Surf Wiki
Save to docs
general/indigenous-peoples-of-southeast-asia

From Surf Wiki (app.surf) — the open knowledge base

Taron people

Ethnic group of Myanmar

Summary

Ethnic group of Myanmar

FieldValue
groupTaron people
population179 (2015){{cite journal
lastNyunt Nyunt Win
titleThe Taron: one of the hidden groups of hill ethnic groups in Myanmar
journalMandalay University Research Journal
volume6
pages1-9
date2015
languageen
urlhttps://meral.edu.mm/record/921/files/The%20Taron%20one%20of%20the%20hidden%20groups%20of%20hill%20ethnic%20groups%20in%20Myanmar.pdf
access-date2023-03-26}}
popplaceMyanmar
relsAnimism, Christianity, Theravada
langsDerung, L2: Rawang, L3: Jingpo, L4: Burmese
relatedDerung, Nu, Rawang

| access-date = 2023-03-26}} The Taron or T’rung ( ) are an ethnic group in the Himalayan foothills of northern Kachin State, Myanmar, whose population is declining to the point where they may disappear entirely. They have been referred to as the "East Asian pygmies". They are allegedly descended from an ethnic group concentrated in China known as Derung who migrated to Burma from Tibet in the 1880s.

Like the Pygmies of Central Africa and the Negritos of Southeast Asia, the Tarons are very small, with an average height of 149 cm for males, and 140 cm for females.

History

The Tarons have received their name from their original homeland, the headwaters of the Taron River (Derong/Dulong). Leaving their original homeland around 200 years ago, the Tarons moved into Burma territory through the Thalalarkha mountain pass. They settled in Kachin State, in the lower Adunlaung River valley in the Naung Mun Township of Putao District. The landscape is dense forests and difficult terrain, with torrential streams and snow-clad mountains that are home to rare wild animals such as the blue sheep and the leaf deer.

In the 1960s, a Burmese research expedition found over 50 pure-blood pygmies, and although cases of congenital iodine deficiency syndrome, intellectual disability, goiter, spasticism and other physical and mental ailments were noted, they felt as though the community would sustain itself.

A 1997 field trip commissioned by the Kachin State Peace and Development Council revealed that only eight individuals of pure Taron stock remained. It makes the Taron one of the most highly endangered human populations in the world today.

Alan Rabinowitz visited their village to learn about the Taron pygmies in the late 1990s,

Culture

Most Tarong, like their neighbouring Rawang, practice Christianity. They previously practised a form of animism, with rites of passage led by a shaman called nam'sa.

References

References

  1. (22 March 2013). "The Uncertain Fate of Myanmar's Little People". myanmarburma.com.
  2. Trost, Wolfgang H.. (2024-02-17). "Almost Gone: The Tarong of Myanmar’s Far North". The Irrawaddy.
  3. (November 17, 2011). "The Moth Presents Alan Rabinowitz: The Last Taron".
  4. "The search for 'Dawi'". canyonsworldwide.com.
Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

indigenous-peoples-of-southeast-asia ethnic-groups-in-myanmar
Want to explore this topic further?

Ask Mako anything about Taron people — get instant answers, deeper analysis, and related topics.

Research with Mako

Free with your Surf account

Content sourced from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This content may have been generated or modified by AI. CloudSurf Software LLC is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of AI-generated content. Always verify important information from primary sources.

Report