Michael Arthur Aung-Thwin (1946 – August 14, 2021; ) was a Burmese American historian and emeritus professor at the

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa The University of Hawaii at Mānoa is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Honolulu, Hawaii, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Hawaiʻi system and houses the main offic ...

, specializing in early Southeast Asian and

Burmese history The history of Myanmar ( ) covers the period from the time of first-known human settlements 13,000 years ago to the present day. The earliest inhabitants of recorded history were a Tibeto-Burman-speaking people who established the Pyu city-sta ...

Early life and education

Aung-Thwin was born in

Rangoon Yangon, formerly romanized as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar. Yangon was the List of capitals of Myanmar, capital of Myanmar until 2005 and served as such until 2006, when the State Peace and Dev ...

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 ...

(now Yangon, Myanmar) in 1946. Aung-Thwin's mother, Margaret Hope Aung-Thwin, of mixed

Anglo-Burmese The Anglo-Burmese people, also known as the Anglo-Burmans, are a community of Eurasians of Burmese and European descent; they emerged as a distinct community through mixed relationships (sometimes permanent, sometimes temporary) between the B ...

, Karen, and Arakanese descent, was a

Fulbright scholar The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States cultural exchange programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the peopl ...

and lecturer. He attended Kodaikanal International School in South India, where his mother taught. He earned a bachelor of arts degree at

Doane College Doane University is a private university in Crete, Nebraska. It has additional campuses in Lincoln and Omaha. Established in 1872, Doane is the oldest private university in the state of Nebraska. History Doane College was founded on July 11, ...

in 1969, followed by a master of arts degree at

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United ...

in 1971, and a PhD at the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

Academic career

Aung-Thwin held academic posts at

Elmira College Elmira College is a private college in Elmira, New York, United States. Founded as a Timeline of women's colleges in the United States#First and oldest, college for women in 1855, it is the oldest existing college granting degrees to women that ...

Kyoto University , or , is a National university, national research university in Kyoto, Japan. Founded in 1897, it is one of the former Imperial Universities and the second oldest university in Japan. The university has ten undergraduate faculties, eighteen gra ...

Northern Illinois University Northern Illinois University (NIU) is a public research university in DeKalb, Illinois, United States. It was founded as "Northern Illinois State Normal School" in 1895 by Illinois Governor John P. Altgeld, initially to provide the state with c ...

, the

National University of Singapore The National University of Singapore (NUS) is a national university, national Public university, public research university in Singapore. It was officially established in 1980 by the merging of the University of Singapore and Nanyang University ...

(NUS), and the University of Hawaii-Manoa. He served as the Director of the Center for Southeast Asian Studies, Northern Illinois University. In 2018, he was awarded the George E. Bogaars endowed professorship at NUS.

Death

Aung-Thwin died at his home in Hawaii on August 14, 2021, after a long illness.

Publications

*''Pagan: The Origins of Modern Burma'' (1985) *''Myth & history in the historiography of early Burma'' (1998) *''The Mists of Ramanna: The Legend that was Lower Burma'' (2005) *''A History of Myanmar Since Ancient Times: Traditions and Transformations'' (2013) *''Myanmar in the Fifteenth Century: A Tale of Two Kingdoms'' (2017)

Personal life

Aung-Thwin was married to Maria, and had two children, Maitrii and Amita. Maitrii Aung-Thwin is a Burmese American historian and professor at NUS.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aung-Thwin, Michael 1946 births 2021 deaths 20th-century Burmese historians 21st-century Burmese historians 20th-century Burmese writers Burmese emigrants to the United States University of Michigan alumni Doane University alumni University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa faculty People from Yangon Historians of Southeast Asia Burmese studies scholars University of Illinois College of Liberal Arts and Sciences alumni