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Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar and also known as Burma (the official name until 1989), is a country in Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has a population of about 55 million. It is bordered by Bangladesh and India to its northwest, China to its northeast, Laos and Thailand to its east and southeast, and the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal to its south and southwest. The country's capital city is Naypyidaw, and its largest city is Yangon (formerly Rangoon).
Myanmar is a member of the East Asia Summit, Non-Aligned Movement, ASEAN, and BIMSTEC, but it is not a member of the Commonwealth of Nations despite once being part of the British Empire. Myanmar is a Dialogue Partner of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. The country is very rich in natural resources, such as jade, gems, oil, natural gas, teak and other minerals, as well as also endowed with renewable energy, having the highest solar power potential compared to other countries of the Great Mekong Subregion. However, Myanmar has long suffered from instability, factional violence, corruption, poor infrastructure, as well as a long history of colonial exploitation with little regard to human development. In 2013, its GDP (nominal) stood at US$56.7 billion and its GDP (PPP) at US$221.5 billion. The income gap in Myanmar is among the widest in the world, as a large proportion of the economy is controlled by cronies of the military junta. Myanmar is one of the least developed countries; as of 2020, according to the Human Development Index, it ranks 147 out of 189 countries in terms of human development, the lowest in Southeast Asia. Since 2021, more than 600,000 people were displaced across Myanmar due to the surge in violence post-coup, with more than 3 million people in dire need of humanitarian assistance. (Full article...)
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Image 1
The 1968 Burma cyclone was regarded as the worst to strike the country during the 20th century before it was surpassed by another unnamed cyclone in 2004 and further, Cyclone Nargis in 2008, respectively. The first tropical cyclone of the 1968 North Indian Ocean cyclone season, it started as a depression on May 7 on the northern Andaman Sea. With low wind shear and warm sea surface temperatures, the storm intensified in the waters near Burma before heading northwestwards. It then started to rapidly intensify, with an eye becoming apparent on satellite imagery on May 9. Also that day, it reached its peak intensity, with 3-minute maximum sustained winds of 220 km/h (140 mph) by the Indian Meteorological Department, which is equivalent to a super cyclonic storm; however, the agency treated the system as a severe cyclonic storm. Little to no changes happened on the cyclone as it turned northeastwards, making landfall near Akyab (now Sittwe) between 18:00 and 21:00 UTC on that day. Land interaction rapidly weakened the storm, dissipating on May 10 as an area of low-pressure in south Chin State.
The predecessor to the cyclone caused light to moderate downpour to the Andaman Islands; however, no deaths were reported. Winds reported from the cyclone inland Burma reached an estimate of 60–100 mph, altogether with heavy rainfall and large storm surges. The former flooded the crops, submerging them in floodwaters in the process while the latter washed out villages near the path of the storm. Schools and hospitals throughout Akyab were destroyed by high winds and large waves, while the port suffered major damages. The town was almost destroyed due to the storm. In addition, some ships in the said harbor, including the Greek freighter Geros Michalos were reportedly sunk in the Bay of Bengal. Houses were destroyed during the storm and many livestock died, mainly due to drowning. The death toll from the cyclone was finalized in May 1968 at 1,037 individuals, while 2,000 more were reportedly missing. The property damages were estimated at Ks.15 million ($3.248 million USD). (Full article...) -
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Burmese (Burmese: မြန်မာဘာသာ; MLCTS: Mranma bhasa; pronounced [mjəmà bàθà]) is a Sino-Tibetan language spoken in Myanmar, where it is the official language, lingua franca, and the native language of the Bamar, the country's principal ethnic group. Burmese is also spoken by the indigenous tribes in Chittagong Hill Tracts (Rangamati, Bandarban, Khagrachari, Cox's Bazar) in Bangladesh, and in Tripura state in India. The Constitution of Myanmar officially refers to it as the Myanmar language in English, though most English speakers continue to refer to the language as Burmese, after Burma—a name with co-official status that had historically been predominantly used for the country. Burmese is the most widely-spoken language in the country, where it serves as the lingua franca. In 2007, it was spoken as a first language by 33 million. Burmese is spoken as a second language by another 10 million people, including ethnic minorities in Myanmar like the Mon and also by those in neighboring countries. In 2022, the Burmese-speaking population was 38.8 million.
