Pyu city-states

Coordinates: 22°28′12″N 95°49′7″E

The Pyu city states (Burmese: ပျူ မြို့ပြ နိုင်ငံများ, simplified

Chinese: 骠国 ; traditional Chinese:驃國 ; pinyin: Biāoguó) Pyu city-states
were a group of city-states that existed from about the 2nd ပျူ မြို့ပြ နိုင်ငံများ
century BCE to the mid-11th century in present-day Upper
Burma (Myanmar). The city-states were founded as part of the c. 2nd century BCE–c. 1050
southward migration by the Tibeto-Burman-speaking Pyu
people, the earliest inhabitants of Burma of whom records are
extant.[2] The thousand-year period, often referred to as the
Pyu millennium, linked the Bronze Age to the beginning of
the classical states period when the Pagan Kingdom emerged
in the late 9th century.

The major Pyu city-states were all located in the three main
irrigated regions of Upper Burma: the Mu River Valley, the
Kyaukse plains and Minbu region, around the confluence of
the Irrawaddy and Chindwin Rivers. Five major walled cities-
Beikthano, Maingmaw, Binnaka, Hanlin, and Sri Ksetra- and
several smaller towns have been excavated throughout the
Irrawaddy River basin. Hanlin, founded in the 1st century
AD, was the largest and most important city until around the
7th or 8th century when it was superseded by Sri Ksetra (near
modern Pyay) at the southern edge of the Pyu Realm. Twice
as large as Halin, Sri Ksetra was eventually the largest and
most influential Pyu centre.[2] Only the city-states of Halin,
Beikthano and Sri Ksetra are designated as UNESCO World
Heritage Sites, where the other sites can be added in the future
for an extension nomination.[3]

The Pyu realm was part of an overland trade route between

China and India. The Pyu culture was heavily influenced by
trade with India, importing Buddhism as well as other cultural,
architectural and political concepts, which would have an
enduring influence on the political organisation and culture of
Burma.[4] The Pyu calendar, based on the Buddhist calendar,
later became the Burmese calendar. The Pyu script, based on
The Pyu realm in the red zone
the Brahmi script, may have been the source of the Burmese
script used to write the Burmese language.[5][6] Capital Sri Ksetra,
Halin,
The millennium-old civilisation came crashing down in the 9th Beikthano,
Pinle,
century when the city-states were destroyed by repeated Binnaka
invasions from the Kingdom of Nanzhao. The Bamar people
set up a garrison town at Bagan (Pagan) at the confluence of Common languages Pyu
the Irrawaddy and Chindwin Rivers. Pyu settlements
Religion Theravada
remained in Upper Burma for the next three centuries but the Buddhism,
Pyu gradually were absorbed into the expanding Pagan Mahayana
Kingdom. The Pyu language still existed until the late 12th Buddhism,
century. By the 13th century, the Pyu had assumed the Tantric
Buddhism
Burman ethnicity. The histories and legends of the Pyu were
also incorporated to those of the Bamar.[4] Government Monarchy

Historical era Classical

Background antiquity
• Earliest Pyu c. 2nd
Based on limited archaeological evidence, it is inferred that the presence in Upper century BCE
earliest cultures existed in Burma as early as 11,000 BCE, Burma
mainly in the central dry zone close to the Irrawaddy. The • Beikthano founded c. 180 BCE
Anyathian, Burma's Stone Age, existed around the same time • Pyu converted to 4th century
as the lower and middle Paleolithic eras in Europe. Three Buddhism
caves located near Taunggyi at the foothills of the Shan Hills • Burmese calendar 22 March
have yielded Neolithic artefacts dated to 10,000–6000 begins 638[1]
BCE.[7] • 2nd Sri Ksetra 25 March 739
Dynasty founded
About 1500 BCE, people in the region were turning copper • Rise of Pagan c. 1050
into bronze, growing rice, and domesticating chickens and Empire
pigs; they were among the first people in the world to do so.
Preceded by Succeeded
By 500 BCE, iron-working settlements emerged in an area by
south of present-day Mandalay. Bronze-decorated coffins and
burial sites filled with earthenware remains have been Prehistory Pagan
of Burma Dynasty
excavated.[8] Archaeological evidence at Samon River Valley
south of Mandalay suggests rice-growing settlements that
traded with China between 500 BCE and 200 CE.[9] Pyu Ancient Cities
In about the 2nd century BCE, the Tibeto-Burman-speaking Pyu UNESCO World Heritage Site
people began to enter the Irrawaddy River Valley from present-day Location Myanmar
Yunnan using the Taping and Shweli Rivers. The original home of
Includes 1 Halin · 2 Beikthano
the Pyu is reconstructed to be Qinghai Lake, which is located in
· 3 Sri Ksetra
the present-day provinces of Qinghai and Gansu.[10] The Pyu, the
earliest inhabitants of Burma of whom records are extant, went on Criteria Cultural: (ii)(iii)(iv)
to found settlements throughout the plains region centred on the Reference 1444 (https://whc.un
confluence of the Irrawaddy and Chindwin Rivers that has been
esco.org/en/list/144
inhabited since the Paleolithic.[2][11] The Pyu realm was longer
4)
than wide, stretching from Sri Ksetra in the south to Halin in the
north, Binnaka and Maingmaw to the east and probably Inscription 2014 (38th Session)
Ayadawkye to the west. The Tang dynasty's records report 18 Pyu Area 5,809 ha (14,350
states, nine of which were walled cities, covering 298 districts.[12] acres)
Buffer zone 6,790 ha (16,800
Archaeology acres)
Coordinates 22°28′12″N
The Pyu were the earliest people in Southeast Asia to welcome in
95°49′7″E
and adapt to Brahmic scripts in order to record their tonal
language, inventing tonal markers. The Pyu shared a type of
urbanism on a wide variety of scales. They had walled spaces with one side sealed by a water tank or a
tank outside of the walls. In late prehistory, the Pyu settled for quite some time in Beikthano in the Yin
River Valley than the Nawin River Valley at Sri Ksetra, because they proved their skills of water control
using irrigation systems depended on their good knowledge of the conditions in each locality and area.
According to Stargardt in “From the Iron Age to early cities at Srikestra and Beikthano, Myanmar” Journal
of Southeast Asian Studies, all the archaeology found a lot of major inscriptions on stone in phy language
survive at Sri Kestra (Pyu), Hanlin and near Pinle (Hmainmaw), and Pagan (Bagan). They have strong
evidence on the people were living in that century between the third-fourth and fifth-sixth centuries CE. All
the record was nominated by World Heritage UNESCO and other historians. In this article, it mentioned
and written also "Pyu" were among the earlies people in Southeast Asia. As Stargardt acknowledges in that
article, "Sri Kestra" contained fields, irrigation canals, water tanks and iron-working sites, as well as
monuments, markets (and elusive habitation areas) both inside and outside walls, all these halls also provide
evidence of a powerful belief system in the elaborate provision of the dead”. In that article, the author adds
upon his research in other's article, they also recorded old photo of founded place which is already
surveyed in nine major burial terraces outside the southern city walls, old Buddhist monuments including
the complex at "Beikthano" city and the queen "Panhtwar" cemetery.[13]

