Burma-Myanmar Burma-Myanmar

KNOW YOUR COMMUNITY – KNOW YOUR COMMUNITY – KNOW YOUR WORLD KNOW YOUR WORLD

INTERNATIONAL SPEAKER PROFILEINTERNATIONAL SPEAKER PROFILE

• Name, Photo of yourself, family if possible– Topics: – Why are you in Akron – What are you studying– What city are you from– Career- future plans

COUNTRY MAPCOUNTRY MAP

COUNTRY QUICK FACTS COUNTRY QUICK FACTS

• Full name:  Burma(long form) Union of Burma , however since 1989 the name Myanmar is the recognized name throughout the world.

• Population:  60,280,000 (2010 est.)• Capital:  Rangoon, Nay Pyi Taw (Administrative capital) • Largest city:  (by population) Rangoon, Mandalay, Mawlamyine,

Bago, Pathein• Area:  676,552 sq km (261,218 sq miles)• Major language:   Burmese, indigenous ethnic languages• Major religion:  Buddhist 89%, Christian 4% (Baptist 3%,

Roman Catholic 1%), Muslim 4%, animist 1%• Life expectancy: 64 years (men), 68 years (women) (UN)• Monetary unit:  Kyat (MMK)• Main exports:  Teak, pulses and beans, prawns, fish, rice,

opiates, oil and gas• GNI per capita: n/a

Burmese History in BriefBurmese History in Brief

• First known city-states emerged in Burma around the 2nd century BC

• By the late 9th century, the Bagan settlement was founded • Throughout the 11th century the Bagan Empire was one of the

main powers in Southeast Asia and Burmese language and culture dominated the land

• Empire collapsed in 1287 after Mongol invasion • Several small kingdoms were left after the Mongols left and

attempts to create another empire, but none lasted

History Continued History Continued • In the 19th century, Burma was conquered by the British and eventually

incorporated into its Indian Empire• Burma a major battleground during WWII and faced severe devastation • 1948 Burma gained its independence from the British, but from 1962

the military controlled the country as a one-party state• Lots of riots and opposition resulted from the repressive government • 2007- the administrative capital was moved from Rangoon to Nay Pyi

Taw• 2008- massive cyclone hits and kills more than 22,000• 2011-current president is sworn in as head of nominally civilian

government • 2015- ceasefire agreement signed between the government and 16 rebel

groups but human rights abuses continue

LANGUAGE: LANGUAGE:

HELLO: မဂႆလာပၝ (min-ga-la-ba)

GOODBYE: ဘုိင်။ (bhine)

YES: ဟတု္တ ယ္။ (Ho de.)

NO:မဟတု္ဘ ူ။(Ma ho bu.)

THANK YOU: ေ�က်းဇူးတန္ပါတယ္။ (cè-zù tin-ba-deh)

YOU’RE WELCOME: ရပါတယ်။ (ya-ba-deh)

PLEASE:Kyeizu pyu yue 

I LOVE YOU: cha-ma chin go chit-the  

HOW ARE YOU: ခင္ဗ်ားေ�ေ!ကာင္�းလား(k'amyà ne-kaùn-là?)

GovernmentGovernment

•LEADER: Thein Sein

•GOVERNMENT: As of 2010 the government has switched from military to parliamentary democracy

•VOTING AGE: 18 years of age

Aung San Suu Kyi• Major voice in human rights and

freedom in Burma (Myanmar)• Activism started when she wrote a

letter to the Burmese government in 1988 after the military killed thousands of civilians at an uprising

• She wants democracy for her country• She spent many years on house arrest

or in prison for her activism • Nobel Peace Prize winner in 1991 • She is currently a chairperson for the

National League of Democracy (NLD) and serves on the Burmese parliament

CURRENT EVENTS OR KEY ISSUESCURRENT EVENTS OR KEY ISSUES

• One of the poorest countries in Asia, nearly 1/3 of population lives in poverty