Burmese is a tonal, pitch-register, and syllable-timed language, largely monosyllabic and agglutinative with a subject–object–verb word order. It is a member of the Lolo-Burmese grouping of the Sino-Tibetan language family. The Burmese alphabet is ultimately descended from a Brahmic script, either the Kadamba or Pallava alphabets. (Full article...) -
Image 3Censorship in Myanmar (also called Burma) results from government policies in controlling and regulating certain information, particularly on religious, ethnic, political, and moral grounds.
Freedom of speech and the press are not guaranteed by law. Many colonial-era laws regulating the press and information continue to be used. Until August 2012, every publication (including newspaper articles, cartoons, advertisements, and illustrations) required pre-approval by the Press Scrutiny and Registration Division (PSRB) of the Ministry of Information. However, the 2011–2012 Burmese political reforms signalled significant relaxations of the country's censorship policies and in August 2012 the Ministry of Information lifted the requirement that print media organisations submit materials to the government prior to publication. (Full article...) -
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Yangon International Airport (Burmese: ရန်ကုန်အပြည်ပြည်ဆိုင်ရာလေဆိပ်; MLCTS: rankun apranyprany hcuingra lehcip [jàɴɡòʊɰ̃ əpjìpjì sʰàɪɴjà lèzeɪʔ]) (IATA: RGN, ICAO: VYYY) is the primary and busiest international airport of Myanmar. The airport is located in Mingaladon, 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) north of central Yangon. All ten Myanmar carriers and about 30 international airlines operate at Yangon International Airport. The airport is also colloquially known as Mingaladon Airport due to its location. (Full article...) -
Image 5Nandar Hlaing (Burmese: နန္ဒာလှိုင်; also spelt Nanda Hlaing) is a Burmese film actress of Mon descent. She was one of the leading actresses of Myanmar from mid 90s to mid 2000s. She won the 1998 Myanmar Motion Picture Academy Awards for best supporting actress for her performance in Shwe Natha San-Ein. She also won the 2006 Academy Award for best actress.
In January 2012, Nandar Hlaing's company, Mahar Nandar Trading Company, became the exclusive authorized retailer of Missha cosmetics within Myanmar. (Full article...) -
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Burmese amber, also known as Burmite or Kachin amber, is amber from the Hukawng Valley in northern Myanmar. The amber is dated to around 100 million years ago, during the latest Albian to earliest Cenomanian ages of the mid-Cretaceous period. The amber is of significant palaeontological interest due to the diversity of flora and fauna contained as inclusions, particularly arthropods including insects and arachnids but also birds, lizards, snakes, frogs and fragmentary dinosaur remains. The amber has been known and commercially exploited since the first century AD, and has been known to science since the mid-nineteenth century. Research on the deposit has attracted controversy due to its alleged role in funding internal conflict in Myanmar and hazardous working conditions in the mines where it is collected. (Full article...) -
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Rice production in Myanmar accounts for approximately 43% of total agricultural production in the country, making it the seventh largest producer of rice in the world. Out of 67.6 million hectares of land, 12.8 million are used for cultivation. In 2019 alone, Myanmar accounted for 13,300 million metric tons of milled rice production.
Throughout history, Myanmar established itself as a major rice producing and exporting country due to favourable weather for rice paddies and governmental intervention in the form of agricultural policies. The production is undertaken using traditional cultivation methods, particularly during monsoon season, which has led to the development of different varieties of rice. Recent global economic policies have led to increasing international cooperation with NGOs and other organisations, that have provided financial and technological assistance to rice farmers. (Full article...) -
Image 8Myanmar is divided into 21 administrative divisions, which include seven regions, seven states, one union territory, one self-administered division, and five self-administered zones. (Full article...)