Archaeological surveys have actually so far unearthed 12 walled cities, including five large walled cities,
and several smaller non-fortified settlements, located at or near the three most important irrigated regions of
precolonial Burma: the Mu River Valley in the north, the Kyaukse plains in centre, and the Minbu region in
the south and west of the former two.[14] The city-states were contemporaries of the Kingdom of Funan
(Cambodia) and (perhaps) Champa (southern Vietnam), Dvaravati (Thailand), Tambralinga and Takuapa
near the Kra Isthmus, and Srivijaya (southeast Sumatra). All these statelets foreshadowed the rise of the
"classical kingdoms" of Southeast Asia in the second millennium CE.[15]

Decline of Pyu city-states

It was a long-lasting civilisation that lasted nearly a millennium to the early 9th century until a new group of
"swift horsemen" from the north, the (Mranma) (Burmans) of the Nanzhao Kingdom entered the upper
Irrawaddy valley through a series of raids. According to the Tang Dynasty chronicles, the Nanzhao began
their raids of Upper Burma starting as early as 754[16] or 760.[2] By 763, the Nanzhao king Ko-lo-feng had
conquered the upper Irrawaddy Valley.[17]: 95 Nanzhao raids intensified in the 9th century, with the
Nanzhao raiding in 800–802, and again in 808–809. Finally, according to the Chinese, in 832, the Nanzhao
warriors overran the Pyu country, and took away 3000 Pyu prisoners from Halin.[17]: 105 (In 835, the
Chinese records say the Nanzhao also raided a state, generally identified by some but not universally
accepted to be a Pyu state.)

To be sure, the Pyu and their culture did not disappear just because 3000 of them were taken away. The
size of the Pyu realm and its many walled cities throughout the land indicates a population many times over.
Indeed, no firm indications at Sri Ksetra or at any other Pyu site exist to suggest a violent overthrow. It is
more likely that these raids significantly weakened the Pyu states, enabling the Burmans to move into Pyu
territories.[18] At any rate, evidence shows that the actual pace of Burman migration into the Pyu realm was
gradual. Radiocarbon dating shows that human activity existed until c. 870 at Halin, the subject of the 832
Nanzhao raid.[19] The Burmese chronicles claim the Burmans founded the fortified city of Pagan (Bagan)
in 849 but the oldest radiocarbon dated evidence at Pagan (old walls) points to 980 CE while the main
walls point to circa 1020 CE, just 24 years earlier than the beginning of the reign of Anawrahta, the founder
of Pagan Empire.[20]

At any rate, the Burmans had overtaken the leadership of the Pyu realm by the late 10th century, and went
on to found the Pagan Empire in the middle of the 11th century, unifying the Irrawaddy valley and its
periphery for the first time. Nonetheless, the Pyu had left an indelible mark on Pagan whose Burman rulers
would incorporate the histories and legends of the Pyu as their own. The Burman kings of Pagan claimed
descent from the kings of Sri Ksetra and Tagaung as far back as 850 BCE—a claim dismissed by most
modern scholars.[18][21] Pyu settlements remained in Upper Burma for the next three centuries but the Pyu
gradually were absorbed and assimilated into the expanding Pagan Empire. The Pyu language still existed
until the late 12th century but by the 13th century, the Pyu had assumed the Burman ethnicity and
disappeared into history.[4]

City-states
Of the 12 walled cities excavated thus far, five are the remains of
largest Pyu states: Beikthano, Maingmaw, Binnaka, Halin and Sri
Ksetra.

