By Amrita Kundu
If pictures could depict a country, the long-necked women that wear brass coils around their necks would be a unique representation of Myanmar. These one-of-its-kind women belong to the Kayah Ethnic Group, one of the eight major ethnic groups of Myanmar. They live in a small state in Eastern Myanmar that shares its border with Thailand.
The Kayah State
Also known as Karenni, Kayah is a hilly state with the Salween River flowing through it. During Colonial rule, Kayah was a part of the group of states of the Shan region. In a treaty drawn in 1875, the British government had agreed to grant independence to these Karenni states, hence, they were never really a part of British Burma. These states were recognised as a tributary to British Burma in 1892.
The region is rich in mineral deposits. The Mawchi Mine in this region was the most important source of tungsten in the world in the 1930s.
Ethnic Groups Of Kayah State
Ethnically, Kayah state has about 7 to 10 ethnic groups, the primary being the Kayan people and the Padaung people. Other ethnic tribes include Geba, Bwe, Manumanaw, Zayein, Yinbaw, Paku and a few more.
The Kayan People
The Kayan people are a part of the Red Karen people and are a Tibeto-Burman ethnic minority of Myanmar. The first historical reference of these people ranges back to 739 AD in the Demanwso area of Karenni State. Today, apart from Myanmar, these people also stay in Thailand.
Culture Of The Kayan People
The most stunning representation of the culture of the Kayan people are the brass coils worn by their women around their necks. Often known as the long-necked women, they take pride in wearing these brass coils.
Traditionally, girls are made to wear these brass coils from the age of five. A coil is added to their neck every year as they age. A fully-grown woman can wear as many as 35 rings around their neck. There are several stories behind this tradition of wearing these coils. Some say that these were worn to protect their necks from the attack of tigers while others say that these were worn to disfigure the look of women so that they could not be married forcefully against their wishes.
Although they are called long-necked women, in reality, they don’t have a long neck. Prolonged usage of the brass coils push down the collar bones and compress the rib cage to give an impression of the necks being long. However, using these coils from childhood makes their necks quite fragile and it is believed that their necks will break if the coils are removed.
Religious Practices
The Kayan people traditionally follow a religion called Kan Khwan which has been practised since the time their ancestors migrated to Myanmar from Mongolia during the Bronze Age. The religion is based on the belief that the Kayan people were born as a result of a union between a male human, an angel hybrid and a female dragon.
In the 19th Century, Italian missionaries visited the region and converted a considerable group of people to Roman Catholics. Hence, today, many of them are Roman Catholics. As per statistics published in 2005, 209 out of the 306 Kayan Villages are Roman Catholics, 44 are Buddhists, 32 are Baptists and 19 practice Kan Khwan.
Festivals Of The Kayan People
Kay Htein Bo Festival, a 3-day religious festival is the most widely celebrated festival by the Kayan People. It is celebrated every year around late March or early April. The festival is based on the belief that God created the world by planting a small post in the ground and is celebrated to worship the Creator. During the festival, the people thank God for the past year, seek forgiveness for misdeeds and pray for rain. This is the time when Kayan People from different villages come together and celebrate the solidarity of the tribe.
The Kayans are an exquisite tribe that has maintained their ethnicity despite strong external influence. They are very warm towards tourists and enjoy sharing their culture with them. Travellers who have visited them have always received a friendly welcome and enjoyed interacting with the people.
Thanks a bunch for sharing this with all people you really recognise
what you are talking about! Bookmarked. Kindly also visit
my web site =). We can have a link trade contract between us
Hello, I think your blog might be having browser compatibility issues.
When I look at your website in Firefox, it looks fine but when opening in Internet Explorer, it has some overlapping.
I just wanted to give you a quick heads up! Other then that, great blog!
fortsæt det gode arbejde stipendiater. Med at have så meget indhold og artikler gør du det
díky tomuto nádhernému čtení! Rozhodně se mi líbil každý kousek z toho a já
devido a esta maravilhosa leitura!!! O que é que eu acho?
Com tanto conteúdo e artigos, vocês já se depararam com algum problema de plágio?
apreciariam o seu conteúdo. Por favor, me avise.
devido a esta maravilhosa leitura!!! O que é que eu acho?
