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th , เชียงตุง , other_name = Kyaingtong , settlement_type = Town , imagesize = , image_caption = , pushpin_map = Myanmar , pushpin_label_position = left , pushpin_map_caption = Location in Myanmar , coordinates = , subdivision_type =
Country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, whi ...
, subdivision_name = , subdivision_type1 = State , subdivision_type2 =
District A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivision ...
, subdivision_type3 =
Township A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, ...
, subdivision_type4 = , subdivision_name1 = , subdivision_name2 = Kengtung District , subdivision_name3 = Kengtung Township , subdivision_name4 = , established_title = , established_date = , leader_title = , leader_name = , area_total_km2 = 3,506 , elevation_footnotes = , elevation_m = , elevation_ft = , population_total = 171,620 , population_as_of = 2014 , population_footnotes = , population_density_km2 = 48.955 , website = , footnotes = , timezone = MMT , utc_offset = +6.30 , official_name = , native_name_lang = shn, my , image_skyline = National Highway (NH4) pass through Kengtung.jpg Kengtung ( shn, ဝဵင်းၵဵင်းတုင် , th, เชียงตุง), also spelt Kyaingtong (; ), is a town in
Shan State Shan State ( my, ရှမ်းပြည်နယ်, ; shn, မိူင်းတႆး, italics=no) also known by the endonyms Shanland, Muang Tai, and Tailong, is a state of Myanmar. Shan State borders China (Yunnan) to the north, Laos ...
,
Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...
(formerly Burma). It is the principal town of Kengtung Township and the former seat of
Kengtung State Kengtung ( my, ကျိုင်းတုံ; shn, ၵဵင်းတုင် ''Chiang Tung;'' ), known as Menggen Prefecture ( zh, 孟艮府) or Möng Khün Chiefdom or Mueng Khuen Fu (Tai Khün: ) from 1405 to 1895, was a Shan state ...
, a minor principality. Kengtung is located on the National Highway 4 (NH4) and at the
AH2 Asian Highway 2 (AH2) is a road in the Asian Highway Network running from Denpasar, Indonesia to Merak and Singapore to Khosravi, Iran. The route is connected to M10 of the Arab Mashreq International Road Network. The route is as follows: I ...
and
AH3 Asian Highway 3 (AH3) is a route of the Asian Highway Network which runs from Ulan-Ude, Russia (on AH6) to Tanggu, China; and Shanghai, China (on AH5) to Chiang Rai, Thailand and Kengtung, Myanmar (both on AH2). Southeast Asian issues By mid ...
of the
Asian Highway The Asian Highway Network (AH), also known as the Great Asian Highway, is a cooperative project among countries in Asia and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) to improve their connectivity via hig ...
.


Etymology

Owing to Kengtung's proximity to China and Thailand, the city is known by a number of exonyms and endonyms. The endonym used by
Tai Khun Tai or TAI may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Tai (comics) a fictional Marvel Comics supervillain *Tai Fraiser, a fictional character in the 1995 film ''Clueless'' *Tai Kamiya, a fictional character in ''Digimon'' Businesses and organisation ...
and Tai Lue-speaking locals is Jeng Tung (ᨾᩨ᩠ᨦᨩᩭᨦᨲᩩᨦ) respectively. Other Shan speakers use the exonym Kengtung. The most common exonym, Kyaingtong, is derived from the Burmese approximation of Kengtung. The exonym of Chiang Tung ( th, เชียงตุง, ) is used by Thai speakers, while Chinese speakers use Jingdong ( zh, 景栋/景棟 ''Jǐngdòng'').