Beikthano

Pyu realm circa 800 CE, before the Beikthano (Burmese: ဗိဿနိုး [beɪʔθənó]) situated in the irrigated
advent of the Mranma Minbu region (near present-day Taungdwingyi) with direct land
access to the well-watered Kyaukse plains to its northeast, is the
oldest urban site so far discovered and scientifically excavated site.
Its remains—the structures, pottery, artefacts, and human skeletons—date from 200 BCE to 100 CE.
Named after the Hindu god Vishnu, the city may be the first capital of a culturally and perhaps even
politically uniform state in the history of Burma. It was a large fortified settlement, measuring
approximately 300 hectares inside the rectangular (3 km × 1 km (1.86 mi × 0.62 mi)) walls. The walls and
fortifications along it measured 6 metres (20 ft) thick, and are radiocarbon dated to a period between 180
BCE and 610 CE. Like most subsequent cities, the main entrance of the walls led to the palace, which
faced east. Stupas and monastic buildings have also been excavated within the city walls.[14][22]

Maingmaw

Maingmaw (မိုင်းမော [máɪɰ̃ mɔ́]; also Mong Mao (not to be confused with Mong Mao) and
Mongamo), located in the Kyaukse region, was circular in shape, and has tentatively been dated to the first
millennium BCE. It is also called Pinle after the village near its modern site in Myittha Township.[23] At
2.5 km (1.6 mi) in diameter and 222 hectares, Maingmaw is one of the largest ancient cities on the entire
Kyaukse plains. It has two inner enclosure walls, the outer of which is square while the inner one is
circular. The plan of a circle within a square suggest a zodiac sign which represents a view of the heavens
from the perspective of the sun, the manner in which 19th century Mandalay was also conceptualised. At
almost dead centre, a 19th-century temple called Nandawya Paya, which was probably built upon the ruins
of an ancient one. The city is bisected by a canal, thought to be contemporary to the city, though no
scientific dating has confirmed it. Excavations—the first of which was carried out in 1979—have unearthed
many artefacts, including jewellery, silver coins, and funerary urns. Many of the artefacts such as the coins
and funerary urns are virtually identical to those found Beikthano and Binnaka.[14]

Binnaka

Binnaka (ဘိန္နက [bèɪɰ̃ nəka̰]) too was located in the Kyaukse region, and virtually identical to its
neighbour Maingmaw in numerous ways. Its brick structures shared the same floor plan as those found at
Beikthano and other Pyu sites. Excavations have recovered pre-Buddhist artefacts, gold necklaces, precious
stone images of elephants, turtles and lions, distinctive Pyu pottery, terracotta tablets with writing that
strongly resembled the Pyu script, and various kinds of acid-etched onyx beads along with others made of
amber and jade. Also excavated are distinctive silver coins identical to those found at Beikthano and
Binnaka, stone moulds for casting silver and gold ornamental flowers, a gold armlet in association with a
silver bowl that has Pyu writing on it, and funerary urns virtually identical to those found Beikthano and
Binnaka.[14]

Both Maingmaw and Binnaka may have been contemporary of Beikthano. The chronicles, which do not
mention Beikthano at all, do mention the two, though not specifically as Pyu cities. The chronicles state that
the ruler of Binnaka was responsible for the fall of Tagaung, the city identified by the chronicles as the
original home of Burmese speakers.[24] Binnaka was inhabited until about the 19th century, according to a
Konbaung era palm-leaf sittan (record) discovered there.[14]

Halin

Halin or Halingyi (ဟန်လင်းကြီး [həlɪ́ɰ̃ dʑí]), located in the Mu valley,

one of the largest irrigated regions of precolonial Burma, is the
northernmost Pyu city so far discovered. The earliest artefacts of Halin—
city's wooden gates—are radiocarbon dated to 70 CE. The city was
rectangular but with curved corners, and brick-walled. Excavated walls are
approximately 3.2 km (2.0 mi) long on the north–south axis and 1.6 km
(0.99 mi) on the east–west. At 664 hectares, the city was nearly twice the
size of Beikthano. It has four main gates at the cardinal points, and a total of
12 gates, based on the zodiac. A river or canal ran through the city. Traces
of a moat exist on all sides except the south, where it was probably not
needed, as land was dammed there to create reservoirs.

This design of the city influenced the city planning of later Burmese cities Halin
and the Siamese city of Sukhothai. For example, the number of gates and
configuration was also found in subsequent major Burmese capitals such as
the 11th century Pagan and 19th century Mandalay. The city's configuration was also found at other
contemporary cities such as Maingmaw and Beikthano in the Pyu realm and Danyawaddy and Wethali in
Arakan as well as later cities such as Sukhothai, which emerged over a millennium later. Structural remains
of temples at Halin show that the design of city's temples influenced the 11th to 13th century temples at
Pagan. Excavated artefacts point to Halin's Pyu script to be the earliest writing in the Pyu realm (and in
Burma). It was based on an earlier version of the Brahmi script (Mauryan and Guptan). Inscriptions at Sri
Ksetra show a later version of the same script.[25]

Known for the production of salt, a highly prized commodity in the first millennium, Halin was superseded
by Sri Ksetra as the premier Pyu city-state circa 7th century. By the Chinese accounts, Halin remained an
important Pyu centre until the 9th century when the Pyu realm came under repeated attacks from the
Nanzhao Kingdom. The Chinese records state that the city was destroyed by the Nanzhao warriors in 832
CE, with 3000 of its inhabitants taken away. However, radiocarbon dating reveals human activity to about
870 CE, nearly four decades after the reported sack of the city.[25]

