4% increase from 2007; production in the United Wa State Army's areas of greatest control remains low; Shan state is the source of 94% of Burma's poppy cultivation; lack of government will to take on major narcotrafficking groups and lack of serious commitment against money laundering continues to hinder the overall antidrug effort; major source of methamphetamine and heroin for regional consumption (2008)

Occultism & Parapsychology Encyclopedia: Myanmar

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An independent republic of Southeast Asia, known until 1989 as Burma, located east of India and south of China, and formerly a province of British India, inhabited by an indigenous stock of Indo-Chinese people who originally migrated from Western China at different periods, represented by three principal groups, the Talaings, the Shans, and the Bama, although groups of several other allied races are also found.

The largest religious community is the Theravada Buddhist, though there are significant minority communities of Hindus, Muslims, Christians, and those who follow forms of indigenous tribal religions. Many beliefs were affected by the Japanese occupation during World War II and by the internal power struggles following independence in 1948, culminating in the creation of the present socialist republic in 1974.

Some traditional beliefs still linger on. In general, the Burmese believed the soul is immaterial and independent of the body, to which it is only bound by a special attraction. It can quit and return to the body at will, but can also be captured and kept from returning to it. After death the soul hovers near the corpse as an invisible butterfly, known as leippya. A witch or demon may capture the leippya while it wanders during the hours of sleep, and sickness is sure to result. Offerings are made to the magician or devil to induce him to release the soul. The Kachins of the northern hills of Burma believed that persons having the evil eye possessed two souls, the secondary soul being the cause of the malign influence.

Belief in Spirits

Beliefs in spirits, mostly malign, took a prominent place in the religious beliefs of the people of Myanmar. The spirits of rain, wind, and the heavenly bodies were in that condition of evolution that usually results in their becoming full-fledged deities, with whom placation gives way to worship. But the spirits of the forest are true demons with well-marked animistic characteristics. Thus the nat or seiktha dwells in trees or groves. His nature is usually malign, but occasionally we find him as the guardian of a village. In any case, he possesses a shrine where he may be propitiated by gifts of food and drink. Several of these demonic figures have almost achieved godhead, so widespread did their particular veneration become, and Hmin Nat, Chiton, and Wannein Nat may be named as fiends of power, the dread of which spread across extensive districts.

The nats were probably of Indian origin, and the now thoroughly indigenous creatures may at one time have been members of the Hindu pantheon. Many spirit families such as the Seikkaso, Akathaso, and Bommaso, who inhabit various parts of the jungle trees, are of Indian origin. The fulfillment of every wish depends upon the nats or spirits, who are all-powerful as far as humans are concerned. They are innumerable. Any house might have its complement, who swarmed in its several rooms and took up their abode in its hearth, doorposts, verandas, and corners. The nats also inhabited or inspired wild beasts, and all misfortune was supposed to emanate from them.

The Burmese used to believe that the more materialistic dead haunted the living with a malign purpose. The people had a great dread of their newly-deceased relatives, whom they imagined to haunt the vicinity of their dwellings for the purpose of ambushing them.

No dead body would be carried to a cemetery except by the shortest route, even should this necessitate cutting a hole in the wall of a house. The spirits of those who died a violent death haunted the scene of their fatality. Like the ancient Mexicans (see Ciupipiltin), the Burmese had a great dread of the ghosts of women who died in childbirth. The Kachins believed such women to turn into vampires (swawmx) who were accompanied by their children when these died with them. The spirits of children were often supposed to inhabit the bodies of cats and dogs.

The Burmans were extremely circumspect as to how they spoke and acted towards the inhabitants of the spirit world, as they believed that disrespect or mockery would at once bring down upon them misfortune or disease. An infinite number of guardian spirits were included in the Burmese demonological system, and these were chiefly supposed to be Brahmanic importations. These dwelt in the houses like the evil nats and were the tutelars of village communities, and even of clans. They were duly propitiated, at which ceremonies rice, beer, and teasalad were offered to them. Women were employed as exorcists to drive out the evil nats, but at the festivals connected with the guardian nats, women were not permitted to officiate.

Necromancy and Occult Medicine

Necromancy used to be common among the Burmese. The weza or wizards were of two kinds, good and evil, and these were each subdivided into four classes, according to the materials they employed, such as, for example, magic squares, mercury, or iron. The native doctors professed to cure the diseases caused by witchcraft, and often specialized in various ailments. Besides being necromantic, medicine was largely astrological. There was said to be in Lower Burma a town of wizards at Kale Thaungtot on the Chindwin River, and many journeyed there to have the effects of bewitchment neutralized by its chief. Sympathetic magic was employed to render an enemy sick. Indian and native alchemy and cheiromancy were widespread. Noise is the universal method of exorcism, and in cases of illness the patient was often severely beaten, the idea being that the fiend that possessed him was the sufferer.

Mediums and Exorcists

The tumsa or natsaw were magicians, diviners, or wise men and women who practiced their arts in a private and in a nonhierophantic capacity among the rural Burmese. The wise man physician who worked in iron (than weza) was at the head of his profession, and sold amulets that guarded their purchasers from injury. Female mediums professed to be the spouses of certain nats, and could only retain their supernatural connection with a certain spirit so long as they were wedded to him.