History

The early history of Kengtung is made up of myths and legends. The
oral tradition Oral tradition, or oral lore, is a form of human communication wherein knowledge, art, ideas and Culture, cultural material is received, preserved, and transmitted orally from one generation to another.Jan Vansina, Vansina, Jan: ''Oral Traditio ...
of the
ai people AI is artificial intelligence, intellectual ability in machines and robots. Ai, AI or A.I. may also refer to: Animals * Ai (chimpanzee), an individual experimental subject in Japan * Ai (sloth) or the pale-throated sloth, northern Amazonian ma ...
says that the ancient city of Kengtung was founded in the distant past by Tai Lue as the original inhabitants of the region, and was later reestablished by the grandson of King
Mangrai Mangrai ( nod, ; th, มังราย; 1238–1311), also known as Mengrai ( th, เม็งราย),The name according to historical sources is "Mangrai", and this is used in most modern scholarly applications. "Mengrai", popularised by a 19 ...
after defeating the Tai Lue. This migration of the
Chiang Mai Chiang Mai (, from th, เชียงใหม่ , nod, , เจียงใหม่ ), sometimes written as Chiengmai or Chiangmai, is the largest city in northern Thailand, the capital of Chiang Mai province and the second largest city in ...
dynasty in the 13th century, with the founding a new kingdom which was later named Lanna, has resulted in Kengtung having a different type of Tai population from the rest of the
Shan State Shan State ( my, ရှမ်းပြည်နယ်, ; shn, မိူင်းတႆး, italics=no) also known by the endonyms Shanland, Muang Tai, and Tailong, is a state of Myanmar. Shan State borders China (Yunnan) to the north, Laos ...
, the
Tai Khün Tai or TAI may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Tai (comics) a fictional Marvel Comics supervillain *Tai Fraiser, a fictional character in the 1995 film ''Clueless'' * Tai Kamiya, a fictional character in ''Digimon'' Businesses and organisation ...
. Kengtung, like other major towns in the Shan Plateau, was home to a Shan
Saopha Chao-Pha (; Tai Ahom: 𑜋𑜧𑜨 𑜇𑜡, th, เจ้าฟ้า}, shn, ၸဝ်ႈၾႃႉ, translit=Jao3 Fa5 Jao3 Fa5, my, စော်ဘွား ''Sawbwa,'' ) was a royal title used by the hereditary rulers of the Tai peoples of ...
(Sawbwa). Kengtung was the capital of the
Kengtung State Kengtung ( my, ကျိုင်းတုံ; shn, ၵဵင်းတုင် ''Chiang Tung;'' ), known as Menggen Prefecture ( zh, 孟艮府) or Möng Khün Chiefdom or Mueng Khuen Fu (Tai Khün: ) from 1405 to 1895, was a Shan state ...
, and had a palace, built by Sao Kawng Kiao Intaleng in 1905. The city was seized and occupied by the Thai
Phayap Army Phayap Army ( th, กองทัพพายัพ RTGS: Thap Phayap or Payap, ''northwest'') was the Thai force that invaded the Siamese Shan States (present day Shan State, Myanmar) of Burma on 10 May 1942 during the Burma Campaign of World ...
from 1942 until the end of the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
and became the headquarters of the Saharat Thai Doem territory. The headquarters of the regional military command of the Tatmadaw is in the town.Donald M. Seekins, ''Historical Dictionary of Burma (Myanmar)'', p. 251


Geography

Kengtung contains several lakes. The largest, Naung Tung Lake, lies in the western part of the city, followed by Naung Kham Lake and Naung Yarng Lake to the south of the Kentung Roman Catholic Mission.


Transportation

The town is served by
Kengtung Airport Kengtung Airport is an airport in Kengtung, Shan State, Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British Englis ...
. Kengtung is located on the National Highway 4 (NH4) and at the
AH2 Asian Highway 2 (AH2) is a road in the Asian Highway Network running from Denpasar, Indonesia to Merak and Singapore to Khosravi, Iran. The route is connected to M10 of the Arab Mashreq International Road Network. The route is as follows: I ...
and
AH3 Asian Highway 3 (AH3) is a route of the Asian Highway Network which runs from Ulan-Ude, Russia (on AH6) to Tanggu, China; and Shanghai, China (on AH5) to Chiang Rai, Thailand and Kengtung, Myanmar (both on AH2). Southeast Asian issues By mid ...
of the
Asian Highway The Asian Highway Network (AH), also known as the Great Asian Highway, is a cooperative project among countries in Asia and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) to improve their connectivity via hig ...
.


Climate

Kengtung has a tropical wet and dry/ savanna climate (Köppen-Geiger classification: Aw) with a pronounced dry season in the low-sun months, no cold season, wet season is in the high-sun months. Temperatures are very warm throughout the year, although the winter months (December–February) are milder and nights can be quite cool. There is a winter dry season (December–April) and a summer wet season (May–November).


Education

* Keng Tung University * Keng Tung Computer University * Keng Tung Technological University


Health care

* Keng Tung General Hospital


See also

* Maha Myat Muni Temple * Wat Zom Khum *
Tachileik Tachileik (also spelt Tachilek; my, တာချီလိတ်, ; shn, တႃႈၶီႈလဵၵ်း, ; th, ท่าขี้เหล็ก, , ), is a border town in the Shan State of eastern Myanmar. It is the administrative seat of T ...
* Kengtung District


Bibliography

* Forbes, Andrew ; Henley, David (2011). ''Traders of the Golden Triangle''. Chiang Mai: Cognoscenti Books. ASIN: B006GMID5 * J. G. Scott, ''Gazetteer of Upper Burma and the Shan States''. 5 vols. Rangoon, 1900-1901. * Sao Sāimöng Mangrāi, ''The Pādaeng Chronicle and the Kengtung State Chronicle Translated''. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 1981


External links


''The Happy City''
a 1959 film on a remote leper colony run by Father Cesare Columbo in Kengtung, Shan State
pictures from Kengtung


References


Notes

{{Authority control Populated places in Shan State