Sri Ksetra

Sri Ksetra or Thaye Khittaya (သရေခေတ္တ ရာ [θəjè kʰɪʔtəjà]; lit., "Field of Fortune"[26] or "Field of
Glory"[22]), located 8 km (5.0 mi) southeast of Prome (Pyay) at present-day Hmawza village,[27] was the
last and southernmost Pyu capital. The city was founded between the 5th and 7th centuries,[17]: 62–63, 77
although during two of the recent excavations, January to February 2015 and December 2015 to February
2016, led by Janice Stargardt in Yahanda mound at Sri Ksetra, sherds stamped with Buddhist motifs were
found, dated from c. 340 +/- 30 CE.[28] and Pyu culture cremation burials around 270 +/- 30 CE.[28] Sri
Ksetra likely overtook Halin as the premier Pyu city by the 7th or 8th
century, and retained that status until the Mranma arrived in the 9th century.
The city was home to at least two dynasties, and maybe three. The first
dynasty, called the Vikrama Dynasty, is believed to have launched the Pyu
calendar, which later became the Burmese calendar, on 22 March 638.[2]
The second dynasty was founded by King Duttabaung on 25 March 739
(11th waxing of Tagu 101 ME).[29]

Sri Ksetra is the largest Pyu site discovered thus far. (Only Beikthano and
Sri Ksetra have been extensively excavated. Other important Pyu cities as
Maingmaw and Binnaka could yield more artefacts with more extensive
excavations.) It occupied a larger area than that of the 11th century Pagan or Bawbawgyi Pagoda at Sri
19th century Mandalay. Circular in design, Sri Ksetra was more than 13 km Ksetra, prototype of Pagan-
(8.1 mi) in circumference and three to four km across, or about 1400 era pagodas
hectares of occupied area. The city's brick walls were 4.5 metres (15 ft)
high, and had 12 gates with huge devas (deities) guarding the entrances and
a pagoda at each of the four corners.[29]

It also has curving gateways, such as those found at Halin and

Beikthano. In the centre of the city was what most scholars think
represented the rectangular palace site, 518 by 343 metres (1,699 ft
× 1,125 ft), symbolising both a mandala and a zata (horoscope),
like in Maingmaw.[29] Only the southern half of the city was taken
up by the palace, monasteries and houses; the entire northern half
consisted of rice fields. Together with the moats and walls, this
arrangement ensured that the city could withstand a long siege by
enemies.[30]
Sri Ksetra
Sri Ksetra was an important entrepôt between China and India. It
was located on the Irrawaddy, not far from the sea as the Irrawaddy
delta had not yet been formed. Ships from the Indian Ocean could come up to Prome to trade with the Pyu
realm and China.[26] Trade with India brought deep cultural contacts. Sri Ksetra has yielded the most
extensive remains of Theravada Buddhism. Religious art suggests several distinct occupations with earlier
influences stemming from Southeast India and later influences from Southwest India while 9th century
influences include those from the Nanzhao Kingdom.[29] Much of the Chinese account of the Pyu states
was through Sri Ksetra. Chinese pilgrims Xuanzang in 648 and Yijing in 675 mentioned Sri Ksetra in their
accounts of Buddhist kingdoms of Southeast Asia. The Tang histories mention the arrival at the court of an
embassy from the Pyu capital in 801.[31]

Smaller settlements

The New History of the Tang states the kingdom of Mi-ch'en sent an embassy to China in 805, and was
attacked by Nanchao in 835.[17]: 106

A small but politically significant Pyu site is Tagaung (တကောင်း [dəɡáʊɰ̃ ]) in northern Burma (about
200-km north of Mandalay) where Pyu artefacts including funerary urns have been excavated. Tagaung
pottery is similar in size and cluster positions to other Pyu vessels but is otherwise very different to those
further south. This may indicate a degree of influence from other sources or that it is markedly different
from the central Pyu culture.[32] The significance of Tagaung is due to the fact that the Burmese chronicles
identify Tagaung as the home of the first Burmese kingdom.[33] Aside from Beikthano and Sri Ksetra, most
Pyu sites have not seen extensive or any excavation.[29]
The lost city described as Pinle Pyu (lit. 'Sea Pyu') is recorded as being located next to the sea. Unlike many
other small Pyu sites, the city is speculated to be large in size located downstream from Sri Ksetra. Some
archaeologists believe that ruins near Ingapu, Ayeyarwady Region may be the location of Pinle Pyu. The
complex uses Brahmi script indicating its potential age.[34] However, more evidence and investigation is
required to analyze the ancient artifacts found in the site.[35] Finds from another site nearby include
paleolithic tools and fossilized footprints, indicate that the overall area may be older than other Pyu sites.[36]

Many Pyu settlements have been found across Upper Burma in Myinmu Township, near the mouth of the
Mu river. One notable site is Ayadawkye Ywa in the Mu valley west of Halin lies south of another recently
discovered Bronze Age site called Nyaunggan.[29] Further south in Myingyan Township, west of
Maingmaw, the Wati site (also spelled Wa Tee) is the remnants of a circular walled city.[37]

