SIIAN. The Shan, or Tai, or Thai, as they call themselves, are the most extensively diffused, and probably the most numerous, of the Indo-Chinese 111CC8. Their tribes and clans are distributed from lat. 25f° N. to the Gulf of Siam, in lat. 13f N., in the valleys of the 3Iunipur river, the Kyendwen river, the Irawadi, the Salwiti, and the tributaries of the Menam. Thai is the native name of the Siamese, and their chief divisions are Laos, Shan, Ahem, and Kliamti. The race swarm in many tribes over the countries stretching from the valleys between China and Tibet on the north, to the Gulf of Siam in the south. They occupy all the territories between the Irawadi and the mountains of Annatn, and if united would form a most formidable state in Eastern Asia.
Lapping the Burmese round, frotn N.W.. by N. and E. to S.W., from Assam and the Brahma putra to the Gulf of Sian), they are found from the borders of Manipur to the heart of Yunnan, and hem the valley of Assam to Bankok and Kamboja, everywhere Buddhist, everywhere to some extent civilised, and everywhere speaking the same language with little variation. Their traditions, as also those of Siam, speak of a great kingdom held by tbis race in the north of the present Burmese empire, but the race is now split into a great number of unconnected principalities, and the kingdom of Siam is now perhaps the only independent Shan State in existence. All the others aro subject or tributary to British India. Ava, China, or Cochin -China. In lat. 214“ to 25f° north-east of the Kalcliyen, the Shan tribe occupy the left bank of the Nam Kathe or Munipur river, between the 2341 and 24th degree of north latitude, south of the Kathe or Moi tai tribe, and west of the Kubo valley ; also, near Bamo on the right bank of the Irawadi, with the Kakhyen on the north and on the east, mixed up with the Pwo and with the Kadu on the south. Shan States are extensive at the forks of the rivers which in lat. 18° N. form the sources of the Menton river; and in lat. 15° N., and between
long. 99° and 100° E., they dwell in the moun tains on which grow the sappan-wood forests. The Shan, who are tributary to .tbe Bunnese empire, consist of twelve petty states, the heredit ary chiefs of which, called Tsawbwa, hold from Mandalay. Of the twelve states, seven are on the west and five on the east of the Salwin. Mobye and Mohmo, the states nearest to the Red Karen, pay tribute to them. The other states are named Nyung -yu -we, Myelat, Mone, Lem, Theinne, Mormeit, and Thung-bain Kaiugma Maing-maing, Maingleng-gye. Kiang-hung, Kiang tang, and Kiang-khen. The Shan are caned Kabir in the Munipur language.
The Shan country is the Laos of geographers. Leaving out of view the intruding and partially interspread Shan or Lau tribes, the Burmans march on the north with rude tribes of their own fatnily, collectively termed Singplio (properly Sing Phol), who occupy the Upper Irawadi. On the extreme north, the linguistic boundaries of the Singpho are unknown. It is possible that they march with the Khampa or ruder Tibetans of the S.E., unless the snowy mountains which there form the watershed between the Irawadi and the Tsang-po cut them off, as is more probable, from all intercourse with their northern neighbours. The Shan or Tai, the powerful Siamese, on the extreme south-east, are the youngest, but the most powerful, member of the Shan family. They trace their origin to an offshoot from the Laos, whom they formerly denominated Great Tai, while they called themselves Little Tai. They were originally tributary to Cambodia, but became independent in A.D. 1350.
About the 13th century, the Lan were a power ful and conquering people in the upper portion of the basin of the Irawadi, where their capital WAR at Mo-gaung (Iluang-gaung or 3Iung Khoug), and whence, in A.D. 1224, they sent an expedition which subjugated Assam and established Ahour rule. Their native country was a portion of the basins of the Mei-kong and the Menain, including Yunnan.