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Image 9On 2 July 2020, a major landslide at the Wai Khar jade mining site in the Hpakant area of Kachin State, Myanmar, killed between 175 and 200 miners in the country's deadliest-ever mining accident. At 06:30 local time (MMT) heavy rains triggered the collapse of a heap of mining waste, which came tumbling down into a lake. This generated a 6.1-meter (20 ft) wave of mud and water that buried those working at the Wai Khar mine. The miners killed or injured by the landslide were independent "jade pickers", who scavenge tailings from larger operators and who live in ramshackle quarters at the base of large mounds of rubble.
Myanmar's jade industry supplies 70% to 90% of the world jade supply. The industry had become known for its fatal accidents in the preceding years, with the previous deadliest accident in 2015 killing 116 people. While the government responded with promises to make reforms in the jade mining industry, activists claim that little has been done in practice since then. (Full article...) -
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Zigrasimecia is an extinct genus of ants which existed in the Cretaceous period approximately 98 million years ago. The first specimens were collected from Burmese amber in Kachin State, 100 kilometres (62 mi) west of Myitkyina town in Myanmar. In 2013, palaeoentomologists Phillip Barden and David Grimaldi published a paper describing and naming Zigrasimecia tonsora. They described a dealate female with unusual features, notably the highly specialized mandibles. Other features include large ocelli, short scapes, 12 antennomeres, small eyes, and a clypeal margin that has a row of peg-like denticles. The genus Zigrasimecia was originally incertae sedis (uncertain placement) within Formicidae until a second species, Zigrasimecia ferox, was described in 2014, leading to its placement in the subfamily Sphecomyrminae. Later, it was considered to belong to the distinct subfamily Zigrasimeciinae.
Due to the highly specialized mandibles, scientists believe that the ants exhibited habits no longer seen in extant ants. The highly movable head suggests that mobility was an important factor for them (probably for feeding behavior), and the rugose projections may have played a major role in nest excavation because the mandibles would have prevented such activity. Zigrasimecia most likely interacted with the extinct ant genus Gerontoformica through conflict and probably shared some of their ecological niches. The mandibles of these ants were probably used for mechanical interactions with food, and they may also have served as traps for potential arthropod prey such as mites and small flies. Zigrasimecia was possibly a generalist predator. (Full article...)
Did you know (auto-generated) - load new batch
- ... that clashes between the Myanmar military and local armed groups broke out in Lay Kay Kaw six years after it was established as a "town of peace" between the parties?
- ... that the mission of the United Nations special envoy on Myanmar has been called a "diplomatic graveyard"?
- ... that Maw Htun Aung, a Shan Nationalities League for Democracy candidate in the 2020 Myanmar general election, is Kachin, not Shan?
- ... that the Burmese and South Korean first ladies held their first informal conversation 44 years after the establishment of bilateral relations between the two countries?
- ... that former Burmese actress Honey Nway Oo turned rebel and took up arms against the military junta following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état?
- ... that the Burmese Buddhist monk Sagyo Thu-Myat successfully lobbied for the recalibration of the Burmese calendar?
- ... that squatters in Myanmar were punished for protesting against the 2021 coup d'état by being evicted?
- ... that Rangoon kept its own time for more than two decades after Burma Standard Time first came into effect?