There were also Pyu settlements in Lower Burma that may have been ignored or overlooked by the
historical records aimed at legitimizing Upper Burmese kings' lineage. The Sagara (Thagara) site in Dawei
is one such site comparable to Tagaung. Archaeological excavations in 2001 revealed several artifacts
including teracotta urns in rice fields southeast of the walled site. Near Sagara, the site of Mokti has also
revealed similar artifacts. The stupa in Sagara and votive tablets found at the site of Mokti are considered to
have many 'Pyu' cultural traits but other artifacts show evidence of many cultural influences.[32]

Economy

Agriculture

The economy of the Pyu city states was based on agriculture and trade. All important Pyu settlements were
located in the three main irrigated regions of Upper Burma, centred on the confluence of the Irrawaddy and
Chindwin rivers: Halin in the Mu valley, Maingmaw and Binnaka in the Kyaukse plains, finally Beikthano
and Sri Ksetra at or near the Minbu district.[25] (The irrigation projects of the Pyu were later picked up by
the Burmans. King Anawrahta of Pagan would build irrigation projects in these three regions in the 1050s
to turn them into the main rice granaries of Upper Burma. They would give Upper Burma an enduring
economic base from which to dominate the Irrawaddy valley and its periphery in the following
centuries.[38]) The Pyu grew rice, perhaps of the Japonica variety.[39]

Trade

The Pyu realm was an important trading centre between China and India in the first millennium CE. Two
main trading routes passed through the Pyu states. As early as 128 BCE, an overland trade route between
China and India existed across the northern Burma. An embassy from the Roman Empire to China passed
through this route in 97 CE and again in 120 CE.[40] But the majority of the trade was conducted by sea
through the southern Pyu states, which at the time were located not far from the sea as much of the
Irrawaddy delta had not yet been formed, and as far south as upper Tenasserim coast towns such as Winga,
Hsindat-Myindat, Sanpannagon and Mudon where Pyu artefacts have been found. (It is insufficient to
conclude however that the Pyu had administrative and military control over these upper Tenasserim coastal
towns.)[41] The ports connected the overland trade route to China via present-day Yunnan.

The trading area of the Pyu states spanned across the present-day Southeast Asia, South Asia and China.
Artifacts from the 2nd century northwest India to Java and the Philippines have been found at
Beikthano.[41] Likewise, Pyu artefacts have been found along the coasts of Arakan, Lower Burma, and as
far east as Óc Eo (in present-day southern Vietnam).[42] The Pyu also conducted trade and diplomatic
relations with China. In 800 and 801–802, Sri Ksetra sent a formal embassy, along with 35 musicians to the
Tang court. According to the Chinese, the Pyu used gold and silver coinage. But only silver coins have
survived.[43]

Currency

A notable feature of the Pyu states is the minting and use of silver coinage. Originated in the Pegu area,
these coins date from the 5th century and were the model for most first millennium coinage in mainland
Southeast Asia. The earliest type of these coins is not inscribed and depicts a conch on one side and a
Srivatsa on the other. Many of the coins had a small hole along the perimeter, and may have also been used
as amulets. Remarkably, after the use of coins ceased at the end of Pyu period in the late 9th century, coins
did not reappear in the Burmese kingdoms until the 19th century.[18]

Culture

Religion

The culture of Pyu city states was heavily influenced by India. Indian
culture was most visible in the southern Pyu realm through which most
trade with India was conducted by sea. The names of southernmost cities
were in Pali or Sanskrit derived like Sri Ksetra (Thaye Khittaya) and
Vishnu (Beikthano). The kings at Sri Ksetra titled themselves as Varmans
and Varma. It was not just a southern phenomenon. To varying degrees,
northern Pyu cities and towns also became under the sway of Indian
culture. The Burmese chronicles claim that the founding kings of Tagaung
were descended from no less than the Sakya clan of the Buddha
himself.[44][45]

By the 4th century, most of the Pyu had become predominantly Buddhist,
though archaeological finds prove that their pre-Buddhist practices
remained firmly entrenched in the following centuries. According to the
excavated texts, as well as the Chinese records, the predominant religion of Avalokiteśvara holding a
the Pyu was Theravada Buddhism. The Theravada school prevalent in the lotus flower. Bihar, 9th
Pyu realm was probably derived from the Andhra region in southeast India, century, CE. The Pyu
associated with the famous Theravada Buddhist scholar, followed a mix of religious
Buddhagosa. [44][45] It was the predominant Theravada school in Burma traditions.
until the late 12th century when Shin Uttarajiva led the realignment with
Ceylon's Mahavihara school.[46]

The archaeological finds also indicate a widespread presence of Tantric Buddhism, Mahayana Buddhism
and Hinduism. Avalokiteśvara (Lokanatha) (called Lawkanat in Burmese; လောကနတ် [lɔ́ka̰ naʔ]), Tara,
Manusi Buddhas, Vaiśravaṇa, and Hayagriva, all prominent in Mahayana Buddhism, were very much part
of Pyu (and later the Pagan) iconography scene. Various Hindu Brahman iconography ranging from the
Hindu trinity, Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, to Garuda and Lakshmi have been found, especially in Lower
Burma.[44]

Non-Theravada practices such as ceremonial cattle sacrifice and alcohol consumption were main stays of
the Pyu life. Likewise, the greater prominence of nuns and female students than in the later eras may point
to pre-Buddhist notions of female autonomy.[47] In melding of their pre-Buddhist practices to Buddhist
ones, they placed the remains of their cremated dead in pottery and stone urns and buried them in or near
isolated stupas, a practice consistent with early Buddhist practices of interring the remains of holy
personages in stupas.[48]

Though their religious beliefs was a syncretic mix of many backgrounds, probably like in the early Pagan
period, the outlook of the Pyu reportedly was largely peaceful. Tang Chinese records describe the Pyu as a
humane and peaceful people to whom war was virtually unknown and who wore silk cotton instead of
actually silk so that they would not have to kill silk worms, and that many Pyu boys entered the monastic
life at seven to the age of 20.[2][49] To be sure, this peaceful description by the Chinese was a snapshot of
the Pyu realm, and may not represent the life in the city-states in general.

