PAKOKKU, a district in the Magwe division of Burma, lying west of the Irrawaddy river and south-west of Mandalay, with the line of the Chin hills as a general boundary on the west. It-has an area of 6,210 sq.m. and a population (1931) of 499,181. The part of the district along the Irrawaddy and Chindwin rivers is alluvial. Beyond this, however, the country rises gradually to the low Shinmadaung and Tangyi ridges, where it is very arid. To the westward there is a rapid drop to the well-watered valley of the Yaw river, and then a rise over broken, dry country before the valley of the Myit-tha river is reached. The principal products are millet, sesamum and sugar produced from toddy-palms in the riverain districts, which also grow rice, grain, peas and beans. Tobacco and vegetables are also produced in some quantity, and maize is grown largely for the sake of the husk, which is used for native cheroot-wrappers, under the name of yawpet. The Yenang yat oil-fields, which produce quantities of petroleum, are in the south of the district, and iron used to be worked in a small way. There are large areas of reserved forests in the west of the district where a good deal of teak is worked out. The cutch—a yellow dye obtained from a small tree in the drier parts of the Yaw country— is particularly esteemed. The heat in May and June is very great,
rising considerably above oo° F in the shade.
The great majority of the population is Burmese, but in the Yaw valley there is a peculiar race called Taungthas, who claim to be quite distinct from both Burmese and Chins.
The headquarters town, Pakokku, stands on the right bank of the Irrawaddy, and has grown into importance since the British occupation. The population in 1931 was 23,115. It is the em porium of the trade of the Chindwin and Yaw river valleys.