Thai-Yunnan-Newsletter No. 5

[Kathy Britzius Escobar]

Sabaidee took took kone,
Here is the fifth newsletter. I would like to express my thanks to Kag
for posting the previous newletters when I was unable to post them.
This is interesting to me. If you are interested in my continual
posting of this newsletter. I would be most happy to, but I do not
want to flood the Laonet with this if there is not any interest in it.

DokMai
@>-->---

[This document can be acquired from a sub-directory coombspapers via anonymous
FTP on the node COOMBS.ANU.EDU.AU]

[Last updated: 28 April 1992]

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No. 5 Thai-Yunnan Project Newsletter June 1989

This NEWSLETTER is edited by Gehan Wijeyewardene and published in the
Department of Anthropology, Research School of Pacific Studies;
printed at Central Printery; the masthead is by Susan Wigham of
Graphic Design (all of The Australian National University ).The logo
is from a water colour , 'Tai women fishing' by Kang Huo

Material in this NEWSLETTER may be freely reproduced with due
acknowledgement. Correspondence is welcome and contributions will be
given sympathetic consideration. (All correspondence to The Editor,
Department of Anthropology, RSPacS, ANU, Box 4 GPO, Canberra, ACT
2601, Australia.)

Number Five June 1989 ISSN 1032-500X

it is with great sorrow that we extend our condolences to the families
and friends of those murdered on the fourth of june in tiananmen
square and on subsequent dates and other places. we grieve with the
chinese people. there can be nothing but condemnation for the
perpetrators of these massacres and the repression that has followed.

CONTENTS

Classifications and Origins 2
The Soviet View on Southeast Asia 2
Chinese Names for Tai 5
Tai Names 6
Ethnic Groups in Yunnan 8
Black Thai-White Thai 10
Rock art of Zuojiang River valley 11
Translations
Relations betwen ancient
Xishuangbanna and Lanna 12
Economic development in
Xishuangbanna 21
News 24
Correspondence 24
Southeast Asian Legal Texts 24
Tang Administration of non-Han 25
About the Newsletter 26
The Prince and the Moulmein Market Girl 26
Map of Yunnan (notice) 28

Classifications and Origins

This issue contains documents prepared for a two day seminar
held by the project, concerned with the problems of 1. the
classification of the Tai in Southeast Asia and the PRC, and 2. the
classification of minority nationalities in Yunnan Province. This
seminar was preceded by a discussion organized by the Thai Studies
Group of the ANU on Tai origins. Part of the material presented at the
earlier session will appear in a volume in Thai edited by Cholthira
Satyawadhna and published by Muang Boran. Other presentations were
made by A. Diller, B.J. Terwiel and Xie Yuan Zhang.
Of the many interesting matters for consideration coming out
of the session on Tai origins, two perhaps need stressing. Terwiel
drew attention to the long history of migration, settlement and forced
settlement in what is now Central Thailand; thus the necessity for
awareness of historical complexity as well as the conceptual clarity
required for even contemplating questions of 'origins'. The other
matter we may mention here was dramatically presented by Diller.
Without unduly anticipating its publication, we may mention that the
paper sets out the difficulties of establishing a vocabulary which is
unique to any of the major language families of the region.
This issue was also taken up at the subsequent seminar on
'classification'. Cholthira strongly stressed the view that
linguistic criteria were not the only ones that should apply in
arriving at any useful classification or sets of clasifications. She
points to the fact that an ethnic group could change its everyday
language in a very few generations under social, political or military
pressure. This, of course, is another way of looking at the point made
by Terwiel, above.
The documents prepared by Xie and Li, we hope, will prove a
handy and useful reference for scholars working on the region.

* * *

The Soviet View on Southeast Asia
(1951)

T.H. Rigby

thailand1

In order to establish the background of current Soviet views
on this country, it may be useful to recount briefly the history of
imperialism in Thailand, as Soviet writers see it.
Imperialist infringements on Thailand's sovereignty are held
to have proceeded along two lines - annexation of sections of her
territory, and binding her by unequal treaties.
The 'treaty of friendship and commerce' forced on Thailand by
Britain in 1855 provided that British subjects would have the right to
trade and travel freely in the country, and would be under the
jurisdiction of British consular officials. The following year saw
similar treaties imposed by the United States and France, in 1868 by
Holland, and in 1898 by Japan and Tsarist Russia.
The year 1855 also saw the British acquisition of the Malay
states of Negri Sembilan, Selangor, Pahang and Perak, which were
formerly under Thai suzerainty. In 1909 Thailand was obliged to
recognize British authority over four more Malay principalities -
Trengganu, Kelantan, Kedah and Perlis.
Meanwhile, the French, advancing from Annam, seized the
eastern part of the Thai protectorate of Cambodia in 1867, and in 1893
they forced Thailand to renounce her claim to the right bank of the
Mekong, and to make other concessions. This French penetration
disturbed the British imperialists, who forced their rivals in 1896 to
recognize the 'independence' of Thailand, which was to serve as a
buffer between British Burma and French Indo-China. This was followed
in 1904 by an agreement defining the spheres of influence of the two
countries, which set the Menam as the western limit of French economic
penetration. These agreements, however, did not prevent the French
from making fresh territorial acquisitions. In 1904 they took from
Thailand further areas of Laos on the right bank of the Mekong, and in
1907 the western part of Cambodia.
Nevertheless, it was the British who ultimately got the upper
hand in this imperialist struggle for control of Thailand's natural
resources. They won valuable timber and tin concessions and up to the
thirties dominated the country's foreign trade. Sixty-seven per cent
of Thailand's imports came from British territories, and up to eighty
per cent of her exports. The Thai government was at this period a
puppet of the British imperialists.
The thirties saw British interests in Thailand threatened by
new rivals - the United States and Japan. The latter supplied three
and a half per cent of Thailand's imports in 1925, and thirty per cent
in 1937. The rise of Japanese influence in Thailand was associated
with changes taking place in the balance of class forces within the
country itself. The beginnings of a local manufacturing industry were
accompanied by the emergence of a national proletariat and a national
bourgeoisie. A bourgeois-nationalist party was formed, which in 1932
overthrew the British-dominated feudal regime and set up a
constitutional monarchy. The anti-European slogans of the Japanese
were responsible for the pro-Japanese orientation of the Nationalist
Party leaders. Not only did Japanese products begin to replace
Western ones in Thailand's markets, but her nationals began to
supersede Englishmen and Frenchmen as advisers to the Thai government.
This process culminated in the military alliance with Japan of 1941,
and the declaration of war on the United States and Great Britain in
January 1942.
Anglo-American imperialist rivalries were reflected in
conflicting policies towards Thailand during and after the Second
World War. The 'peace agreement' represented a compromise under which
the British regained their pre-war privileges, but 'control' over the
chief items of Siamese exports - rice, tin, rubber, copra and other
commodities - is now exercised not by the British authorities, but by
an Anglo-American committee specially set up for the purpose in
Washington.
Since the war American penetration has undermined Britain's
domination in Thailand. American trade with Thailand has increased
five-fold. Although Britain retains the tin monopoly, new American
investments in the banking, transport, hydro-electric and other fields
far outweigh the British. The cause of American economic and
political control was advanced by the advent to power of the military
clique headed by Pibul Songgram, who since the defeat of his old
masters, the Japanese imperialists, has acted consistently as an
American puppet. A further step towards the colonial enslavement of
Thailand was taken in September 1950, with the signing of an agreement
on 'economic and technical assistance' with the United States. The
significance of this agreement is that 'Thailand will in future be
converted into a raw-material appendange of the U.S.A. and a sales
market for dumping American commodities'. Just as Thai foreign policy
had long been under the control of the American adviser Patton, now
the regulation of Thailand's exports and imports was vested in an
adviser of the American legation in Bangkok.
The signing of this agreement was the signal for the country
to be flooded by all kinds of American advisers and experts, seeking
to gain control of sources of raw materials in various parts of the
country, 'interfering in the work of the local administration and
virtually behaving like masters in the areas where they are located'.
At the same time, the Americans, in view of Thailand's situation
between Burma, Indo-China and Malaya, accord Songgram considerable
importance in the struggle against the national-liberation movements
in these countries. The agreement on 'economic and technical aid' was
followed a month later by one on military aid. As well as providing
for military credits, this agreement involved the sending of large
numbers of American advisers and instructors. Thailand is rapidly
being militarized at American direction and under American
supervision. The Songgram regime has recognized the puppet government
of Bao Dai in Vietnam, and sent troops to participate in America's
aggressive war in Korea.
The vast majority of the people of Thailand are firmly opposed
to the reactionary policies of the Songgram government, which are
converting their country into a colony of the United States, and the
government has accordingly stepped up its campaign against democratic
organizations and progressive leaders. Thailand's Chinese, comprising
about a quarter of the country's population, have come in for special
attention. A considerable number of their schools have been closed,
and many prominent Chinese citizens arrested.
However, supression has not quelled the people's opposition to
their country's subjection to the American imperialists, and 'the
fight of the people of Thailand for national sovereignty and political
independence is being linked ever closer with the struggle for the
safeguarding and consolidation of peace'. The working class of
Thailand is in the vanguard of the fight for peace and for the
political rights and economic interests of the people. The war saw a
great increase in the size of the proletariat, the number of
wage-earners reaching almost a million in 1947. During the war the
first trade unions were organized. The strike movement has been
widespread and has enjoyed considerable success. In 1949, the
democratic trade unions, representing 60,000 workers, joined the World
Federation of Trade Unions.
Under the conditions of political repression prevailing in
Thailand, the Communist Party is compelled to work underground. 'But
despite persecution, it continues to fight, urging the working people
to resist the reactionary forces and set up a united national front of
struggle for democracy, for Siam's independcence and liberation from
the yoke of foreign imperialism.'
It will be noticed that the claims made for Thailand's
'national-liberation movement' are very moderate ones. It is not by
accident that Soviet writers almost always link their discussion of
this movement with comment on the country's Chinese community and the
relations of this community with the government of Thailand. For the
Communist Party of Thailand and communist front organizations, as well
as the so-called 'democratic' trade unions are recruited almost
exclusively from the Chinese population. The bulk of Thai workers
belong to the government-sponsored Thai National Trade Union Congress,
which is a member of the International Confederation of Free Trade
Unions. When one considers that the Soviet assertion of the dependent
state of Thailand's economy is incontestable, the lack of interest of
the people of Thailand in 'their' national-liberation movement seems
to contribute fresh evidence in favour of the view that it is 'formal
state independence', broadly understood, whose absence produces
'anti-imperialist' revolution in Asia. To draw this conclusion in
such simple terms would be to ignore other important factors
contributing to Thailand's comparative calm amid the political
confusion and violence of present-day Southeast Asia, and economic
factors are not the least important. But it can at least be said that
these economic factors do not produce the political effects which
Soviet writers claim they do. If the Soviet view that economic
dependence on foreign capitalist states inevitably leads to mass
revolution against 'imperialism and home reaction' is contradicted
anywhere, it is in the case of Thailand, where even in this era of the
'deepening of the general crisis of capitalism', the bulk of
politically conscious Thais appear to feel their national interests to
be most threatened by the very forces which claim to be working for
'national-liberation'.
Mention of the Chinese draws attention to the fact that the
Soviet account is silent on the role of the Chinese in the economy of
Siam (as of every other country in the area). We read of the Chinese
as peasants and workers, never as shop-keepers, middlemen or
moneylenders. Yet it is in the latter capacities that the Chinese
impact on Siamese life has been most marked, and their activities in
this field have determined the attitude of the Siamese masses to the
whole Chinese community. Foreign control of marketing (exercised
almost exclusively by the Chinese) is an important aspect of
Thailand's economic dependence, and a considerable focus of mass
resentment. A revolutionary movement, it would seem, should not
ignore it, but should exploit it, seeking to direct the mass attitudes
on it into general anti-imperialist channels. The Soviet position on
this point cannot wholly be explained in terms of a reluctance to risk
diverting revolutionary sentiment from the Western arch-villains of
imperialism onto their Asian junior partners, since no such diffidence
is manifested over the Indians in Burma, who perform there a partly
analagous role to that of the Chinese in Siam. It would seem to arise
principally from an anxiety to keep the reputation of the Chinese
community in Southeast Asia as clean as possible in view of the likely
role of this community as a centre for the propagation of communism.
There is much in the above statement of Soviet views on
Thailand which should gain nearly universal agreement. Few would
deny, for instance, that Thailand would scarcely have retained her
independence if it had not have been for Anglo-French rivalries. In
the same way, it is quite clear that the coup-d'etat which led to the
establishment of the constitutional monarchy, far from signifying the
emancipation of the country from dependence on foreigners, merely
heralded the changing of old patrons for new. Nor can it be denied
that American influence is dominant in Thailand today, even if the
forms Soviet writers represent this as taking may appear a little
ludicrous. What the Soviet writers fail to explain is how the Siamese
manage to change their 'imperialist masters' so readily. If the
government of the absolute monarchy was such a faithful puppet of the
British, why did the latter permit it to be overthrown by avowedly
anti-Western forces? If imperialist domination means anything, surely
it means the power to keep out rivals. Britain evidently did not have
that power in Thailand. National independence is a relative quality
in the world of today. If Thailand can keep 'imperialist' penetration
to present limits, and continue to keep a balance of rival imperialist
influences (at present, American and British), then she would appear
to have a good chance of maintaining as much independence as is
possible for a comparatively small and backward country. Meanwhile,
there is educational and social progress - very slow, it is true,
slower in many of its aspects than in the true colonial areas of
Southeast Asia, but still, progress along Siamese lines, growing
awareness of the tasks and possibilities the mdoern world presents
them will cause Siamese nationalists to prize the 'formal'
independence which facilitates their meeting this challenge in their
own way.

[Note on sources:
Original footnotes omitted. The most substantial source used
was V.Y. Vasil'eva, Natsional'no-osvoboditel'naia bor'ba v stranakh
iugo-vostochnoi Azii (Moscow 1949). On the earlier period I made use
of S.N. Rostovskii et. al., Novaia istoriia kolonial'nykh i zavisimykh
stran (Moscow 1940).
Other relevant material was found in general works and
magazine articles, e.g. L.V. Alarin, 'V Siame: putevye zametki',
Vokrug Sveta (Moscow), No. 3, 1950.
T.H.R.]

* * *
Chinese names for Tai2

from a document prepared by

Xie Yuan Zhang

B#ai-y°i (white shirt) Name for Yunnan Tai in Chinese documents from
Tang to Song Dynasties (AD 618-1279).Some scholars, however,
believe the name refers to the Bai or Min Chia who were
later to establish the Nan Chao-Tali kingdom. The evidence however
is very weak.