Language and script

The Pyu language was a Tibeto-Burman language, related to Old Burmese.

But it apparently co-existed with Sanskrit and Pali as the court language.
The Chinese records state that the 35 musicians that accompanied the Pyu
embassy to the Tang court in 800–802 played music and sang in the Fan
(Sanskrit) language. Many of the important inscriptions were written in
Sanskrit and/or Pali, alongside the Pyu script. Recent scholarship, though
yet not settled, suggests that the Pyu script, based on the Brahmi script, may
have been the source of the Burmese script used to write the Burmese
language.[6] The Pyu sites have yielded a wide variety of Indian scripts
from King Ashoka's edicts written in north Indian Brahmi and Tamil
Brahmi, both dated to the 3rd and 2nd centuries BCE, to the Gupta script
and Kannada script dated to the 4th to 6th centuries CE.[50][51]
The Myazedi inscription c.
1112–1113 in Pyu
Calendar

In addition to religion, the Pyu also imported science and astronomical expertise from India. The Chinese
records also report that the Pyu knew how to make astronomical calculations.[2] The Pyu calendar was
based on the Buddhist calendar. There were two eras in use. The first was the Sakra Era, which was
adopted in the Pyu realm in 80 CE, just two years after the new era had come into use in India. A second
calendar was adopted at Sri Ksetra in 638, superseding the Sakra Era. The calendar, the first day of which
was 22 March 638, later became the Burmese calendar, and is still in use in present-day Myanmar. (The
existence of two Pyu calendars has been cause for dispute among scholars trying interpret the dates on the
finds.)[52]

Architecture

Irrigation structures
The Pyu-era architectural practices greatly influenced later Pagan and Burmese architecture. The techniques
of building dams, canals and weirs found in pre-colonial Upper Burma trace their origins to the Pyu era and
the Pagan era. (Burmans likely introduced new water management methods, especially the canal building
techniques which became the prevailing method of irrigation in the Pagan era.)[39]

City planning

The Pyu city plans, consisted of square/rectangles and circles, were a mix of indigenous and Indian
designs. It is believed that circular patterns inside the cities were Pyu while the rectangle or square shape of
the outer walls and the use of 12 gates were Indian in origin. According to historian Cooler, "the adoption
of Indian concepts of city planning incorporated a belief in the efficacy of the world axis that connects the
centermost point in a properly constructed Mandala city with the city of the Gods above (Tavatimsa
heaven) in order to assure prosperity throughout the kingdom below".[18] Pyu-era city practices were the
forefathers of the latter-day Burmese city and palace designs down to the 19th century Mandalay.[53]

Temple design

From the 4th century onward, the Pyu built many Buddhist stupas
and other religious buildings. The styles, ground plans, even the
brick size and construction techniques of these buildings point to
the Andhra region, particularly Amaravati and Nagarjunakonda in
present-day southeastern India. Some evidence of Ceylonese
contact is seen by the presence of Anuradhapura style
"moonstones" discovered at Beikthano and Halin. By perhaps the Shwezigon Pagoda (built in the 11th
7th century, tall cylindrical stupas such as the Bawbawgyi, Payagyi century) at Pagan, based on earlier
and Payama had emerged at Sri Ksetra.[53] Pyu design

The Pyu architecture greatly influenced later Burmese Buddhist

temple designs. For example, temples at Sri Ksetra such as the Bebe and Lemyethna were prototypes for
the later hollow (gu) temples of Pagan. The floor plan of the 13th century Somingyi Monastery at Pagan
was largely identical to that of a 4th-century monastery at Beikthano. The solid stupas of Sri Ksetra were in
turn prototypes for Pagan's such as the Shwezigon, Shwehsandaw, and Mingalazedi, and ultimately, the
Shwedagon in modern Yangon.[53]

Demography
The city-states were mainly populated by the Tibeto-Burman-speaking Pyu people, who like their cousins
Burmans are believed to have migrated from the present Qinghai and Gansu provinces in north-central
China, via Yunnan.[10][54][55] Extensive external trade attracted sizeable communities of Indians and the
Mon, especially in the south. In the north, trickles of Burmans may have entered the Pyu realm from
Yunnan as early as the 7th century. (Modern scholarship however holds that Burmans did not arrive in large
numbers until the mid-to-late 9th century, and perhaps as late as the 10th century, according to radiocarbon
dating of Pagan's walls.)

The size of population of the Pyu realm was probably a few hundred thousand, given that the 17th and
18th century Burma (about the size of present-day Myanmar) only had about 2 million people.

