The Yangon University of Foreign Languages (also the University of Foreign Languages, Yangon) ( ), located in

Yangon Yangon, formerly romanized as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar. Yangon was the List of capitals of Myanmar, capital of Myanmar until 2005 and served as such until 2006, when the State Peace and Dev ...

, is a university for the study of foreign languages in

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 ...

. Yangon University of Foreign Languages is one of the two language universities in Myanmar alongside Mandalay University of Foreign Languages.

History

Foreign Languages Institution (1964–1972)

The Foreign Languages Institution was originally the University of Foreign Languages, which was founded on 16 January 1964. U Ba Myint served as a Principal from 8 January 1964 to 7 February 1965. The Institute started with four language departments:

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

and

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

. 53 students were initially enrolled in full-time

diploma A diploma is a document awarded by an educational institution (such as a college or university) testifying the recipient has graduated by successfully completing their courses of studies. Historically, it has also referred to a charter or offi ...

, part-time diploma, state scholars and language proficiency classes. In 1965, the Chinese Department was established and U Yu Khin became principal on 8 February 1965. The Institute was relocated to 119–131 University Avenue, Yangon, and U Yu Khin resigned on 30 April 1971, and was replaced by U Win Maung the following day. Italian language programs were offered from 1970 to 1980.

Institute of Foreign Languages (1972–1996)

The Institute was transferred direct control of

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

to Department of Higher Education on 15 March 1972. The Foreign Languages Institution was renamed the Institute of Foreign Languages, and U Win Maung resigned on 17 September 1972. Before the establishment of the language departments,

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

courses were first offered in 1969 and

language courses were started in 1974 with the faculty members from

Yangon University The University of Yangon (also Yangon University; , ; formerly Rangoon College, University of Rangoon and Rangoon Arts and Sciences University), located in Kamayut Township, Kamayut, Yangon Region, Yangon, is the oldest university in Myanmar's m ...

. More language departments were added over the years: the English department was established in 1984, Myanmar in 1985, Thai in 1989, and Korean in 1993.

Yangon University of Foreign Languages (1996–present)

The institute was given

university A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

accreditation and became the Yangon University of Foreign Languages on 2 October 1996.

Bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

and

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

programs were launched. The Italian Language Department was reestablished in the 2014–2015 academic year. The Departments of

Linguistics Linguistics is the scientific study of language. The areas of linguistic analysis are syntax (rules governing the structure of sentences), semantics (meaning), Morphology (linguistics), morphology (structure of words), phonetics (speech sounds ...

Oriental Studies Oriental studies is the academic field that studies Near Eastern and Far Eastern societies and cultures, languages, peoples, history and archaeology. In recent years, the subject has often been turned into the newer terms of Middle Eastern studie ...

Philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

History History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...

, and

International Studies International relations (IR, and also referred to as international studies, international politics, or international affairs) is an academic discipline. In a broader sense, the study of IR, in addition to multilateral relations, concerns al ...

were established in 1988.

Notable alumni

* Sai Sai Kham Hlaing * Rebecca Win *

Phway Phway Phway Phway (, ; born Shwe Yee Ko Oo on 9 August 1988) is a three-time Myanmar Academy Award winning Burmese film actress. She is the third highest-paid actress of Myanmar according to records . Phway won her first Myanmar Academy Award in 201 ...

* Myint Aye *

Wyne Lay Wyne Lay (; born Wint Yee Shunn on 3 August 1994) is a Burmese singer, songwriter, pianist, model and beauty pageant title holder. She was crowned the Miss World Myanmar 2014 and represented Myanmar at Miss World 2014. Wyne has achieved fame and ...

* Ah Moon * Honey Nway Oo * Zaw Win Shein

References

{{authority control Universities and colleges in Yangon Arts and Science universities in Myanmar Universities and colleges in Myanmar Educational institutions established in 1964 1964 establishments in Burma Academic language institutions