B#o-y£i (B#o barbarians) The terms B#o was used to refer to the
ancestors of the Bai or Min Chia. Li Yuan Yang, who, during the
Ming Dynasty, compiled 'Documents of the Yunnan region: Wan Li
reign edition (AD 1573-1620)' transcribed the name B<ei-y£i
(hundred tribes of barbarians) as B#o-y£i , which led people to
believe that the Tai were called by the same name
as the Bai or Min Chia - increasing the confusion.

B<ai-y£i The name used to refer to the Tai of Yunnan and the Shan
States during the Qing Dynasty (AD 1644-1912) and the
Kuomintang period (1912-1949). The first Chinese character means
'to sway', but here has th pronunciation of either 'B#ai'
or, 'B<ei' which were only used in previous periods. There is no
relation to the meaning of the character.

B<ei-y£i (hundred tribes of barbarians) Name which developed out
of the previous one, and referred to the Tai of Yunnan and
Burma. Found in Chinese documents of the Yuan to the Ming
dynasties (AD 1260-1644). Further divided into the greater (D!a)
and lesser (Xi<ao) B<ei-j£i - the former the Tai of the De
Hong area and the Shan States, and the latter Xishuangbanna
(Sipsong- panna). This may have arisen from the fact that the
De Hong and Shan states Tai called themselves Tai Luang (great
Tai).

Di%an-yu!e (yu!e Yunnan) from the Chinese document 'Sh²i-y£i'.
Name for 'State where the elephant was ridden' which lay
about a thousand li west of Talifu some two thousand years ago.
It is hypothesized that they were Tai, but there is no firm
evidence.

H!an B<ai-y£i (Han B<ai-y£i ) The Chinese called the northern Tai
who lived in the Salween valley in Yunnan and among whom
Chinese influence was greater than among the LŸ (for instance
they built their houses at ground level, not on piles, and who
used Chinese-style surnames) 'ChineseB<ai-y£i '. This term
was used in conjunction with 'water B<ai- y£i ' distinguishing
the former from the LŸ and the people of Muang Mao.

H!an-d<ai = Chinese Tai. After the change of government in 1949,
the use of theterm B<ai-y£i was forbidden - the term is
therefore equivalent to the former H!an B<ai-y£i.

H%an B<ai-y£i (land or dry B<ai-y£i ) Some Chinese interpreted
the distinction between 'water Tai/Chinese Tai' as one between 'water
Tai' and 'land or dry Tai' ( i.e. 'h%an' were averse to water).
This was incorrect.

H%an-d<ai = land Tai (replaces H%an B<ai-y£i ).

H%ei-ch²i (black teeth), H%ei-zu²i (black mouth) Name from
documents of the Tang Dynasty (AD 618-906). The theory is that
they were Tai, but they could well have been Mon-Khmer speakers
such as the Wa or Bulang, who also chew betel and blacken the
teeth as an aid to beauty.

Hu%a-y#ao B<ai-y£i (patterned waist B<ai-y£i ) Chinese refer
to the Tai Ja and the LŸ of Muang Hing (a town of Xishuangbanna)
by this name because the women wear blouses with bright
designs and stripes.

Hu%a-y#ao d<ai = paterned waist B<ai-y£i (replaces Hu%a-y#ao
B<ai-y£i )

Ji%u-l#ao. Name used for Tai in documents of the Wei to Jin
Dynasties (AD 220-420). But there are those who put forward the
theory that it could refer to a Mon- Khmer-speaking group, the
Gelao.

J²in-ch²i (gold teeth) Name for Yunnan Tai in Chinese documents from
Tang to Ming Dynasties (AD 618 - 1644). Refers to the De Hong
region in the Salween valley. During Ming times the J²in-ch³i
Xi%an F<u S£i (Chao Saen Fu Faa Gold Teeth)was still appointed (by
the emperor).

M#ang-m#an (M#ang barbarians). Appears in documents of the Tang
Dynasty and is widely thought to refer to Yunnan Tai. But others,
including the writer, think it more likely that it refers to a Mon-
Khmer group.

Sh%an-gu#o (The State of Sh%an). The ancient pronunciation is D²an.
Appears in documents of the Eastern Han. It says about four
thousand years ago they lived outside the southern imperial
boundaries of Yunnan. Most Chinese scholars are of the opinion
that the term refers to Tai (of the modern day Thai- Burmese
region), but Professor Ji%ang Y!Áing-li#ang of Yunnan University and
the author do not believe they were Tai.

Shu²i B<ai-y£i (water B<ai-y£i ) The daily life of the Tai is
closely associated with water and their habitation was usually
near water (rivers, streams). The Chinese thus gave this
name to the Tai, and came to refer to the Tai LŸ and the Northern
Tai of Muang Mao.

Shu²i-d<ai. Replaces Shu²i B<ai-y£i (water Tai).

Xi!u-ji<ao (tattooed legs), Xi!u-mi!an (tattooed face) From
documents of the Tang Dynasty, believed to refer to Yunnan Tai. But
other ethnic groups have similar tattoos and the Tai are not
known ever to have tattooed the face.

Y’n-ch’ (silver teeth) Name for Yunnan Tai in Chinese documents from
Tang to Song Dynasties (AD 618 - 1279).

Translated from the Thai by Gehan Wijeyewardene

* * *

Tai Names

from a document prepared by

Xie Yuan Zhang

Aásaám The Kachin in Yunnan and Burma call the Tai by this term
or laásaám (no tones represented).

Aáts¹á The Akha in Yunnan, Burma
Mits¹á and Thailand call the Tai by these
Bits¹á names.

Chinese Shan English name for H!an B<ai-y£i, translated into Thai
as ch<aán cián or thai cián. Also may be referred to as tai kh<eá
or kh<äá, from the word used by northern Tai for 'Han'. The
Burmese term is chaán tajok (no tones indicated).

Laáw cia» The northern region of Thailand, formerly the kingdom
of Lanna, was for a time designated the monthon of Law
Chiang.

Laáw phuan In northeast Thailand, duringthe Laáw kaáw period
of adminisitrative
Laáw klaá» divisions into monthon, the
northern part, Udon, was known as Lao
Phuan, the eastern part, Lao Kaw, and the
Nakhorn Rajasima region, Lao Klang. The word'kaáw' is a
dialectal variant of käáw, an old Tai term for
Vietnamese.

Laáw phu» dam (in the literature as 'black-bellied Lao') A
derogatory name for Khon Muang, because of thetattooing on
stomach and upper legs.

Laáw phu» kh<aáw (in the literature as 'white- bellied Lao')
A derogatory name for the Lao of Laos, because, though the Lao
used tattoos, they did not tattoo the region of the waist.

Laáw s>oá» (Lao Song) Black Tai who were forcibly resettled by
the the Thai from Laos and Sipsongchu tai. Because they wore
Chinese-type trousers called 'song' the Thai called them 'Tai
song'. Some Lao Song in Phetburi still speak the Chinese
dialect of Kwangsi and still have Chinese surnames such as W#ei
and Hu#ang, which suggests the possibility that their ancestors were
Zhuang of the Taái, Phu Tai or Nong branches.

No» (or n¹á», no» j¨án, no» r¨án, tai no») Nong, a branch of the
Xhuang, who do not call themselves 'Tai'.

P>¹á» A name used for the Tai Jai by the LŸ, after an old
kingdom, Muang Pong.

Ph>uá tai A group similar to the Lao Song who migrated from
Laos and now live in northeast Thailand.

Phuan Xieng Khouang in Laos is still known as Muang Phuan. The Lao
of Xieng Khouang are known as Phuan or Tai Phuan.

Pit s¹á The Musser in Yunnan, Burma and Thailand call
the Tai by this name.

Siam Cognates of this term appear to be used by many, if
not all Mon-Khmer- speaking groups for the Tai, Thai.

t!aái Tay (in Vietnamese usage) Tho (th!oá, th>oá, tai th>oá,
th!oá j¨án, th!oá r¨án) in north Vietnam. It is hypothesized
that they are of Zhuang ancestry. Unlike the Tai Dam and Tai Khaw
they do not call themselves 'Tai'.

Tai cu» cia (Dai Zh!ong-jia) Name for the B!u-y°i (p>uá jiá) of
Gui-zh%ou in former times, but they do not call themselves Tai.
'zh!ong' is cognate with 'zhuang' in Gu<ang-x°i, and
'jia' means 'household'. Thus 'Zh!ong-jia', 'Zhuang' and 'B!u-y°i '
are the same people. It should be emphasized that the
Zh!ong (of Gui-zh%ou) today prefer to be known as 'B!u-y°i '.

Tai dam A group of Tai living in northern Laos and Vietnam who
migrated from the Black River valley in Yunnan. The
language and writing system appears to be the same as that of the Tai
Jai and Northern Tai of Yunnan.

Tai d¹ái (Hill Tai) The term Tai Doi is used for hill
peoples who have recently 'become' Tai. Thus in L#an C%ang
district of Yunnan, there is a village known as Chiangmai
(th!yan l>a chia»m!ai) inhabited by Tai Doi who were formerly Bulang
- a Mon-Khmer-speaking group.
The LÁi on Hainan island. The Hainanese dialect
pronounces the word 'l!¹ái'. They are known in the literature as
Doi, and some foreigners refer to them as Tai Doi but
they do not use the word Tai for themselves.

Tai däá» (Red Tai) Some sources report a group with
this name - after their red clothes. But this seems to be a
misunderstanding - There are no Red Tai or Yellow Tai.

Tai j!ai (great, greater Tai) Includes the northern Tai
of Yunnan, the Tai Jai of the Shan State(s), the Tai of Assam
(but excludes the LŸ, the KhŸn and the Yorng[j¹á»]) i.e. the Tai
of the Salween and Bhramaputra rivers.

Tai j#¹ái Foreign missionaries used this name for the
B!u-y°i (p>uá jiá) of Gui-zh%ou province in China. It is
sometimes written 'Tai Dioi'. They do not call themselves Tai.

Tai j<aá Tai in the county of Yu#an-ji%ang on the Red
River in Yunnan. The Tai name for the county is Muang Ja (j<aá)
or Chung (cu»), hence the people are Tai Ja or Tai Chung.

Tai j¹á» The Tai of Muang Yorng. The spoken and written
language are like that of the LŸ, and in the past has been part of
Sipsongpanna. Thay consider themselves to be LŸ, but those
who were resettled in Lampang, Lamphun and Chiangmai are
likely to consider themselves 'Yorng'.

Tai keá Tai in the district of Muang Ke in Yu#an- ji%ang county.
These two groups together are referred to as Tai Yu#an-ji%ang.

Tai kh<aáw (White Tai) in north Vietnam and in Muang La of J²i-p£ing
county of Yunnan, near the Vietnamese border. Also known
as Tai J²in-p£ing.

Tai kh<yán (Tai Khoen). The Tai of Chiangtung (Kengtung) after the
river Khoen, the city is also called Muang Khoen. The name
is spelled 'kh<¨án' but in the local pronunciation is ''kh<yán'.
The language and culture is close to that of the Khon Muang
and the LŸ, but there is Tai Jai influence from the Shan.

Tai kh>ai h<ua This name seems to be an interpretation given
by some observers. It comes from the the town in southern
Yunnan, K%ai-yu<an, which was formerly called K%ai-hu!a. The town was
a fort, or administrative post within the jurisdiction of which
lived Zhuang, Phu Tai and other Tai. The name Tai Khai Hua
was thus attatched to them.

Tai l#yá (Tai LŸ) The Tai of Xishuangbanna
(Sipsongpanna). Sipsongpanna was formerly known as Muang LŸ.

Tai l<uang (great Tai) The Tai Jai call themselves by this name.

Tai n#¹ái (lesser Tai) Comprises the Thai (Siamese), the LŸ, the
KhŸn, the Yorng and Khon Muang (Yuan) i.e the Tai of the
central Me Khong river valley.

Tai n<ya (northern Tai) The tai of De Hong and other muang near the
Tai Jai of Shan State.

Tai saái Tai of M!o-sh%a (Muang Sai in Tai) in X°in- p£ing county
on the Red River in Yunnan. Also known as Tai X°in-p£ing

ȣiaw A name used for Tai Jai in the past by the Thai. Derogatory.
The word means 'snake' and may have originated in the fact that
snakes were included in tattoo patterns.

Translated from the Thai by Gehan Wijeyewardene

* * *

ETHNIC IDENTIFICATION AND ETHNIC GROUPS IN YUNNAN

Li Xiang Yang

When Dr. Sun Yat-Sen founded the Republic of China in 1912, he
defined it as a "Republic of Five Nationalities", the Hans, the
Manchus, the Mongolians, the Huis and the Tibetans. Ethnologists
thought otherwise, but no ethnic identification was possible under the
circumstances.

The People's Republic of China, inaugurated in 1949, committed
itself to ethnic equality as a basic tenet. Many minority groups, long
oppressed by Han chauvinism openly stated their indentities and
proposed names for themselves. By 1955 over 400 names had been
registered with the government authorities. At that time, the problems
faced by the Central Government were: How could a People's Congress
allocate it seats to deputies from different nationalities without
knowing what nationalities there were? And how could the nation effect
regional autonomy for the nationalities without a clear idea of their
geographical distribution and population?

Beginning in 1953, extensive field work was carried out to
ascertain the claims. To date the State Council has confirmed and
announced the nationality status of 57 ethnic groups, including the
Kemu nationality in Yunnan which was confirmed in 1987.

The most complicated ethnic situation is found on the
Yunnan-Guizhou plateau in China's southwest. Among the high mountains
and deep ravines criss- crossing the plateau, residents in some of the
secluded villages lived in such isolation that generations were born
and died without any knowledge of dynastic changes in the country. Of
the 400-plus names of nationalities registered with the government in
early 1950s', Yunnan accounted for more than 260. It is surpassed by
no other region in the number of ethnic units and the complexity of
their sub- divisions.

The guiding ideology of ethnic indentification in
China is the definition of 'nation' by Stalin. It is: "A nation is a
historically constituted, stable community of people, formed on the
basis of a common language, territory, economic life, and
psychological make-up manifested in a common culture." Over more than
40 years' work, ethnic indentification in China has been based on two
main points: common language and the feelings of the minority.

To date the State Council has confirmed the status of 25
ethnic groups in Yunnan Province.

The national minorities of Yunnan speak many kinds of
languages. According to the views of Chinese scholars they mostly
belong to two language families, the Austroasiatic and the
Sino-Tibetan. The languages of the Austroasiatic family belong to the
Wa sub-branch of Mon-Khmer branch. The languages of the Sino-Tibetan
family can be divided into several sub-branches of Tibeto-Burman,
Zhuang-Dong and Miao-Yao branches.

