SHAN

The 'Shan' (; ; ) are an ethnic group of Southeast Asia. The Shan live primarily in the Shan State of Myanmar (Burma), but also inhabit parts of Mandalay Division, Kachin State, and Kayin State, and in adjacent regions of China, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. The Shan number approximately 6 million, but a population census has not been taken. The Shan identify themselves as "Tai", which means "free men" because "Shan" is a Burmese language term.^[1]
The Shan people as a whole can be divided into four major subgroupings:
#The Tai Yai or "Shan Proper"
#The Tai Lue, located in Sipsong Panna (China) and the eastern states
#The Tai Khuen, the majority of Keng Tung (thai:เชียงตุง)
#The Tai Neua, mostly in Sipsong Panna(thai:สิบสองปันนา or สิบสองพันนา).
See Susan Conway's book, in "References," for more information about these groups.
The Shan dwell mostly on the plains of the Shan Plateau, which is drained by the Salween River. The capital of Shan State is Taunggyi, a small city of about 150,000 people. Other major Shan cities include Hsipaw, Lashio, Kengtong and Tachileik.

Contents

History

Culture

Language

Traditional government

Politics

Independence and Exiled Government

Notes

References

External links

History

The Shan have inhabited the Shan Plateau and other parts of modern-day Myanmar as far back as the 1200s. They are believed to have migrated from the mountains of Yunnan in China. The Shan are descendants of the oldest branch of the Tai ethnicity, known as ''Tai Long'' (Great Tai). Shan who migrated to the south and now inhabit modern-day Laos and Thailand are known as ''Tai Noi'' (or ''Tai Nyai''), while those in parts of northern Thailand and Laos are commonly known as ''Tai Noi'' (Little Tai - Lao spoken)
The Shan kingdom of Mong Mao existed as early as the 900s, but in the 1000s, the Burmese king Anawrahta of the Pagan kingdom forced it to become a vassal state. However, in 1284, the Mongols, under Kublai Khan pillaged Pagan, and the Shan gained power throughout modern-day Myanmar, expanding as far south as Mawlamyaing, as far west as Rakhine State, and as far east as Assam. This rapid expansion however proved deleterious; territories in Laos and Thailand broke off to form the kingdom of Siam, and constant warfare further weakened the kingdom which ended in 1604 following the death of San Hum Hpa.
The Shan States disintegrated into smaller semi-autonomous kingdoms in the Shan Plateau, which were conquered during the reign of another Burmese king Alaungpaya of the Konbaung Dynasty. After the British conquered and annexed Burma during the reign of King Thibaw, the Shan kingdoms were transferred to British control. Under the colonial administration, the Shan principalities were administered separately as British protectorates with limited monarchial powers invested in the Shan Saophas.^[2]

Culture

The Shan are traditionally wet-rice cultivators, shopkeepers, and artisans. Most Shan are Theravada Buddhists and/or observe their traditional religion, which is related to animist practices. The Shan also share their creation myth with the Lao people and believe their race was founded by Khun Borom the first king to establish Laos. The Tai Ahom people of Assam, a state in northeast India formerly known as Mung Dun Shun Kham in Tai Ahom language, are distant cousins of the Shan in Burma.

Language

The Shan language, which is spoken by 3,200,000, is closely related to Thai and Lao, and is part of the family of Tai-Kadai languages. It is spoken in Shan State, parts of Yunnan, and Mae Hong Son Province in northwestern Thailand.^[3] The two major dialects differ in number of tones: Hsenwi Shan has six tones, while Mongnai Shan has five.^[4] Its written script is an adaptation of the Mon script (like Burmese), although several other scripts exist. However, few Shan are literate, and many are bilingual in Burmese.

Traditional government

The Shan states were traditionally ruled by monarchs (saophas and myosas): see List of Shan states and rulers.

Politics

The Shan have been engaged in an intermittent civil war within Myanmar for decades. As Shan State is one of the largest in Burma, there are two main armed rebel forces operating within it - the Shan State Army/Special Region 3 and Shan State Army/Restoration Council of Shan State. In 2005 the SSNA was effectively abolished after its surrender to the Burmese government, some units joined the SSA/RCSS, which has yet to sign any agreements, and is still engaged in guerrilla warfare against the Burma Army.
During conflicts, the Shan are often burned out of their villages and forced to flee into Thailand. There, they are not given refugee status, and often work as undocumented laborers. Whether or not there is an ongoing conflict, the Shan are subject to depredations by the Burmese government; in particular, young men may be impressed into the Burmese Army for indefinite periods, or they may be enslaved to do road work for a number of months -- with no wages and no food. The horrific conditions inside Burma have led to a massive exodus of young Shan males to neighboring Thailand, where they typically find work in construction, at daily wages which run about 100-200 baht. However much unsatisfactory these conditions may be, all of these refugees are well aware that at least they are being paid for their work, and that every day spent in Thailand is another day that the Burmese government cannot impress or enslave them. Some estimates of Shan refugees in Thailand run as high as two million, an extremely high number when compared with estimates of the total Shan population at some six million.

Independence and Exiled Government

His Royal Highness Prince Hso Khan Fa (sometimes written as Surkhanfa in Thai) of Yawnghwe, lives in exile in Canada. He is campaigning for the government of Burma to respect the traditional culture and indigenous lands of the Shan people, and he works with Shan exiles abroad helping to provide schooling for displaced Shan children whose parents are unable to do so. He hopes to provide Shan children with some training in life skills so they can fend for themselves and their families in the future.
In addition, opinion has been voiced in Shan State and in neighbouring Thailand, and to some extent in farther-reaching exile communities, in favour of the goal of "total independence for Shan State." This came to a head when, in May 2005, Shan elders in exile declared independence for the Federated Shan States.
The declaration of independence, however, was rejected by most other ethnic minority groups, many Shan living inside Burma, and Burma's leading opposition party, the National League for Democracy led by Aung San Suu Kyi. Despite this dissenting opinion, the Burma Army has begun a crackdown on Shan civilians as a result of the declaration, and Shan people have reported an increase in restrictions on their movements, and an escalation in Burma Army raids on Shan villages.

Notes

1. Burma under British Rule - and before. Volume 2, , John, Nisbet, Adamant Media Corporation, , IISBN 1-4021-5293-0
2. Ethnicity in Asias, , Colin, Mackerras, Routledge, , ISBN 0-415-25816-2
3. Shan: A language of Myanmar
4. Dictionary of Languages: The Definitive Reference to More Than 400 Languages, , Andrew, Dalby, Columbia University Press, 2004, ISBN 0-231-11569-5

References

★ Susan Conway, 'The Shan: Culture, Art and Crafts' (Bangkok, 2006).

External links

★ H.R.H. Prince Hso Khan Pha of Yawnghwe

★ Shan Human Rights Foundation

★ Shan Women's Action Network (SWAN)

★ Shan language page from Ethnologue site

★ Photos of Shan State Army-South (SSA-S) military outposts along the border of Thailand, Chiang Rai province

★ Help without Frontiers

★ Shan Tradition Rules in a Northern Thai Town Sai Silp, ''The Irrawaddy'', April 5 2007

★ [1]Claudia Wiens, a photo essay about tribal people in Shan State