![Palaung depiction, 1900s](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/Palaung_depiction%2C_1900s.jpg)
The Palaung ( my, ပလောင် လူမျိုး ; Thai: ปะหล่อง, also written as Benglong Palong) or Ta'ang are a Mon–Khmer ethnic minority found in
Shan State
Shan State ( my, ရှမ်းပြည်နယ်, ; shn, မိူင်းတႆး, italics=no) also known by the Endonym and exonym, endonyms Shanland, Muang Tai, and Tailong, is a administrative divisions of Myanmar, state of Myanmar. ...
of Burma,
Yunnan Province
Yunnan , () is a landlocked province in the southwest of the People's Republic of China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 48.3 million (as of 2018). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the C ...
of China and
Northern Thailand
Northern Thailand, or more specifically Lanna, is geographically characterised by several mountain ranges, which continue from the Shan Hills in bordering Myanmar to Laos, and the river valleys which cut through them. Though like most of Thailand ...
. In China, they are referred to as the De'ang ( also spelt Deang) people.
They live mainly in the northern parts of Shan State in the
Pa Laung Self-Administered Zone
The Palaung Self-Administered Zone ( my, ပလောင် ကိုယ်ပိုင်အုပ်ချုပ်ခွင့်ရ ဒေသ ) is a self-administered zone consisting of two townships in Shan State: It was created as a separate ...
, with the capital at
Namhsan
Namhsan ( my, နမ့်ဆန်မြို့; Palaung: Om-yar; ), also spelt Namh San, Namsan, or Nam San, is the capital of Tawngpeng District in northern Shan State of Myanmar (Burma). The town is a popular starting point for trekking ...
.
The
Ta'ang (Palaung) State Liberation Army, the armed wing of the Palaung ethnic group, began fighting against the Burmese military in 1963. It entered a cease-fire agreement with the central government in April 1991, but is currently continuing the insurgency. Both the government and the rebel armies have derived benefit from poppy cultivation, which has caused serious drug addiction among the local people.
Groups
![Palaung woman](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c3/Palaung_woman.jpg)
There are three main subgroups of Palaung: the Palé, Shwe and Rumai.
The Chinese government groups together the Palé, Riang, Rumai and Shwe peoples as the De'ang
ethnic nationality
An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...
. The group also includes the Danau (Danaw) who may no longer have a separate identity from the Palé.
Language
There are three main principal Palaung languages.
Distribution
In China, the De'ang are found in the following villages of
Zhenkang County
Zhenkang County () is located in the west of Yunnan province, China, bordering Burma's Shan State to the west. It is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Lincang.
Ethnic groups
Ethnic Bulang are found in the following village ...
and
Gengma County
Gengma Dai and Va Autonomous County () is located in Lincang City, in the west of Yunnan
Yunnan , () is a landlocked province in the southwest of the People's Republic of China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 48 ...
.
[中国少数民族社会历史调查资料丛刊》修订编辑委员会. 2009. 德昂族社会历史调查, p. 94. Beijing: Minzu Chubanshe.] In China, they are known as the ''Laopulao'' (牢普劳); there are six other De'ang groups located in Burma.
*Dazhai Township (大寨乡), Muchang District (木厂区), Zhenkang County: Bangwa (邦娃) Dazhai (大寨), Xiazhai (下寨), Huoshishan (火石山), Laobandeng (老班登), Mahuangqing (蚂蟥箐) of Chaikao (柴考)
*Nansan Township (南伞乡), Pengmushan District (彭木山区), Zhenkang County: Xiaochanggou (销长沟), Beiyan (北岩)
*Hongmulin (红木林) and Manxing (曼兴) of Hewai District (河外区), Gengma County: Junnong (君弄), Mamao (马冒), Jinmo (金莫), Muyin (木因), Xungang (巡岗)
Religion
Most Ta'ang are adherents of
Theravada Buddhism
''Theravāda'' () ( si, ථේරවාදය, my, ထေရဝါဒ, th, เถรวาท, km, ថេរវាទ, lo, ເຖຣະວາດ, pi, , ) is the most commonly accepted name of Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school' ...
and Buddhist temples can be found in most of their towns. Buddhism is present in all of the daily activities of this ethnic group. At the age of ten, many children are sent to the
monasteries
A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...
, primarily for education. Most of them return to lay life in later years.
The Riang are the only one of the four groups who have never converted to Buddhism. The majority of the Riang are
animists
Animism (from Latin: ' meaning 'breath, spirit, life') is the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct spiritual essence. Potentially, animism perceives all things—animals, plants, rocks, rivers, weather systems, hu ...
.
See also
*
Palaung language
Palaung (), also known as De'ang (; ), is a Austroasiatic dialect cluster spoken by over half a million people in Burma (Shan State) and neighboring countries. The Palaung people are divided into Palé, Rumai, and Shwe, and each of whom have ...
*
Ta'ang National Liberation Army
The Ta'ang National Liberation Army ( my, တအောင်း အမျိုးသား လွတ်မြောက်ရေး တပ်မတော်; abbreviated TNLA) in Myanmar (Burma), is the armed wing of the Palaung State Liberati ...
Further reading
*Palaung Women's Organisation. (2006). ''Poisoned Flowers: The Impacts of Spiralling Drug Addiction on Palaung Women in Burma''. Tak, Maesot, Thailand: Palaung Women's Organisation.
*Ashley, S. (2006). ''Exorcising with Buddha Palaung Buddhism in Northern Thailand''. Ottawa: Library and Archives Canada = Bibliothèque et Archives Canada.
*Howard, M. C., & Wattana Wattanapun. (2001). ''The Palaung in Northern Thailand''. Chiang Mai, Thailand: Silkworm Books.
*Cameron, A. A. (1912). ''Notes on the Palaung of the Kodaung Hill Tracts of Mong Mit State''. Rangoon: Govt. Printer.
*
Milne, Mrs. Leslie. (1924). ''The Home of an Eastern Clan: A Study of the Palaungs of the Shan State.'' Oxford: Clarendon Press.
Gallery
References
External links
*
Ta'ang Students and Youth Organization
{{Authority control
Ethnic groups officially recognized by China