Sino-Tibetan family -- Tibeto-Burman branch languages speaking
nationalities are:

Sino-Tibetan family
Tibeto-Burman branch
Yi sub-branch 7 minorities 6 million pop. Spread all over the
province.

- Yi: 3,500,000, 10.24%3. 750,000 in Honghe Hani-Yi AP and 500,000 in
Chuxiong Yi AP. Rest throughout province. Dialects: Eastern, Western,
Southern, Northern, Central and Southeastern. Two writing systems in
the past - syllabic and Miao alphabetic-type (used in Luquan County).
Now use syllabic writing.

- Hani: 1,112,000, 3.29%. Most of them live in Honghe-Hani-Yi AP (More
than 500,000), Xishuang Panna Tai AP and Simao P. Dialects: Haya,
Bika, Haobai. A kind of Kaduo alphabetic writing in the past. Now Hani
writing and Bika dialect writing.

- Lisu: 500,000 in Nujiang Lisu AP and neighbouring prefectures.
Dialects: Nujiang and Luquan regional. In the past Wangrenpo,
capitalized Latin alphabetic, and Miao alphabetic type writing. Now
formulated Latin alphabetic writing and capitalized Latin alphabetic
writing.

- Naxi: 246,000 in Lijiang Prefecture. Dialects: Eastern and Western
regional. Dongba, Geba, Marimasa and Latin alphabetic writing in the
past. Now formulated Latin alphabetic writing.

- Jinuo: 15,000 in the Jinuo mountains near Jinghong. No dialect
division, no writing system.

- Mongolian: 9,000 in Tonghai County of Yuxi Prefecture.

Bai sub-branch

- Bai: 1,172,000, 3.44%. Most in Dali Bai AP, rest in Lijiang and
Baoshan prefectures. Dialects: Dali, Jianchuan and Bijiang regional.
In the past Bo characters, not standardized nor commonly used. Now a
form of alphabetic writing is being tried out in Jianchuan County.

Jingpo sub-branch

- Jingpo: 100,000 in Tehong Dai-Jingpo AP. Dialects Jingpo and Zaiwa.
In Zaiwa there are 4 sub dialects: Zaiwa, Leqi, Langwuo and Bula.
There was Latin alphabetic Jingpo and Zaiwa writing as well as
capitalised Latin writing of Zaiwa in the past. There is now reformed
Jingpo writing and newly formulated Zaiwa writing.

- Dulong: 5,000 in Gongshan and Fugong counties of Nujiang Lisu AP.
Some scholars believe Dulong language belongs to Sino-Tibetan family,
Tibeto-Burman branch, Jingpo sub-branch. Had Latin alphabetic Riwang
writing in past but now trying a kind of alphabetic Riwang writing.

Achung sub-branch

- Achang: 22,000 mostly in Longchuan County of Dehong Dai-Jingpo AP.
Dialects: Fusa, Nongqui and Gaobentian. No writing.

Nu sub-branch

- Nu: 24,000 in Nujiang Lisu AP.
Dialects: Bijiang and Fugong. No writing.

Zang sub-branch

- Zang (Tibetan): 102,000 in Diqing Tibetan AP and Lijiang Prefecture.
Dialect: Kang. Tibetan writing.

Qiang sub-branch

- Pumi: 25,000 in Lijiang Prefecture
Dialects: Northern and Southern. No writing.

Sino-Tibetan family
Zhuang-Dong (Kam-Tai) branch
Zhuang-Dai sub-branch

- Zhuang: 935,000 in Wenshan Zhuang-Maio AP.
Dialects: Nong and Sha. Imitated Han character in the past but now
have Latin alphabetic Zhuang writing used in Guangxi and are also
trying a Nong syllabic writing system.

- Tai (Dai): 900,000 mostly in Xishuangbanna and Dehong Prefectures;
the rest in Lingchang, Baoshan, Simao, Honghe and Yuxi Prefectures.
Dialects: Xishuangbanna and Tehong. In the past had Tai Lu, Tai Na,
Tai Beng, Jinping Tai and Xinping Tai writings. Now have
Xishuangbanna and Tehong Tai writing.

- Dong-Shui sub-branch

- Shui 4,300 in Fuyuan and Luoping counties. In the past they had
pictographic but not now.

Sino-Tibetan family
Miao-Yao branch
Miao sub-branch

- Miao (Hmong): 800,000 in Wenshan Zhuang-Maio AP and Zhaotong
Prefecture. There are Green, White and FLower Hmong in Yunnan.
Dialects: Shichuan-Guizhou-Yunnan and Northeastern Yunnan regional.
In the past they had Northeastern Yunnan alphabetic writing and an
alphabetic notation writing. Now they have a new
Shichuan-Guizhou-Yunnan sub-dialect writing, reformed Maio alphabetic
writing and newly formulated Latin alphabetic writing of Northeastern
Yunnan sub-dialect.

Yao sub-branch

- Yao: 155,000 in Wenshan, Honghe and Xishuangbanna Prefectures.
Dialects: Mian and Bunu. Did not have own writing in past but now
have Yao writing.

Austroasiatic family
Mon-Khmer branch
Wa sub-branch

- Wa: 318,000 in Lincang and Simao Prefectures.
Dialects: Burao, Awa, Awara and Wa regional. Had Latin alphabetic Wa
writing in past but now have formulated Latin alphabetic writing.

- Bulang: 70,000 mostly in Bulang Shan of Xishuangbanna Prefecture.
Rest in Lincang and Simao Prefectures.
Dialects: Xishuangbanna and Zhenkang. No writing.

- Deang 14,000 mostly in Tehong Prefecture, the rest in Licang and
Baoshan Prefectures.
No other dialect or writing.

Problems remain with this classification.

First, the conditions under and the speed with which the
investigation was carried out during the 'Great Leap Forward' period
led to many inconsistencies. For example, in Guizhou there was a
minority known as the 'Chong Jia'. They did not like this name,
preferring 'Pu Yi'. They speak the Zhuang language and are quite
similar to Zhuang. The Central Government recognized them as a
minority. In Guangxi the Zhuang were also recognized as a national
minority. Are they then two different national minorities?

Second, at that time Soviet theories of anthropology and
ethnology were completely accepted, while Western theories, including
anthropological theories were criticized. Since the 1980s Stalin's
theory of the 'four features of a nation', the guiding ideology for
ethnic identification over the last forty years, has been disputed by
Chinese ethnologists. New theories and methods are now being sought to
complete the task.

Third, the strict adherence to Marxist theory sometimes
affected the reliability of the materials collected and records were
not a true reflection of the minorities concerned. These faults may be
seen in some of the series which were published on the society and
history of nationalities.

Fourth, Chinese ethnologists depended on language as a major
point of ethnic identification, but theory and method in the study of
language was weak. Not much attention was paid to developments abroad.

It is hoped that recent developments, economic, political and
academic will help sort out materials collected in the early 50s,
promote anthropological research and help save the excellent cultures
of the minorities.

References

Fei Hsiao Tung Towards a People's Anthropology New Word Press. 1981
National Minorities of Yunnan People's Publishing House 1983
Yunnan Yearbook 1986
* * *

Black Thai - White Thai and the distribution of the ancient Tay-Thai
populations in Vietnam

Tran Quoc Vuong & Cam Trong

[These extracts are from a paper written in June 1987. They are
presented here, particularly to be taken in relation to the
definitions of Tai names presented by Professor Xie elsewhere in this
issue. We particularly draw attention to his comments on 'Land- and
Water-Tai'.
In the original paper the authors 'wish to acknowledge the helpful
advice and materials kindly given by Candidate-Doctor Hoang Luong
(White Thai ethnic group) lecturer in the discipline of Ethnology,
Hanoi University.' Some very minor editorial changes have been made.
apparent inconsistencies in spelling appear in the original. Ed.]

As is generally known, though sharing the same fundamental
cultural and linguistic characteristics, the ethnikon Thai in
Northwest Vietnam has always been traditionally differentiated into
two lines:

- White-Thai (Thay Khao) and
- Black-Thai (Thay Dam)

While presenting the same geo-cultural feature which consists
in rice-planting in valley areas ... the White Thai always think they
are rather in the vicinity of water and the Black Thai always consider
themselves rather as landsmen. This Water Thai/ Dryland Thai
differentiation corresponds to the traditional one observed in the
cultural-social zone beyond the Vietnam-China frontier
(Yunnan-Kwangsi) after which the ethnikon Paiji branches out into:

- Dryland Pai-ji (corresponding to Dryland-Thai) and
- Water Pai-ji (corresponding to Water Thai)

The traditional Black/White differentiation does not confine
itself to the Thai in Northwest Vietnam.

The Tay in the basins of the tributaries of the Red River,
from the Bach hac-Viet Tri fork upstream (the Thai call this region
Nam Tao Nam Dang meaning 'Red-Water Thao River Area) also
differentiates into Black Tay (dam) and White Tay (khao).

Though also clad in indigo, that traditional colour of
woodland, the Tay in Viet Bac style themselves Can Slua Kha meaning
'white-clad people' and call their neighbours Nung Can Slua Dam,
meaning 'black-clad people'.

So as we view it, the Black/White differentiation goes beyond
the distinction by two colours, especially two colours of clothing
(the Black Thai are dressed in black and the White Thai in white. It
should be remarked however that in some places where the White Thai
practise the cult of ancestors, xen cha, xen muong, they also wear
black clothes). Black and White thus become two symbols both opposite
and concordant as two elements of a unified Thai origin. Unified and
at the same time dual like Heaven/Earth, Father/Mother.
...

The Black Thai line takes the snake as its symbol - ... (ngu
hau in Thai). As early as the XIth century, Vietnamese annals
mentioned the ngu (ngun) hong branch in the neighbourhood, which was
similar to the Lao branch. Quam To Muong (Telling about my village), a
sort of annals of the Black Thai in the Northwest, speak of Lo Let,
surnamed Ngu Hau, a Black Thai patriarch in the XIVth century.

The White Thai line takes the bird as its symbol - 'swallow'
or 'phoenix'. The Thai Lu in northwest Vietnam, Upper Laos and Yunnan
(China) consider themselves as descending from 'the white cock' - and
in Thai Lu lu also means white (Lu khao).

* * *
the investigation and study of the rock art of the zuojiang valley in
guangxi

Qin Shengmin Qin Cailuan
Lu Minfei Yu Ruyu

We publish below excerpts from the English summary of a book in
Chinese published by the Guangxi Research Institute for Nationalities
and the Guangxi Publishing House for Nationalities (August, 1986).
Guangxi is outside our immediate area of interest. Nevertheless, this
number does draw attention to the question of Tai origins and the
authors of this book credit the rock paintings discussed to the
Zhuang, who, in the Chinese system of classification are linked
linguistically and ethnically to the Tai in a Zhuang-Dai category
(see above). The claims made in this volume should be made widely
known and evaluated - not only for their significance in relation to
questions of Tai origins. [Small editorial changes have been made in
the translation.] Ed.

The Zuojiang River, belonging to the Pearl River system, is
situated in the southwest of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. It
flows from the southwest to the northeast ... joining the Youjiang
River in the northwest of Yongning County...
[It] runs through a mountainous area, where karst landforms
have developed. The main topography of the river region are clusters
of peaks, while in the lower reaches there are many isolated peaks...
The Zuojiang River Valley is rich in subtropical animals and
plants and vegetation grows luxuriantly because of the warm and hot
weather and abundant rainfall.
Before the Qin Dynasty the Zuojiang River valley was one of
the places where the Ouluo people of the Yue Nationality lived in
ancient times...
[Though] archaeological investigations ... are not sufficient
a number of relics of the Stone Age have been discovered...
Records of rock art of the Zuojiang River appeared in 'Records
of Strange Things' written by Zhangmu in the Ming Dynasty. 'The
Collected Materials about Huashan Rock Art was the only collection
published in the 1960s before this investigation...
All the rock art was drawn on steep cliffs. The distance
between the bottom of the rock art and the ground or the surface of
water is usually about 20 to 80 metres [in some case up to 120
metres.]. [Each location has] 3 to 1800 images. All the images are of
different degrees of reddish brown color. There are different kinds
of images, such as human figures, dogs, bogs, birdsand implements,
such as swords, bels and bronze drums; besides, there are images of
boats and sexual intercourse. Most of the images have big bodies.
The bigest figure is 2.41 metres tall. The typical combination of the
images is that in the centre is a tall figure with a knife and a sword
by his waist. Under his feet there is an animal like a dog. Beside
him or between his legs there is a bronze drum with a bright star. On
both sides of the figure there are smaller figures without swords or a
line of figures in profile who seem to dance for joy...
... the rock art of Huashan in Nangming County is the biggest,
most magnificent and most typical. On the clif 210.05 metres in width
and 40 metres in height there are many images, especially at the lower
part of the cliff... 1819 images can still be seen. There are
different kinds of images, among which images of boats and sexual
intercourse that are seldom discovered in other places.
...
According to the images of implements with age features,
archaeological materials and c-14 testing, we hold that the rock art
of the Zuojiang River was drawn in the times between the early period
of the Warring States and the Easter Han Dynasty...
According to the historical records, the Zuojiang River valley
was one of the places where the Oulio people and their offshoot, the
Niaohu people, lived in compact communities from the Warring States to
the Eastern Han Dynasty. They did not move to other places in great
numbers and other peoples did not move in great numbers into the
Zuojiang River v alley. There is an ethnic relation between the Ouluo
people and the Zhuang people who now live in the Zuojiang River
valley, so we can say that the nationality who drew the rock art were
the ancestors of the Zhuang people.
...
According to the characteristics of the rock art and the local
conditions, there are about four kinds of instruments used for
drawing: first, bamboo brushes ... secondly, grass brushes made of
tough grasses; thirdly, brushes made of the feathers of birds and
fowls; fourthly ... fingers dipped in colour.
...
All the rock art of the Zuojiang River is in reddish brown.
After chemical analysis, we learn that the main elements of the
colours are Fe2O3 with animal glue.
...
Guangxi, Yunnan, and Sichuan are neighbouring provinces, where
minority nationalities have lived since ancient times. They are
similar in economy, culture and ideology...
...
The rock art of the Zuojiang River Valley is the preciousd
cultural heritage left by the ancestors of the Zhuang people. The
grand scale of the rock art, its stylistic characteristics and the
hardships and the dangers the painters had to brave in drawing the
rock art are seldom seen. The rock art has great academic values in
history, nationalism, archaeology and the history of religion and fine
arts. It is natural that academic circles differ about some questions
at present. We are confident that the differences will be reduced
with the development of scientific research.

Translated by Wei Desan.

