Namhkam (; ; ), also spelled Nam Kham is the principal town of Namhkam Township in northern

Shan State Shan State (, ; , ) is a administrative divisions of Myanmar, state of Myanmar. Shan State borders China (Yunnan) to the north, Laos (Louang Namtha Province, Louang Namtha and Bokeo Provinces) to the east, and Thailand (Chiang Rai Province, Chia ...

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

, situated on the southern bank of the

Shweli River Shweli River (; zh, 瑞丽江) is a river in China and Myanmar (Burma). Also known as the Nam Mao (; ) in Shan or Dai, and Ruili River or Longchuan River (龙川江) in Chinese, it forms 26 km of the boundary between Burma and China. It is on ...

near the border with

Yunnan Province Yunnan; is an inland Provinces of China, province in Southwestern China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 47.2 million (as of 2020). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the Chinese provinces ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

History

The region surrounding Namhkam originally belonged to

, but from 1894 to 1897, the British colonial administration in Burma built a road between this

frontier town A border town is a town or city close to the boundary between two countries, states, or regions. Usually the term implies that the nearness to the border is one of the things the place is most famous for. With close proximities to a different coun ...

and

Bhamo Bhamo ( ''ban: mau mrui.'', also spelt Banmaw), historically known as Manmaw (; ) or Hsinkai () is a city in Kachin State in northern Myanmar, south of the state capital, (Myitkyina). It is on the Ayeyarwady River. It lies within of the border ...

by the

Ayeyarwady River The Irrawaddy River (, , Ayeyarwady) is the principal river of Myanmar, running through the centre of the country. Myanmar’s most important commercial waterway, it is about 1,350 miles (2,170 km) long. Originating from the confluence of the ...

Kachin State Kachin State (; Jingpho language, Kachin: ) is the northernmost administrative divisions of Myanmar, state of Myanmar. It is bordered by China to the north and east (Tibet Autonomous Region, Tibet and Yunnan, respectively), Shan State to the sou ...

for a distance of . The road was intended to be used by Chinese

mule The mule is a domestic equine hybrid between a donkey, and a horse. It is the offspring of a male donkey (a jack) and a female horse (a mare). The horse and the donkey are different species, with different numbers of chromosomes; of the two ...

teers for the benefit of

border trade Border trade, in general, refers to the flow of goods and services across the border between different jurisdictions. In this sense, border trade is a part of the normal trade that flows through the ordinary export/import legal and logistical fra ...

. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...

built the

Ledo Road The Ledo Road () was an overland connection between British India and China, built during World War II to enable the Western Allies to deliver supplies to China and aid the war effort against Japan. After the Japanese cut off the Burma Ro ...

, stretching from Ledo in

Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

Kunming Kunming is the capital and largest city of the province of Yunnan in China. The political, economic, communications and cultural centre of the province, Kunming is also the seat of the provincial government. During World War II, Kunming was a Ch ...

, China, across northern Burma. By the end of 1944, the road stretched to Namhkam, linking up with the old

Burma Road The Burma Road () was a road linking Burma (now known as Myanmar) with southwest China. Its terminals were Lashio, Burma, in the south and Kunming, China, the capital of Yunnan province in the north. It was built in 1937–1938 while Burm ...

at Bhamo. In 2005, the Shan State Army - South attempted to fill a power vacuum in Namhkam left by the 1989

ceasefire A ceasefire (also known as a truce), also spelled cease-fire (the antonym of 'open fire'), is a stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions often due to mediation by a third party. Ceasefires may b ...

agreement between their counterparts in the north and the

Burmese military The Tatmadaw, also known as the Sit-Tat, is the armed forces of Myanmar (formerly Burma). It is administered by the Ministry of Defence (Myanmar), Ministry of Defence and composed of the Myanmar Army, the Myanmar Navy and the Myanmar Air For ...