Conhecem algum método para ajudar a evitar que o conteúdo seja roubado? Agradecia imenso.
Tak Hej der til alle, det indhold, der findes på denne
Tak Hej der til alle, det indhold, der findes på denne
Fiquei muito feliz em descobrir este site. Preciso de agradecer pelo vosso tempo
It contains fastidious material.|I think the admin of this website is actually working hard in favor of his site,
Obrigado|Olá a todos, os conteúdos existentes nesta
reading this weblog’s post to be updated daily.
Obrigado|Olá a todos, os conteúdos existentes nesta
Znáte nějaké metody, které by pomohly omezit krádeže obsahu? Rozhodně bych ocenil
Tak Hej der til alle, det indhold, der findes på denne
devido a esta maravilhosa leitura!!! O que é que eu acho?
Esta página tem definitivamente toda a informação que eu queria sobre este assunto e não sabia a quem perguntar. Este é o meu primeiro comentário aqui, então eu só queria dar um rápido
gruppe? Der er mange mennesker, som jeg tror virkelig ville
Fiquei muito feliz em descobrir este site. Preciso de agradecer pelo vosso tempo
Obrigado|Olá a todos, os conteúdos existentes nesta
díky tomuto nádhernému čtení! Rozhodně se mi líbil každý kousek z toho a já
skupině? Je tu spousta lidí, o kterých si myslím, že by se opravdu
Znáte nějaké metody, které by pomohly omezit krádeže obsahu? Rozhodně bych ocenil
apreciariam o seu conteúdo. Por favor, me avise.
مرحبًا، أعتقد أن هذه مدونة ممتازة. لقد عثرت عليها بالصدفة ;
for the reason that here every material is quality based
Obrigado|Olá a todos, os conteúdos existentes nesta
vykřiknout a říct, že mě opravdu baví číst vaše příspěvky na blogu.
que eu mesmo criei ou terceirizei, mas parece que
grupo do facebook? Há muitas pessoas que eu acho que iriam realmente
Conhecem algum método para ajudar a evitar que o conteúdo seja roubado? Agradecia imenso.
) Vou voltar a visitá-lo uma vez que o marquei no livro. O dinheiro e a liberdade são a melhor forma de mudar, que sejas rico e continues a orientar os outros.
que eu mesmo criei ou terceirizei, mas parece que
reading this weblog’s post to be updated daily.
Conhecem algum método para ajudar a evitar que o conteúdo seja roubado? Agradecia imenso.
at web, except I know I am getting familiarity all the time by reading thes pleasant posts.|Fantastic post. I will also be handling some of these problems.|Hello, I think this is a great blog. I happened onto it;) I have bookmarked it and will check it out again. The best way to change is via wealth and independence. May you prosper and never stop mentoring others.|I was overjoyed to find this website. I must express my gratitude for your time because this was an amazing read! I thoroughly enjoyed reading it, and I’ve bookmarked your blog so I can check out fresh content in the future.|Hi there! If I shared your blog with my Facebook group, would that be okay? I believe there are a lot of people who would truly value your article.|منشور رائع. سأتعامل مع بعض هذه|
Tak Hej der til alle, det indhold, der findes på denne
) Jeg vil besøge igen, da jeg har bogmærket det. Penge og frihed er den bedste måde at ændre sig på, må du være rig og
díky tomuto nádhernému čtení! Rozhodně se mi líbil každý kousek z toho a já
|Hello to all, for the reason that I am actually keen of
fortsæt med at guide andre. Jeg var meget glad for at afdække dette websted. Jeg er nødt til at takke dig for din tid
webové stránky jsou opravdu pozoruhodné pro lidi zkušenosti, dobře,
muito dele está a aparecer em toda a Internet sem o meu acordo.
Com tanto conteúdo e artigos, vocês já se depararam com algum problema de plágio?
reading this weblog’s post to be updated daily.
værdsætter dit indhold. Lad mig venligst vide det.
webové stránky jsou opravdu pozoruhodné pro lidi zkušenosti, dobře,