'After a careful re-reading of primary sources written in Old Burmese, author Michael A. Aung-Thwin set about tracing the history of five key events that took place during the Kingdom of Pagan in order to disentangle that history from myth. He found that four of the five events, which have been considered the most important in the history of early Burma, are actually inventions of late nineteenth- and twentieth-century colonial historians caught in their own intellectual and political world. A fifth is a genuine indigenous Burmese myth, but it too has been embellished by modern historians. Aung-Thwin concludes that these five key events, which have been taught as Burmese history for the past hundred years, actually have no basis in history.

In addition to setting the record straight, the study demonstrates the subtle relationships that exist between the historian's own social, political, and academic perspectives and their historiography, which the public at large has come to accept as history. It concludes with a glimpse of the myth-making process currently underway in today's Burma.' - from publisher's website.

With select bibligraphy.
Access level

Onsite

Location code
REF.ATA
Language

English

Publication/Creation date

1998

No of pages

220

ISBN / ISSN

9780896802018

No of copies

1

Content type

monograph

Chapter headings

The Myth of a Sinhalese Invasion of Pagan in 1165 A.D.

The 'King Who Fled the Chinese' and Disapramok's Mission to China: Two Myths in the History of Pagan

The Destruction of Pagan: the Myth and the History

The Myths Surrounding King Klawcwā, Maṅ Lulaṅ, Kumārakassapa, and Tak Tō Mū Maṅkῑ

The Myth of the Three Shan Brothers

Myth and History in the Historiography of Early Burma: Paradigms, Primary Sources, and Prejudices
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Myth and History in the Historiography of Early Burma: Paradigms, Primary Sources, and Prejudices

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