Burmese girl painted with thanaka

The culture of Myanmar has been heavily influenced by Buddhism. More recently, British imperialism has influenced aspects of Burmese culture, such as language and education.

Arts

Historically, Burmese art was based on Buddhist and Hindu myths. There are several regional styles of Buddha images, each with certain distinctive characteristics. Temple architecture is usually made of brick, and pagodas are layered with gold leaf. Burmese literature is influenced by Buddhism. Since orthodox Buddhism prohibited fiction, many works are nonfiction. An ancient form of dance called yodaya (ယုိးဒယား) is an imitation of formal Thai dancing, in which a woman uses only the hands and feet to express emotions. The name yodaya most likely derives from the name of the Thai kingdom, Ayutthaya. Pop music dominates the music of Burma today. Other forms of Burmese music use an array of traditional musical instruments, assembled in an orchestra. Singing is usually of various legends in Pali. Gold leaf is a sheet of real, nearly pure gold, worked into extremely thin sheets only a few micrometres thick. ... Ayutthaya (also spelled Ayudhya or Ayuthia) refers to The old capital of Thailand, see Ayutthaya (city) The province around the city, Ayutthaya province The ruins of the old palace, see Ayutthaya historical park Ayutthaya kingdom as the period of Thai history (1365-1768) in which Ayutthaya was capital This is... The music of Myanmar is a mixture of many regional varieties, including Chinese music, Indian music and Thai music. ... . Pāli (ISO 639-1: pi; ISO 639-2: pli) is a Middle Indo-Aryan dialect or prakrit. ...

Religion

Myanmar is a predominantly Theravada Buddhist country. Buddhism reached Myanmar around the beginning of the Christian era, mingling with Hinduism (also imported from India) and indigenous animism. The Pyu and Mon kingdoms of the first millennium were Buddhist, but the early Bamar peoples were animists. According to traditional history, King Anawrahta of Bagan adopted Buddhism in 1056, importing scriptures and monks from the Mon kingdom of Thaton in the south of the country. The religious tradition created at this time, and which continues to the present day, is a syncretalist mix of what might be termed 'pure' Buddhism (of the Sri Lankan or Theravada school) with deep-rooted elements of the original animism or nat-worship and even strands of Hinduism and the Mahayana tradition of northern India. ... This article is about the Hindu religion; for other meanings of the word, see Hindu (disambiguation). ... Animism has been used in a number of ways since Edward Tylor used it (in 1871) as a label to define the essence of religion as the belief in spirits. The majority of this entry discusses the original term, and the changes in its definition over time. ... Pyu (also written Pyuu, or Pyus) refers to an ancient kingdom (or: its language) found in the central and northern regions of what is now Burma. ... Mon can be: An abbreviation for Monday, the day of the week between Sunday and Tuesday. ... The Bamar (Burmese: ဗမာ; IPA: ), sometimes called Burman, are the dominant ethnic group of Myanmar, constituting approximately 68% (30,000,000) of the population. ... Anawrahta (1044-1077), also known as Anoratha, was the first ruler of kingdom of Pagan, now part of Myanmar. ... Temples in Pagan. ... Mon can be: An abbreviation for Monday, the day of the week between Sunday and Tuesday. ... Thaton is a town in Mon State, in southern Myanmar on the Tenasserim plains. ... Animism has been used in a number of ways since Edward Tylor used it (in 1871) as a label to define the essence of religion as the belief in spirits. The majority of this entry discusses the original term, and the changes in its definition over time. ... Nat can stand for more than one thing: Look up nat on Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Relief image of the bodhisattva Guan Yin (Avalokitesvara) from Mt. ...

Islam reached Myanmar at approximately the same time, but never gained a foothold outside the geographically isolated seaboard running from modern Bangladesh southwards to the delta of the Ayeyarwady (modern Rakhine, known previously to the British as Arakan, and an independent kingdom until the 18th Century). The colonial period saw a tremendous influx of Muslim (and Hindu) Indians into Yangon and other cities, and the majority of Yangon's many mosques and temples owe their origins to these immigrants. Islam ▶(?) (Arabic: الإسلام al-islām) the submission to God is a monotheistic faith, one of the Abrahamic religions and the worlds second largest religion. ... The Union of Myanmar, also known as Burma, is a country in Southeast Asia. ... Arakan is a state in the North Western part of Myanmar, formerly Burma. ...

