The Shan are a
Tai ethnic group of
Southeast Asia. The Shan live primarily in the
Shan State of
Myanmar, but also inhabit parts of
Mandalay Division,
Kachin State, and
Kayin State, and in adjacent regions of
China and
Thailand.
[1] Though no reliable census has been taken in Myanmar since 1935, the Shan are estimated to number approximately 6 million.
The capital of Shan State is
Taunggyi, a small city of about 150,000 people. Other major cities include
Thibaw (Hsipaw),
Lashio,
Kengtung and
Tachileik.
EtymologyThe Shan identify themselves as "Tai", which means "free men" while "Shan" is a
Burmese language term.
[2] The Shan share their creation myth with the
Lao people and believe their race was founded by
Khun Borom the first king to establish
Sip Song Pan Na (12 Rice Fields) along the Mekong (Mae Nam Kong).
Ethnicity
The Shan people as a whole can be divided into four major groups:
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 TungThe Tai Neua, mostly in
Sipsong Panna Culture
Most Shan are staunch
Theravada Buddhists, and the Shan constitutes one of the four main Buddhist ethnic groups in Myanmar--the others being the
Bamar, the
Mon and the
Rakhine.
Most Shan speak the
Shan language and are bilingual in
Burmese. The Shan language, spoken by about 5 or 6 million, is closely related to
Thai and
Lao, and is part of the family of
Tai-Kadai languages. It is spoken in
Shan State, some parts of Kachin State, some parts of
Sagaing Division in Myanmar, 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] The Shan script is an adaptation of the
Mon script via the
Burmese script.
[4] However, few Shan are literate in their own language.
The Shan are traditionally wet-
rice cultivators, shopkeepers, and
artisans.
HistoryThe
Tai-Shan people are believed to have migrated from
Yunnan in
China. The Shan are descendants of the oldest branch of the Tai-Shan, known as Tai Long (Great Tai) or Thai Yai (Big Thai). The 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)
[2] The Shan have inhabited the Shan Plateau and other parts of modern-day Myanmar as far back as the 10th century AD. The Shan kingdom of
Mong Mao (Muang Mao) existed as early as the 10th century AD but became a Burmese
vassal state during the reign of King
Anawrahta of
Bagan (1044-1077). Note: the Mao people are considered a Shan subgroup.
After the Bagan kingdom fell to the
Mongols in 1287, the Tai-Shan people quickly gained power throughout
South East Asia, and founded:
Ava (and its predecessor minor kingdoms Myinsaing, Pinya and Sagaing) by Burmanized Shan kings
Pegu or
Bago by Monized Shan kings
Lan Xang (Laos)
Lanna (Chiang Mai)
Ayutthaya (Siam)
AssamShan states--Minor kingdoms in the Shan hills, Kachin hills, Yunnan and parts of Vietnam
Many Ava and Bago kings of Burmese history between the 12th and 16th century were of (partial) Shan descent. The kings of Ava fought kings of Bago for control of
Ayeyarwady valley. Various Shan states fought Ava for the control of
Upper Myanmar. The Shan kingdom of Mohnyin (Mong Yang) defeated Ava in 1527, and ruled all of Upper Burma until 1555.
Burmese king
Bayinnaung (1551-1581) conquered all of the Shan states in 1557. Although the Shan states would become a tributary to Ayeyarwady valley based Burmese kingdoms from then on, the Shan
Saophas retained a large degree of autonomy.
After the
Third Anglo-Burmese War in 1885, the British gained control of the Shan states. Under the British colonial administration, the Shan principalities were administered separately as British protectorates with limited monarchical powers invested in the Shan
Saophas.
[5]After
World War II, the Shan and other ethnic minority leaders negotiated with the majority
Bamar leadership at the
Panglong Conference, and agreed to gain independence from Britain as part of
Union of Myanmar. The Shan states were given the option to secede after 10 years of independence. The Shan states became Shan State in 1948 as part of the newly independent Burma.
General
Ne Win's coup d'état overthrew the democratically elected government in 1962, and abolished Shan saopha system.
Politics
The Shan have been engaged in an intermittent civil war within
Burma for decades. Two main Shan armed insurgent forces operate within Shan State: 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 (Thai Yai) 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 conscripted into the Burmese Army indefinitely, or 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 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 Myanmar 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, in neighboring
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
Myanmar, and the country's leading opposition party, the
National League for Democracy led by
Aung San Suu Kyi. Despite this dissenting opinion, the Burmese Army is rumoured to have conducted a crackdown on Shan civilians as a result of the declaration. Shan people have reported an increase in restrictions on their movements, and an escalation in Burmese Army raids on Shan villages.
