Folding-book manuscripts are a type of writing material historically used in Mainland Southeast Asia, particularly in the areas of present-day Myanmar, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia. They are known as ''parabaik'' in Burmese,; . ''samut thai'' in Thai, , 'Thai books'. or ''samut khoi'' in Thai and Lao,, ; lo, ສະໝຸດຂ່ອຍ; '''khoi'' books', for those made with ''khoi'' paper. ''phap sa'' in Northern Thai and Lao,; 'folded mulberry paper', for those made with mulberry paper. and ''kraing'' in Khmer., . The manuscripts are made of a thick paper, usually of the Siamese rough bush (''khoi'' in Thai and Lao) tree or

paper mulberry The paper mulberry (''Broussonetia papyrifera'', syn. ''Morus papyrifera'' L.) is a species of flowering plant in the family Moraceae. It is native to Asia,bamboo Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family. The origin of the word "bamboo" is uncertain, ...

and palm leaves, ''parabaik'' were the main medium for writing and drawing in early modern Burma/

Myanmar 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 Wells explai ...

.Raghavan 1979: 4–14 There are two types of ''parabaik'': historically, black ''parabaik'' () were the main medium of writing while the white ''parabaik'' () were used for paintings and drawings. The extant black ''parabaik'' consist of works of scientific and technical importance like medicine, mathematics, astronomy, astrology, history, social and economic commentary, music, historical ballads, fiction, poetry, etc. The extant white ''parabaik'' show colored drawings of kings and court activities, stories, social customs and manners, houses, dresses, hair styles, ornaments, &c.Raghavan 1979: 6 The majority of

Burmese chronicles The royal chronicles of Myanmar ( my, မြန်မာ ရာဇဝင် ကျမ်းများ ; also known as Burmese chronicles) are detailed and continuous chronicles of the monarchy of Myanmar (Burma). The chronicles were written o ...

were originally written on ''parabaik''.Hla Pe 1985: 37 A 1979 UN study finds that "thousands upon thousands" of rolls of ancient ''parabaik'' were found (usually in monasteries and in homes of private collectors) across the country but the vast majority were not properly maintained.Raghavan 1979: 4–14 Bodleian MS

Thailand

The monk Phra Malai converses with Indra in heaven Wellcome L0030798

The use of ''samut khoi'' in Thailand dates at least to the Ayutthaya period (14th–18th centuries). They were used for secular texts including royal chronicles, legal documents and works of literature, as well as some Buddhist texts, though

palm-leaf manuscript Palm-leaf manuscripts are manuscripts made out of dried palm leaves. Palm leaves were used as writing materials in the Indian subcontinent and in Southeast Asia reportedly dating back to the 5th century BCE. Their use began in South Asia and s ...

s were more commonly used for religious texts. Illustrated folding books were produced for a range of different purposes in Thai Buddhist monasteries and at royal and local courts. They served as handbooks and chanting manuals for Buddhist monks and novices. Producing folding books or sponsoring them was regarded as especially meritorious. They often, therefore, functioned as presentation volumes in honor of the deceased. A commonly reproduced work in the ''samut khoi'' format is the legend of Phra Malai, a Buddhist monk who travelled to heaven and hell. Such manuscripts are often richly illustrated.

Cambodia

The paper used for Khmer books, known as ''kraing'', was made from the bark of the mulberry tree. In what is now known as Cambodia, ''kraing'' literature was stored in pagodas across the country. During the

Cambodian civil war The Cambodian Civil War ( km, សង្គ្រាមស៊ីវិលកម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ) was a civil war in Cambodia fought between the forces of the Communist Party of Kampuchea (known as the Khmer Rouge, supported by North Vi ...

and the subsequent Khmer Rouge regime of the 1960s and 1970s, as many as 80% of the pagodas in Cambodia were destroyed, including their libraries. In Cambodia, only a tiny fraction of the original ''kraing'' of the Khmer Empire have survived.

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