{"id":4258,"date":"2025-12-05T06:32:28","date_gmt":"2025-12-05T06:32:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/?p=4258"},"modified":"2025-12-05T10:09:42","modified_gmt":"2025-12-05T10:09:42","slug":"the-101-races-of-burma-recorded-in-the-royal-golden-archives","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/myanmarmuslim.news\/en\/2025\/12\/05\/the-101-races-of-burma-recorded-in-the-royal-golden-archives\/","title":{"rendered":"The 101 Races of Burma Recorded in the Royal Golden Archives"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Based on The Royal Orders of Burma, A.D. 1598\u20131885<\/em> (Part II: 1649\u20131750)<\/strong>
By Dr. Than Tun (M.A., B.L., Ph.D. London), Professor of History, Mandalay University<\/em>
Published by the Center for Southeast Asian Studies, Kyoto University, 1985<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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For centuries, Myanmar kings meticulously preserved demographic and administrative data in what were known as the Golden Royal Archives<\/strong>. Among these records is a remarkable classification of 101 ethnic communities<\/strong> living under the Burmese kingdom during the mid-17th to early-18th centuries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This official list\u2014compiled long before modern ethnic politics\u2014reveals a deeply multicultural society shaped by migration, trade, warfare, and intermarriage across South Asia, Southeast Asia, and East Asia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Below is a summarised and modernised interpretation of Dr. Than Tun\u2019s transcription.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Seven \u201cMyanmar\u201d Groups<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
    \n
  1. Myanmar Gyi<\/strong> (Main Bamar)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Pyu<\/strong> (Ancient Tibeto-Burman civilisation)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Thet<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Dawai<\/strong> (Dawei\/Tavoyan)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. Danu<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  6. Taungthu (Pa-O)<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  7. Taunglar<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    These reflect early sub-groups within the broader Bamar\/Myanmar identity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    2. Three Mon Groups<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    The record notes three distinct Mon communities<\/strong>, reflecting the long presence of Mon civilisation in Lower Myanmar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    3. Twenty-Seven Shan and Related Groups<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    The \u201cShan\u201d category was broad, including neighbouring peoples:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    • Yodaya<\/strong> (Ayutthaya\/Thai)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Shan<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Lin Zin<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Tayoke (Chinese)<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Tayek<\/strong> (likely Turkic or Central Asian origins)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Karen<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Kathay<\/strong> (Meitei people of Manipur, India)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Chin<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Kachin<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • And other Tai-related or mountain groups<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

      This illustrates centuries of movement between northern Myanmar, Yunnan, Assam, and Thailand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      4. Sixty-Four \u201cKalar\u201d: Migrant Communities in Burma<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

      In the 17th\u201318th century archives, the term \u201cKalar\u201d<\/strong> meant foreigners\/migrants primarily from the West of Myanmar (India, Bengal, Persia, Arabia) and also some Southeast Asian communities<\/em>.
      It did not carry the modern derogatory meaning<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      These 64 groups included:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        \n
      • Rakhines (classified as migrants in Upper Burma during that period)<\/em><\/strong> (NOTE: Rakhines were called Kalars)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Padeikkhayars<\/strong> (Indians from Pathein and Bengal)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Panthays<\/strong> \u2013 Pathi\/Bamar Muslims\/Chinese Muslims<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Zawgyi \/ Tapathi<\/strong> \u2013 Iranian-origin alchemists and occult practitioners<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Malacca (Pashu)<\/strong> \u2013 early Malay\/Bajau migrants <\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Kanyan<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Kalae<\/strong> \u2013 Tamils<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Ceylon<\/strong> \u2013 Sri Lankans<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Punna<\/strong> \u2013 Brahmins<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Chekka<\/strong> \u2013 Chak\/Chakma peoples<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • And many others representing South Asian, Middle Eastern, Malay, and Central Asian origins<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

        This vast category shows how cosmopolitan pre-colonial Burma truly was\u2014long before the British Empire expanded mobility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Why This Matters Today<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

        This 350-year-old royal record proves:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          \n
        • Myanmar has always been multi-ethnic<\/strong>, multicultural, and connected to global migration.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • Groups such as Muslims, Tamils, Bengalis, Chinese, Thai, Manipuri, Malays, and Persians were not \u201cnew arrivals\u201d but part of the kingdom\u2019s recognised demographic landscape.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • Identity politics of the modern era should not erase this long, documented history of diversity.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

          Dr. Than Tun\u2019s work remains a crucial reminder that the Golden Land was built by many peoples<\/strong>, not one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          Appendix:<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

          The Malacca (Pashu)<\/strong> community\u2014later known as the Pashu Malays<\/strong>\u2014reflects a long history of two-way migration between Burma and the Malay Peninsula. According to the Malay Annals (Sejarah Melayu)<\/em>, early Bagohmen<\/strong> or people from Bago\/Pegu (Mon)<\/strong> were recorded among the founders of the Malacca Sultanate, with historical accounts noting that no fewer than twenty Bago-based ships<\/strong> regularly sailed in and out of the Malacca port as part of its maritime trade network. Burmese records support this connection as well. The Glass Palace Chronicle<\/em> recounts that King Alaungsithu of Pagan<\/strong> (grandson of King Kyansittha) travelled to the Pashu Peninsula<\/strong>\u2014present-day Malay Peninsula\u2014while en route to Ceylon. Alaungsithu\u2019s royal lineage further illustrates the region\u2019s cultural interlinkages: he was the son of Saw Yun<\/strong> (son of King Saw Lu) and Princess Shwe Einthi<\/strong>, daughter of Kyansittha. Princess Shwe Einthi herself is remembered in Burmese historical literature for her tragic love affair with the Prince of Pateikkaya<\/strong>, a kingdom believed to have been located either in Pathein<\/strong> or eastern Bengal<\/strong>, emphasising the longstanding ties between Burma, Bengal, and the Malay world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          Additional Historical Note on Princess Shwe Einthi<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
          \"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
          \n