Magway Division - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Magway Region is an administrative division

Administrative divisions of Myanmar

Burma is divided into twenty-one administrative subdivisions, which include* seven states ,* seven regions ,* five self-administered zones and* one self-administered division ....

in central Burma (Myanmar). Magway Region is the largest of Myanmar's seven divisions, with an area of 17306 square miles (44,822.3 km²).

Geography

Mayway Region sits approximately between north latitude 18° 50' to 22° 47' and east longitude 93° 47' to 95° 55'. It is bordered by Sagaing Region to the north, Mandalay Region to the east, Bago Region to the south, and Rakhine State

Rakhine State

Rakhine State is a Burmese state. Situated on the western coast, it is bordered by Chin State in the north, Magway Region, Bago Region and Ayeyarwady Region in the east, the Bay of Bengal to the west, and the Chittagong Division of Bangladesh to the northwest. It is located approximately between...

and Chin State

Chin State

Chin State is a state located in western Burma . The Chin State is bordered by Rakhine State in the south, Bangladesh in south-west, Sagaing Division and Magway Division in the east, Indian state of Manipur in the north and Indian state of Mizoram in the west. The Chin ethnic group make up the...

to the west.

History

Fossils of the early primate

Primate

A primate is a mammal of the order Primates , which contains prosimians and simians. Primates arose from ancestors that lived in the trees of tropical forests; many primate characteristics represent adaptations to life in this challenging three-dimensional environment...

s over 40 million years old were excavated in the Pondaung and Ponnya areas in Magway Region, leading the government to proclaim that Myanmar as "the birthplace of humanity in the world". An ancient city of the Pyu

Pyu

Pyu city states were a group of city-states that existed from c. 2nd century BCE to late 9th century CE in present-day Upper Burma . The city-states were founded as part of the southward migration by the Tibeto-Burman-speaking Pyu, the earliest inhabitants of Burma of whom records are extant...

, Peikthano-myo, about 2000 years old, is located in Taungdwingyi Township, Magway Region.

The history of Magway Region mirrors that of the other divisions of central Burma.

Administration

Magway Region is made up of the districts of Magwe

Magway District

Magway District is a district of the Magway Region in central Myanmar.-Townships:The district contains the following townships:*Magway Township*Yenangyaung Township*Chauck Township*Taungdwingyi Township*Myothit Township...

, Minbu

Minbu District

Minbu District is a district of the Magway Division in central Myanmar. The city of Minbu is the administrative centre.-Borders:Minbu District is bounded to the south by Thayet District, to the east by Magway District, to the north by Pakokku District and Gangaw District, to the northwest by Mindat...

, Thayet

Thayet District

Thayet District is a district of the Magway Division in central Burma . The administrative centre is the town of Thayetmyo.-History:...

, Pakokku

Pakokku District

Pakokku District is a district of the Magway Division in central Burma . The administrative centre is the city of Pakokku.In October 2011, 7 wards and 95 villages were flooded because of heavy rain from tropical storm 02B which made a landfall at Myanmar-Bangladesh border on 19 Nov. All 4...

and Gangaw

Gangaw District

Gangaw District is a district of the Magway Division in central Myanmar.-Townships:The district contains the following townships:*Gangaw Township*Tilin Township*Saw Township...

comprising 25 townships and 1,696 ward village-tracts. The capital is the city of Magwe (1994 population estimated at 300,000). Other major towns are Pakokku

Pakokku

Pakokku or Pa Kok Ku is a town in the Magway Division in Myanmar. It is situated about 30 km northwest of Bagan on the Ayeyarwady River. It is the second most important education center for Sangha after Mandalay. It is the administration seat of Pakokku Township and Pakokku District.The town...

and Minbu

Minbu

Minbu is a city in Magwe Division, Myanmar. , the city has a population of 56,200. The area consists of low plain-land towards the Ayeyarwady River, and of undulating country inland rising higher and higher westwards towards the Arakan hills. Between the plain and the Arakan Yoma range is a...