Translations

A Study on the Origin of the Zhao-shu-tun
With an account of close relations between ancient
Xi-shuang-ban-na and Lan-na4

Xie Yuan Zhang

This paper comprises two parts: The first investigates the
origin of the Zhao-shu-tun [caw suthon] and Nan-ma-nuo-la [nang
manohara], a famous local story common among the Dai minority in
China, and also found in Thailand, Laos and northern Burma. The first
part contains nine sub-sections:

1. The Zhao-shu-tun [caw suthon]in Xi-shuang-ban-na

2. The Pai-su-tun [phra suthon] in Thailand

3. The Nuo-la [nora] in south Thailand

4. The Tao-xi-tun [thaw sithon] in north-east Thailand

5. The Ban-ya-sa-she-tuo-jia (Pa––asa-jataka) in Chiang-mai

6. The Ban-ya-sa [Pa––asa] in countries neighbouring
Xi-shuang-ban-na

7. Materials in the Ban-ya-sa [Pa––asa] of Indian origin

8. The Shu-tun-a-bo-tuo-na (Sudhana Avadana) in Tibet

9. The influence of ancient Indian religions on the Su-tun-ben-seng
Scripture (Sudhana-jataka).

Part two of this paper is translated below:

How could the Su-tun-ben-seng Scripture (Sudhana-jataka) and
the Ban-ya-sa (Pa––asa-jataka) be introduced into Xi-shuang-ban-na
from Lanna (Chiangmai), and what were the conditions for cultural
change between Xi-shuang-ban-na and Lanna which favoured such a
transfer? To answer these questions, we must examine the close
relationship between Xi-shuang-ban-na and Lanna.

1. Lanna as the Ba-bai [Eight-hundred]

Lanna was a kingdom which existed from the thirteenth to the
eighteenth centuries AD and was centred on present-day Chiangmai in
northern Thailand. In Chinese historical records it is referred to as
Ba-bai Xi-fu (the 800 wives) or Ba-bai Da-dian (the 800 fields). In
modern times Thailand has termed it Lanna Tai to emphasise its close
relationship with the ancient kingdom. Lanna translates literally as
"the million na of rice-fields". Its direct predecessor was the
ancient kingdom of Yonaka which was founded in Chiang-mai during the
eighth century AD and shared its northern boundary with Meng-le
(Xi-shuang-ban-na). The people of Lanna were a branch of the Tai, and
were also called Tai-yuan, Yuan being the abbreviated form of Yonaka.
Their language resembles Dai-lŸ and the Lanna script (also called Yuan
or Dai-yuan script) uses the same characters as Dai-lŸ. Lanna and
Xi-shuang-ban-na also shared the same religion and customs.

Lanna was founded by King Mangrai in 1296 (The second year of
theYuan-zheng era, Yuan dynasty)(1). The Yuan dynasty established the
Prefectures of Mu-an and Meng-jie and the marshal headquarters of the
High Commissioner of Pacification at Meng-qing in 1327 (the fourth
year of the Tai-ding era, Yuan Dynasty)(2). The marshal headquarters
of the High Commissioner of Pacification was established in Ba-bai in
1331 (the second year of the Zhi-shun era, Yuan Dynasty)(3). The
Ming Dynasty established two High Commissioners of Pacification in
1404 (the second year of the Yong-le era, Ming Dynasty), one at Ba-bai
Zhe-nai-er and the other at Ba-bai Da-dian(4). These were later
amalgamated as Ba-bai Da-dian. In 1557 (the thirty-sixth year of the
Jia-qing period of the Ming Dynasty) King Mang-ying-long [Bayinnaung,
Burennong] from the Burmese Kingdom of Dong-yu [Toungou] and his army
occupied Chiangmai and Lanna became a dependency of Burma(5). The
people of Lanna struggled against Burmese colonial rule for over 200
years and Chiangmai was finally recovered by the Xian-luo [Siamese]
army of King Zheng [Taksin] in 1774 (the thirty-ninth year of the
Qian-long era, Qing Dynasty)(6). Lanna was formally incorporated into
the Bangkok Xian-luo [Siam] Kingdom in 1804 (the ninth year of the
Jia-qing era, Qing Dynasty)(7).

Most areas which once belonged to Lanna are now divided among seven
states in northern Thailand; Chiangmai, Chiangrai, Payao, Nan-ben
[Lamphun], Nan-bang [Lampang], Phrae and Nan. Exceptions are the areas
of Jing-dong [Chianttung, Kentung]and Meng-yong ]Muang Yorng] located
in the south Shan states of Burma.

2. Fraternal relations between Xi-shuang-ban-na and Lanna
Meng-le and Lan-na were not merely close neighbours but also enjoyed
fraternal relations (Ban phi muang nong) from 1237, on the eve of
Lanna's establishment. Tao-long Jian-zi, the third Zhao-pian-ling
[Cawphaendin](Lord of the Land) in Meng-le, permitted his daughter
Niang-kang-kai to marry King Lao-ming of the Kingdom of
Qing-sheng-en-yang [Chiangsaen], predecessor of Lanna(8). D. G. E.
Hall, a famous historian of South-east Asia, has referred to this as
"the chiefs of Jing-Hong and Qing-sheng in the upper reachs of the
Mekong River becoming allies by marriage"(9) ['... the T'ai chiefs of
Chieng Rung and Chieng Sen on the upper Mekong made a marriage
alliance' Hall 1966: 159; ed.]. Two years later, Niang-kang-kai bore a
son named Mangrai who later succeeded to the throne and used military
might to unite the tribes and finally establish Lanna with a capital
at Chiangmai. The Cawphaendin Tao-long Jian-zi gave Long-pu-ka and
Meng-ba as a dowry on the marriage of his daughter(10) and Mangrai
reciprocated by bestowing land to his grandparents as their fief
(tang-mu-ji). Each year the two kingdoms also exchanged presents as a
gesture of goodwill(11).

Mangrai promulgated the famous Laws of King Mangrai in 1292. These are
the earliest Laws found among the Tai, Dai, Shan, Lao and other
ethnic groups of the Tai language family. The code was introduced
into Xi-shuang-ban-na where it had a profound influence on the laws
and organisations through which political power was exercised at local
level. The semi-military "Huo-xi" [hua sib] administrative system for
instance, has its direct origin in the Laws(12). The Dai of
Xi-shuang-ban-na regarded the Code as an ancient and revered
document(13).

Xi-shuang-ban-na was originally called A-la-wei [Arawi] Kingdom (or
Meng-le). In 1570, Dao Ying-meng, the Lord High Commissioner of
Pacification in Che-li, divided the area into 12 ban-na [phanna in
Central Thai pronunciation] as an administrative unit for tax and
other fuedal tribute, resulting in the area becoming known as
Xi-shuang-ban-na(14); Xi-shuang meaning twelve in Dai and na being a
unit of measurement for land. Ban-na means a thousand na of land and
Lan-na a million na of land. Lan-na adopted Ban-na as an
administrative unit and this is confirmed by historical records. For
instance, in the tenth century, Kuen-en-leng, the twelfth leader of
the Kingdom of Qing-sheng-en-yang [Chiangsaen ngern yang] (Yonaka)5,
installed his second eldest son, Kuen-zhuang-tan, as Magistrate of
Po-yao [Phayao] Prefecture. Po-yao was then divided into 36
Ban-na(15). Qing-sheng [Chiang Saen] was also divided into 65 Ban-na
and Qing-lai [Chiangrai] into 27 Ban-na during the thirteenth
century(16). The system of administrative division using Ban-na was
probably created by Lanna as Meng-le only undertook such division
after Lanna. This system of divisions lasted until the early
seventeenth century when the Burmese kingdom of Dong-yu [Toungou]
appointed a chief in Chiangmai called Pi-ye-za-man-chiang-mai to be
"White Crow King of the Seventy-five Ban-na in Qing-sheng"(17). The
documentary evidence cited above indicates that Xi-shuang-ban-na and
Lanna shared a close political and legal relationship from early
times.

3. Neighbours for 600 years

Despite occassional conflict and war, Xi-shuang-ban-na and Lanna
generally enjoyed peaceful relations from the thirteenth to the
nineteenth century. King Mangrai, founder of Lanna, harassed the
Xi-shuang-ban-na boundary in the late thirteenth century (Da-de era
of Ming Dynasty)(18) and the ninth Cawphaendin [Lord of the Land],
Dao Xian-da, led the Dai army with Ming Dynasty troops commanded by
Xi-ping, Marquis of Mu-sheng, to attack Lanna in 1405(19). The headmen
of Meng-long and Meng-hun in Xi-shuang-ban-na appealed to
Zhao-di-luo-ge-la [Caw Tilokaraj] (who was called Zhao-meng-lu in
Ming-shi-lu (History of Ming Dynasty) and Ba-de-ci-ga in Le-shi (Le
History), King of Lanna, for armed support to resist the thirteenth
King Shan-bao in Jing-long(20). Caw Tilokaraj subsequently invaded
Xi-shuang-ban-na in 1462 and Dao-qi, the headman of Meng-a and
Meng-kang took this chance to flee with some of the Dai people to
Lanna where he stationed troops in Meng-yong [Muang Yorng] and
opened-up wasteland(21). Conflict occured again in the nineteenth
century when Ga-yu-la [Kavila] from Chiangmai, invaded
Xi-shuang-ban-na in 1806 and 1822 at the request of some Cawphaendin
in Xi-shuang-ban-na who sought to gain power with support from the
Siamese military. Kavila also fought the Burmese army in
Xi-shuang-ban-na(22).

In general however, Xi-shuang-ban-na and Lanna have enjoyed 600 years
of peaceful co-existence. They jointly resisted submission to the Yuan
Dynasty and also joined in presenting tame elephants and local
produce as tribute to the Yuan Dynasty. According to the Yuan-shi
(History of the Yuan) bandits had disrupted daily life in
Xi-shuang-ban-na and Lanna during 1309 and 1311(23). The Yuan Emperor
dispatched an army to suppress the unrest and Xi-shuang-ban-na and
Lanna responded by sending emissaries with gifts of tame elephants and
other items to the Yuan capital in 1312(24). Kings of Lanna
occasionally used military force to meddle in the internal power
struggle of Xi-shuang-ban-na during the reigns of Zhao-xian-meng-ma
[Caw Saen Muang Ma], Zhao-san-feng-jian [Caw Sam Fan Kaen] and
Zhao-di-luo-ge-la [Caw Tilokaraj], the tenth, eleventh and twelfth
rulers of the Mangrai Dynasty of Lanna (1380s'-1480's). Relations
were generally good however and The heads of Lanna and
Xi-shuang-ban-na visited each other frequently. Friendly exchanges
during the period were as follows: According to the Records of
Yonoka, Caw Saen muang Ma (also called Dao-ban-mian in Ming-shi-lu and
who ruled from 1364 to 1402) and his wife spent almost seven months
travelling to each Meng of Xi-shuang-ban-na during 1398. After
returning to Ban-na Meng-jian [Muang Kaen?] in Lanna the couple were
blessed with a child which they named Caw Sam Fan Kaen(25). Travel
from Lanna to China necessitated travelling through Xi-shuang-ban-na.
It is recorded in Ming-shi-lu (The Historical Record of the Ming
Dynasty) that 21 delegations were dispatched from Lanna to pay
tribute to the Chinese Emperor during the reign of the eleventh King,
Caw Sam Fan Kaen (also called Dao-zhao-san in Ming-shi-lu
(1402-1442)), and the twelfth king Caw Tilokaraj (also refered to
Zhao-meng-lu in Ming-shi-lu (26) and who ruled from 1442 to 1488
(27)). Eight of these trips were undertaken jointly with
Xi-shuang-ban-na(28).

Spread of Buddhism

The Buddhism of Xi-shuang-ban-na came from Lanna. It is necessary to
understand the history of Buddhism in Lanna before attempting to
analyse its spread into Xi-shuang-ban-na.

No final conclusion has yet been reached on the exact time when
Buddhism was introduced into Lanna (or its predecessor Yonaka).
Yonaka was established in the eight century(29) and it is said that
its third King, Achutaraj, who reigned from 921 to 1021, was presented
with the holy Buddha's bones by the two elders Jia-ye-po and
Jia-zhan-yan6. Achutaraj built two pagodas called Lei-dong and
Lei-gu-jiao(30). Anuruddha who reigned from (1044-1077), became the
King of the Pagan Kingdom in Burma during the eleventh century and it
is said that he brought Hinayana Buddhism of Pagan to Yonaka with the
spread of his power(31). However, none of this is supported by
historical documents or archaelogical studies and historians remain
divided in their opinions(32).

It is recorded in the Chronicle of Hariphunchai that Princess
Chamathewi of Lawo Kingdom travelled northward and founded the
Hariphunchai Kingdom to the south of Chiangmai. This event is also
recorded in the Chinese historical records Man Shu (The History of the
Southern Barbarians) and Yuan-shi (The History of the Yuan Dynasty)
which named Hariphunchai Nu-wang-guo or Kingdom of the Queen.
Princess Chamathewi was accompanied by 500 Buddhists who began
temple-construction and missionary work in Hariphunchai(33). This is
the earliest and most reliable description of the spread of Buddhism
in northern Thailand. Hariphunchai was then an independent Kingdom,
not a subordinate of Yonaka and there is no documentary evidence to
support the contention that Buddhism spread to Yonaka from
Hariphunchai. Buddhism became the religion of Lanna only after King
Mangrai of Lanna conquered Hariphunchai in 1292(34). A Sukhothai
stone tablet records that King Ramkamhaeng of Sukhothai (1277-1317)
invited an eminent monk of Hinayana from Nakhorn Sri Thammarat
(Luo-kun) to head the monks in Sukhothai and promote the Lankawong
[Lankawamsa] (Mahavihara) branch of Buddhism. It is said that
Lankawamsa Hinayana was introduced to Lanna from Sukhothai during the
thirteenth century as a result of the close relationship between
Mangrai and Ramkamhaeng(35).

