Why we call it Myanmar

Britain conquered the land east of India in three waves. This area was divided into principalities and ruled by kings and chiefs. The British united the area under one name, Burma name for the majority tribe the Bama. But many other ethnicities live in this area. And despite an early democracy, they have not been so keen to be part of a union. Even today some of the ethnicities have their own militia. Even today some continue to fight for separation. Since independence, retaining the union is the greatest challenge governments have faced. That’s why the military government changed the name of the country to Myanmar. It is meant to represent all ethnicities who live there, not just the majority Bama.
Myanmar was the name of a 10th century kingdom ruled from Bagan.

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