Demographics

The population of Magway Region is 4,200,000. Over 95% the people are Bamar

Bamar

The Bamar are the dominant ethnic group of Burma , constituting approximately two-thirds of the population. The Bamar live primarily in the Irrawaddy basin, and speak the Burmese language, which is also the official language of Burma. Bamar customs and identity are closely intertwined with general...

, with very small numbers of minorities such as Chin

Chin people

The Chin , known as the Kuki in Assam, are one of the ethnic groups in Burma. The Chins are found mainly in western part of Burma and numbered circa 1.5 million. They also live in nearby Indian states of Nagaland, Mizoram and Manipur and Assam. Owing to Mizo influence and Baptist missionaries'...

, Rakhine

Rakhine people

The Rakhine , is a nationality in Myanmar forming the majority along the coastal region of present day Rakhine State or Arakan State. They possibly constitute 5.53% or more of Myanmar's total population but no accurate census figures exist. Rakhine people also live in the southeastern parts of...

, Kayin

Kayin

Kayin can refer to:* Kayin State, an administrative division of Myanmar * Kayin or Karen people, a minority ethnic group in Myanmar* alternative spelling for Cain* Kayin Amoh, a character in the Battle Arena Toshinden fighting game series...

, Shan, and others, including a tiny Anglo-Burmese

Anglo-Burmese

The Anglo-Burmese, also known as the Anglo-Burmans, are a community of Eurasians of Burmese and European descent, and emerged as a distinct community through mixed relations between the British and other European settlers and the indigenous peoples of Burma from 1826 until 1948 when Burma gained...

population. During colonial times, this part of Burma had a large Anglo-Burmese

Anglo-Burmese

population, descended from Western oil workers and their Burmese partners. Approximately 98% of the population is Buddhist.

Transport

The Irrawaddy River is the major transportation system in Magway Region, both in terms of volume of goods and population served. Most major towns in the region are river ports on the Irrawaddy; among them are Magway, Pakokku

Pakokku

, Minbu

Minbu

, Yenangyaung

Yenangyaung

Yenangyaung is a city in Magway Division, Myanmar, on the Irrawaddy River.-History:For centuries, the dominant industry in the area has been petroleum. It began as an indigenous oil industry, with hand-dug wells, and from 1755 onwards, early British soldier-diplomats began to note its existence...

, Chauk

Chauk

Chauk is a town and river port in Magway Division, north-central Myanmar, on the Irrawaddy River. It is located across the river from Seikpyu and is connected by a bridge. In 1902, the Chauk-Lonywa oil field was discovered near Chauk.-Economy:...

, Allanmyo

Allanmyo

Myede also known as Aunglan is a city in Thayet District of the Magway Region of Burma . It is a port on the left bank of the Irrawaddy, across and just north of Thayetmyo, between the cities of Pyay and Magway. It is the administrative seat for Aunglan Township...

, and Thayetmyo

Thayetmyo

Thayet or Thayetmyo is a city in Thayet District of Magway Region in central Burma . It is a port on the right bank of the Irrawaddy River, across and just south of Allanmyo, between Pyay and Magway. Thayet is the administrative seat of both Thayet District and Thayet Township...

.

For those areas not on the Irrawaddy, the major form of transport in Magway Region is by road. The region is divided by the Irrawaddy and on the western side of the river the road system is less developed. Towns are connected with two-lane roads and many parts of the roads are in bad condition. Most towns have regular bus transportation to Rangoon (Yangon) and Mandalay

Mandalay

Mandalay is the second-largest city and the last royal capital of Burma. Located north of Yangon on the east bank of the Irrawaddy River, the city has a population of one million, and is the capital of Mandalay Region ....

.

The Pyay

Pyay

Pyay is a town in the Bago Division in Burma. It has an estimated population of 123,800 . Pyay is positioned on the Ayeyarwady River and is northwest of Yangon....

to Nyaung-U

Nyaung-U

Nyaung-U is the administrative town of Nyaung-U Township of Nyaung-U District in the Mandalay Region of central Myanmar. It lies on the eastern bank of Ayeyarwaddy River. It is just 4 kilometers away from old Bagan, a popular tourist attraction. The Shwezigon Pagoda is located there...

and Myingyan

Myingyan

Myingyan is a city and district in the Mandalay Division of central Myanmar, previously, it was a district in the Meiktila Division of Upper Burma. It is currently the capital of Myingyan Township and lies along the National Highway 2. , the city had a population of 123,700 and the district had...

railway runs through eastern Magway with connections to the capital Naypyidaw

Naypyidaw

Naypyidaw is the capital city of Burma, also known as Myanmar. It is administered as the Naypyidaw Union Territory, as per the 2008 Constitution. On 6 November 2005, the administrative capital of Myanmar was officially moved to a greenfield 3.2 km west of Pyinmana, and approximately...