• Poor infrastructure • Corruption • Ill treatment of ethnic minorities (like of the Karen people)• Stateless persons (government doesn’t recognize those of

certain ethnicities as citizens)• Remaining border disputes • Human trafficking • drug trafficking

ECONOMICSECONOMICS

Since transition to a civilian government in 2011, Burma has been trying to attract foreign investment and reintegrate into the global economy

Economic sanctions by Western countries are slowly being lifted as economic reforms are taking place

Foreign investment in the energy, garment, information technology, and food and beverage sectors have increased in the last few years because of strategic location in Asia, young labor force, and abundant natural resources

CurrencyCurrency

• Burmese kyat (Myanmar kyat)• 1 US dollar= 1233.75 Burmese kyat (August 2015)

GENDER- ROLE OF GIRLS / BOYS – GENDER- ROLE OF GIRLS / BOYS – MEN/WOMENMEN/WOMEN

• How is it growing up as boy or girl in family and society

• Dress• Gender rites / rituals• Education- College-Grad• At Work• At Home • Roles in Society

NATIONAL FESTIVALSNATIONAL FESTIVALS

• Manoa Festival in Myitkyina (Jan. 10) • Anandar Pagoda Festival (Jan. 23-29)• Thingyan New Year Festival (April 13-16)• Phaung Daw Oo Pagoda Festival (Oct. 5-22)• Kyaukse Elephant Dance Festival (Oct. 18-19)• Balloons Flying Festival (Nov. 12-17)• Tazaungdaing Light Festival (Nov. 16-17)

Light Festival

New Year

Elephant Dance

Burmese FoodBurmese Food

• Ngapi- fermented fish or shrimp paste, used as a condiment or mixed into a dish

• Mohinga-noodle soup from fish broth and chickpea flour • Salads, but especially tea leaf salad• Curries- much milder than those in Thailand or India• All kinds of different street food• Lots of tea• Fresh fruit at the market, like dragonfruit• Toddy palm sugar-sweet sap from certain palm tree

used to make candies

Mohinga Dragonfruit

Ngapi

Toddy Palm sugar candy

Traditional DanceTraditional Dance• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-x2wulxMEM• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-Bsp7rp9n4

TRADITIONAL CLOTHING TRADITIONAL CLOTHING • Traditional clothing worn by people throughout Burma

depends are the ethnic group they are part of because the culture changes from group to group

Kachin Kayah Kayin Chin

Mon Bamar Rakhine Shan

EVERYDAY LIVINGEVERYDAY LIVING

• Typical Day- schedule• A School Day/Week- 11-12yrs old• Study-Homework• Extracurriculars• Family Life- traditional housing- extended family- • Pets / Wildlife- Attractions to visit-amusement

parks-zoos-parks etc.

SIMILARITIES-DIFFERENCESSIMILARITIES-DIFFERENCES

• Wrap up with what they notice- similar their country to us- different-

Future- Where do they see themselves- 5-10 years from now

Why is the international exchange important to them

Conversation- what has the class learned from their presentation- most surprising-

Fun Facts Fun Facts • Burma is one of the three countries in the world that has still

not fully adopted the metric system (along with USA and Liberia)

• At least 90% of the population in Burma does not have a surname (last name)

• The largest book in the world can be found in Burma• Being heavier in weight is considered a sign of health in

Burma • There is lots of superstition in Burma about cutting one’s hair-

no one gets their hair cut on Monday, Friday, or their birthday

LINKS LINKS • https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/g

eos/bm.html• http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/asia/mm2.htm

#page

• http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-12992883 • http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/28/burmese-food_n_6

044102.html

• http://www.myanmar.cm/arts-literature/traditional-costumes.html

• http://www.ohio.com/news/local/stores-in-north-hill-neighborhood-of-akron-reflect-influx-of-asian-immigrants-1.525919#

• http://www.panoramicjourneys.com/burma-festivals.php