Introduction
This article narrates the origin of the Burmic people in Myanmar. Ethnic Bamar is a subgroup of the Burmic people.Homeland
The Burmic people is a branch of the Sino-Tibetan people. Their homeland is along the Irrawaddy River basin in central Myanmar.
The Burmic people is the largest ethnic group in Myanmar. The Bamar were horsemen and their country name 'Myan-mar' comes from an ancient word meaning 'strong horseman'; 'Ma' means horse. The Pyu recorded them as 'swift horsemen' or Nanzhao horsemen.
Original homeland
The Burmic people's original homeland is in Yunnan province of China. In 755 AD, the Lolo-Burmese kingdom of Nanzhao in Yunnan started expanding into its neighboring kingdoms.
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| Nanzhao king's statue (inset) |
First wave of migration
In 832 AD, Nanzhao kingdom destroyed the Pyu kingdom in central Myanmar which paved the way for the establishment of a new ancient Burmese kingdom.
After the annexation, there was a massive southward migration of Bamar to the central Irrawaddy River basin where they formed the Pagan kingdom (849–1287 AD).
Second wave of migration
During king Anawrahta aka Aniruddha's rule (1044-1078 AD), the Pagan kingdom entered its golden period.
In 1018 AD, Pagan kingdom conquered Vesali kingdom (6th century AD-1018 AD) to the west of Arakan Mountains which triggered a massive migration to the south-west.
The ethnicity of Vesali people is controversial as different articles mentioned either the Indo-Aryan people or the Pyu people which needs further evidence to ascertain which is correct.
In 1057 AD, king Anawrahta annexed the Mon kingdom of Thaton in the south-east which triggered a massive migration to the south-east.
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| Migration paths |
Burmic kingdoms
In 1287 AD, the Mongols destroyed Pagan Kingdom which started a period of fragmentation.
In 1247 AD, the Arakanese kingdom of Lemro became independent of Pagan's rule; In 1430 AD, it was renamed kingdom of Mrauk-U. In the Arakanese language, Le-mro means Le (four) and Mro (city).
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| Shitthaung Paya temple of Mrauk-U (inset) |
In 1364 AD, King Thadominphya founded the Burmese kingdom of Ava (1364-1529 AD) which was annexed by the Tai in 1529 AD.
In 1510 AD, the Burmic kingdom of Taungoo (1510-1752 AD) was formed which expanded its northern and eastern borders. In 1555 AD, King Bayinnaung of Taungoo expelled the Tai people out of the former Ava kingdom's territory.
In 1752 AD, the Burmic kingdom of Konbaung (1752-1885 AD) was formed by an ethnic Bamar Alaungpaya. In 1785 AD, the Konbaung dynasty annexed the Arakanese kingdom of Mrauk-U.
In 1948 AD, Myanmar gained independence from Britain but didn't regain its annexed territories in Northeast India that were lost during the Anglo-Burmese Wars (1824-1885).
Natives of Myanmar
Before the Burmic people came, the natives of central Myanmar along the Irrawaddy River basin were the Pyu people (ပျူ) who is part of Sino-Tibetan people. They established the Pyu kingdom with its capital in modern-day Pyay (ပြည်မြို့) city around 220 AD. |
| Pyu ancient city |
However, the natives of southern Myanmar were the Mon people who are part of Austro-Asiatic people.
Burmese culture and religion
After the annexation of the Mon kingdom, the Burmic people adopted the religion and culture of the Mon people in southern Myanmar.A large number of Buddhist statues and pagodas were built during the Burmic people's golden age of Buddhism (11th-13th century AD).
Burmese language and writing
King Anawrahta created a writing script based on Mon script in order to spread Buddhism in his kingdom.
The Burmese language is tonal and monosyllabic but borrowed many loanwords from the Indian languages Pali & Sanskrit via Old Mon language.