, Rangoon and Mandalay

Mandalay

. The major stops in Magway on that line are Taungdwingyi

Taungdwingyi

Taungdwingyi is a town of Taungdwingyi Township in Magway District in the Magway Division of Myanmar. People inhabited this area since thousands of years ago and one of the earliest civilization of Myanmar, Beikthano Ancient Pyu City, is located near the town. Territorial area is plane and rice,...

and Natmauk

Natmauk

Natmauk is a town in Magway District, in eastern Magway Region of Burma , on the Yin River. It is the administrative seat of Natmauk Township. Natmauk is famous for being the birthplace and hometown of the Burmese independence hero, Bogyoke Aung San.-Transport:Natmauk is a major stop on the Pyay...

. In addition, there are two rail lines running north from the Irrawaddy port of Pakokku, one to Chaung-U in Sagaing Region and the other to the Myittha River valley

Myittha River

Myittha River is a river of western Burma. It originates in the Chin Hills and flows into the Chindwin River just below the town of Kalewa.-See also:*List of rivers of Burma...

past Myaing

Myaing

Myaing is a town and seat of Myaing Township in the Magway Region of central Burma....

and Kyaw.

The capital Magway has a small non-commercial airport with air traffic for the city of Magway mostly coming in through Bagan Airport at Nyaung U some 113 km to the north along the Irrawaddy. There are commercial airports at Gangaw

Gangaw

Gangaw is a town of Gangaw Township in Gangaw District in the Magway Division in Myanmar. Gangaw is also known as the City of Yaw, a certain region in Myanmar including Gangaw, Tilin, Saw and villages around them...

, Kyauktu, Pakokku

Pakokku

, and Pauk

Pauk

Pauk is a town in Pauk Township, Pakokku District, Magway Division, in northwest Burma . It is the administrative center for Pauk Township. Pauk is located on the western bank of the Kyaw River just above its intersection with the Yaw River....

. , however, none of them have regularly scheduled flights.

Economy

The principal product of Magway Region is petroleum

Petroleum

Petroleum or crude oil is a naturally occurring, flammable liquid consisting of a complex mixture of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights and other liquid organic compounds, that are found in geologic formations beneath the Earth's surface. Petroleum is recovered mostly through oil drilling...

. It produces most of the oil and natural gas

Natural gas

Natural gas is a naturally occurring gas mixture consisting primarily of methane, typically with 0–20% higher hydrocarbons . It is found associated with other hydrocarbon fuel, in coal beds, as methane clathrates, and is an important fuel source and a major feedstock for fertilizers.Most natural...

in Burma. The following oil fields are located in the Magway Region: the Mann, Yenangyaung, Chauk, Kyauk-khwet, Letpando and Ayadaw oil fileds.

In May 2002 Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

agreed to help Myanmar build a 10-megawatt nuclear reactor

Nuclear reactor

A nuclear reactor is a device to initiate and control a sustained nuclear chain reaction. Most commonly they are used for generating electricity and for the propulsion of ships. Usually heat from nuclear fission is passed to a working fluid , which runs through turbines that power either ship's...

and two laboratories in the region. Other industries include cement

Cement

In the most general sense of the word, a cement is a binder, a substance that sets and hardens independently, and can bind other materials together. The word "cement" traces to the Romans, who used the term opus caementicium to describe masonry resembling modern concrete that was made from crushed...

, cotton

Cotton

Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....

weaving

Weaving

Weaving is a method of fabric production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. The other methods are knitting, lace making and felting. The longitudinal threads are called the warp and the lateral threads are the weft or filling...