Lankawamsa Buddhism did not become popular in Lanna until the latter
part of the fourteenth century. A Fifteenth century document from
Lanna, Zong-jiao Ben-yuan-zhi [This probably the Mulasasana] (History
of the Religious Origin), records that the nineteenth King of Lanna,
KŸna (1356-1386), asked the fifth King of Sukhothai, King Litai, to
invite the Buddhist-elder Sumana to spread the Lankawamsa Hinayana
which he had brought from Burma to Lanna. King KŸna renovated a
temple named Pai-ren [Pa jyyn ?]in Lamphun in 1369 to provide a
temporary residence for the VenerableSumana and his nephew, the monk
Jia-yie-po. Two years later, he ordered a Buddhist temple called
Wa-sun-nuo [Wat Suan Dork] to be erected in his imperial garden at
Chiangmai and invited the two missionaries to reside there. He also
raised the elder to the status of Sumana Suvannaratana Maha Swami(36).
Wa-su-nuo (Wat Suan Dork) afterwards became the font of Hinayana
"Bai-sun" [gamavasi]. During the reign of the eleventh Lanna King, Caw
Sam Fan Kaen (1420-1442), eighteen monks led by the Fa-shen elder
(Tang-kang-pi Dharma Gambhira), Zuo-hui Elder (Mie-tang-guan
Medhankra), Xiang-zhi Elder (Yia-na-meng-gun Yana Mangala) and four
other senior monks (in total, 25 people) from Lanna went to Ceylon
(Sri Lanka) in 1424 to study Lankawong Buddhist scripture(37). They
invited the Sri Lankan monks Ying-wan-bi-qiu (Vikronbahu) [probably
should be Vikramabhikkhu] and Shang-hui-bi-qiu (Uttma-panna) to
accompany them to Lanna when they left Ceylon in 1430. This group
promoted "Bai-ba" [ara––awasi] Hinayana, a more strict form of
Buddhism than "Bai-sun", from their base at Ba-liang Temple in
Chiang-mai. Both "Bai-sun" and "Bai-ba" originate in the Hinayana
Buddhism of Sri Lanka. "Bai-sun" is a more mundane branch based on
"urban proselytising" (Gamavasi), whereas "Bai-ba" is more esoteric
and favours seeking hermitage in the mountains and forests
(Arannavasi). Da-si-pai (Mahavihara) was generally termed Lankawong in
Thailand and Lanna, resulting in Gamavasi being called Lankawong and
Arannavasi New Lankawong.

Some documents from Xi-shuang-ban-na state that monks from the Sun-nuo
temple were sent to Jing-long (now in the south Shan states of Burma)
where they established the temples Wa-fa-jiao and Wa-fa-gang, and
extended the Lankawong Buddhism of "Bai-sun" into areas such as
Jing-hong, Meng-han, Meng-la, Meng-bang and Meng-wang. The New
Lankawong faction ("Bai-ba") also used Jing-dong [Chiangtung, Kentung]
as a relay-point and undertook temple construction and proselytising
in areas such as Meng-hun, Meng-hai, Meng-zhe and Bu-lang-san(38). The
American missionary W.C. Dodd writes in his book (The Tai Race) that
the son of King Mangrai of Lanna and a monk from Chiangmai constructed
temples to expand Buddhism in Jing-dong after the Wa had been
suppressed and the area occupied(39). This point supports the
statement that Jing-dong was a staging-post in the spread of Buddhism.

We can conclude from the above discussion that Buddhism was introduced
into Xi-shuang-ban-na not earlier than the thirteenth century because
only then did Buddhism become popular in Lanna. The "Bai-sun" and
"Bai-ba" branches of Hinayana reached Xi-shuang-ban-na shortly after
they were first expounded in Chiangmai during the late fourteenth
century and the first part of the fifteenth century. Buddhism existed
in Xi-shuang-ban-na for several centuries.

Origin of the Lanna Script

The Dai-le script of Xi-shuang-ban-na and the Lanna script (also
called Yonaka script or Tai-yuan script) possess only subtle
differences in usage and in the forms of some characters which have
resulted from centuries of separate development. The scripts of each
area are mutually comprehensible(40) and this has permitted these two
languages to act as an important medium for cultural exchange and
friendly relations between Xi-shuang-ban-na and Lanna. When and where
did the characters of these language originate?

Textual research by George Coedes proves that the scripts of
Cambodia, Thailand, Burma and Laos all relate to the spread of
Brahmanism and Buddhism from India. The scripts of the Tai, Lao, and
modern Khmer emerged from old Ji-mie (Khmer) script and those of
Burma, Shan, Le (Lanna) and Ahom Tai, from old Mon (De-leng)
[Talaing] script. Both the Old Khmer and Old Mon scripts originated
from Ke-luo-na-tuo script [Grantha](41).

It is plausible to state that Le (or Lanna) script emerged from the
Old Mon script. The two share great similarity in character shape,
word order and pronunciation. Moreover, the stone tablets written in
Old Mon script support this conjecture. Some scholars have assumed
that Le script originated from the Burmese script because of their
resemblance, but these scholars have failed to appreciate that such
similarity is due to a common origin. George Coedes was correct in
suggesting that Le script stemmed from Burmese, but he did not resolve
when and where this occured. Coedes assumed that the Tai had adapted
the "original Tai script", a derivative of Mon, from the Mon people
themselves during a southern migration into what is now present-day
Thailand but was then a region neighbouring Mon territory. Coedes
considered this occurred before the Tai were subjugated by the Khmer
in the tenth century. The "original Tai script" evolved into the
scripts of Le, Ahom Tai and Dian-bian Dai in addition to exerting some
influence on the Ramkamhaeng Tai script(42). Was there really then an
"original Tai script"? No-one has proved so since Coedes presented
this proposition.

It is important to clarify the situation of southeast Asian scripts
before undertaking a study of precisely when the Le script was
created. Textual research on the excavated Fa-lun [Dharma] indicates
that Hinayana was introduced into the Mon Kingdom of Dvaravati some
time before the Christian era(43). The spread of Buddhism necessarily
led to the import of Old Indian script; the Old Indian epigraphs of
the sixth or seventh century which have been found in penninsular
southeast Asia are all written in south Indian Grantha script(44).
It is not clear when Grantha script evolved into Mon and Old Khmer
script. We only know that the earliest epigraph found so-far in Mon
script is Lopburi stone stele completed around 507 AD(45) and the
earliest epigraph in Khmer is one found in the Meng River Valley
which was probably constructed in 609 AD(46). The Ramkamhaeng
inscription of 1292 (number 1) states that in 1283 Ramkamhaeng
invented Tai script and this was based on the cursive forms of Old
Khmer(47). The Burmese invented the Burmese script, using the forms of
Old Mon, during the reign of the Pagan King A-nuo-lu-tuo [var.sp.
Aniruddha, Anawratha] in the eleventh century. The earliest
inscription in Burmese was engraved in 1058(48).

Another task we face is to resolve whether Le (Lanna) script was
invented in Xi-shuang-ban-na or Lanna. It is evident that Le (or
Lanna) script originated in Old Mon script. There was no direct
exchange between Xi-shuang-ban-na and the Mon nationalities (Leng in
Burma and Meng in Lanna and Sukhothai) due to geographic barriers and
no historical documentation or epigraphs relating to the Mon
nationality have been found as yet in Xi-shuang-ban-na. So
Xi-shuang-ban-na could not be the site where Mon script was
transformed into Le. Let us now turn to the situation of Lanna. The
Mon established kingdoms such as those of Gotarapura, Pegu,
Dvaravati, Lawo and Hariphunchai in the Tennaserim region of Burma and
along the middle-reaches of the Mekong River in Thailand. All of
these kingdoms were closer to Lanna than to Xi-shuang-ban-na.
Historically, Lanna had direct links with Hariphunchai, Pegu and
De-leng (Ta-tong, from where the Hinayana of Mahavihara spread across
Thailand, Burma and Lanna) and finally absorbed the kingdom in 1292.

The more advanced Mon culture (including Buddhism) necessarily
promoted development in Lanna following its incorporation of
Hariphunchai. I consider that the characters of the Lanna script were
developed from the Hariphunchai script. It is recorded in the
Chronicle of Hariphunchai that the Mon people fled from Hariphunchai
to Ta-tong to escape a cholera epidemic. They then escaped to Pegu
when Ta-tong was subjugated by King Aniruddha of Burma. When the
cholera epidemic ended six years later, the refugees returned to their
home Kingdom in the company of some Mon people from Pegu. These fellow
travellers brought the Pegu Mon Script to Hariphunchai(49). Three
inscriptions engraved during the early thirteenth century were found
in Hariphunchai their script is identical to early Mon writing found
in Burma(50). It was probably Old Meng script which came from Pegu.
The late Mr Chen Xu-jing attached great importance to the spread of
the Mon script over Hariphunchai and stressed that "this is an
important record because even now the scripts of north-west Laos and
north Siam closely resemble Mon script"(51). The Mon script which
emerged in Hariphunchai, only a short distance south of Chiangmai,
favoured the invention of Lanna script. One scholar of Tai social
history has proposed that because Lanna was close to Hariphunchai, it
may have used Mon script(52). It is worth mentioning that the motive
for inventing Lanna script may have increased with the spread of
Hinayana into Lanna and with the growing power of the Kingdom.

On the basis of my reading, I consider that the formative period of
the Lanna script should post-date invention of the Burmese script in
the eleventh century, but precede the emergence of Sukhothai Tai
script in 1283.
1) Dao Shi-xun of the Research Institute of Anthropology at the Yunnan
Academy of Anthropology has seen one sheaf of hand-written notes in
Xi-shuang-ban-na Dai script. This states that the Dai did not possess
writing and so all Buddhist scripture was committed to memory. A
monk named Du-ying-da first wrote scripture on palm-leaves in the
639th year of the Dai calendar (1277). Thereafter, Buddhist scriptures
were able to be stored and disseminated(53).

2) A Tai named Zhuang-Nuan-ta-tan announced in 1967 that he had found
a palm-leaf scripture engraved in Pali using Lanna script at the
Lai-xin Temple of Ge-ka County, south Bang State, which had once been
an outlying area of Lanna. This document was written before the year
1800 of the Buddhist calendar (1257)(54). If this document is
reliable, then Lanna script should have emerged during the early wars
of unification undertaken by King Mangrai.

In his book The Tai Race, the American missionary W. Dodd quotes the
History of Yonaka which states that the son of King Mangrai and a
monk from Chiangmai built a number of Buddhist temples and expounded
Lanna script in Jing-dong [Kentung] after first suppressing the
indigenous Wa during the mid-thirteenth century(55). If this
statement is accurate, it provides important evidence to illustrate
that the Lanna script and Buddhism were introduced from Lanna through
Jing-dong into Xi-shuang-ban-na (see above). It is regrettable that
historic documents concerning Lanna, such as the Chronicle of Yonaka
and The History of Sinhonnawatkumarn describe events such as the
subjugation of the Wa nationality of Jing-dong by Mangrai in 1262; the
appointment of his grandson Zhao-nan-tong as Magistrate of Jing-dong
Prefecture in 1291; and the construction on Nan-tong Temple as the
tomb of Zhao-nan-tong(56), but not that a descendant of Mangrai and
some monks preached Buddhism and popularised the Lanna script in
Jing-dong. This statement requires verification through further
research.

Dodd also stated in The Tai Race that he had collected a palm-leaf
scripture that was engraved before that in the Lanna script
(1300)(57). This proves that Lanna script was invented before the end
of the thirteenth century.

Zhao-pu-zong-lu (The Complete Records of Zhao-pu) states that
Hun-qi-lan (Kun-ke-lan) second-eldest son of Mangrai, dispatched his
younger brother Hun-qi-lou (Kun-ke-le) with four officials as
emmisaries accompanying the Bai-yi-wen zou-zhang (a memorial from the
Bai-yi) and a gift of two elephants to the Yuan Emperor(58). I
contend that the Bai-yi wen zuo-zhan was written in Lanna script
because several documents from Lanna listed below support the claim
that the Sukhothai script was only introduced into Lanna in 1369 by
the Venerable elder (Xu-mo-na Sumana).

I mentioned in the section discussing the spread of Buddhism that the
ninth King of Lanna, King KŸna, invited an eminent monk from Sukhothai
to Lanna in 1369. The Venerable Elder engraved the first inscription
in the Ramkamhaeng Tai script on the stone stele of Pai-ren [pajyyn]
Temple, Lamphun in 1370. The Sukhothai Tai script of Ramkamhaeng was
influenced by Lanna script and the form of its characters changed
after the Tai script was introduced into Lanna. This variant Tai
script was called "tua fak kham" (meaning characters shaped like a
tamarind fruit) in Xi-shuang-ban-na(59). The inscriptions, engraved
on a stone at the rear of the great hall of Pai-xin [phra jyyn]
Temple, [and] in the Chiangman Temple of Chiangmai and in the
Nan-bang-luan-pai [Lampang luang chai] Pagoda of Lampang are all
written in the "tua fak kham" Tai script(60). This factor also proves
that Lanna had its own script before the introduction of Tai script.

From the above evidence it may be concluded that Le (Lanna) script may
have originated from the Old Mon script of Hariphunchai and was
modified in Lanna during the late thirteenth century and then
introduced into Xi-shuang-ban-na along with the spread of Buddhism,
whence it became known as Le or Dai-le script.

Xi-shuang-ban-na has enjoyed fraternal links with Lanna over a long
period. Dai-le and Tai Lanna (those of the Lanna Tai nationality)
belong to the same language family of Dai (Tai). These two branches
are closely linked and share the same origin, religion (the Theravada
branch (Lankawong) of Hinayana), script and a mutually comprehendible
language. The homogenoues Dai culture is a result of the closeness
between these two groups. The heritage of the Dai-le and Tai-lanna is
a matter requiring further research, which will also promote deeper
understanding between Thailand and China.

ENDNOTES
(1) Chronicle of Yonaka see National Library of Thailand (ed.), 1964:
(Collection of Historical Documents) Vol. 5, no. 2 p. 1043. Hereafter
refered to as COR.

(2) Yuan Shi (History of the Yuan Dynasty) Vol. 30 p.682

(3) (ibid) Vol. 35 p. 785

(4) Tai-zong Yong-le Shi-lu (Historical Record of the Tai-zung Emperor
of the Yong-le Era) p. 6

(5) G.E. Harvey (trans. Yao Shan), 1957: The History of Burma p. 206
Beijing: Commercial Press

(6) COR p. 1116

(7) ibid p. 1134

(8) Le-shi (History of the Le) trans. Li Fu-yi, 1947 Vol. 1; COR p.
1015: According to this account Mang-lai was born in 1240, but the
Le-shi dates this event as 1239.

(9) D.G.E. Hall (trans. Zhao Jia-wen), 1979: History of South-east
Asia Kunming: Yunnan Institute of Historical Studies p. 252.

(10) Le-shi (History of the Le) Vol. 2

(11) ibid Vol. 1. Mengrai presented his grandfather with gold and
silver banner-poles, gold-crafted gourds, and 20 mattresses and 20
sheets. Tao-long-jian-zi gave his grandson 20 horses, 20 cows, 20 felt
blankets 20 knives of steel, etc.

