Laihka State (), also spelt Legya or Lecha (), was a state in the central division of the Southern

Shan States The Shan States were a collection of minor Shan people, Shan kingdoms called ''mueang, möng'' whose rulers bore the title ''saopha'' (''sawbwa''). In British rule in Burma, British Burma, they were analogous to the princely states of Britis ...

Burma Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...

, with an area of . The general character of the state was hilly and broken, with a mean altitude of a little under . The main rivers were the Nam Teng, an important tributary of the

Salween The Salween is a Southeast Asian river, about long, flowing from the Tibetan Plateau south into the Andaman Sea. The Salween flows primarily within southwest China and eastern Myanmar, with a short section forming the border of Myanmar and Tha ...

, and the Nam Pawn. Laihka, located in the

plain In geography, a plain, commonly known as flatland, is a flat expanse of land that generally does not change much in elevation, and is primarily treeless. Plains occur as lowlands along valleys or at the base of mountains, as coastal plains, and ...

of the Nam Teng, was the capital where the

saopha Saopha (), also spelled Sawbwa, was the title used by hereditary rulers of Shan states in Upper Myanmar. Chaopha and Chao Fa were similar titles used by the hereditary Tai rulers in mainland Southeast Asia and the Ahom kingdom in India. Nam ...

had his palace ''(haw)''. The town of Panglong, where the

Panglong Agreement The Panglong Agreement ( ) was reached in Panglong, Southern Shan State, between the Burmese government under Aung San and the Shan Committee, Kachin Committee, and Chin Committee peoples on 12 February 1947. The anniversary of this agreeme ...

took place, is located close to Laihka.

History

Traditional legends talk about a predecessor kingdom in the area named Hansavadi. Laihka State was founded in 1505 as a state subordinated to

Hsenwi State Hsenwi (; ), also known as Theinni (), was a Shan state in the Northern Shan States in what is today Burma. The capital was Hsenwi town. History Most Tai Yai chronicles begin with the story of two brothers, Khun Lung and Khun Lai, who descend ...

. On the downfall of

King King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...

Thibaw civil war broke out, and reduced the population to a few hundred. In 1901 it had risen again to 25,811. About seven-ninths of the land under cultivation consisted of wet

rice Rice is a cereal grain and in its Domestication, domesticated form is the staple food of over half of the world's population, particularly in Asia and Africa. Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice)—or, much l ...

cultivation. A certain amount of upland rice was also cultivated, and

cotton Cotton (), first recorded in ancient India, is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure ...

sugarcane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fib ...

and

garden A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate bot ...

produce made up the rest. Laihka, the capital, was noted for its

iron Iron is a chemical element; it has symbol Fe () and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, forming much of Earth's o ...

work, both the iron and the implements made being produced at Pang Long in the west of the state. This and

lacquerware Lacquerware are objects decoratively covered with lacquer. Lacquerware includes small or large containers, tableware, a variety of small objects carried by people, and larger objects such as furniture and even coffins painted with lacquer. Before ...

were the chief exports, as also a considerable amount of

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other raw materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. The place where such wares are made by a ''potter'' is al ...

. The imports were chiefly cotton piece-goods and

salt In common usage, salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl). When used in food, especially in granulated form, it is more formally called table salt. In the form of a natural crystalline mineral, salt is also known as r ...

Rulers

The rulers bore the title Myosa until mid nineteenth century.

Myosas

*1734 - 1794 Khun Lek *1794 - 1803 Law Na *1803 - 1807 La Hkam *1807 - 18.. Hkun Lek

Saophas

The ritual style was ''Kambawsa Rahta Mahawunths Thiri Thudamaraza''. The saopha start at 1505 the first Sao Khua Hpa and in 1542 the linege of him is vacant Sao Hkun Möng (Hso Han Hpa) the saopha of

Hsipaw Hsipaw (; Tai Nuea: ᥔᥤᥴ ᥙᥨᥝᥳ), also known as Thibaw (), is the principal town of Hsipaw Township in Shan State, Myanmar on the banks of the Duthawadi River. It is north-east of Mandalay. Hsipaw contains 11 wards, including Sout ...

send his son Hkun Naw to be the saopha here * 1505–1542 Sao Khua Hpa * 1542–1567 Hso Naw Hpa * 1567–1609 Hso Haum Hpa * 1609–1628 Hso Kyaw Hpa * 1628–1650 Hso Kawn Hpa * 1674–1680 Hso Yat Hpa (Sao Ne Ya) * 1680–1683 The wife of Sao Ne Ya (female), whose name is unknown – Because Sao Ne Ya left no children, his wife succeeded him and reigned for three years until her death. * 1683–1697 Hso Hkai Hpa * 1697–1720 Hso Ko Hpa * 1720–1735 Hso Kluen Hpa * 1735–1745 Hso Serk Hpa * 1745–1771 Hso Bu Hpa * 1771–1794 Hso Pen Hpa * 1794–1803 Hkun Law Na * 1803–1807 Sao Hla Hkam * 1807–1854 Hkun Lek Hpa * 1854–1856 Phu Hkam Kyaw * 1856–1860 Hkun Long Hpa * 1860–1862 Hkun Mawng Hpa (1st time) * 1862–1866 Hkun Hkawt Hpa * 1866–1868 The youngest sister of Hkun Hkawt (female), whose name is unknown – She was also one of Queens consort of Burma, because the monarch of Burma had many wives. When Hkun Hkawt died in 1866, she was appointed as ruler of Laihka and governed the State for two years. * 1868–1879 Hkun Mawng Hpa (2nd time) * 1879–1882 Vacant * 1882–1928 Hkun Lai * 1928–1952 Sao Num

References

External links

"Gazetteer of Upper Burma and the Shan states"
Shan States 1505 establishments in Asia {{Burma-geo-stub