, and tobacco

Tobacco

Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...

, iron

Iron

Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...

and bronze

Bronze

Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...

. Magway Region produces a large quantity of edible oil as well as petroleum, hence gaining a reputation as the "oil pot of Myanmar".

Agriculture is also important. The major crops are sesamum

Sesamum

Sesamum is a genus of approximately 20 species in the flowering plant family Pedaliaceae. The plants are annual or perennial herbs with edible seeds. The best-known member of the genus is sesame, Sesamum indicum , the source of sesame seeds. The species are primarily African, with some species...

and groundnut

Peanut

The peanut, or groundnut , is a species in the legume or "bean" family , so it is not a nut. The peanut was probably first cultivated in the valleys of Peru. It is an annual herbaceous plant growing tall...

. Other crops grown are rice

Rice

Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...

, millet

Millet

The millets are a group of small-seeded species of cereal crops or grains, widely grown around the world for food and fodder. They do not form a taxonomic group, but rather a functional or agronomic one. Their essential similarities are that they are small-seeded grasses grown in difficult...

, maize

Maize

Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...

, sunflower

Sunflower

Sunflower is an annual plant native to the Americas. It possesses a large inflorescence . The sunflower got its name from its huge, fiery blooms, whose shape and image is often used to depict the sun. The sunflower has a rough, hairy stem, broad, coarsely toothed, rough leaves and circular heads...

, beans and pulses, tobacco

Tobacco

Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...

, toddy

Palm wine

Palm wine also called Palm Toddy also called "Kallu" written in Malayalam and கள்ளு in Tamil or simply Toddy is an alcoholic beverage created from the sap of various species of palm tree such as the palmyra, and coconut palms...

, chili, onions, and potatoes. Famous products of Magway Region include: Thanaka

Thanaka

Thanaka is a yellowish-white cosmetic paste made from ground bark. It is a distinctive feature of Myanmar seen commonly applied to the face and sometimes the arms of women and girls and to a lesser extent men and boys...

(Limonia acidissima) and Phangar (Chebulic myorobalan) fruit.

Magway has almost no tourist industry.

Education

According to official statistics, Magway Region had 3859 schools of which only 70 were high schools. Only about 10% of the division's primary school students reach high school.

AY 2002-2003	Primary	Middle	High
Schools	3605	184	70
Teachers	14,800	3730	1377
Students	428,000	128,000	44,000

Most of 12 colleges and universities in the division are located in Magway and Pakokku

Pakokku

. The University of Medicine, Magway is one of the most selective universities in the country.

Health care

The general state of health care in Myanmar is poor. The military government spends anywhere from 0.5% to 3% of the country's GDP on health care, consistently ranking among the lowest in the world. Although health care is nominally free, in reality, patients have to pay for medicine and treatment, even in public clinics and hospitals. Public hospitals lack many of the basic facilities and equipment. Moreover, the health care infrastructure outside of Yangon

Yangon

Yangon is a former capital of Burma and the capital of Yangon Region . Although the military government has officially relocated the capital to Naypyidaw since March 2006, Yangon, with a population of over four million, continues to be the country's largest city and the most important commercial...

and Mandalay

Mandalay

is extremely poor. In 2003, Magway Region had less than a quarter of hospital beds than Yangon Region with a slightly greater population.

2002–2003	# Hospitals	# Beds
Specialist hospitals	0	0
General hospitals with specialist services	3	550
General hospitals	25	750
Health clinics	36	576
Total	64	1916

Notable sites

Fort Min Hla and Fort Kway Chaung: Two late Konbaung
Konbaung dynasty
The Konbaung Dynasty was the last dynasty that ruled Burma from 1752 to 1885. The dynasty created the second largest empire in Burmese history, and continued the administrative reforms begun by the Toungoo dynasty, laying the foundations of modern state of Burma...

era forts built to resist a British invasion. One is Fort Minhla, situated inside the town of Minhla
Minhla, Magway
Minhla is a town in Thayet District, Magway Region, of central Burma , on the right bank of the Irrawaddy. It is the administrative seat of Minhla Township.-Notes:...

. Fort Kway Chaung is located at opposite bank of Irrawaddy river.

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.