, but their attempt was promptly thwarted. The governments of Myanmar and China have been working to resolve a border dispute in the area of Namhkam and

Muse In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, the Muses (, ) were the Artistic inspiration, inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge embodied in the poetry, lyric p ...

since 2014. On 6 November 2023, the Namkham police station was captured by

Ta'ang National Liberation Army The Ta'ang National Liberation Army (; abbreviated TNLA) is a political organization and armed group in Myanmar. It is the armed wing of the Palaung State Liberation Front (PSLF). History The PSLF has its origins in the Palaung National Front ...

(TNLA) fighters, bringing the city under the limited control of the

Brotherhood Alliance The Three Brotherhood Alliance (); ( zh, 三兄弟联盟), also known as Brotherhood Alliance, is an alliance between the Arakan Army, Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, and the Ta'ang National Liberation Army formed in June 2019. Th ...

during the ongoing

civil war A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

. Anti-junta forces took full control of the town and surrounding township on 18 December 2023.

Education

As of 2017, there are two high schools, three middle schools, 100 primary schools and one monastic school in Namhkam.

Agriculture

Cultivation of the

opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum'', commonly known as the opium poppy or breadseed poppy, is a species of flowering plant in the family Papaveraceae. It is the species of plant from which both opium and poppy seeds are derived and is also a valuable orname ...

in the area during

British rule The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or dire ...

caused considerable

deforestation Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal and destruction of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. Ab ...

, noted in 1920 east of a line from

Lashio Lashio ( ; Shan: ) is the largest city and the capital of northern Shan State, Myanmar, about north-east of Mandalay. It is situated on a low mountain spur overlooking the valley of the Yaw River. Loi Leng, the highest mountain of the Shan Hi ...

to Namhkam. A 2005 survey by the Shan State Peace Council recorded 1,800

drug addicts Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to use a drug or engage in a behavior that produces natural reward, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use can ...

in Namhkam alone.

Community A community is a social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic, such as place, set of norms, culture, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given g ...

-run rehabilitation centers were set up to tackle the rising problem of addiction. The first of these facilities were constructed in 1998, but were declared illegal and forced to close down in 2000 by authorities. Buddhist monks and

teachers A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. w ...

in Namhkam are also involved in the amelioration of the

HIV/AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

issue amongst drug users. Hsinshweli high yield hybrid rice cultivation has been promoted in recent years by authorities in the region. The results were disaterous for Shan farmers and left many of them in destitute.

Development

Myanmar and China signed a contract in August 2003 for the construction of the

hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...

Shweli I Dam on the

near Namhkam, aiming to supply electricity to Kyaukme,

Hsipaw Hsipaw (; Tai Nuea: ᥔᥤᥴ ᥙᥨᥝᥳ), also known as Thibaw (), is the principal town of Hsipaw Township in Shan State, Myanmar on the banks of the Duthawadi River. It is north-east of Mandalay. Hsipaw contains 11 wards, including Sout ...

and

Namtu Namtu () is a town situated in northern Shan State, Myanmar. It is famous for Bawdwin and Namtu silver mines. NamTu River is flowing across in the middle of town and the transportation from Namtu to Lashio or Namtu to Mandalay is by bus. Histor ...

. It was completed in 2009 and has a 600 MW installed capacity.

Notable people

Burmese American Dr. Gordon Seagrave, famously known as the "Burma Surgeon", ran the American

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thoma ...

hospital A hospital is a healthcare institution providing patient treatment with specialized Medical Science, health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically ...

overlooking Namhkam. He was believed to have had

military intelligence Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis List of intelligence gathering disciplines, approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist Commanding officer, commanders in decision making pr ...

duties as well as medical ones, and he later wrote articles on his experience in Namhkam.

Gallery

References

2025

External links

Satellite map
''

GeoNames GeoNames (or GeoNames.org) is a user-editable geographical database available and accessible through various web services, under a Creative Commons attribution license. The project was founded in late 2005. The GeoNames dataset differs from, b ...

'' * Taipei American Chamber of Commerce; Topics Magazine, Analysis, November 2012.
Myanmar: Southeast Asia's Last Frontier for Investment
BY DAVID DUBYNE * Oilseedcrops.org; Editor Article, Transit routes from western China through Myanmar
Myanmar: the Missing Link from Western China to India’s N.E. States
{{Shan State Township capitals of Myanmar Populated places in Shan State