A country where time seems to have stood still. Unique cultural treasures, a lovable people and incomparable landscapes characterize the deep experiences that are able to fascinate every visitor. Myanmar is located between Bangladesh and Thailand and on the Bay of Bengal. In the north, the country borders on Laos and China. Myanmar is rich in mineral resources and offers every visitor impressive landscapes and sights.

Popular places to visit include the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, the country’s capital, the countless temple complexes in Bagan, the unique sunsets behind the U-Bein Bridge in Mandalay and Inle Lake. Myanmar is about 16 times larger than Switzerland and has almost 6 times more inhabitants. For more than 500 years Myanmar was under the influence of Chinese rulers and from 1886 to 1948 a colony of Great Britain. These influences are still visible from afar. The climate is tropical with moderate temperatures in the Shan Highlands.

Country name

The Duden specifies the pronunciation of Myanmar, i.e. the emphasis on the first a. In German, however, the stress on the second a is common. In English, the pronunciation of Myanmar varies significantly. Myanmar is also known as Burma in German-speaking countries and is still known as Burma in the United Kingdom, Australia and the USA.

Background

According to topmbadirectory, Burma and Myanmar are actually two variants of the same name. The spellings Burma (pronounced in English) and derived from it Birma (in Germany) correspond to the Burmese name Bama with a relatively dull “a” as the first vowel. Bama and Myanmar have always been the native names of the largest population group, the Bamar, for themselves and for their country. The transition from “B” to “M” is fluid. There are also other variants depending on the dialect. The form Myanma(r) comes from the written language and is therefore more likely to be found in historical documents, while Bama is used colloquially. Presumably, Bama came from Myanma through simplified pronunciation.

Geography

Myanmar borders the People’s Republic of China to the north and east, Laos and Thailand to the east, and the Indian Ocean to the south. The southernmost part of Myanmar is on the Malay Peninsula. The Andaman Sea separates Myanmar from the western Indian islands of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. In the west, Myanmar borders Bangladesh and the Indian states of Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh.

Cities

The largest city in the country is Yangon (Rangoon) with around 5,160,000 inhabitants (2014). Rangoon was also the former capital of Myanmar (Naypyidaw has been the capital since 2005). Other major cities are Mandalay, Mawlamyaing, Bago and Pathein.

Climate

With the exception of the extreme north, Myanmar is located in the sphere of influence of the Indian monsoon. Due to the relief, the characteristics of the monsoon are different in the individual parts of the country.

History

In the 11th century, King Anawrahta established the first Burmese empire. In the 19th century, after several wars, Burma fell under British rule. The last king of Burma was exiled with his family to India by the British occupation, where he also died. Burma became part of British India.