Administration
The Pyu settlements were ruled by independent chiefs. The chiefs at larger city-states later styled
themselves as kings, and established courts largely modelled after the Indian (Hindu) concepts of
monarchy. Not all Hindu concepts such as divine kingship were fully adopted due to the presence of
Theravada Buddhism. It is not clear if a vassalage-overlord relationship existed between the larger city-
states and smaller towns. The Burmese chronicles mention alliances between the states such as one
between Beikthano and Sri Ksetra. By and large, each Pyu city-state appeared to have controlled just the
city itself.[56]

The large size of the Pyu cities (660 to 1400 hectares) vis-a-vis Pagan (only 140 hectares) suggests that
much of the population resided within the walls, as corroborated by the Chinese records.[57] Archaeology
in Pagan produced Pyu artefacts across a number of the settlements in the enclosed complex dating to the
first millennium, until approximately 1100 C.E. when a shift to a monument-rich state and diffusion beyond
walled boundaries is evident.[58]

Current status of the finds

Aside from Sri Ksetra and Beikthano, the rest of the Pyu sites have not been extensively excavated. The
care of the sites falls under the purview of the Ministry of Culture's Department of Archaeology. In
November 2011, the Department reportedly was planning a museum at Sri Ksetra, and working with the
UNESCO to gain recognition for Sri Ksetra, Beikthano and Halin as World Heritage Sites and the three old
cities were recognised as World Heritage Sites in 2014.[27]

See also
Myanmar portal

History of Burma
Mon city-states
Pagan Dynasty

Notes
1. Aung-Thwin (2005), p. 24
2. Hall 1960: 8–10
3. "Pyu Ancient Cities" (https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1444). Ahc.unesco.org. Archived (https://
web.archive.org/web/20180708103448/http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1444/) from the original
on 8 July 2018. Retrieved 16 January 2018.
4. Myint-U 2006: 51–52
5. Jenny, Mathias (2015). "Foreign Influence in the Burmese Language" (http://www.burmalibra
ry.org/docs21/Language/Jenny-2015-Foreign_influence_in_the_Burmese_language-en.pdf)
(PDF). p. 2. Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20230320133136/https://www.burmalibrar
y.org/docs21/Language/Jenny-2015-Foreign_influence_in_the_Burmese_language-en.pdf)
(PDF) from the original on 20 March 2023. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
6. Aung-Thwin 2005, p. 167–178, 197–200.
7. Cooler 2002: Chapter I: Prehistoric and Animist Periods
8. Myint-U 2006: 45
9. Hudson 2005: 1
10. Moore 2007: 236
11. Aung-Thwin 2005: 16
12. Aung-Thwin 2005: 327
13. Stargardt, Janice (2016). "From the iron age to early cities at Sri Ksetra and Beikthano,
Myanmar" (https://zenodo.org/record/4593811). Southeast Asian Studies. 47 (3): 341–365.
doi:10.1017/S0022463416000230 (https://doi.org/10.1017%2FS0022463416000230).
S2CID 163650897 (https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:163650897).
14. Aung-Thwin 2005: 18–19
15. Aung-Thwin 2005: 25–26
16. Harvey 1925: 13–15
17. Coedès, George (1968). Walter F. Vella (ed.). The Indianized States of Southeast Asia.
trans.Susan Brown Cowing. University of Hawaii Press. ISBN 978-0-8248-0368-1.
18. Cooler 2002: Chapter II The Pre-Pagan Period: The Urban Age of the Mon and the Pyu
19. Aung-Thwin 2005: 36–37
20. Aung-Thwin 2005: 38
21. Hall 1960: 7
22. Aung-Thwin 1996: 77
23. Tin Tin Nyo (26 June 2019). "Study of Pyu Ancient City Maingmaw (Pinle)" (https://meral.ed
u.mm/record/2915/files/Study%20of%20Pyu%20Ancient%20City%20Maingmaw%20%28Pi
nle%29.pdf) (PDF). Myanmar Education Research and Learning Portal. Ministry of
Education. Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20210928231758/https://meral.edu.mm/rec
ord/2915/files/Study%20of%20Pyu%20Ancient%20City%20Maingmaw%20(Pinle).pdf)
(PDF) from the original on 28 September 2021. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
24. Aung-Thwin 2005: 328
25. Aung-Thwin 2005: 21–23
26. Htin Aung 1967: 8
27. Thein, Myanmar Times
28. "Sri Ksetra, Ancient Pyu City - Director Janice Stargardt — Department of Archaeology" (http
s://www.arch.cam.ac.uk/research/projects/sri_ksetra/sri_ksetra). Arch.cam.ac.uk. Archived (h
ttps://web.archive.org/web/20171113222339/https://www.arch.cam.ac.uk/research/projects/s
ri_ksetra/sri_ksetra) from the original on 13 November 2017. Retrieved 16 January 2018.
29. Aung-Thwin 2005: 24–26
30. Htin Aung 1967: 10–11
31. Htin Aung 1967: 20–21
32. Moore, Elizabeth (2011). "The Early Buddhist Archaeology of Myanmar: Tagaung, Thagara
and the Mon-Pyu dichotomy". In McCornick, Patrick; Jenny, Mathias; Baker, Chris (eds.). The
Mon over Two Millennia: Monuments, Manuscripts, Movements. Institute of Asian Studies,
Chulalongkorn University. pp. 7–23.
33. Htin Aung 1967: 7, 16
34. "Ancient Irrawaddy Delta City Believed to be 2,300 Years Old" (https://www.irrawaddy.com/n
ews/burma/106916.html). Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20221120135612/https://ww
w.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/106916.html) from the original on 20 November 2022.
Retrieved 20 November 2022.
35. "Fossil footprints of early humans found in Ingapu ancient city" (https://www.burmeseclassic.
org/news_detail.php?id=3803&type=3). 20 October 2016. Archived (https://web.archive.org/
web/20221120135614/https://www.burmeseclassic.org/news_detail.php?id=3803&type=3)
from the original on 20 November 2022. Retrieved 20 November 2022.
36. "Stone Age objects found in ancient site in Ingapu Township" (https://www.burmeseclassic.o
rg/news_detail.php?id=3985&type=3). 22 December 2016. Archived (https://web.archive.or
g/web/20221120145621/https://www.burmeseclassic.org/news_detail.php?id=3985&type=
3) from the original on 20 November 2022. Retrieved 20 November 2022.
37. Tint Lwin (March 2007). Art and Architecture in Pakhan Gyi During the Monarchical Days (htt
ps://meral.edu.mm/record/594/files/Tint%20Lwin_4Ph.D%20Hist-3.pdf) (PDF) (PhD).
University of Mandalay. Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20221225134844/https://mera
l.edu.mm/record/594/files/Tint%20Lwin_4Ph.D%20Hist-3.pdf) (PDF) from the original on 25
December 2022. Retrieved 25 December 2022.
38. Harvey 1925: 24–25
39. Aung-Thwin 2005: 26–27
40. Htin Aung 1967: 7
41. Aung-Thwin 2005: 29–30
42. Aung-Thwin 2005: 18
43. Htin Aung 1967: 13
44. Aung-Thwin 2005: 31–34
45. Htin Aung 1967: 15–17
46. Harvey 1925: 55–56
47. Lieberman 2003: 116–117
48. Stargardt 1990: 200
49. Htin Aung 1967: 12
50. Aung-Thwin 2005: 35–36
51. Harvey 1925: 4
52. Htin Aung 1967: 18–19
53. Aung-Thwin 2005: pp. 30–31
54. Harvey 1925: 3
55. Hall 1960: 11
56. Htin Aung 1967: 15–16
57. Aung-Thwin 2005: 40
58. Hudson, B.; Nyein, L.; Maung, W. (2001). "The origins of Pagan: new dates and old
inhabitants" (http://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu/bitstream/10125/17144/1/AP-v40n1-48-
74.pdf) (PDF). Asian Perspectives. 40 (1): 48–74. doi:10.1353/asi.2001.0009 (https://doi.org/
10.1353%2Fasi.2001.0009). hdl:10125/17144 (https://hdl.handle.net/10125%2F17144).
S2CID 19161408 (https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:19161408). Archived (https://we
b.archive.org/web/20170814091410/http://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu/bitstream/10125/
17144/1/AP-v40n1-48-74.pdf) (PDF) from the original on 14 August 2017. Retrieved
12 September 2019.

