Officially 135 ethnic groups comprise Myanmar people. About 70 percent of the population is descended from the Myanmar, also pronounced as Mranma, Burmese or Bama, who arrived from Central Asia and Tibet around the tenth century. Apart from the Chinese and Indians, most minority ethnic groups live mainly in the hills. The hills peoples’ lifestyles and languages are distinct. Some are Buddhists or Christians, but many still adhere to their traditional practices of worshiping local spirits.
MIGRATIONS
Myanmar has a diverse population, the result of three separate migrations from Central Asia and Tibet. The first migration brought the Mons. The second groups of migrants was the Tibeto-Myanmar, and the third, sometime during the 13th and 14th centuries, consisted of Tai Shan people.
BAMAR OR MYANMAR
Bamars, or ethnic Myanmar, are the largest ethnic group, comprising 68 percent of the total population. Referred to generally as Myanmar, as opposed to the other ethnic groups, Bamars are basically mixed with Mons, and the Tai Shan. Predominantly Buddhists, they live mostly in the river valleys and plains.
Below you can find a few photos I took on the trip to Myanmar in December 2013/January 2014.
Photos above were taken on a local market in Yangoon
Kids having fun inside Schwedagon pagoda complex
Young monks in Bagan
Kids from Bagan
Sights from Bagan (Lacquerware production)
Fishing village on the banks of Irrawaddy river
Young girls gathering food and money on the streets of Mandalay
Mandalay streets at night
In the villages in the mountains surrounding Hsipaw
Kids from a village high above Hsipaw
Sorting and drying of tea
Bamboo house in progress on the shores of Inle Lake
Food stand on a local market on the shores of Inle Lake
