Bago Division Travel Package Tours, Myanmar Tour Information Hotel Guide

BAGO DIVISION OVERVIEW

Geography	Demographics	Telephone
Capital: Bago Location: Lower Area: 39,404 km2	Population: 5,014,000 Density: 127/ km2 Ethnicities: Bamar, Kayin, Anglo-Burmese, Mon, Shan, Indians, Chinese	Calling code
Town and Districts
Bago, Pyay, Thayawady ,Taungoo

General Information

The Ayeyarwady Division is a division of Myanmar, occupying the delta region of the Ayeyarwady River (formerly the Irrawaddy River). It is bordered by Bago Division to the north, Bago Division and Yangon Division to the east, and the Bay of Bengal to the south and west. It is contiguous with the Rakhine State in the northwest.
The division lies between north latitude 15o40' and 18o030' approximately and between cast longitude 94o15' and 96o15'. It has an area of 13,566 sq-miles. The population is over 6.5 million, making it the most populous of Myanmar's states and divisions. The average population density per sq mile is 466 persons.
The Ayeyarwady Division is flanked by the Rakhine Yoma (Arakan Mountains) range in the west and large areas were cleared for paddy cultivation, leading to its preeminent position as the main rice producer in the country, a position it has retained into the twenty-first century.
The Chaungtha Beach and Ngwesaung Beach are popular resorts for both foreigners and Myanmar people. They are located in west side of Ayewarwaddy Division, one hours distance from Pathein city and four hours from Yangon city by road transportation.

History
According to legend, two Mon princess from Thaton founded Bago in 573 AD. It was written in the chronicles that eight years after enlightenment, Lord Buddha along with his disciples went air-borne around Southeast Asian countries. On his return journey while crossing the Gulf of Martaban, which happened to be at low tide, he saw two golden shell-drakes sitting, female on top of male, on a peak of land protruding out of sea just enough for abird's perch. On thestrange phenomena he predicted to his disciples that one day a country where his doctrine would thrive would come into existence in this vast sea area. Mons were the first and forever rulers of this country known in history as Hongsawatoi (Pali Hamsavati) approximately 1500 years after the prediction. That part of the se when it was silted up and ready for habitation was colonized by Mons from Thaton Kingdom.
The earliest mention of this city in history is by the Arab geographer Ibn Khudadhbin around 850 AD. At the time, the Mon capital had shifted to Thaton. The area came under rule of the Burmese from Bagan in 1056. After the collapse of Bagan to the Mongols in 1287, the Mon regained their independence.
In Lower Burma, a Mon dynasty established itself first at Martaban and then at Pegu. During the reign of king Rajadhirat (1383�1421) Ava and Pegu were involved in continuous warfare. The peaceful reign of Queen Ba�a Thau (Burmese: Shin Saw Bu; 1453-72) came to an end when she chose the Buddhist monk Dhammazedi (1472-92) to succeed her. Under Dhammazedi Pegu became a centre of commerce and Theravada Buddhism.
From 1369-1539, Hanthawaddy was the capital of the Mon Kingdom of Ramanadesa, which covered all of what is now lower Myanmar. The area came under Burman control again in 1539, when it was annexed by King Tabinshweti to his Kingdom of Taungoo. The kings of Taungoo made Bago their royal capital from 1539-1599 and again in 1613-1634, and used it as a base for repeated invasions of Siam. As a major seaport, the city was frequently visited by Europeans, who commented on its magnificence.　The Burmese capital relocated to Ava in 1634. In 1740, the Mon revolted and briefly regained their independence, but Burmese King Alaungpaya sacked and completely destroyed the city (along with Mon independence) in 1757.
Bago was rebuilt by King Bodawpaya (1782-1819), but by then the river had shifted course, cutting the city off from the sea. It never regained its previous importance. After the Second Anglo-Burmese War, the British annexed Bago in 1852. In 1862, the province of British Burma was formed, and the capital moved to Yangon. The name Bago is spelt peh kou literally. The substantial differences between the colloquial and literary pronunciations, as in with Burmese words, was a reason of the British corruption "Pegu".