(12) Institute of Ethnology, Academica Sinica (et. al.), 1964: Dai-zu
Jian-shi Jian-zhi He-bian (A Collection of Brief Dai Histories and
Chronicles) (Draft) p. 46

(13) Quan-guo Ren-da Min-wei Ban-gong-shi (Office for Minorities,
National Congress), 1958 Xi-shuang-ban-na She-hui Jing-ji Shi-liao
Yi-cong (A Translation of Historical Socio-economic Documents of the
Xi-shuang-ban-na Dai Minority) p. 27; Zhang Gong-jin, 1980: Dai-zu de
Wen-zi he Wen-xian (Script and Documents of the Dai Minority) (mimeo)
Beijing: Central College of Anthropology p.3; Ba-se-na-na-kong, 1980:
Preface to the Laws Of King Mangrai.

(14) (op. cit.) (draft) p.40

(15) COR p. 1010

(16) Sinhonnawatkumarn Chronicle in Collection of Historical
Documents Vol. 61, p. 8013

(17) (ibid) p. 8044

(18) Yuan-shi Vol. 19 p. 413; Zhao-pu Zong-lu), on Che-li and the 800
wives see Yuan-wen Lei (Yuan Documents) Vol. 41

(19) Tai-zong Yong-le Shi-lu Vol. 39 p. 4

(20) Le-shi Vol. 1 ; COR p.1084 states that Zhao-di-luo-ge-la attacked
Meng-hun and Meng-long in 1455 and attacked Meng-zhe the following
year, but the author(s) gives no reason for these actions. The
Chronicle of these events differs from that given in the Le-shi)

(21) ibid

(22) Le-shi Vol. 2; COR p. 1135-6 records that the army of Chiangmai
invaded Xi-shuang-ban-na in 1805, but offers no explanation for this
invasion. The invasion of 1822 is unrecorded.

(23) Yuan-shi Vol. 23 p. 518; Vol. 24 p. 542

(24) ibid Vol. 24 p. 542, 553

(25) COR p. 1069

(26) Ying-zong Zheng-tong Shi-lu Vol. 157 refers to it as Zhao-meng Lu
Vol. 201 refers to it as Dao-meng Lu The character `yu' may have been
misread as `meng'.

(27) In determining the reigns of the rulers Caw Saen Muang Ma, Caw
Sam Fan Kaen and Caw Tilokaraj we have relied on The Past Territory of
Thailand 1979 p. 455, by the Thai archaeologist Nikhom Musikama.

(28) Tai-zong Yong-le Shi-lu Vol. 128 p. 8; Xuan-zong Xuan-de Shi-lu
(The Historical Record of the Xuan-zong and Xuan-de periods) Vol. 42
p. 11, Vol. 110 p. 2; Ying-zong Zheng-tong Shi-lu) Vol. 71 p. 3;
Ying-zong Shi-lu (Historical Records of the Ying-zong Period) Vol. 201
Jing-tai Appendix no. 17 p. 22; (ibid) Jing-tai Appendix no. 71 p.
9; Xian-zong Cheng-hua Shi-lu (Historical Records of the Xian-zong ??
) Vol. 34 p. 5, Vol. 204 p. 29.

(29) When it was founded Yonaka was referred to as
Nagaphansinghonnawatnakhorn or Qing-sheng (Jing-xian) ]Chiang Saen].
The Sinhonnawatkumarn records that Yonaka was established in 691 AD.
but this is incorrect. A History of the Laos by Manich Jumsai gives
the date of establishment as 773 and we will follow suite. The The
Past Territory of Thailand dates the founding of Yonaka as 615 and the
publication Where is the Golden Land? by Manich Vallibhotama gives AD
18

(30) Sinhonnawatkumarn see The Collection of Histrorical Documents)
p. 7918-21

(31) COR p. 1008 states that Aniruddha introduced Buddhism to Yonaka
but provides no evidence. The Tamnan Phraphutthacedi (Buddhist Pagoda
Chronicle) written by Prince Damrong in 1926 confirms this event. The
Past Territory of Thailand p. 444 states that Chiang Saen (Yonaka) may
have embraced Pagan Hinayana Buddhism under the guidence of Aniruddha.

(32) The Tamnan Phraphutthacedi p. 129 states that the pagodas of
Lanna were built after Hinayana Buddhism was introduced to Lanna in
the thirteenth century. Alexander B. Griswold considers that Buddhism
was not common among the Tai people before the Sukhothai period
(thirteenth to fourteenth century) see Tamnan Phraphutthacedi p. 135.
The Past Territory of Thailand p. 403 states that the people of Yonaka
believed in spirits before the tenth century. They converted to
Buddhism during the twelfth century. Prince Suphatradis (son of Prince
Damrong) expounded on the Tamnan Phraphutthacedi and called for
further research to determine what extent Aniruddha controlled the
territory of Thailand Tamnan Phraphutthacedi p. 103)

(33) Chamathewiwamsa; Chronicle of Hariphunchai) (1973 Thai
translation) pp. 83, 89, 126

(34) COR pp. 452-4

(35) The Past Territory of Thailand p. 467

(36) Zong-jiao Ben-yuan Zhi (History of the Origin of Religion) (Thai
Bureau of Arts edition, 1976) pp.229-244; The Yunnan Institute of
Historical Studies, 1979: Xi-shuang-ban-na Dai-zu Xiao-sheng-fu-jiao
Ji Yuan-shi-zong-jiao De Diao-ca-cai-liao) (A Survey of the Indigenous
Religion and Hinayana Buddhism in Xi-shuang-ban-na) p. 3 which states
that "Ha-gei-na" built "Wa-sun-nuo" in Chiang-mai and appointed
"Sun-mu-na-lang-xi" [Sumanathera] as Sha-mi [swami].

(37) Zong-jiao Ben-yuan Zhi p. 353; Sha-yuan-chu-su-ka-la, 1955:
Bei-fang Zhi-shu (Chronicle of the North) p. 448; Xi-shuang-ban-na
Dai-zu Xiao-sheng-fu-jiao Ji Yuan-shi-zong-jiao De Diao-ca-cai-liao)
p. 13 states that "Tang-pi-na" and other monks were appointed as
Buddhist elders in "Meng-lan-ga" and they returned to Chiang-mai to
expand "Bai-ba" Buddhism.

(38) Xi-shuang-ban-na Dai-zu Xiao-sheng-fu-jiao Ji Yuan-shi-zong-jiao
De Diao-ca-cai-liao) p. 3, 13

(39) W.C. Dodd, 1923 The Tai Race Iowa, USA. p. 207 of the Chinese
language edition

(40) Wen-chui-xi-sa-wa, 1955: The Tai in Xi-shuang-ban-na Vol. 2
Kang-wei-ta-ya Publishers p. 478

(41) George Coedes History of the Tai Script see Coedes 1964 History
of the Tai Script: A History of Buddhist Portraits: Excavation in
Peng-de and its Importance for Ancient Thai History: Sukhothai Arts:
The Early Capitals of Thailand) Teachers' Association Commercial
Institution, pp. 5-17

(42) ibid pp. 10-11

(43) Prince Damrong, Fu-ta Zhi p. 98

(44) George Coedes, The History of the Tai Script p. 516 states that
tThe Ye-da-mo Scriptures were engraved in the Fo-tong Pagoda, Thailand
around 557-657 AD. Three pieces of gold engraved with Buddhist
scripture in 507-607 were found in Burma. Buddhist inscriptions which
were engraved in 607 were also found in Cambodia.

(45) Chai Liang-xin, 1980: A History of Ancient Tai Society Before the
25th Century of the Buddhist Calendar p. 69. This inscription is
number18

(46) D.G.E. Hall History of South-east Asia (trans. Zhao Jia-wen,
second edition, 1979) p. 155

(47) Sukhothai No. 1 Inscription see National Library of Thailand,
(Collection of Historical Documents) Vol. 1 p. 146.

(48) G.E. Harvey, The History of Burma p. 63

(49) Zhan-ma-dai-wei-weng: Chronicle of Hariphunchai) p. 195

(50) Chen Xu-jing, 1979: Meng-zu Zhu-guo Chu-kao (Preliminary Research
on the Meng Kingdoms) in Dong-nan-ya Shi-lun Cong (A Collection of
Historical Studies on South-east Asia) Institute of South-east Asian
History, Chung-shan University Vol. 1 p. 33

(51) ibid p. 35

(52) Chai Liang-xin: A History of Ancient Tai Society Before the 25th
Century of the Buddhist Calendar p. 32.

(53) Dao Shi-xun, 1980: "Xi-shuang-ban-na Dai-yu" (The Dai Language of
Xi-shuang-ban-na) Min-zu Yu-wen (Language and Literature of the
Minorities) No. 1

(54) Zhuang-nuan-ta-tan then wrote an article which was broadcast by
the Air-force Radio Station, Chiangmai. I have quoted this article
from Sa-yuan-chu-su-ka-la, 1979: Tai-yuan: Kun-meng (Indigenous
inhabitants)] p. 246

(55) W.C. Dodd, 1923 The Tai Race Iowa, USA. p. 207 of the Chinese
language edition, but unfortunately Dodd did not cite his source.

(56) Xin-huo-na-wa-gu-man-zhi see (Collection of Historical Documents)
pp. 799, 8015-16

(57) W.C. Dodd, 1923 The Tai Race Iowa, USA. p. 207 of the Chinese
language edition

(58) Zhao-pu Zong-lu on Che-li and the 800 wives see Yuan-wen Lei
(Yuan Documents) Vol. 41

(59) Ta-wa-ben-na-nu-tuo: Dong-bei Wen-xue (North-east China
Literature) p. 114

(60) Sa-yuan-chu-su-ka-la, 1979:Tai-yuan: Kun-meng (Indigenous
inhabitants)] p. 245

Translated by Irene Bain.

* * *
This article has been translated in response to a reader's request
that economic conditions receive greater attention than has occurred
in the newsletter to date. Suggestions from readers regarding topics
of interest for translation are most welcome. I.B.

Economic development inthe Dai Autonomous Prefecture of
Xi-shuang-ban-na

Li Bing-rong,
Prefectural Administration

Basic Conditions
The Dai Autonomous Prefecture of Xi-shuang-ban-na is located in
South-west Yunnan between longitude 21 degrees 10 mins and 23 degrees
40 mins and latitude 99 degrees 55 mins and 101 degrees 50 mins. In
the south-east it shares a 677.8 km border with Laos and to the
south-west a 288.5 km border with Burma. The Prefecture has an area of
approximately 19,220 sq kms and is situated between 477 m and 2,429 m
above sea level. The entire area has a warm and humid climate with
average annual temperatures of between 18-22 degrees C, an average
annual rainfall of 1,200-1,900 mm and a relative humidity of around 80
per cent. Instead of four seasons, this Prefecture experiences dry,
wet and misty seasons.
Xi-shuang-ban-na Prefecture was founded in 1953 and is divided into
three Counties; Jing-hong, Meng-hai and Meng-la. There are 37
districts and three district-level market-towns (Zhen), under which
are 233 rural administrative areas (Xiang). Seventy-nine of these are
minority-group Xiang, 13 Xiang-level Zhen and four Xiang-level
administrative offices (Ban-shi-chu). The Prefecture also contains 11
County-level State Farms and five National and Provincial-level
organisations, namely, the Tropical Plant Research Institute, the
Tropical Crop Institute, the Medicinal Plant Institute, the Tea
Science Research Institute and the Research Institute for Primate
Animals. In 1984 the population totalled 677,161 persons, of which
minorities comprised 70.7% (478,733 persons). Of the minority
component, the Dai population numbered 236,002 (34.85%), the Ha-ni
116,665 (17.23%), the La-gu 34,587 (5.11%), the Bu-lang 29,930
(4.42%), the Ji-nuo 13,546 (2%) the Yao 11,570 (1.71%), in addition to
smaller numbers of Wa, Yi, Hui, Jing-po, Ku-cong and Ke-mu, of which
the latter two remain to be classified as ethnic groups. Of the total
population in the Prefecture, males comprise 339,644 persons (50.16%)
and the urban population 93,637 persons (13.83%). Xi-shuang-ban-na
contains major deposits of salt, iron, copper, manganese, cobalt,
gold, lead, tin, tungsten, antimony, arsenic, mercury, rare earths,
nitre, brown coal and oil-shale. Of these, salt is the most plentiful,
with reserves of over 40 billion tons. Known iron-ore reserves
comprise 118 million tons, of which 34,720,000 tons are high grade
deposits. Of the rare earths, phosphorus and yttrium are the most
important, with over 2,800 tons of D level reserves, and 300 tons of
zircon deposits. There are 690 tons of high quality brown coal and
over 21 million tons of lower quality material. Copper deposits exceed
10,000 tons and 149 mineral springs have been discovered to date. The
flora of the Prefecture comprises about 5,000 species, of which 3,890
have been appraised. There are 51 species of rare plants and plants in
risk of extinction. Over 1,200 species of commercial plants are also
found in the Prefecture. 16,550,000 mu [1,103,322 ha] of
Xi-shuang-ban-na is vegetated, of which 8,590,000 mu [572,660 ha] is
virgin forest, and there are five nature reserves with a total area of
3 million mu [200,000 ha]. The fauna of the Prefecture comprises 539
species of land vertebrates, 399 species of birds, 47 species of
amphibious reptiles and 68 species of reptiles. Nineteen of these
species are listed as nationally-protected animals of the first order,
19 as second-order and 24 species of the third order. Xi-shuang-ban-na
has 2,762 rivers, all of which belong to the Lan-cang Jiang [River]
system and these total 12,177 kms in length. Potential hydro-electric
power amounts to 4,370 megawatts. The water area of the Prefecture
with potential for use is 2679,000 mu [178,598 ha], and that
currently utilised comprises a further 44,900 mu [2,993 ha]. Pastures
total 8,501,900 mu [566,788 ha], of which 2.25 million mu [150,000 ha]
is suitable for grazing. The total cultivated area is 1,408,500 mu
[83,899 ha], comprising 638,400 mu [42,560 ha] of paddy-fields and
770,100 mu [51,339 ha] of non-irrigated land. Major areas suitable for
agriculture comprise 39 montaine terraces (ba), with a total area of
1,467,000 mu [97,900 ha]. A criss-cross network of streams and
plentiful rainfall make these areas the major grain-source for
Xi-shuang-ban-na. Of the Prefecture, 6.02 million mu [601,330 ha] of
land is located below 800 m above sea-level and 20.23 million mu
[1,348,653 ha] between 800-1,300 m above sea-level. High temperature
and rainfall favour production of a variety of commercial crops
including rubber, tea, sugar-cane, fruits, nan-yao (a herb) and
spices. 1.53 million mu [102,000 ha] are suited to rubber production,
of which first and second grade production sites constitute 1.52
million mu [101,332 ha]. Grain (predominantly paddy but also swidden),
maize and soy-beans are major agricultural products. Rubber, tea,
sugar cane, sha-ren (a curry condiment), camphor, coffee, tropical
fruits and spices are key economic crops. Pigs (both improved
indigenous and small-eared varieties) cattle, water-buffalo,
chickens, ducks and geese are the major types of livestock.