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Image 1Portuguese ruler and soldiers mounting an Elephant. Philips, Jan Caspar (draughtsman and engraver) (from History of Myanmar)
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Image 2A large fracture on the Mingun Pahtodawgyi caused by the 1839 Ava earthquake. (from Geography of Myanmar)
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Image 4Two female musicians play the saung at a performance in Mandalay. (from Culture of Myanmar)
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Image 5Political Map of Burma (Myanmar) c. 1450 CE. (from History of Myanmar)
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Image 7Protesters in Yangon with a banner that reads non-violence: national movement in Burmese, in the background is Shwedagon Pagoda. (from History of Myanmar)
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Image 8Temples at Mrauk U, was the capital of the Mrauk U Kingdom, which ruled over what is now Rakhine State. (from History of Myanmar)
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Image 10A theatrical performance of the Mon dance (from Culture of Myanmar)
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Image 11A group of Buddhist worshipers at Shwedagon Pagoda, an important religious site for Burmese Buddhists (from Culture of Myanmar)
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Image 12Sculpture of Myanmar mythical lion (from Culture of Myanmar)
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Image 13Hlei pyaingbwè - a Burmese regatta (from Culture of Myanmar)
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Image 14The shores of Irrawaddy River at Nyaung-U, Bagan (from Geography of Myanmar)
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Image 15Myanmar (Burma) map of Köppen climate classification (from Geography of Myanmar)
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Image 17Recorder's Court on Sule Pagoda Road, with the Sule Pagoda at the far end, Rangoon, 1868. Photographer: J. Jackson. (from History of Myanmar)
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Image 18Aung San Suu Kyi addresses crowds at the NLD headquarters shortly after her release. (from History of Myanmar)
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Image 19Pagan Kingdom during Narapatisithu's reign. Burmese chronicles also claim Kengtung and Chiang Mai. Core areas shown in darker yellow. Peripheral areas in light yellow. Pagan incorporated key ports of Lower Burma into its core administration by the 13th century. (from History of Myanmar)
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Image 20Protesters in Yangon carrying signs reading "Free Daw Aung San Suu Kyi" on 8 February 2021. (from History of Myanmar)
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Image 2119th-century funeral cart and spire, which would form part of the procession from the home to the place of cremation (from Culture of Myanmar)
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Image 22Vegetable stall on the roadside at the Madras Lancer Lines, Mandalay, January 1886. Photographer: Hooper, Willoughby Wallace (1837–1912). (from History of Myanmar)
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Image 23Salween river at Mae Sam Laep on the Thai-Myanmar border (from Geography of Myanmar)
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Image 24Boxing match, 19th-century watercolour (from Culture of Myanmar)
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Image 25Myinhkin thabin - equestrian sport (from Culture of Myanmar)
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Image 26The paddle steamer Ramapoora (right) of the British India Steam Navigation Company on the Rangoon river having just arrived from Moulmein. 1895. Photographers: Watts and Skeen (from History of Myanmar)
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Image 27Former US President Barack Obama poses barefoot on the grounds of Shwedagon Pagoda, one of Myanmar's major Buddhist pilgrimage sites. (from Culture of Myanmar)
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Image 28A wedding procession, with the groom and bride dressed in traditional Burmese wedding clothes, reminiscent of royal attire (from Culture of Myanmar)
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Image 30British soldiers on patrol in the ruins of the Burmese town of Bahe during the advance on Mandalay, January 1945. (from History of Myanmar)
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Image 31Aerial view of a burned Rohingya village in Rakhine state, Myanmar, September 2017 (from History of Myanmar)
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Image 34Grandfather Island, Dawei (from Geography of Myanmar)
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Image 36Saint Mary's Cathedral in Downtown Yangon is the largest Roman Catholic cathedral in Burma. (from Culture of Myanmar)
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Image 37The restored Taungoo or Nyaungyan dynasty c. 1650 CE. (from History of Myanmar)
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Image 38British soldiers dismantling cannons belonging to King Thibaw's forces, Third Anglo-Burmese War, Ava, 27 November 1885. Photographer: Hooper, Willoughby Wallace (1837–1912). (from History of Myanmar)
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Image 39British soldiers remove their shoes at the entrance of Shwedagon Pagoda. To the left, a sign reads "Foot wearing is strictly prohibited" in Burmese, English, Tamil, and Urdu. (from Culture of Myanmar)
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Image 40A bull fight, 19th-century watercolour (from Culture of Myanmar)
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