With the exorcists, training was voluntary and even perfunctory. But with the mediums it was severe and prolonged. Among the civilized Burmanese a much more exhaustive apprenticeship was demanded. Indeed a thorough and intricate knowledge of some departments of magical and astrological practice was necessary for recognition by the brotherhood, the entire art of which was medico-magical, consisting of the exorcism of evil spirits from human beings and animals.

The methods employed were such as usually accompanied exorcism among tribal cultures, that is, dancing, flagellation of the afflicted person, induction of ecstasy, oblation to the fiend in possession, and noise.

Prophecy and Divination

Prophecy and divination have been quite popular in Myanmar, and were in some measure controlled by the use of the Deitton, an astrological book of Indian origin. Observation of the direction in which the blood of a sacrificed animal flowed, the knots in torn leaves, the length of a split bamboo pole, and the whiteness or otherwise of a hardboiled egg were utilized as methods of augury. But by far the most important mode of divination in use in the country was the bones of fowls. It was indeed an almost universal way of deciding all the difficulties of Burmese existence. Those wing or thigh bones in which the holes exhibit regularity were chosen. Pieces of bamboo were inserted into these holes, and the resulting slant of the stick defined the augury. If the stick slanted outwards it decided in favor of the measure under test. If it slanted inwards, the omen was unfavorable. Other materials of divination were the entrails of animals and the contents of blown eggs.

Astrology

Burmese astrology derived both from Indian and Chinese sources, and powerfully affected the entire people, most of whom had a private astrologer who would be consulted for knowledge of the trend of the horoscope regarding the near future. Burmese would be active and enterprising on lucky days, but nothing would induce them to undertake any form of work should the day be pyatthadane or ominous.

The bedinsaya, or astrologers proper, practiced a fully developed Hindu astrology, but being few in number, they were not as influential as the rural soothsayers, who followed the Chinese system known as Hpewan, almost identical to the Taoist astrological tables of Chinese diviners. From this system were derived horoscopes, fortunes, happy marriages, and prognostications regarding business affairs. But in practice the system was often confounded with the Buddhist calendar and much confusion resulted. The Buddhist calendar was in popular use, while the Hpewan was purely astrological. Therefore the Burmese ignorant of the latter was obliged to consult an astrologer who was able to collate the two regarding his lucky and unlucky days. The chief horoscopic influences were day of birth, day of the week, represented by the symbol of a certain animal, and the position of the dragon's mouth to the terminal syllables of the day-names.

Magic

Burmese magic consisted in the making of charms and the manufacture of occult medicine to cause hallucination, second sight, the prophetic state, invisibility, or invulnerability. It was frequently sympathetic and overlapped with necromancy and astrology. It did not appear to be at all ceremonial, and was to a great extent unsophisticated, save where it had been influenced by Indian and Buddhist monks, who also drew on native sources to enlarge their own knowledge.

Sources:

Fielding, H. The Soul of a People. London: n.p., 1902.

Fytche, A. Burma, Past & Present. 2 vols. London: n.p., 1878.

Spiro, Melford E. Burmese Supernaturalism. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1967.

Temple, Sir Richard C. The Thirtyseven Nats (Burmese Animism). London: n.p., 1906.

The Vampire Book: Vampires in Myanmar

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Myanmar, known until 1989 as Burma, is a Southeast Asian country bounded by India and Bangladesh on the west, China on the north, and Laos and Cambodia on the east. The Myanmars settled the land in the ninth-century and over the next century established an independent country. It has been variously part of the Chinese, British, and Japanese empires; it emerged as an independent nation following World War II. The Myanmars are primarily Buddhist and tend to cremate their dead; thus, they do not have a strong tradition of revenants. The culture does have a large pantheon of deities and supernatural entities, however, along with a rich tradition of ghosts and demonic beings.

The most malevolent of the ghosts, the thaye and tasei, were beings that, because of their evil earthly life, were condemned to their disembodied state until they had worked out their karmic difficulties and were eventually reborn into another body. These disembodied ghosts, at times, took on a kind of visible materiality. When seen, they were tall, dark, and possessed huge ears, a large tongue, and tusklike teeth. They resided near villages at the local cemeteries. On occasion they assumed characteristics of vampires and ghouls and fed on corpses or went into the village to attack living people. More frequently, they were seen as the cause of minor illnesses. They entered town either at high noon or after dark.

In the folklore, protection from ghosts was provided by a lehpwe, an amulet for a variety of purposes. One such amulet consisted of a drawing of an elephant made from the letters of the Myanmar alphabet. Popular in earlier centuries was tattooing of the body in the area between the navel and the knee. There were also specific rituals to banish ghosts from a village, both brief ones for individual use and longer ones for the community.

Spiro, Melford E. Burmese Supernaturalism. Philadelphia: Institute for the Study of Human Issues, 1978. 300 pp.

Translations: Myanmar

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Français (French)
n. - Myanmar

Português (Portuguese)
n. - Myanmar

Español (Spanish)
n. - Myanmar

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
缅甸

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 緬甸

한국어 (Korean)
미얀마 (1989년 부터의 Burma의 새 국명; 공식 명칭은 the Union of ~)

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