Christianity was brought to Myanmar by European missionaries in the 19th Century. It made little if any headway among Buddhists, but has been widely adopted by non-Buddhists such as the Karen and Kachin. History Main article: History of Christianity See also: Timeline of Christianity The history of Christianity is difficult to extricate from that of the European West (and several other culture-regions) in general. ... Karen can refer to the Karen people of south-east Asia. ... Kachin is a state of Burma. ...

The Chinese contribution to Myanmar's religious mix has been slight, even non-existent, but several traditional Chinese temples were established in Yangon in the 19th Century when large-scale Chinese migration was encouraged by the British. Since approximately 1990 this migration has resumed in huge numbers, but the modern Chinese immigrants seem to have little interest in religion.

Some more isolated indigenous peoples in the more inaccessible parts of the country still follow traditional animism. Animism has been used in a number of ways since Edward Tylor used it (in 1871) as a label to define the essence of religion as the belief in spirits. The majority of this entry discusses the original term, and the changes in its definition over time. ...

The Roman Catholic Church, Myanmar Baptist Convention and the Assemblies of God of Myanmar are the largest Christian denominations in Myanmar. The Catholic Church, known also as the Roman Catholic Church, is the Christian Church whose visible head is the Pope, currently Benedict XVI. It teaches that it is the one holy catholic and apostolic Church founded by Jesus Christ, and that the sole Church of Christ which in the Creed... The Myanmar Baptist Convention is an association of Baptist churches in the nation of Myanmar (known until 1989 as Burma). ...

There are no totally reliable demographic statistics form Myanmar, but the following is one estimate of the religious composition of the country:

• Buddhists: 87%
• Animists: 5%
• Christians: 4.5%
• Muslims: 4%
• Hindus: 1.5%

Myanmar allows complete freedom of religious expression, and there appear to be no inter-religious tensions as such (although there are ethnic tensions, particularly between the dominant Bamar and the descendants of Indian migrants, which can find religious expression). Nevertheless, the current regime's nationalistic policy of Bama hsan-jin, which considers Buddhism a key element of Burmese-ness, does provide a systemic bias in favour of Buddhists in terms of preferment in the armed forces and other State structures.

Cuisine

Main article: Cuisine of Myanmar

Burmese cuisine is a fusion of Indian and Chinese cuisine. It is relatively known throughout the world, and can be characterized as having a mildly spicy taste, with the usage of spices. The most famous Burmese dish is mohinga, rice noodles in a curried fish soup. The Burmese traditionally eat with their hands, although the usage of Western utensils has become more dominant. Burmese cuisine is the cuisine of Myanmar (formerly Burma). ... Mohinga (Burmese: ) is considered by many to be the national dish of Myanmar, formerly Burma. ...

Sports

The most popular sport in Burma is soccer. Chinlon, an indigenous sport utilizes a rattan ball, and is played using the hands, head, and feet. A form of Burmese martial arts called thaing (similar to kung fu) is also practiced. Chinlon is a bit like soccor, and they weave the ball, with a material a bit like Kung Foo, called taing. ... Alternative meaning: Kung Fu (TV series) Kung fu or gongfu (功夫, Pinyin: gōngfu) is a well-known Chinese term used in the West to designate Chinese martial arts. ...

See [Burmese martial arts]

National holidays

Customs

The traditional garment of the Burmese is called longyi, sarong worn by both women and men. In urban areas, skirts and pants are becoming more common. In language, the Burmese are very age-oriented. Elders and monks are spoken to in a different and more respectable manner. It is considered rude to touch a person's head (even children). It is also considered taboo to touch another's feet, or to point with the feet, because the feet are considered the lowest. Shoes are always taken off before entering homes and temples. A human head In anatomy, the head of an animal is the anterior part (from anatomical position) that comprises the mouth, the brain and various sensory organs (e. ... This article is about a foot as a unit of length. ...