Myanmar

/ˈmaɪ̯ænˌmɑː/

From Burmese မြန်မာ (mranma), the formal Burmese name of the main ethnic group in Myanmar; ဗမာ (ba.ma), from which Burma is derived, is the informal name. Both Burmese terms are also adjectives meaning "Burmese" (related to Myanmar/Burma, its, people, language, etc). When certain words are attached, the combination may mean specifically Myanmar (Burma) (country) or Burmese (person, language, etc.) - a noun.

Republic of the Union of Myanmar#English

A country in Southeast Asia. Official name: Republic of the Union of Myanmar. Capital: Naypyidaw. Also known as Burma (which was formerly the official name).

Mianmar

Southeast Asian country — see also Burma


Burmese

Of or relating to Burma (Myanmar) or its people or language.


Burmese

A person from Myanmar or of Burmese descent.

بُورْمِيّ

a person from Myanmar or of Burmese descent


Burmese

The Sino-Tibetan official language of the country Burma. Also known as Myanmar (which is the name preferred by the country's current government).


Burman

Of or relating to the principal, Burmese-speaking ethnic group of Myanmar.


Burman

A member of the principal, Burmese-speaking ethnic group of Myanmar, especially as distinguished from the Shan, Karen, and other minority peoples.

A native or inhabitant of Myanmar; a Burmese.


Anal

An ethnic group found in Manipur in India, and in Burma/Myanmar, closely related to the Kuki people.


Mon

A member of a people living primarily in the Mon State of Myanmar (also known as Burma), and in Thailand.


Zo

A language spoken in Myanmar and India, especially in Chin State, Mizoram and Manipur, and adjoining parts of Bangladesh.


Bay of Bengal

A sea that forms the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean.

Golf van Bengale

Large bay in the northeastern Indian Ocean

બંગાળની ખાડી

baṅgāḷnī khāḍī


nat

They greatly dread evil "Nats" or spirits, to whom they attribute every possible misfortune or illness.

1936, Rollo Ahmed, The Black Art, London: Long, page 175:

A spirit in Burmese mythology, whose cult is followed alongside Buddhism.


klar

In Karen animism, one of the thirty-seven spirits that are said to embody every individual.


Karen

From Danish Karen, a vernacular form of Catherine that arose in medieval Denmark. The sense "middle-aged woman" comes from the popularity of the name among baby boomers and Gen-Xers. The derogatory usage was popularized via African-American Vernacular English.

Left you a lover in that far land, / O Karen sad, that you pine so long! / Would I could unravel and understand / That sorrowful, sweet Norwegian song!

1878 Celia Thaxter, Drift-Weed, Houghton, Osgood,1878, page 28 ("Karen")

I was not called Karen after Hans Andersen's dancing girl, but after a Danish friend of my mother's who married an Englishman and was my godmother. So much for our family affairs.

1918 Cecily Ullman Sidgwick, Karen, W.Collins, 1918, page 12


Established in the United Kingdom as the first emergency service number in the world, initially chosen because of its suitability at a time of rotary-dial telephones.

I don't know why they couldn't just keep it as it was! How hard is it to remember 911?
You mean 999...
I mean 999!
That's the American one!
Yeah!

2006 Feb. 3, Graham Linehan, The IT Crowd, Season 1, Episode 2

When you call 999 in the UK, the operator usually answers the phone with "Emergency. Which service?"

The telephone number for emergency services in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Hong Kong, Macau, Malaysia, Bangladesh, Burma, Bahrain, Qatar, the UAE, Kenya, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Ghana, Sudan, South Sudan, Sierra Leone, Guyana, Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent, Dominica, Kiribati, Samoa, the Solomon Islands, and the Seychelles.

三条九 (saam¹ tiu⁴ gau², literally “triple nine”)


Zhuang

During the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution over 200 teeth of the giant ape were found in Chienshih County, Hupeh Province, and Pama County, the Kwangsi Chuang Autonomous Region.

[1975, “The Giant Ape”, in China Pictorial, number 5, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 44, column 3:

THE OFFICIAL NAME of Kuanghsi province is the Kuanghsi Chuang Autonomous Region. Next to the Han Chinese, the Chuang are China’s largest ethnic group. That surprises people. Most people would think it was the Manchus, or the Uigurs, or the Mongols, or the Tibetans. But in 1990 there were 15 million Chuang in China, compared to 10 million Manchus, 7 million Uigurs, 5 million Mongols, and 4.5 million Tibetans. Since most of China’s 15 million Chuang live in Kuanghsi, hence the province’s distinction as the Kuanghsi Chuang Autonomous Region.

[2015, Bill Porter, “The Chuang [壯族]”, in South of the Clouds: Travels in Southwest China, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 23:

A member of an ethnic group living mostly in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in southern China.


