Pyin Oo Lwin
Pyin U Lwin or Pyin Oo Lwin (Burmese: File:Bscript pyinulwinmyo.png; MLCTS: prang u: lwang mrui.) , formerly Maymyo (22° 2'4.38"N 96°27'31.49"E), is a scenic hill town in Mandalay Division in Myanmar, located some 67 kilometers east of Mandalay, and at an altitude of 1070 meters (3510 feet). It was initially a small Shan village with two dozen households [1] situated on the Lashio-Mandalay trail between Naungcho and Mandalay. In 1896, a few years after the British occupied Upper Burma, a military post was established in the town and later, because of its climate, it became a hill station, the summer capital of British Burma. The colonial establishment in Burma (civil as well as commercial) would move to Maymyo during the hot season to escape from the high heat and humidity of Rangoon. The British changed the name of the town from Pyin U Lwin to Maymyo, literally May Town (or May Place) in Burmese, after Colonel May, a veteran of the Indian Mutiny and the first military commandment of the military post at Pyin U Lwin [2].
Demographics
As a legacy of the colonial period, the town has approximately 10,000 Indian and 5,000 Nepali inhabitants, descendants of soldiers who served in the British Indian Army (Gurkha and |Punjab regiments) and settled in Maymyo during British rule. Pyin U Lwin also has a thriving Eurasian community, consisting mostly of Anglo-Burmese and Anglo-Indians. The town was, until recently, dominated by northern Indian communities and Eurasians.
Institutions
Maymyo was an important educational centre during colonial times, with the GEHSs (Government English High Schools), such as St. Mary's, St. Michael's, St. Albert's, and Colgate, all based in the town. British settlers and colonial administrators sent their children to be educated here, both European and Anglo-Burmese children.
It is also home to the Defence Services Academy (DSA) and the Defence Services Institute of Technology (DSIT).
Economy
Sweater knitting, flower and vegetable plantation, orchards, coffee farming and cow rearing are the main local businesses. There has been an influx of Chinese immigrants (especially from Yunnan) in recent years. The city is a resort town for visitors from Myanmar's major cities during the summertime and a popular stop for foreign tourists during the winter season.
Established in 1915, the National Botanical Gardens and the adjacent Pyin Oo Lwin Nursery are famous attractions of Pyin U Lwin. The beautifully created national garden and the new National Landmarks Gardens are unique. A four acre orchid garden is planned for 2007.
Today, Pyin Oo Lwin is particularly noted for four centres of national economic importance. It is the centre of sericulture (silkworm rearing). The Sericulture Research Centre, near the National Kandawgyi Botanical Gardens, conducts three distinct roles: the intensive planting and harvesting of mulberry trees (leaves for the silk worms, bark for hand made paper), the rearing of the actual silk worms, and the reeling of the silk from the cocoons. It has a large research centre for indigenous medicinal plants. And it has one of the country's few pharmaceutical production facilities.
In addition, Pyin Oo Lwin is the centre of the country's principal flower and vegetable production. The most important flowers grown intensively are chrysanthemum, aster and gladiolus, which are exported to every corner of Myanmar throughout the year. Lastly, Pyin Oo Lwin is the centre of Myanmar's rapidly growing coffee industry. A number of factories in the town process coffee beans for country-wide distribution, with a growing amount now prepared for export.
References
- ^ Herbert Thirkell White. A Civil Servant in Burma. London, E. Arnold (1913)
- ^ Herbert Thirkell White. A Civil Servant in Burma. London, E. Arnold (1913)
External links
- MOF National Botanical Gardens
- The most informative site for visitors to Pyin Oo Lwin (what to see, where to stay, trekking, shopping, etc)
- Description of Pyin Oo Lwin Nursery, with photographs
- About Living and learning English in Mandalay near Pyin Oo Lwin
