Product Description
The goal of this volume is to introduce the reader to conditions in Burma through the eyes of Burmese and Foreign scholars who present a variety of perspectives of life in this noble land. Preface The year 2004 has brought a never-ending flow of both sad and bad news from Burma. Economic, political and health conditions continue to decline precipitously and repression by the ruling military junta is worse than ever. Leaders of the anti-government Burmese democracy movement, including its heroine, Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, languish in prison or under strict house arrest. The junta's much heralded convening of a national convention to rewrite the constitution is in reality a cloak to disguise its dictatorial hold on the Burmese people. The future of Burma looks very bleak indeed. For centuries visitors to Burma have come away with a sense of awe and respect for a highly civilized people who live in an incredibly beautiful country. Burma is a land with considerable natural resources that should be one of the wealthiest in Asia, but while some other Southeast Asian countries have democratized and prospered, Burma has not.The Burmese are ruled by a highly repressive military dictatorship which has ruined the economy and imprisoned its own people in a living hell where they are deprived not only of their livelihood, but also their most basic civil rights. The military junta has raped the land as well as the people and has transformed one of the wealthiest nations in Asia into one of the poorest with an annual per capita income of under US$300. While many Burmese have resigned themselves to their fate, others continue to resist the tyranny that has overwhelmed their country. Aung San Suu Kyi and other leaders of the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) and the Burmese democracy movement in Burma and abroad have demonstrated tremendous courage and endured considerable suffering in their efforts to inaugurate a democratic society in their land. The goal of this volume is to introduce the reader to conditions in Burma through the eyes of Burmese and foreign scholars who present a variety of perspectives of life in this noble land.We aim at a collective portrait of the dismal reality of a suffering citizenry who if allowed to be free could be among the most creative, energetic and productive people of Asia. We also look at the complexity of a highly heterogeneous people striving to find a collective identity amidst the chaos of savage repression. We present the work of both leading Western scholars on Burma as well as the writing of a number of leading young Burmese scholars who are dedicating their lives to the struggle for freedom in their country. This is one of the few publications to offer such a diverse presentation on the Burma question. We hope that scholars and teachers of Asian Studies will incorporate some or all of this material into their own writing, lectures and class discussions. We hope also to encourage many more people to join the international debate over what policies may best promote peace, prosperity, and respect for human rights in that country.We wish to thank Christina Fink, Patricia Herbert, Maureen Aung-Thwin, Win Min, Aung Naing Oo, Min Zaw Oo, Inge Sargent, Min Zin and Roderic Owen not only for their thoughtful contributions, but also for their helpful suggestions and useful editorial assistance. It goes without saying that both the editors and contributors would deeply appreciate comments and suggestions from any or all readers. We wish to dedicate this work to the many courageous Burmese who are working to create a democratic and civil society in their own land and the scholars, journalists and political leaders in Burma and abroad who have worked or offered their support for a free Burma. Daniel Metraux Khin Oo Fall 2004 ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Too expensive
Don't know whether I should feel sorry for the editors or mad at them. I'm amazed that there is actually another reviewer. Perhaps he got the book on loan from an academic library. What is the sense of publishing a book that no one will read?
There a lot of burmaphiles out here that would be interested if the price were within reason.

Excellent Study of Burma
This book is a great compilation of modern pieces from authors across the Burma field, from academics to activists.Khin Oo's piece on corruption and economics in particular stands out as well researched and insightful.Anyone who listened to President Bush's call for freedom around the world would do well to read this book to learn more about the suffering in Burma and how the United States can help. ... Read more

Product Description
Travellers writing on Burma from 14th to 20th century. ... Read more

Product Description
This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

Product Description
Originally published in 1881. This volume from the Cornell University Library's print collections was scanned on an APT BookScan and converted to JPG 2000 format by Kirtas Technologies.All titles scanned cover to cover and pages may include marks, notations and other marginalia present in the original volume. ... Read more

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This book charts British and American approaches to Burma between the country’s independence from the United Kingdom in 1948 and the military coup that ended civilian government in 1962. It analyses the fundamental drivers of Anglo-American policy-making during this crucial period – assumptions, expectations and apprehensions that would, eventually, lead America into the disaster of Vietnam. The book suggests the key to understanding British and American approaches to Southeast Asia is to see them in terms of a search for order and stability in an increasingly chaotic and dangerous world. Such order had previously been provided by the colonial regimes of the European powers. With those regimes gone or going, British and American planners faced a region beset with new uncertainties, led by a set of nationalist politicians driven by very different, and often competing, goals and aspirations.

A detailed case study of post-colonial transition in Asia in the context of the emerging Cold War, this book focuses on the retraction of European colonial power in Southeast Asia, the concomitant expansion of US engagement in the region and the broad processes underpinning these changes. It draws on unique, previously unpublished British and American archival material relating to the Burmese case and fills an important gap in historical understanding of Western engagement in Southeast Asia.