Festival of Lights

From the importance of candles or light during the celebrations.

[…] celebration of Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights[.]

1996, Jewish Life and Thought among Greeks and Romans: Primary Readings:

One of our more Judaically advanced cellmates gave us insightful lessons about the laws and customs of the Festival of Lights.

2012, Chicken Soup for the Jewish Soul, →ISBN:

2000, Meenal Pandya, Here Comes Diwali: The Festival of Lights:

Invite a practicing Hindu from your community to speak about the Festival of Lights.

2001, Elizabeth A. Raum., Every Day a Holiday:

2008, Dianne M. MacMillan, Diwali: Hindu Festival of Lights:

The two most important holidays are the Burmese New Year or Water Festival (Thingyan) celebrated in April and the Festival of Lights (Thadingyut) celebrated in October.

2005, The World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre, volume 5: Asia/Pacific, →ISBN:


pya

A subdivision of currency, equal to one hundredth of a Burmese kyat.


Jingpho

The Tibeto-Burman language spoken in Kachin State, Myanmar, and also in China.


viss

Borrowed from Tamil வீசை (vīcai) and/or Telugu వీసె (vīse).

(Myanmar) A Burmese unit of measure for weight, approximately 1.63293 kilograms (3.6 pounds).

ပိဿာ

Burmese unit of weight, approximately 1.63293 kg


Akha

An ethnic group and Tibeto-Burman language spoken in Burma, China, and neighboring countries.


Lisu

From the Hanyu Pinyin romanization of Mandarin 傈僳 (Lìsù), 𤠫𤢂, etc.

There are more than a hundred such groups, including the Karen of Thailand and Burma; the Kachin in Burma; the Akha, the Lahu, and the Lisu in Thailand; the Hmong, the Kmhmu, and the Yao in Laos; and the Nùng and the Lati in Vietnam.

2011, Terry Miller, Sean Williams, The Garland Handbook of Southeast Asian Music, page 303:

A member of a Tibeto-Burman ethnic group inhabiting the mountainous regions of Yunnan (southwestern China), Arunachal Pradesh (northeastern India), northern Myanmar and Thailand.


ngapi

Transliteration of Burmese ငါးပိ (nga:pi., literally “pressed fish”).

translit

The rivers and lakes abound with fish, from which the inhabitants prepare their favourite condiment of ngapee.

1876, "Burmah" in the Encyclopædia Britannica, 9th ed., Vol. IV, p. 552

Passing by Henzada, because intending to return thither, we went on to Yangdoon or Nyoungdoon, a large and thriving ports celebrated for its fishing trade. Of this fact we were soon abundantly convinced by the abominable smell of nga-pee, a kind of dried and putrid fish, of which the Burmese are particularly fond; nor by that circumstance alone, for we counted a hundred and twenty large trading vessels anchored along the bank.

1880, J.H. Titcomb, chapter VII, in Personal Recollections of British Burma and Its Church Mission Work in 1878-79:

Travellers on the steamers of the Irrawaddy Flotilla Company are wont to rail in no measured terms at the fish-paste which forms an invariable and obtrusively evident part of the cargo, yet no Burman would think a dinner complete without his modicum of nga-pee, and it is a noteworthy fact that one form of the condiment is of frequent appearance on English dinner-tables in the East, under the name of balachong, a term borrowed from the Straits Settlements, but which designates nothing more nor less than a specially prepared variety of nga-pee.

1882, James George Scott, The Burman: His Life and Notions, Ch. xxviii: "Nga-pee"

(cooking) A pungent Burmese condiment made from fermented and compressed fish or shrimp paste.

নাপ্পি

a pungent Burmese condiment made from fermented and compressed fish or shrimp paste


De'ang

An ethnic minority group found in Southern China and Burma. Languages spoken in regions populated by this group include Palé, Riang, Rumai, and Shwe, all of which belong to the Palaungic sub-group of the Khasi-Khmuic family of languages.


Achang

Some Achangs can also be found living across the frontier in northeastern Myanmar (Burma).

1998, James Stuart Olson, An Ethnohistorical Dictionary of China, Greenwood Publishing Group, →ISBN, page 2:

(chiefly in the plural) A member of an ethnic group found in China and Myanmar.


zayat

There are always several zayats in the neighborhood of a kyoung, to which the devotees of Boodh resort to listen to their priests.

1855, Emily Chubbuck Judson, Memoir of Sarah B. Judson: member of the American mission to Burmah, page 16:

A building in Burma used for meetings and religious assemblies and to give shelter to travellers.