Major achievements after 1949
In 1949 total grain output for the Prefecture totalled a mere
133,930,000 jin (66,965 tons), and tea production was less than 2,300
dan (115 tons). There was not even a highway and transport was
entirely by mule or human labour. The Prefecture was without a
hospital and there were only 6 primary schools with an enrollment of
some 240 students. The Dai and Bu-lang used Dai script, which
resulted in religion and education being combined. Other minorities
made records by carving in wood.
After 1949, the entire Prefecture underwent great change.
AGRICULTURE: Development of the irrigation system was rapid. 296
storage projects (capable of storing 140 million cubic metres of
water) and 8,694 diversion projects were undertaken. The area made
irrigable by these schemes totalled 460,000 mu [690 ha] which
accounts for 32.67 per cent of total cultivated area and 72 per cent
of all paddy-fields. There are 382 large and medium-scale tractors,
2,210 power-tillers, 98 trucks and a number of machines for processing
grain and pumping water. Agriculture developed rapidly and and total
grain production increased 2.89 times over the 1949 figure, an annual
average growth rate of 8.26 per cent. The Prefecture grows 774,400 mu
[51,626 ha] of rubber, making it the second most important area of
rubber production in the country. Xi-shuang-ban-na is also home to
"Pu-er" tea and contains a planted area of 161,400 mu [10,760 ha].
Tea production has increased 24 times over the 1949 figure, an average
annual increase of 68.6 per cent. 39,800 mu [2,653 ha] are planted
with sugar-cane, 38,600 mu [2,173 ha] of tropical fruits, 3,300 mu
[220 ha] of sha-ren (a curry condiment) and 5,152 mu [343 ha] of
spices. 253,679 head of draught animals and 390,000 pigs are raised.
INDUSTRY: Xi-shuang-ban-na has 188 industrial enterprises, of which 62
are publicly-owned and produce 30,000 tons of coal, 14,000 tons of
cement, 30,800,000 kw/hrs of electricity and 4,300 tons of sugar,
1,998 tons of refined tea, 1,423 tons of machine-made paper, 1,574
tons of salt, and 107,400 cubic metres of timber in addition to bricks
and small-scale agricultural machinery.
TRANSPORT: 866 km of highway and 1,914 km of local highways and have
been constructed. All forty districts in the Prefecture are connected
by highways and 199 Xiang of the total 250 are linked to this
transport system, as are 68 per cent of cun [villages]. There are
1,469 freight carriers of various types, 376 passenger vehicles and
5,107 tractors which are used for transport. Annual haulage amounts to
1.27 million tons and the rotation value of goods transported is
107,200,000 ton-kms.
COMMUNICATION: There are post-offices at County-level and smaller
post-offices and authorised postal agencies at district level. The
Prefecture is serviced by 948 km of postal routes and 2,233
telephones, of which 1,387 are in rural areas. 250 Xiang have access
to a telephone.
EDUCATION: Xi-shuang-ban-na contains three polytechnics with an
enrollment of 715 students (419 from minority groups). There are three
senior high-schools and 25 junior high-schools with a combined
enrollment of 23,243 students (of which 6,924 are from minority
groups) and 1215 primary schools with 80,337 students (51,549 from
minority groups). There are 71 teachers in the polytechnics (4 from
minority groups), 1,360 high-school teachers (244 from minority
groups) and 31,756 primary school teachers (1,644 from minorities).
The ratio of children entering school to the total school-age
population is 82.1 per cent and that for children from minority
groups is 81.6 per cent.
HEALTH: There are 239 medical and health facilities in the Prefecture,
of which there are 14 County hospitals (or those of a similar level)
and 36 district-level clinics, three health clinics dealing in
prevention and cure of special diseases, four pharmaceutical testing
centres and three medical research institutes. There are 2,773
hospital beds, of which 2,539 are in rural medical centres. There are
3,270 medical practitioners of which 558 are from minority groups.
There are 2,459 health workers in rural areas.
CULTURE: Three institutions are charged with activities relating to
historical preservation, libraries and popular culture. There are 198
film troupes.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: There are 6,612 workers in institutes of
science and technology, of which 2,702 are from minority groups.
There are 118 engineers, agronomists, associate researchers,
lecturers, chief practicioners, statisticians and accountants.
Economic development in 1984
Total industrial and agricultural output in 1984 reached 377.16
million yuan [ren-min-bi]; a 12.6 per cent increase over 1983. There
have been bumper harvests of grain over the last four years and this
continued in 1984 with a gross output of 520.73 million jin [260.37
kg] being achieved, a 5.6 per cent increase over 1983. Average yield
per unit area was 417 jin/mu, a 9.16 per cent increase over the 1983
figure (382 jin/mu).
AGRICULTURE: The value of grain production was 32.85 per cent of total
agricultural production value for the Prefecture in 1984. This
represented a 2.86 per cent decline from the 1983 figure. The
production value of forestry was 48.39 per cent, an increase of 3.67
per cent over 1983. The production value of pasture was 11.82 per
cent, an increase of 0.6 per cent. The production value of sideline
activities was 6.06 per cent, a decline of 1.29 per cent. The
production value of fisheries was 0.88 per cent, an increase of 0.14
per cent. Agricultural production for the market comprised 57.16 per
cent of all production, a 1.67 per cent decline over the 1983 figure.
Grain production for the market comprised 38.61 per cent of all
production, a 3.93 per cent increase over the 1983 figure.
INDUSTRY: Total local industrial output in 1984 reached 61.8 million
yuan, an increase of 15.7 per cent over the 1983 figure. Light
industry output reached 45.64 million yuan or 73.85 per cent of the
total. Heavy industrial production reached 16.6 million yuan, being
26.15 per cent of the total. Profits from publicly-owned enterprises
totalled 6.56 million yuan, an increase of 33.96 per cent over 1983.
Profits and tax paid to the State totalled 4.92 million yuan, a 76.75
increase over 1983.
TRANSPORT: 291 kms of highway were constructed or improved in 1984.
Passenger traffic totalled 537,000 with a passenger rotation value of
28.03 million persons/km, an increase of 77 per cent over 1983.
100,500 tons of freight was transported, having a freight rotation
value of 20.01 million ton/km, an increase of 11.2 per cent over 1983.
FINANCE: Total income of the Prefecture was 18.61 million yuan in
1984, an 11.8 per cent increase over 1983. Of this, enterprise income
totalled 1.65 million yuan, industrial and commercial taxation
totalled 11.39 million yuan and agricultural taxation, 4.96 million
yuan. Expenditure in 1984 totalled 66.07 million yuan, an increase of
36.66 per cent over last year. Of this, expenditure on basic
construction totalled 4.23 million yuan; expenditure on production in
industry, commerce and transport 7.18 million yuan; on agriculture,
12.9 million yuan; on administration, 14.48 million yuan; on social,
cultural and educational items, 19 million yuan, and expenditure on
other items 3.14 million yuan. Annual cash income totalled 235.32
million yuan, a 20 per cent increase over 1983. Annual cash
expenditure totalled 276.05 million yuan, an increase of 26.5 per cent
over 1983. Bank transactions produced a year-end savings surplus of
79.52 million yuan from rural and urban areas, a 33.15 per cent
increase over 1983. Ready cash totalled 39.25 million yuan, a 1.9 per
cent decline from 40 million yuan at the start of 1984.
COMMERCE: Almost 84.01 million yuan was spent to purchase goods from
outside the Prefecture during 1984. Commodities allocated from other
Provinces were valued at 4.6 million yuan and those allocated from
other Prefectures in Yunnan were valued at 71.11 million yuan, making
a total allocation of 159.18 million yuan, a 14.39 per cent increase
over 1983. The total volume of retail sales was 172.95 million yuan, a
7.48 per cent increase over 1983. The volume of business in towns and
rural markets was 22.11 million yuan, a 39.7 per cent increase over
1983.
STANDARD OF LIVING: 30,677 persons are employed in the public sector
or in collectives, earning wages and salaries totalling 30.42 million
yuan, an increase of 20 per cent over 1983. According to survey
results, the per capita annual living expenditure of households with
members working in the public sector or collectives was 550 yuan, a
6.6 per cent real increase over the 1983 figure after inflation was
taken into account. The average income per capita in rural households
was 270 yuan, a 34.3 per cent increase over 1983.
Future prospects
1) The level of culture, science and technology among the people of
the Prefecture must be increased dramatically. Great attempts must be
made to improve the quality of education and the structure of middle
school education must be reformed to expand professional training
opportunities. Education among minority groups must also be improved.
2) Projects for improving transport and energy provision should be
accelerated. A number of hydro-electric power stations with a
generating capacity of 65 megawatts are planned and these will boost
total generating capacity to 100 mw. One second-grade airport will be
constructed in Xi-shuang-ban-na during the Seventh Five-year Plan. 443
km of highway connecting counties and districts will be improved to
fourth-grade highway status in order to link all Xiang with roads of
the same quality by 1990. We hope to link most villages into this road
system by 2000.
3) We will continue to support specialised household production in
order to re-structure agriculture. Development of collectively-owned
Xiang and Zhen-level enterprises will be encouraged and small and
medium-sized cities and towns will be given special attention.
4) We will develop tourism and attempt to develop economic cooperation
and mutual assistance with relatively-advanced areas in other parts of
China.
5) We will continue to conserve forest resources and attempt to
achieve increases in grain production. This will be undertaken while
also attempting to develop key production areas for rubber, tea,
fruits, sha-ren and spices. By the year 2000, the Prefectural
administration aims to achieve a 245 per cent increase in industrial
and agricultural output over existing levels, or 1.16 billion yuan.

From She Zheng-yi (ed.) Zhong-guo Shao-shu Min-zu Di-qu Jing-ji
Fa-zhan Gai-kuang (shang) (Conditions of Economic Development in
Minority Areas of China) (Part One).
Translated by Irene Bain.

* * *

News

Recent publications

J.C. Eade Southeast Asian Ephemeris: Solar and Planetary Positions,
A.D. 638-2000
Cornell: Southeast Asia Program Studies on Southeast Asia No. 5. May,
1989 175 pp. US$15
[The publishers say 'It will be an indispensable check for the dates
given in chronicles and inscriptions'.]

Readers interested in the above may also find use for:

Tawi Swangpanyangkun Sakaraat thiab hon Thai (Tables for computing
equivalences in various Asian calendars and cycles.) Chiangmai
University: January, 2531

Acknowledgements

We have had many gifts of publications for the Project collection.

By far our most important benefactor has been the Yunnan Institute of
Southeast Asian Studies which has gifted substantial Chinese language
material. Most of the translations in the Newsletter have been from
this source.

From Mr. Geoff Wade, Hong Kong
Yao Studies: a collection of essays (Chinese)
Miao studies: a collection of essays (Chinese)

From Dr. Harald B¿ckman, Universitetet I Oslo
Tai-Domenet Sipsong Banna I Yunnan -Historie, politik og samfunn.
Occasional Papers No. 4, Department of East Asian Studies, University
of Oslo 1983.

From Dr. Karin D.M. Korn-Riedlinger Dian, Nanzhao, Dali -
StaatsgrŸndungen auf dem Gebiet der heutigen Provinz Yunnan (VR China)
. Dissertation submitted to the Rheinischen
Friedrich-Wilhelms-UniversitŠt, Bonn 1988.

Correspondence

Dr. Harald B¿ckman writes 'I am engaged in research on the early state
formation and ethnohistory of Southwest China.' Dr. B¿ockman's thesis
is 'a brief history of Sipsong Banna and its social formation ... the
main research took place and was finished by the end of the seventies,
that is all the basic source material that I knew existed but had no
access to started to be published by the Chinese immediately after my
thesis was finished.'

Dr. Korn-Riedlinger was doing research in the PRC resident in Beijing
but has now returned to Bonn. She writes of her thesis (see above)
'... concerning the question of ethnic affiliation of the people of
Nanzhao ... neither the rulers nor the majority of the population were
Thai ... but members of tibeto-burman ethnic groups'.

Geoff Wade, in addition to the books listed above, has sent us very
useful bibliographical material and suggestions. Of the draft
bibliography he writes,
'1. It is very difficult for someone interested in a particular
subject to find relevant material. Is the final version to be divided
by subject or just by author? If the latter is the case, perhaps a
supplementary subject index could be compiled.
2. The scope of the bibliography is very difficult to assess ...'
We appreeciate his comments and will welcome other comments and
criticisms.
It is clear that we need to rethink and clarify the bibliography
project. The bibliography was seen as part of a larger data-base
primarily existing as a series of Hypercard stacks.

Above is a sample card. At the moment the stack contains only
bibliographical items. The circulated draft bibliography contains
information from the 'Reference' field.

Mrs. Maria Cigliano of the Instituto Universitario Orientale, Napoli
has sent us two papers in Italian, one on minority law in China
during the modern period and the other on the administration of
non-Han populations during the Tang dynasty (summary published below).
She writes that she is studying relations between Han and South-West
minorities in Imperial and contemporary China.

* * *

Southeast Asian Legal Texts

Andrew Huxley

A recent review by Andrew Huxley in the Bulletin of the School of
Oriental and African Studies (LI (3) 1988: 609-10) of The Laws of
King Mangrai (Canberra) and Lan Na Literature (Chiangmai University,
catalogue) has some important comments on Southeast Asian texts which
we reproduce as they will be of interest to many of our readers.

How does the newly revealed Lan Na legal literature compare with that
of its Theravada neighbours? It seems quite different from the legal
genres of the western neighbours,Burma, Arakan and Ramannadesa, which
predate it. At the same time it has little in common with the southern
and south-eastern texts produced by the Siamese Thai and the
post-Angkor Theravada kingdoms of Cambodia. These, which we know
through the Three Seals Code and AdhŽmard Lecl re's collections, may
well post date the sixteenth century; the more scholarly attention is
paid to the earlier portions of these texts, the more suspect the
claimed dates appear. One other Northern Thai law text is available in
translation (Raquez and Tournier's version of the code of Vientiane),
and this shares some similarities with the Lan Na literature. Both
traditions draw on a common well of folk judgment tales to illustrate
legal rules and procedure. Of the eight tales quoted in s. 77-87 of
the Nan text [The Laws of King Mangrai pp. 54-65], four are also found
in Laotian collections (and one was reported in 1847 from a Siamese
expatriate in Penang!), but no overlap occurs with the Burmese
judgment tales. The Burmese and Siamese-Khmer traditions share the
myth of Manu the Law Bringer, the wise counsellor of King
Mahasammatta, and also shows traces, (which have been much
exaggerated) of an 18-fold classification of actions. Manu is
conspicuous by his absence in the Northern Thai works translated; the
Lan Na preference was for the king rather than his counsellor, and
three works in the catalogue are ascribed to Mahasammatta himself. Two
of the Lan Na texts enumerate (different) 16-fold classifications, but
this does not appear to have been used as an organizational principle
in any texts. The name of Manu, and the 18 chapters of the law, are
the two strongest arguments of those who argue for Hindi influence on
the law texts of the Burmese and the Siamese-Khmer traditions. Their
absence from translated Lan Na and Laotien works indicate that these
were produced locally, drawing only on the Tipitaka and non-canonical
Jataka as source material.