References
Aung-Thwin, Michael (1996). "Kingdom of Pagan". In Gillian Cribbs (ed.). Myanmar Land of
the Spirits. Guernsey: Co & Bear Productions. ISBN 978-0-9527665-0-6.
Aung-Thwin, Michael (2005). The mists of Rāmañña: The Legend that was Lower Burma
(illustrated ed.). Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press. ISBN 9780824828868.
Charney, Michael W. (2006). Powerful Learning: Buddhist Literati and the Throne in Burma's
Last Dynasty, 1752–1885. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan.
 Cooler, Richard M. (2002). "The Art and Culture of Burma" (http://www.seasite.niu.edu/burme
se/cooler/BurmaArt_TOC.htm). Northern Illinois University.
Hall, D.G.E. (1960). Burma (3rd ed.). Hutchinson University Library. ISBN 978-1-4067-3503-
1.
Harvey, G. E. (1925). History of Burma: From the Earliest Times to 10 March 1824. London:
Frank Cass & Co. Ltd.
Htin Aung, Maung (1967). A History of Burma (https://archive.org/details/historyofburma00hti
n). New York and London: Cambridge University Press.
Hudson, Bob (March 2005), "A Pyu Homeland in the Samon Valley: a new theory of the
origins of Myanmar's early urban system" (https://web.archive.org/web/20131126021929/htt
p://acl.arts.usyd.edu.au/~hudson/BH2005Jan.pdf) (PDF), Myanmar Historical Commission
Golden Jubilee International Conference, archived from the original (http://acl.arts.usyd.edu.
au/~hudson/BH2005Jan.pdf) (PDF) on 26 November 2013
Lieberman, Victor B. (2003). Strange Parallels: Southeast Asia in Global Context, c. 800–
1830, volume 1, Integration on the Mainland. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-
80496-7.
Moore, Elizabeth H. (2007). Early Landscapes of Myanmar. Bangkok: River Books.
ISBN 978-974-9863-31-2.
Myint-U, Thant (2006). The River of Lost Footsteps--Histories of Burma. Farrar, Straus and
Giroux. ISBN 978-0-374-16342-6.
Stargardt, Janice (1990). The Ancient Pyu of Burma: Early Pyu cities in a man-made
landscape (illustrated ed.). PACSEA. ISBN 9781873178003.
Thein, Cherry (14 November 2011). "Pyu burial site discovered at Sri Ksetra" (https://web.ar
chive.org/web/20120203192204/http://www.mmtimes.com/2011/news/601/news60108.html).
The Myanmar Times. Archived from the original (http://www.mmtimes.com/2011/news/601/n
ews60108.html) on 3 February 2012.

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pyu_city-states&oldid=1158854510"