Aracanese

en-adj

Aracanese (comparative more Aracanese, superlative most Aracanese)

more Aracanese (comparative)
most Aracanese (superlative)

(historical) Of or pertaining to Aracan (or Arakan) in British Burma, corresponding to the modern Rakhine State.


Aracanese

(historical) The people native to Aracan in British Burma.


Arakanese

Arakanese (comparative more Arakanese, superlative most Arakanese)

more Arakanese (comparative)
most Arakanese (superlative)


tical

viss

a Burmese unit of weight equal to 100 ticals

(Myanmar) A Burmese measurement of weight, the kyattha, of about 16.3293 grams (0.576 ounces).

ကျပ်သား

Burmese measurement of weight, 16.3293 g


Bamar

From Burmese ဗမာ (ba.ma). Doublet of Burma.

A member of the majority ethnic group of Burma (Myanmar).


Padaung

A member of a tribe of Burma's Kayan ethnic group, known for wearing copper neck rings.


chinlone

From Burmese ခြင်းလုံး (hkrang:lum:), from ခြင်း (hkrang:, “basket”) + အလုံး (a.lum:, “ball”).

A Burmese ball game incorporating aspects of both sport and dance.


Thingyan

/ˈθɪnd͡ʒɑːn/

Borrowed from Burmese သင်္ကြန် (sangkran), from Sanskrit संक्रान्ति (saṃkrānti, “passage of the sun from one celestial position to another”).

der

The Burmese New Year festival, celebrated from 13 to 16 April.


Danu

Everywhere the Danu wears the turban and jacket of the Burman, but in most cases he prefers the Shan trousers to the Burmese loin-cloth.

1899, James George Scott, John Percy Hardiman, Gazetteer of Upper Burma and the Shan States, Volume 1, Part 1, page 563:


Tatmadaw

Borrowed from Burmese တပ်မတော် (tapma.tau).


parabaik

Borrowing from Burmese ပုရပိုက် (pu.ra.puik).

The traditional form of paper in Burma, made of daphne bark agglutinated into a kind of pasteboard and blackened with charcoal paste, then folded and written on with a steatite pencil.


Republic of the Union of Myanmar

the Republic of the Union of Myanmar (canonical)


Aracan

(historical) Rakhine State in Myanmar (Burma).


Wa State

This was the real Wabang, where the vast majority of Wa State's estimated 600,000 people live, although accurate population figures in Myanmar are impossible to come by and there are likely many more.

2014, David Eimer, The Emperor Far Away: Travels at the Edge of China:

An officially unrecognised state in Myanmar, part of northern Shan State.


Karenni

en-adj

Karenni (comparative more Karenni, superlative most Karenni)

more Karenni (comparative)
most Karenni (superlative)

Anglicized form of Burmese ကရင်နီ (ka.rangni, “red Karen”)


Kayah

A member of any of a number of Karenic ethnolinguistic groups in Myanmar (Burma), primarily in Kayah State


Palaung

A member of an ethnic group living primarily in the Shan State of Myanmar, also in China and Thailand.


Panthay

An ethnic group of Chinese Muslims in Myanmar.


Kayin

A member of a number of Karenic ethnolinguistic groups in Myanmar (Burma).

A state (administrative division) of Myanmar.


Burma Road

From the name of a road in Burma which ran to the frontier with China, built in 1937–1938 by the British in order to circumvent the Japanese blockade of China during the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) during World War II.

A “Burma Road” for Africa, or, in fact, a pair of “Burma Roads,” may develop from the current improvement of British and Free French roads across Central Africa.

1942 March 9, “New Allied Life Line Across Africa”, in Geographic School Bulletin, volume 21, number 3:

Between January 1, 1943, and June 1, 1945, an average of slightly more than 17 trains plied daily between the two termini of the railway. During all this period, it served as the super-Burma Road to Russia.

1947, Raj Narain Gupta, Iran: An Economic Study, page 145:

The Israelis were able to break the stranglehold by bypassing the normal route to Jerusalem through building a “Burma Road” to resupply the city.

2007, Michael Rydelnik, Understanding the Arab-Israeli Conflict: What the Headlines Haven’t Told You, 2nd edition, →ISBN, page 102:

(figuratively) An important military supply route.

Second Sino-Japanese War
The Railway Magazine


Milk Tea Alliance

The choice of the “milk tea” name is to highlight their shared animosity towards China, due to the fact that Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand and Myanmar all have their own local styles of milk tea, while traditional Chinese tea is drunk neat without milk and sugar.

An alliance between between democratic, pro-Western, anti-Chinese movements in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand and Myanmar.


palm-leaf manuscript

en-noun

palm-leaf manuscript (plural palm-leaf manuscripts)

a medium of writing made of dried palm leaves, traditionally used in the Indian subcontinent and in Southeast Asia