3 - Observations on Some of the Indigenous Sources for Burmese History Down to 1886

Summary

Burmese History

Burmese history, according to the traditional concept, lives up to its name, which in Burmese is ya-zawin. The term, an adaptation from Pali rājavaṁsa, means “lineage of the king”. It deals mainly with the king: his birth, princehood, accession to the throne, his queens and children, the incidents and events in which he is involved, his works of merit and finally, his loss of power or his death. This rhythm is sometimes punctuated by the founding of a royal city, and the division into periods is by dynasties.

These dynasties form an essential part of my account of the indigenous sources and my observations on them. They are:

Pagan period, AD 1044-1287

Myin-zaìng, Sagaìng and Pìn-yá period, 1287-1364

Ava period, 1364-1555

Toungoo period, 1555-1752

Kòn-baung period, 1752-1885

All these names are those of the cities from which each dynasty started. I have deliberately left out the pre-Pagan period, since it is still wrapped by a thick fog of uncertainties and speculations. From the available evidence, Burmese was put into writing only in AD 1113.

Indigenous Sources

I have chosen the term “indigenous” to avoid the repetition of the word “Burmese” in the title. It means nothing more than “Burmese”. I have not studied in detail the Mon or the Shan or even the Arakanese chronicles, so I shall confine myself to the Burmese sources. These may be divided, according to their contents, into primary, subsidiary and complementary sources.

Primary Sources

Those that come into this category are inscriptions on stone and chronicles on palm leaf.

Inscriptions

Inscriptions were set up chiefly by the rulers, and officials and members of their families, during the first three periods: Pagan; Myin-zaìng, Sagaìng and Pìn-yá; and Ava. They are dedicatory in nature and religious in motif, but they contain valuable historical material. The earliest extant inscription is dated AD 1113.

INSCRIPTIONS OF PAGAN. These inscriptions, over five hundred in number, have been fully utilized with loving care and great acumen by Professor G.H. Luce, who has produced a magnum opus, entitled Old Burma: Early Pagán.