Pathein ပုသိမ်မြို့ Bassein | |
|---|---|
Capital Town | |
%2c_Myanmar_(Burma)_-_panoramio.jpg) Downtown Pathein, with view of Clock Tower | |
  Pathein Location of Pathein, Myanmar (Burma) | |
| Coordinates:16°47′03″N94°44′0″E / 16.78417°N 94.73333°E /16.78417; 94.73333 | |
| Country |  Myanmar |
| Region |  Ayeyarwady Region |
| District | Pathein District |
| Township | Pathein Township |
| Area | |
• Capital Town | 9.79 sq mi (25.4 km2) |
| Population (2019)[1] | |
• Capital Town | 172,923 |
| • Density | 18,000/sq mi (6,800/km2) |
| • Metro | 287,071 |
| • Ethnicities | |
| • Religions | |
| Time zone | UTC+6.30 (MST) |
| Area code | 42[3] |
Pathein (Burmese:ပုသိမ်မြို့;MLCTS:pu. sim mrui.,Burmese pronunciation:[pəθèɪ̯ɰ̃mjo̰];Mon:ဖာသီ,[pʰasɛm]), formerly calledBassein, is the largest city and the capital of theAyeyarwady Region,Myanmar (Burma). It is located 190 km (120 mi) west ofYangon withinPathein Township on the bank of thePathein River (Pathein), which is a western branch of theIrrawaddy River,[4] the city had a population of 172,923 in 2019. Although once a part of theMon kingdoms, Pathein has few ethnicMon residents today. The majority are ofBamar with a significantKaren,Burmese Indian,Rakhine andBurmese Chinese populations .
The name is believed to derive from theOld Mon name,ဖာသီ ([phasɛm]).[5] "pha" means great or wide and sī/sɛm means river or sea. Pha-sɛm means a big sea. The name was corrupted toBassein during theBritish colonial period.
An alternate theory holds that the city's name comes from the classical name of Pathein, Kusimanagara, a name used by ancient writings and theKalyani inscriptions. Pathein itself is a corruption ofMon "Kuthen," which itself is a contraction of Kusima or Kusimanagara, aPali name for the city.[6][7] This is supported by the fact that thePortuguese call Pathein "Cosmim."[6]
Another theory is that modern name Pathein potentially derives from this time period based on the word Patkain, a version of the archaic Burmese word forMuslimspathi (Burmese:ပသီ), based on either the growing presence of Arab traders in Pathein during the 16th century or on a purported Muslim Indian who ruled the city around 1233 CE.[7][1]
According to local history, the city was first a town called Thinsawanargara (Burmese:သဉ္စဝနာဂရ) was founded in 325 BCE by a King "Sri Dhammasoka".[1] The first extant record of a settlement in the location calledKusima in thePali language comes from a Sri Lankan rock inscription dated to 1165 CE. It is often mentioned that the city was part of BuddhistMon kingdoms prior to the expansion of theBagan Empire, however detailed research into the city's history is not extensive.[7]
Pathein was raided in 1180 CE byParakramabahu I of theKingdom of Polonnaruwa in modern-day Sri Lanka, as attested by the Devanagala Rock inscription during thePolonnaruwa-Pagan War.[8] The raid was retaliatroy against diplomatic incidents and hostility bySithu II ofBagan, implying that Pathein was under Bagan rule by this time.[9] The Bagan conquest of Lower Burma occurred earlier in 1057 under the reign ofAnawrahta. However, various historians disagree on the extent of the empire and his military campaigns.[10] The latest date that Pathein could have become part of the Bagan empire is in 1265 CE where we have the oldest Burmese record of the city's existence.[7]
Until the 15th century, most of Lower Burma was largely jungle and swamp land with little development. Burmese ports like Pathein were known by traders as early as the 10th or 11th century. However, it was only in the 14th century during the rise of theHanthawaddy Kingdom, a Mon kingdom based onPegu that brought Lower Burma to prominence as a trading hub.[7]
In 1852, theBritish established afort andgarrison in the city after theFirst Anglo-Burmese War. The city grew during the colonial period as the terminus of a railroad line, becoming a rice-milling and export center as a port accessible to large vehicles.[11]
Lying at the western edge of theAyeyarwady River delta, on the Pathein (Ngawan) River 118 miles (190 km) west ofYangon, Pathein is accessible to large vessels and despite its distance from theocean, it is the most important delta port outside of Yangon. The city is also a terminus of a branch of the mainrailroad line which connects it toHinthada,Letpadan and Yangon. In the 1990s, the road network along the Irrawaddy toMonywa was improved.[4]
The coastline along theBay of Bengal is surrounded by theArakan Mountains. In the area isInye Lake, 1.5 miles (2.4 km) long and 1 mile (1.6 km) wide, which is known for its fishing. There is also an offshore reef atDiamond Island that is popular with bathers. Diamond Island is also noted as aturtle breeding ground.[4]
The city is arice-milling and export centre. Aside from several rice mills, the town has numerous sawmills andumbrella workshops. The colourful handmade parasols made in Pathein are widely known throughout Burma.[4] They are known locally asPathein hti.[12] Pathein is also known for its pottery and colourful hand-made baskets and buckets. Among Pathein's most prominent industries also include production ofsalt,mats, andPathein halawa.[13] Thetextiles produced in Pathein Industrial Zone is, however, the largest industry economy of the city. After textiles, the main industry is the various rice mills that process agricultural produce from nearby villages and towns.[1]
Thesurrounding area outside Pathein are employed in agriculture and primarily cultivatesrice. Other crops includesesames,groundnuts,jute,maize,pulse (legume)s,tobacco,chilies as well as a wide variety of fruits likebanana andtamarind.[12]
Pathein has atropical monsoon climate (Am) according to theKöppen climate classification system. Pathein experiences a sustained period of extraordinary rainfall from June through August. The dry season which runs from December through April, begins with noticeably cooler temperatures than the remainder of the year, but becomes sweltering as the wet season approaches in March and April.
