Kachin people in the context of "Upper Burma"

Myanmar (Burma) is an ethnically diverse nation with 135 distinct ethnic groups officially recognised by the Burmese government, which are grouped into eight "major national ethnic races" — the Bamar, Kayin, Rakhine, Shan, Mon, Chin, Kachin, and Karenni. The Bamar (Burman) make up approximately 68% of the population, while the remainder belongs to various major and minor ethnic and linguistic groups.

The "major national ethnic races" are grouped primarily according to geographic region rather than ethnolinguistic affiliation. For example, the Shan national race includes 33 ethnic groups that live in Shan State and speak languages in at least four language families. Myanmar's contemporary politics around ethnicity surround treating ethnicity as a minoritising discourse, pitting a "pan-ethnic" national identity against minority groups. Often ethnicity identities in practice are flexible — sometimes as flexible as simply changing clothes — in part due to a lack of religious or ethnic stratification prior to British colonialism.

Jinghpaw (Kachin: Jinghpaw ga, Jìngphòʔ gà, ဈိာင်ဖေါစ်) or Kachin (Burmese: ကချင်ဘာသာ, [kətɕɪ̀ɰ̃ bàðà]) is a Tibeto-Burman language of the Sal branch spoken primarily in Kachin State, Myanmar; Northeast India; and Yunnan, China. The Jinghpaw (or Kachin) peoples, a confederation of several ethnic groups who live in the Kachin Hills, are the primary speakers of Jinghpaw language, numbering approximately 625,000 speakers. The term "Kachin language" may refer to the Jinghpaw language or any of the other languages spoken by the Jinghpaw peoples, such as Lisu, Lashi, Rawang, Zaiwa, Lhawo Vo, and Achang. These languages are from distinct branches of the highest level of the Tibeto-Burman family.

Jinghpaw is written using a modified Latin alphabet; a Burmese alphabet is used by some speakers, but it has largely been phased out. Jinghpaw syllable finals can consist of vowels, nasals, or oral stops.

Bhamo (Burmese: ဗန်းမော်မြို့ ban: mau mrui., also spelt Banmaw), historically known as Man Maw (Shan: မၢၼ်ႈမူဝ်ႇ; Tai Nüa: ᥛᥫᥒᥰ ᥛᥨᥝᥱ) or Hsinkai (Chinese: 新街; pinyin: Xīnjiē) is a city in Kachin State in northern Myanmar, 186 km (116 mi) south of the state capital, (Myitkyina). It is on the Ayeyarwady River. It lies within 65 km (40 mi) of the border with Yunnan Province, China. The population consists primarily of residents Chinese or Shan descent, with Kachin peoples primarily occupying the hills around the town. It is the administrative center of Bhamo District and Bhamo Township.

Indawgyi Lake (Burmese: အင်းတော်ကြီး, MLCTS: ang: dau kri: [ʔɪ́ɰ̃.dɔ̀.d͡ʑí]) is one of the largest inland lakes in Southeast Asia. It is located in Mohnyin Township in the Kachin State of Myanmar. The lake measures 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) east to west, and 24 kilometres (15 mi) north to south. There are over 20 villages around the lake. The predominant ethnic groups living in the surroundings of the lake are the Shan and the Kachin, who mainly practise agriculture. The lake is 546 feet (166 m) above sea level and is the main feature of the Indawgyi Lake Wildlife Sanctuary.

It has a length of 14 miles (23 km), width of seven miles and an area of 100 square miles (260 km). There are 11 village-tracts, 36 villages around the lake; 13 villages are on the bank of the lake.

The Shan States were a collection of Shan (Tai) principalities called möng whose rulers bore the title saopha (sawbwa). The term "Shan States" was first used during the British rule in Burma as a geopolitical designation for certain autonomous areas of Burma, analogous to the princely states of British India. The terms "Siamese Shan States" and "Chinese Shan States" were also used to refer to the Tai principalities in northern Thailand and southern Yunnan, which instead came under the suzerainty of the Kingdom of Siam or Qing dynasty.

Historical mention of the Shan states inside the present-day boundaries of Burma began during the period of the Pagan dynasty; according to the Tai chronicles, the first major Shan State of that era was founded in 1215 at Möng Kawng, followed by Möng Nai in 1223. These were part of the larger Tai migration that founded the Ahom Kingdom in 1229 and the Sukhothai Kingdom in 1253. Shan political power increased after the Mongols overran Pagan in 1287 and the Shans came to dominate many of the northern to eastern areas of Burma—from northwestern Sagaing Division to the present-day Shan Hills. The newly founded Shan States were multi-ethnic states that included a substantial number of other ethnic minorities such as the Chin, Palaung, Lisu, Pa-O, Kachin, Wa, and Burmans.