Kengtawng or Kyaingtaung ( my, ကျိုင်းတောင်း) was a Shan state in what is today

Burma Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

. The capital was the town of Keng Tawng. The state formed the eastern part of

Mongnai State Mongnai, also known as Möngnai, Mone, Mōng Nai or Monē, was a Shan state in what is today Burma. It belonged to the Eastern Division of the Southern Shan States The Shan States (1885–1948) were a collection of minor Shan kingdoms ...

and was separated from it by a mountain range running from north to south averaging in height. Kengtawng was watered by the

Nam Teng River Teng River or Nam Teng is a river of Shan State, eastern Burma. It is a tributary of the Salween River. Course The river has its source in the Shan Hills north of Mongkung and flows roughly eastwards and then southwards past the towns of Kawnl ...

that run through most of the state.Imperial Gazetteer of India, v. 17, p. 405.
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History

Kengtawng was a vassal state or dependency of

. According to legend Keng Tawng was the town of Khun Sam Law, the hero of an ancient

origin myth An origin myth is a myth that describes the origin of some feature of the natural or social world. One type of origin myth is the creation or cosmogonic myth, a story that describes the creation of the world. However, many cultures have st ...

of the

Shan people The Shan people ( shn, တႆး; , my, ရှမ်းလူမျိုး; ), also known as the Tai Long, or Tai Yai are a Tai ethnic group of Southeast Asia. The Shan are the biggest minority of Burma (Myanmar) and primarily live in th ...

. However, the early records of Mongnai State are vague and most of Kengtawng's history is obscure. Late 19th century notorious

usurper A usurper is an illegitimate or controversial claimant to power, often but not always in a monarchy. In other words, one who takes the power of a country, city, or established region for oneself, without any formal or legal right to claim it as ...

and warmonger Twet Nga Lu was born in Kengtawng. He was an unfrocked monk whose ambitions and crafty schemes were at the root of widespread bloodshed and destruction in the region in those times. Twet Nga Lu also caused much desolation in his own native state. According to Sir George Scott:

Rulers

There is no information about the rulers of Kengtawng state.

References

Shan States {{ShanState-geo-stub

History

Rulers

See also

References