Product Description
This book is part of the Our Name in History series, a collection of fascinating facts and statistics, alongside short historical commentary, created to tell the story of previous generations who have shared this name.The information in this book is a compendium of research and data pulled from census records, military records, ships' logs, immigrant and port records, as well as other reputable sources. Topics include:

• Name Meaning and Origin
• Immigration Patterns and Census Detail
• Family Lifestyles
• Military Service History
• Comprehensive Source Guide, for future research

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Publisher: London : Macmillan ... Read more

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Webster's bibliographic and event-based timelines are comprehensive in scope, covering virtually all topics, geographic locations and people. They do so from a linguistic point of view, and in the case of this book, the focus is on "Burma," including when used in literature (e.g. all authors that might have Burma in their name). As such, this book represents the largest compilation of timeline events associated with Burma when it is used in proper noun form. Webster's timelines cover bibliographic citations, patented inventions, as well as non-conventional and alternative meanings which capture ambiguities in usage. These furthermore cover all parts of speech (possessive, institutional usage, geographic usage) and contexts, including pop culture, the arts, social sciences (linguistics, history, geography, economics, sociology, political science), business, computer science, literature, law, medicine, psychology, mathematics, chemistry, physics, biology and other physical sciences. This "data dump" results in a comprehensive set of entries for a bibliographic and/or event-based timeline on the proper name Burma, since editorial decisions to include or exclude events is purely a linguistic process. The resulting entries are used under license or with permission, used under "fair use" conditions, used in agreement with the original authors, or are in the public domain. ... Read more

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From The Earliest Time To The End Of The First War With British India. ... Read more

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Between November 1942 and October 1943 a force of about 60,000 prisoners of the Japanese Imperial Army were involved in the construction of a railway from Kanchanaburi in Thailand to Thanbuyayat in Burma. This text examines the Burma-Thailand railway. ... Read more

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This is an OCR edition without illustrations or index. It may have numerous typos or missing text. However, purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original rare book from the publisher's website (GeneralBooksClub.com). You can also preview excerpts of the book there. Purchasers are also entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Original Published by: The Government Press in 1882 in 44 pages; Subjects: Burma; Arakan State (Burma); Arakan (Burma); History / Asia / General; History / Asia / Southeast Asia; Travel / Asia / Southeast; ... Read more

Product Description
This work presents what is known or can be conjectured about the history and identity of the people inhabiting Burma before the period covered by the author's Old Burma - Early Pag n . Luce bases his conclusions on references in written sources such as the Chinese histories and the Burmese chronicles and in inscriptions, and upon his own researches into the unwritten languages of the tribal people of the area, conducted over a period of forty years until his death in 1979. Luce's 'daring' and 'revolutionary' views on the origins and early history of Burma and its peoples have not always been accepted without reservation by other scholars, but are invariably stimulating and cannot be ignored by anyone interested in the early history of Burma. Less controversial, and indeed in many ways unique, is his contribution to the comparative linguistic history of the area. The publication of such an important collection of his language material is bound to make a major and lasting contribution to this growing field of interest. ... Read more

Product Description
Webster's bibliographic and event-based timelines are comprehensive in scope, covering virtually all topics, geographic locations and people. They do so from a linguistic point of view, and in the case of this book, the focus is on "Burma," including when used in literature (e.g. all authors that might have Burma in their name). As such, this book represents the largest compilation of timeline events associated with Burma when it is used in proper noun form. Webster's timelines cover bibliographic citations, patented inventions, as well as non-conventional and alternative meanings which capture ambiguities in usage. These furthermore cover all parts of speech (possessive, institutional usage, geographic usage) and contexts, including pop culture, the arts, social sciences (linguistics, history, geography, economics, sociology, political science), business, computer science, literature, law, medicine, psychology, mathematics, chemistry, physics, biology and other physical sciences. This "data dump" results in a comprehensive set of entries for a bibliographic and/or event-based timeline on the proper name Burma, since editorial decisions to include or exclude events is purely a linguistic process. The resulting entries are used under license or with permission, used under "fair use" conditions, used in agreement with the original authors, or are in the public domain. ... Read more

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Due to the very old age and scarcity of this book, many of the pages may be hard to read due to the blurring of the original text. ... Read more

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Provides a general yet complete introduction to Burma, surveying that country's ancient history and culture, its experience through WWII, and its current economic situation while maintaining its focus on rubies from Burma's renowned Mogok mines.

Also addresses the topics of enhancement, heat treatment, smuggling, and provenance of rubies and discusses the unique properties of Burmese rubies and sapphires. Provides tips on buying rubies in Burma. Includes heretofore unpublished statistics about historical and recent production and sales of rubies in Burma and a hitherto unpublished listing of significant rubies and sapphires sold from 1965 to 2002.

34 b-&-w photos; 34 color plates; maps and tables. ... Read more

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This is the first book in the series THERE BEFORE YOU. GerryAbbott has edited and woven together an amazing array of early descriptions ofBurma by travellers of what you can see "there before you" by those that were "therebefore you". The author, who lived in Mandalay in the 1980's has researched pasttravellers' descriptions thoroughly , and has elegantly tied them together in a vividhistory of Burma. The book has an extensive bibliography and an index, and is usefulfor students, interested laymen as well as intelligent travellers! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A Disappointment
This book is a collection of some 100 quotes culled from a variety of sources.The quotes are woven together by a text which covers roughly the 14th to the 20th century of the history of Burma, now called Myanmar. Theresult is a combination patchwork of facts and opinions that unfortunatelyare not only often incoherent but sometimes appear bias in nature Forexample, very little mention is made of the brutal 2 year war waged by theBritish to wrench control of Upper Burma from native hands. In this regardthe reader cannot help but note what may be interpreted as a pro-Britishstance. Because of the disjointed nature of this Burma history I found itdifficult to follow and ultimately tiresome. There is a bibliography of theworks quoted as well as a list of the works which were consulted.

A great book for Burmaphiles
This volume assembles a wide range of travel writings on Burma many of which would be impossible for the nonspecialist to find. Mr Abbott has done a great service for Burmaphilesand armchair travellers alike. Only wish a hardcover were available. Buy this one! ... Read more