* * *

tang administration of non-han populations: the jimi system

Maria Cigliano

Origins of an autonomous government for the areas inhabited by
non-Han groups date back to the Tang Dynasty. The establishment of
the institutional system called jimi fu zhou belongs to the 7th
century. It was applied not only in a larger border area, but also in
some inner Southern and Southwestern regions of China.

Through analysis of the main features of the system
(self-management of internal affairs, hereditary offices as a factor
of the continuity of political power, lack of direct control,
differentiated fiscal onus, etc.), of the structure, of the
distribution on the territory, of the regional differentiations,
motivations that have determined its birth can be drawn:

a. geographical motivations: inner areas of South and Southwest,
inaccessible, inhabited by less pugnacious populations, more backward
from the socio-economic viewpoint and therefore politically less
dangerous for the steadiness of imperial power; no necessity for more
direct control;
b. economic motivations: emerging needs of Tang expansionism and of
commercial development especially with Central Asia;
c. political motivations: loyalty obtained through collaboration with
local ruling classes by making them responsible while acknowledging
their status.

The close link between level of sinicization and institution
of jimi is shown by the same flexibility of the system. Jimi fu zhou
could be transformed into regular zhou and fu, had local populations
adopted the 'civilization' and culturally transformed themselves. The
shift to a regular administration was therefore the acknowledgement of
achieved sinicization, of cultural assimilation to the rulers.

* * *
ABOUT THE NEWSLETTER

The publication and circulation of the Newsletter has been financed by
the Research School of Pacific Studies and the Department of
Anthropology; this includes our translators' salaries. For as long as
possible we will continue to circulate the publication without charge
to those interested. However, we have run out, or are close to running
out, of some back numbers and these need to be photocopied when
requested. We have no objection to readers photocopying back numbers
themselves and passing these on to other interested scholars.

Please note that we are now making a flat $10 charge for Numbers One,
Two and Three (in advance please).

* * *

The Prince and the Moulmein Market Girl

Gehan Wijeyewardene

The elliptical style of the Charan Manophet 'folk song' is
well illustrated in his telling of the tale of Sukasem, the son of a
prince of Chiangmai, and the Moulmein market girl. It is a song of
allusions which ultimately depends on the prior knowledge of his
listeners. What follows is a fairly literal translation of the Thai.

ÊÊÊMa Mya

Ma Mya was a market girl from the city of Moulmein,
As beautiful as the moonlight.
They came to woo her, bemused with love of her.
But Ma Mya loved none of them.
She gave her heart to a noble youth,
The son of a lord of Chiangmai.

When his student days were done, must he then abandon Ma Mya ?
It was like a knife through the heart, like a sword.
Secretly she followed her love.

He was the son of a prince,
She a woman of Burma.
Tradition would not allow it, and they must part.
Oh, that day when he must send her home!
The prince ordered a caravan of elephants
And bade her farewell with tears.
With leaden heart, Ma Mya lowered her head
And anointed his feet with her hair.
She said farewell to him, and to this world.
The Prince soon died of a broken heart.
Ma Mya ended her days as a nun.

Oh, Love is often like that.

When first released the song was sung by his partner, Sundari,
whose voice, in his early collections, enriches the Northern Thai
lyrics, like veins of honey through a treacle cake. Some of his fans
think the quality of his songs and of his performance never recovered
when, on her marriage, she left the partnership and the country.
Charan says the song gave immense trouble at its recording, as Sundari
could scarcely contain her tears while singing it. He also says he
rarely performs it at concerts because of the emotion it generates in
the singer.
There is pathos in the story, but why does it somehow seem
more than any other story of frustrated love? Perhaps we need to
reconstruct the circumstances in which those pathetic characters
fulfilled their destiny. But can one really imagine the Moulmein of
that period? It was not so long ago, but it is also aeons away.
Moulmein was a sleepy fishing village on the Gulf of Martaban which
the British turned into an administrative town after the first Burmese
war in the 1820s. The British imposed harsh conditions on the Burmese,
and Arakan in the west and Tenasserim in the southeast passed into
their hands. The new provinces were administered from Calcutta, and
Moulmein became an outpost of Empire, largely because it lay at the
mouth of the Salween, the conduit for the teak of Upper Burma and the
principalities of northern Siam. Moulmein was originally, probably,
inhabited by Mon, for this is a an area in which Mon and
Karen-speakers predominate, but early in the nineteenth century the
Burmese presence must have become quite considerable. We have however
no idea as to Ma Mya's ethnic affiliations. The Thai accounts treat
her as Burmese, and they have no doubt that the language she shared
with Sukasem was Burmese.
Kipling was once on a ship that made a brief call at Moulmein,
and out of that visit came the sentimental 'Road to Mandalay'. Kipling
never went to Mandalay, and there are no flying fishes four hundred
miles from the sea. But by a stretch of the imagination the old
Moulmein pagoda might be thought of as the beginning of that road,
even though time may have dimmed his memory and put the town on the
wrong side of the bay. By all accounts it is a beautiful location, but
it was a little town, and at the time of Kipling's visit, not of great
importance.
During the latter part of the 19th Century the French and
British colonial empires stood like the jaws of a nut cracker, ready
to break open the north west dominions of the Bangkok kingdom and make
an insiginificant meal of the kernel. When the British took Ava and
laid claim to the territories of the deposed king, there were some,
like the American Presbyterian missionaries, who looked with mixed
feelings on the possibility of an Anglo-French boundary on the Chao
Phraya river. European colonization would greatly further their
attempts at missionization - the British had given more or less carte
blanche to their fellow American Baptist allies in Burma, but the
French sometimes seemed to look none too kindly on heretical
protestants. During this time the weak princely rulers of Chiangmai
had been all too willing to make the most of the teak trade, in fact
they sometimes sold leases many times over, giving the British the
excuse to threaten intervention in protection of their economic
interests. In the 1870s Bangkok began to tighten its grip on the
control of the northern principalities, and after the Shan revolt of
1902, the last traces of autonomy began to disappear. The Shan were
mostly British subjects and the British Consul's intervention to bring
the revolt to an end, could not in the long run have given the court
in Bangkok much comfort.
Sukasem was the nephew of the ruling prince, his younger
brother's son. Sukasem's father was to be the last recognized prince
but no one was yet to know that. Moulmein was throughout the 19th
century Chiangmai's most convenient link with the outside world. In
the 1850s and 60s, missionaries made the arduous journey up the Chao
Phraya and the Mae Ping rivers to Chiangmai, first Roman Catholics,
who did not stay long, then the bearded Scottish-American
Presbyterians, McGilvary and his companion Jonathan Wilson.
Periodically the prince and his court made the reverse journey down to
Bangkok, to drink the waters of allegiance to the monarch. But as
early as 1820 British officials from Moulmein were visiting Chiangmai
and the other princedoms of the north, cattle trains were trading with
the British, the trade in cattle between Moulmein and Chiangmai,
became a matter of state importance, and it was hoped the Chinese
caravans would soon travel to the British-Burmese port as well. It
seems that in the early years of the 19th Century, the still powerful
King of Ava discouraged trade, by his subjects or by the caravans
which passed through his dominions, with either the British or
Bangkok. Until the railway finally came to the north, first to the
town of Lampang, the most convenient means of communication with the
outside world was through Moulmein. Though the missionaries travelled
through Bangkok and were provisioned through Bangkok, their mail came
via Moulmein.
So Chiangmai had long-standing links with Moulmein, and it
seemed that members of the nobility from time to time sent their
children to be educated in the British schools of that time. Which
school Sukasem went to is not known, perhaps it was St Patricks, said
to be an old school, now perhaps operating under another name? So at
the age of ten or so, this great-great-grandson of Kawila, the
liberator of Chiangmai from the Burmese, went to learn about the big
world outside to a school in colonial Burma.
We do not know how he spent his years there, where he lived
and what he learned. All we do know is that he fell in love with a
teenage girl, the daughter of a tobacco merchant, who sold her
father's wares in the market. Her name was Ma Mya, a common Burmese
name meaning 'Emerald'. When he returned to Chiangmai he was sixteen,
Ma Mya, fourteen.
Members of the court met the young prince at the border, and
are said not to have been too surprised that he had brought a young
school friend with him. They spoke to each other in Burmese, which
none of the court, or servants, could understand. On reaching the
palace the two young people retired to the prince's rooms and locked
themselves away from everyone for a number of days. But the secret
could not be long hidden, and the palace soon knew that Sukasem had
brought back a young Burmese girl whom he said he was going to marry.
Sukasem's family was not only the ruling family of Chiangmai,
and every other northern principality of Siam, it was connected by
marriage to the Cakri dynasty, for Dara Rasmi was one of
Chulalongkorn's queens. Dara Rasmi was the sister of the reigning
prince and of Sukasem's father. Photographs convey her appeal to us
over the years, her erect posture, her round, attractive, unsmiling
face, full lips and disdainful eyes. She was married very young and
entered the harem in Bangkok. It was from all accounts a dreadful
experience. It was a society of intriguing women, who, because the
newcomer was young and favoured, did all they could to make her life
miserable. She was disdained as a country bumpkin and subject to all
kinds of petty indignities such as having smelly condiments, pickled
fish, associated with the food of the provinces, hidden in her
sleeping apartments. She had one child, who died young. She was
forbidden to return home for many years, being held hostage for the
good behaviour of her princely relatives in Chiangmai. She is now much
revered in Chiangmai, but it seems she also grew up into a hard and
imperious lady.
The Princess Dara Rasmi is thought to have been most adamant
that no marriage between Sukasem and Ma Mya be recognized. To allow
such a union would be to present the heir to the princedom into the
hands of the British consul. The latter might even claim the prince as
a British subject on the strength of the marriage. Under old northern
law, a man on marriage owed service to the feudal master of his wife,
not to his own, if the two were not the same. Of course, of the
family, Dara Rasmi was probably in a better position than any other to
assess the views of the Bangkok court and the diplomatic consequences
of the marriage.
So the teenage lovers were parted, and the story goes, when
Sukasem bade goodbye to his Ma Mya at the Hai Ja gate, now known for
its silver shops, she knelt and bathed his feet in her hair. But the
reason the story captured the imagination was the way in which the two
people pursued their lives, each in his and her own way apparently
renouncing any real compromise with the world.
Ma Mya was ordained a nun, a Buddhist nun, and spent the rest
of her long life in the order. Sukasem was sent to Bangkok where he
was married to a childhood acquaintance. He died at the age of about
thirty, never, it seems, coming to terms with his society or his time.
The story also goes that Ma Mya was informed of his approaching death
and returned to Chiangmai, but was not allowed to see the dying man.
It is a simple tale, but it has worked its way into common
discourse. Charan says that mothers admonish their sons, 'Don't fall
in love with a Burmese or a Shan. All you'll get is a broken heart
like Sukasem'. The people of Chiangmai think Burmese women are
particularly beautiful. In a world besieged by the sentimental, songs,
films and television, the story of Ma Mya and Sukasem is easily
slotted into a familiar niche. But the story comes from a time before
that sentimental onslaught and perhaps there is something more than a
love song. Perhaps there is an appreciation of a passive rebellion.
Rebellion in that a pair of teenagers could decide that nothing in
life was worth more than their commitment to each other, passive,
because they bore the costs of rebellion themselves, with no attempt
to defy the institutions of the society that demanded the sacrifice.

Note: The two Thai sources of the Ma Mya story which are reasonably
accessible are an interview of Charan Manophet Yy Ca Ca .. Caran
Manophet (Rock-a-bye, Charan Manophet) by Siray and Chan, Bangkok:
P.M. Publishing, 1984 and Chiwit Rak Caw Chiangmai (Loves of the
Princes of Chiangmai) by Prani Sirithorn na Pathalung, Chiangmai:
Sahanavakit Press 1980.
I am grateful to Roy Hudson and his A Magic Tour of Burma for
informationÊonÊMoulmein, and for his comments on Kipling's visit.

MAP OF YUNNAN, PRC

An up-to-date map of Yunnan Province on a scale of approximately
1:1,785,000 (1cm equals 17.85 km has recently been published in
English for the Thai-Yunnan Project, ANU.

The map measures 62 cm x 45 cm and is printed in black, red and blue.
It shows roads, railways, rivers, prefectural and county boundaries,
and more than 1000 towns and cities.

The map is based on a map of Yunnan published in 1985 by the Bureau of
Land Survey, Yunnan Province. Names have been translated by Mr. Li
Xiang Yang of the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Kunming (and
currently a Visiting Fellow in the Department of Anthropology,
Research School of Pacific Studies), using the Pinyin system for
transliteration.

The map is produced by the Department of Geography, Faculty of
Science, with some financial support from the Richard Davis Fund. It
is printed at the Central Printery.

Copies may be purchased (US$5.00 for mailing outside Australia;
Aus$5.00 in Australia and New Zealand) from The Secretary, Department
of Geography, Faculty of Science, ANU, Box 4, GPO Canberra, ACT 2601.

All cheques should be made payable to 'The Australian National
University' (in advance, please).

1This is the second extract from a Master's degree thesis submitted to
the University of Melbourne in 1951.
2In conjunction with this and the following article readers are
referred to an appendix, 'Tai languages: varieties and subgroup terms'
in a forthcoming book on 'Thai Grammar' by Preecha Juntanamalaga and
Anthony Diller. Among terms not covered by Professor Xie is Ai-lao
which is glossed by themas 'An ethnonym in Han-dynasty sources
sometimes linked by (folk-)etymology to 'Lao', and hence taken to
refer to ancestors of the Tai people, but convincing evidence for this
interpretation has yet to be adduced.'
3Population figures and percentages for Yunnan Province.
4This paper was written by Professor Xie for a Chinese scholarly
audience. It is hoped it will form the basis of a social history of
Sipsongpanna and its relations with Lanna. Our translator, Irene Bain,
originally rendered names directly into Pin Yin. Most Thai names (in
particular) have been altered into a form more recognizable to
English-speakers, though some original Pin Yin has been retained. Ed.
5The Thai form of the twelfth ruler's name is uncertain. The name
given by the Phonsawadarn Yonok is quite different.
6One of these monks is Kassapa, which is the only name given by
Phongsawadarn Yonok. Ed.

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