Myelat ( my, ‌မြေလတ်) is a

historical region Historical regions (or historical areas) are geographical regions which at some point in time had a cultural, ethnic An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that ...

of the southwestern

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. ...

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 C. Wells, Joh ...

. Originally this region included some of the smaller states typically ruled by "

Myosa Myoza or Myosa ( my, မြို့စား}) is a high-ranking royal title and position for Burmese royalty and nobility. History The monarch had all the power to control everything in the kingdom. Below the monarch rank, minor queens, princes, ...

s" (chief of town) or "

Ngwegunhmu The Shan State, a state of Myanmar (also known as Burma), was once made up of a large number of traditional monarchies or fiefdoms. These are collectively known as Shan States. Ranks of rulers Three ranks of chiefs were recognized by the King of B ...

s" (silver revenue chief), buffering the plains of Burma and the ethnic

Shan states The Shan States (1885–1948) were a collection of minor Shan kingdoms called ''muang'' whose rulers bore the title ''saopha'' in British Burma. They were analogous to the princely states of British India. The term "Shan States" was firs ...

further east. The term "Myelat" is still in common use today, although the old political and administrative distinctions no longer apply.

Geography

The area is hemmed in on the north by the state of

Lawksawk Lawksawk ( shn, လွၵ်ႉၸွၵ်ႇ), also known as Yatsauk ( my, ရပ်စောက်; also spelt Yatsawk), is a town in Shan State, Myanmar. It is the capital town and administrative center of Lawksawk Township. The town is locate ...

, on the east by the states of

Yawnghwe Yawnghwe ( shn, ယွင်ႈႁူၺ်ႈ), known as Nyaungshwe ( my, ညောင်ရွှေ) in Burmese, was a Shan state in what is today Myanmar. It was one of the most important of the Southern Shan States. Yawnghwe state include ...

Wanyin Wanyin was a Shan state in what is today Burma. It belonged to the Central Division of the Southern Shan States The Shan States (1885–1948) were a collection of minor Shan kingdoms called '' muang'' whose rulers bore the title ''saopha' ...

and

Hsatung Hsatung (also known as Hsahtung or Thaton) was a Shan state in what is today Burma. Hsatung was a tributary of Burma until 1887, when the Shan states submitted to British rule after the fall of the Konbaung dynasty. The capital was formerly Laip b ...

, and on the south by

Mong Pai Mongpai, also known as Mobye ( my, မိုးဗြဲ), was a Shan state in what is today Burma. It belonged to the Central Division of the Southern Shan States The Shan States (1885–1948) were a collection of minor Shan kingdoms ...

. In 1897, the population was recorded as 107,500, the majority being of the Taungthu or

Pa-O , native_name_lang = my , image = Pa O Tribe Kalaw Shan Myanmar.jpg , caption = A Pa'O woman near Kalaw, southern Shan State , population = 1,400,000 (2014 est.) , popplace = Myanmar, Thailand , rels ...

(42,933), followed by Danu (29,713), Taungyo (13,906), Shan (6,572), and a smaller number of other ethnic groups. The name ''Myelat'' could be interpreted as "unoccupied land" in Burmese, however the land has been populated for quite some time. The name could also be interpreted as "middle earth", implying a buffer zone, or "fair earth", depending on a variation of the spelling. All central Myelat and great parts of the northern and southern portions consist of rolling

grass Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in lawns an ...

y downs bare of

jungle A jungle is land covered with dense forest and tangled vegetation, usually in tropical climates. Application of the term has varied greatly during the past recent century. Etymology The word ''jungle'' originates from the Sanskrit word ''jaṅ ...

. The area is productive in agriculture, crops grown include potatoes, corn, wheat, cabbage, cauliflower, oranges, coffee, as well as rice. Visitors to the area immediately notice the red earth of the countryside, due to high iron oxide content of the soil.

Myelat Division

The exact composition of the states within the Myelat area has changed through history, dependent on vagaries of local power politics as well as approval by the Burmese court. At times, states have been combined, at other times, they have been split up. At the time of the British annexation of the

Shan States The Shan States (1885–1948) were a collection of minor Shan kingdoms called ''muang'' whose rulers bore the title ''saopha'' in British Burma. They were analogous to the princely states of British India. The term "Shan States" was firs ...

, the following sixteen states were recognized to be within the Myelat region:

Hsamonghkam Hsamonghkam or Hsamönghkam (also known as Thamaingkan) was a Shan state in the Myelat region of Burma. Its capital was Aungpan. Hsamonghkam was established before 1700 CE. During the 18th and 19th centuries it was a tributary of Burma. In 1886, f ...

, Kyawkku Hsiwan,

Kyong Kyong (also known as Kyon) was a Shan state in the Myelat region of what is today Burma Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although o ...

Loi-ai Loi-ai (also known as Lwe-e) was a Shan state in the Myelat region of what is today Burma. It was one of the westernmost Shan states, bordering with Yamethin district of Upper Burma. The capital was Lonpo ( Aungpan) and the population was mostly P ...

Loilong Loilong (also known as Lwelong) was a Shan state in the Myelat region of what is today Burma. Its capital was Pinlaung. It had a large Pa-O , native_name_lang = my , image = Pa O Tribe Kalaw Shan Myanmar.jpg , caption = A Pa ...

Loimaw Loimaw (also known as Lwemaw) was a Shan state in the Myelat region of what is today Burma Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although ...

, Maw,

Mawnang Mawnang (also known as Bawnin) was a small Shan state in the Myelat region of what is today Burma. Its population was mostly Taungyo. History Rulers The rulers of Mawnang bore the title of ''Myoza Myoza or Myosa ( my, မြို့စား}) ...

Mawson Sir Douglas Mawson OBE FRS FAA (5 May 1882 – 14 October 1958) was an Australian geologist, Antarctic explorer, and academic. Along with Roald Amundsen, Robert Falcon Scott, and Sir Ernest Shackleton, he was a key expedition leader durin ...

Namhkai Namhkai (also known as Nanke) was a Shan state in the Myelat region of what is today Burma. Its capital was Paw-in. Its population was almost entirely Pa-O , native_name_lang = my , image = Pa O Tribe Kalaw Shan Myanmar.jpg , captio ...

, Namhkom, Namtok,

Pangmi Pangmi ( my, Pinhmi, script=Latn) was a Shan state in the Myelat region of what is today Burma. It was very small, having an area of only , and was almost entirely enclosed by Hsamonghkam. Its population was mostly Danu and Pa-O , native_name_la ...

Pangtara Pangtara ( my, Pindaya, script=Latn) was a Shan state in what is today the Pindaya Township of Burma. It belonged to the Myelat Myelat ( my, ‌မြေလတ်) is a historical region of the southwestern Shan State of Myanmar. Originally this ...

, Poila, and

Yengan Yengan was a Shan state in what is today Burma. It belonged to the Myelat Division of the Southern Shan States The Shan States (1885–1948) were a collection of minor Shan kingdoms called '' muang'' whose rulers bore the title ''saopha' ...

. The total area of these states was approximately .

References

External links

"Gazetteer of Upper Burma and the Shan states"
Geography of Shan State Historical regions in Myanmar {{Myanmar-geo-stub