| Climate data for Pathein (1991–2020) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 37.0 (98.6) | 39.7 (103.5) | 40.1 (104.2) | 41.8 (107.2) | 41.0 (105.8) | 36.4 (97.5) | 35.0 (95.0) | 34.5 (94.1) | 36.6 (97.9) | 37.8 (100.0) | 37.0 (98.6) | 36.3 (97.3) | 41.8 (107.2) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 32.1 (89.8) | 34.1 (93.4) | 35.9 (96.6) | 36.9 (98.4) | 34.5 (94.1) | 31.1 (88.0) | 30.4 (86.7) | 30.0 (86.0) | 31.1 (88.0) | 32.5 (90.5) | 33.0 (91.4) | 31.9 (89.4) | 32.8 (91.0) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 24.9 (76.8) | 26.6 (79.9) | 28.8 (83.8) | 30.6 (87.1) | 29.8 (85.6) | 27.7 (81.9) | 27.1 (80.8) | 26.8 (80.2) | 27.3 (81.1) | 28.1 (82.6) | 27.4 (81.3) | 25.4 (77.7) | 27.5 (81.5) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 17.6 (63.7) | 19.1 (66.4) | 21.8 (71.2) | 24.3 (75.7) | 25.1 (77.2) | 24.2 (75.6) | 23.8 (74.8) | 23.6 (74.5) | 23.5 (74.3) | 23.6 (74.5) | 21.9 (71.4) | 19.0 (66.2) | 22.3 (72.1) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 10.0 (50.0) | 11.4 (52.5) | 16.5 (61.7) | 19.2 (66.6) | 19.0 (66.2) | 18.8 (65.8) | 17.1 (62.8) | 17.7 (63.9) | 18.6 (65.5) | 16.5 (61.7) | 13.9 (57.0) | 13.3 (55.9) | 10.0 (50.0) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 3.8 (0.15) | 7.5 (0.30) | 10.2 (0.40) | 30.4 (1.20) | 276.0 (10.87) | 604.5 (23.80) | 682.7 (26.88) | 681.3 (26.82) | 416.7 (16.41) | 204.2 (8.04) | 65.9 (2.59) | 3.5 (0.14) | 2,986.9 (117.59) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 1.0 mm) | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.7 | 1.7 | 12.6 | 24.8 | 26.2 | 25.9 | 22.0 | 14.2 | 4.0 | 0.3 | 132.8 |
| Source 1:World Meteorological Organization[14] | |||||||||||||
| Source 2:NOAA (extremes)[15] | |||||||||||||
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1973 | — | |
| 1983 | — | |
| 2014 | 169,773 | — |
| 2019 | 172,923 | +1.9% |
| Source: Ministry of Labor, Immigration, and Population and General Administration Department data | ||
The2014 Myanmar Census reported that Pathein had a population of 169,773, representing 59.1% ofPathein Township's total population.[2] In 2019, the population was reported as 172,923. Pathein is subdivided into 25urban wards[1]
Pathein has a scenic waterfront and manyBuddhisttemples, including the main sight ofShwemokhtaw Pagoda.
The city is home to thePathein Education College for elementary teachers andPathein University for arts and science students. The Computer University (Pathein) which is administered byMinistry of Science and Technology offers both undergraduate and graduate programs incomputer science, andcomputer technology.Technological University (Pathein) which was founded in 1999, offers engineering courses.
The 6,000-seat Ayar Stadium is one of the main venues for popular local football tournaments. The stadium is the home ofAyeyawady United F.C., aMyanmar National League (MNL) football club.
_-_panoramio_(4).jpg)
Pathein General Hospital serves people in Pathein and its surrounding districts.
