Mon people

The Mon (Mon: or ; Burmese: , pronounced: [m l mj];

Khmer: , Thai: , pronounced [m n]) are an ethnic group from Burma
(Myanmar) living mostly in Mon State, Bago Region, the Irrawaddy Delta and
along the southern border of Thailand and Burma. One of the earliest
peoples to reside in Southeast Asia, the Mon were responsible for the spread
of Theravada Buddhism in Indochina. The Mon were a major source of
influence on the culture of Burma. They speak the Mon language, an
Austroasiatic language, and share a common origin with the Nyah Kur people
of Thailand from the Mon mandala (polity) of Dvaravati.
The eastern Mon including the current royal family of Thailand who
themselves are of Mon ancestry assimilated to Thai culture long ago, yet the
royal women of the Chankri dynasty perform and keep their Mon heritage
alive in the Thai court. The western Mon of Burma were largely absorbed by
Bamar society but continue fighting to preserve their language and culture
and to regain a greater degree of political autonomy. The Mon of Burma are
divided into three sub-groups based on their ancestral region in Lower
Burma: the Man Nya () from Pathein (the Irrawaddy Delta) in the west,
the Man Duin ( ) in Bago in the central region, and the Man Da () at
Mottama in the southeast.[1]
Recent studies have adduced evidence indicating that the Mon and Bamar
share some common genetic ancestry. A genetic study done on Mon and
Bamar showed a high prevalence of a particular glucose-6-phosphate
dehydrogenase (G6PD) mutation not found among Khmers, Laotians and
Thais.[2]
, ,
Total population
(8,145,500[citation needed])
Regions with significant populations
Burma
8 million
Thailand
114,500
Languages
Mon, Burmese
Religion

Theravada Buddhism
Related ethnic groups
Khmer and other Austroasiatic speakers
History
Early history
The Mon were believed to be one of the earliest peoples of Indochina. They
founded some of the earliest civilizations there, including Dvaravati in
Central Thailand (whose culture proliferated into Isan), Sri Gotapura[3] in
central Laos (modern Sikhottabong, Vientiane Prefecture) and Northeastern
Thailand, Hariphunchai in Northern Thailand and the Thaton Kingdom.[4]:63,7677
They were the first receivers of Theravada missionaries from Sri Lanka, in
contrast to their Hindu contemporaries like the Khmer and Cham peoples.
The Mon adopted the Pallava alphabet and the oldest form of the Mon script
was found in a cave in modern Saraburi dating around 550 AD. Though no
remains were found belonging to the Thaton Kingdom, it was mentioned
widely in Bamar and Lanna chronicles. The legendary Queen Camadevi from
the Chao Phraya River Valley, as told in the Northern Thai Chronicle
Cmadevivasa and other sources, came to rule as the first queen of
Hariphunchai (modern Lamphun) kingdom around 800 AD.
After 1000 AD onwards the Mon were under constant pressure. With the Tai
peoples migrating from the north and Khmer invasions from the east, the
Mons of Dvaravati gave their way to the Lavo Kingdom by around 1000 AD.
Descendants of the Dvaravati Mon people are the Nyah Kur people of Isan.
The Mon were killed in wars, transported as captives, or assimilated into new
cultures. The Mon as an entity virtually disappeared in Chao Phraya Valley.
However, Hariphunchai kingdom survived as a Mon outpost in northern
Thailand under repeated harassment by the Northern Thai people.
In 1057, King Anawrahta of Pagan Kingdom conquered the Thaton Kingdom.
The Mon culture and the Mon script were readily absorbed by the Burmese
and the Mons, for the first time, came under Bamar rule. The Mon remained
a majority in Lower Burma.
Hariphunchai prospered in the reign of King Aditayaraj (around early twelfth
century), who allegedly waged wars with Suryavarman II of Angkor and
constructed the Hariphunchai stupa. In 1230, Mangrai, the Northern Thai

chief, conquered Hariphunchai and the Mon culture was integrated into
Lanna culture. The Lanna adopted the Mon script and religion.

Razadarit (1384-1422)
In 1287, the Pagan Kingdom collapsed, leaving the power vacuum. Wareru,
who was born from a Mon mother and a Tai father, at Domwon Village in the
Thaton District, went to Sukhothai for merchandise and later eloped with a
daughter of the king. He established himself in Mottama and was proclaimed
king of the Mon. The capital was later moved to Bago. His Hanthawaddy
Kingdom (12871539) was a prosperous period for the Mon in both power
and culture. The Mon were consolidated under King Rajathiraj (13831422),
who successfully fended off invasions by the Bamar Ava Kingdom. The reigns
of Queen Shin Sawbu (14531472) and King Dhammazedi (14721492) were
a time of peace and prosperity.
The Bamar, however, regained their momentum at Taungoo in the early
sixteenth century. Hanthawaddy fell to the invasion of King Tabinshwehti of
Taungoo in 1539. After the death of the king, the Mon were temporarily freed
from Bamar rule by Smim Htaw, but they were defeated by King Bayinnaung
in 1551. The Bamar moved their capital to Bago, keeping the Mon in contact
with royal authority. Over the next two hundred years, the Mon of Lower
Burma came under Bamar rule.
Lower Burma became effectively war fronts between the Bamar, the Thai and
the Rakhine people. Following King Naresuans campaigns against the
Bamar, the Mon were, either forced or voluntarily, moved to Thailand. The
collapse of Mon power propagated waves of migration into Thailand, where
they were permitted to live in city of Ayutthaya. A Mon monk became a chief
advisor to King Naresuan.