Subgroups of Burmese
The Burmic people can be grouped into two branches:
- Northern: Zaiwa/Atsi, Pela/Bola, Lashi/Leqi, Maru/Lhaovo, Achang/Maingtha
- Southern: Bamar, Arakanese, Marma, Dawei, Myeik, Intha-Danu
The Northern Burmic people live mainly in Kachin State. However, Kachin people is not an ethnic grouping but a geographical grouping i.e. Kachin people such as Jingpho, Rawang and Lisu are NOT part of the Burmic subgroups.
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| Zaiwa |
The Achang tribe live in Dehong prefecture in Yunnan of China.
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| Achang tribe in Yunnan |
The Arakanese were Bamar who migrated south-west after the conquest of Arakan region in the 11th century AD.
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| Arakanese |
The Marma are Arakanese people who escaped to the north after the Bamar annexed their kingdom in 1785 AD and also when they ruled Chittagong during the 16th century AD.
The Dawei and Myeik were Bamar who migrated south-east after the conquest of the Mon kingdom in 11th century AD.
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| Dawei |
The Intha-Danu subgroup are Dawei people who escaped north after the Mon people regained control of southern Myanmar following the collapse of Pagan kingdom.
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| Intha |
Closest ethnic relative
The Burmic people's closest ethnic relative is the Lolo-Yi people who live in Yunnan of China.In ancient times, the Lolo-Yi people (aka Black Barbarian) was the largest ethnic group in Nanzhao kingdom (738-902 AD). This was followed by the second largest ethnic group which is the ethnic Bai (aka White Barbarian).
Nanzhao kingdom and its successor Dali kingdom were later incorporated into China in the 13th century AD, which became roughly Yunnan province today.
Conclusion
Contrary to popular beliefs, the Burmic people, who are the ethnic majority in Myanmar, are not the natives of Myanmar as they originally came from Yunnan of China.
Shwedagon pagoda
The Southern Burmic people adopted the religion and culture of the ethnic Mon who are the natives of southern Myanmar. The ethnic Pyu are the natives of central Myanmar.
A certain percentage of Burmic people married the Mon people to form a mixed race which explains why some are darker-skinned than their ancestors in Yunnan.
Related links
Main ethnicities in MyanmarSources
- The Nanzhao history between Thailand and China. Author: Liang Yongjia. Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore. http://www.ari.nus.edu.sg/wps/wps10_148.pdf
- The origin of Burmese script. By Ashin Therasabha. Buddhism Pali university.
- Book of the Southern Barbarians (蠻書). By Fan Chuo during Tang dynasty.
- The History of Myanmar. By William J. Topich, Keith A. Leitich
- Vaishali and the Indianization of Arakan. By Noel Singer.
- The Rise and Fall of the Kingdom of Mrohaung in Arakan. By D.G.E. Hall
- History of Arakanese. https://kknews.cc/history/ym4v98g.html
- Pyu in Chinese history. https://kknews.cc/history/gqvveey.html
- Ethnic Intha seeks self-administration for Inle Lake. https://www.mmtimes.com/news/ethnic-intha-party-seeks-self-administration-inle-lake.html
- Cultural profile: Rakhine, Buddhist kingdom of Western Myanmar. https://pathsunwritten.com/myanmar-rakhine-kingdom/#Vesali_Waithali_Dynasty
- https://kknews.cc/history/oy58b3m.html
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Hey.
ReplyDeleteI'm just curious about the kachin people. It's stated that Kachin people are not part of bamar-tribes. What ethnicity do they belong to then? Specifically, rawang?
Thanks for the reply. As a Rawang myself, raised in Scandinavia, who have no knowledge of my roots, I sincerely thank you for sharing this information.
DeleteIs it true then that Rawang people originate from Southwest China, Yunnan? That's according to wikipedia.
Great, I will make sure to read it. Thank you again!
DeleteA detailed origin of the Rawang has just been published on this blog in Nov 2021.
Deletehttp://eastasiaorigin.blogspot.com/2021/11/ethnic-origin-of-derung.html