Bago was plundered by the Rakhine in 1599. Bamar authority collapsed and
the Mon loosely established themselves around Mottama. Only with the
unification of King Anaukpetlun in 1616 were the Mon again under the rule of
the Bamar. The Mon rebelled in 1661 but the rebellion was put down by King
Pye Min. Mon refugees were granted residence in western Thailand by the
Thai king. The Mons then played a major role in Thai military and politics, as
they would later established the Chankri Dynasty of Thailand. A special
regiment was created for the Mon serving the Thai king.
Bamar power declined rapidly in the early eighteenth century. Finally, the
Mon rebelled again at Bago in 1740 with the help of the Gwe Shan people. A
Bamar monk with Taungoo royal lineage was proclaimed king of Bago and
was later succeeded by Binnya Dala in 1747. With the French support, the
Mon were able to establish an independent kingdom for 17 years before
falling to Alaungpaya in 1757. Alaungpaya, the Bamar ruler U Aungzeya,
invaded and devastated the kingdom, killing tens of thousands of Mon,
including learned Mon priests, pregnant women, and children. Over 3000
priests were massacred by the victorious Bamar in the capital city alone.
Thousands more priests were killed in the countryside. Alaungpaya's army
was hugely supported by the British army. This time, Bamar rule was harsh.
The Mon were largely massacred, encouraging a large migration to Thailand
and Lanna.
The Mon rebelled at Dagon in the reign of Hsinbyushin of the Konbaung
Dynasty and the city was razed to the ground. Again in 1814 the Mons
rebelled and were, as harshly as before, put down. These rebellions
generated a huge wave of migrations that the Child-Prince Mongkut
proceeded to welcome the Mon himself. Mongkut himself and the Chankri
dynasty of Thailand today are Mon descendants. Thongduang was born in
1737 in the reign of King Boromakot of Ayutthaya. Rama1 father was
Thongdi, a Mon noble serving the royal court Of Ayuthaya
The Mon in Thailand settled mainly in certain areas of Central Thailand, such
as Pak Kret in Nonthaburi, Phra Pradaeng in Samut Prakan and Ban Pong,
among other minor Mon settlements. Mon communities built their own
Buddhist temples. Over time, the Mons were effectively integrated into
Siamese society and culture, although maintaining some of their traditions
and identity.[5]

The 61st Anniversary of Mon National Day in London

Colonial period

An ethnic Mon woman in Thailand, in 1904.

Burma was conquered by the British in a series of wars. After the Second
Anglo-Burmese War, the Mon territories were completely under the control of
the British. The British aided the Mons to free themselves from the rule of the
Burman monarchy. Under Burman rule, the Mon people had been massacred
after they lost their kingdom and many sought asylum in the Thai Kingdom.
The British conquest of Burma allowed the Mon people to survive in Southern
Burma.
After Burmese independence
The Mon soon became anti-colonialists and, following the grant of
independence to Burma in 1948, they sought self-determination. U Nu
refused them this and they rose in revolt to be crushed again.

They have remained a repressed and defiant group in the country since then.
They have risen in revolt against the central Burmese government on a
number of occasions, initially under the Mon People's Front and from 1962
through the New Mon State Party. A partially autonomous Mon state,
Monland, was created in 1974 covering Tenasserim, Pegu and Ayeyarwady
River. Resistance continued until 1995 when NMSP and SLORC agreed a
cease-fire and, in 1996, the Mon Unity League was founded.
In 1947, Mon National Day was created to celebrate the ancient founding of
Hanthawady, the last Mon Kingdom, which had its seat in Pegu. (It follows
the full moon on the 11th month of the Mon lunar calendar, except in
Phrapadaeng, Thailand, where it is celebrated at Songkran.)
The largest Mon refugee communities are currently in Thailand, with smaller
communities in the United States (the largest community being in Fort
Wayne, Indiana and the second largest being Akron, Ohio), Australia,
Canada, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Sweden, and the Netherlands.
Language and script
See also: Mon language
The Mon language is part of the Monic group of the MonKhmer family,
closely related to the Nyah Kur language and more distantly related to
Khmer. The writing system is Indic based. The Burmans adapted the Mon
script for Burmese following their conquest of Mon territory during
Anawrahta's reign.

Traditional culture

Members of the younger generation in folk costume

Mon culture and traditional heritages includes spiritual dances, musical
instruments such as the kyam or "crocodile xylophone", the saung harp and
a flat stringed instrument. Mon dances are usually played in a formal theater
or sometimes in an informal district of any village. The dances are followed
by background music using a circular set of tuned drums and claps, crocodile
xylophone, gongs, flute, flat guitar, harp, etc. Mon in Burma wear clothes
similar to the Bamars. Those living in Thailand have adopted Thai style scarfs
and skirts.
The symbol of the Mon people is the hongsa (Mon: , [hsa]), a
mythological water bird that is often illustrated as a swan. The hongsa is the
state symbol of Bago Region and Mon State, two historical Mon strongholds.
It is commonly known by its Burmese name, hintha (Burmese: ,
IPA: [h]).