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Kawthoolei (S'gaw Karen: ကီၢ်သူလ့ၤ, lit. 'land without darkness'; Burmese: ကော့သူးလေ or ကော်သူးလေ) is the endonym for a proposed state that the Karen nationalists have sought to establish in Myanmar since the beginning of the Karen conflict in the late 1940s.
Kawthoolei corresponds to the territory partially administered by the Karen National Union, which, as of 2017, comprised the Kayin State and parts of the following: Mon State, Tanintharyi Region, Bago Region, and the Ayeyarwady Region.
The name "Kaw-thu-lay" was used by the government of the Union of Burma in the drafting of its 1948 constitution, which made provisions for an autonomous region for the Karenni people.
It is unclear as to why the name Kawthoolei was adopted. Kawthoolei is not the only name used to refer to a Karen country: the Pwo Karen use the phrase "Kan Su Line", meaning literally, "land cool cave". The flag was adopted in 1974.
The precise meaning of Kawthoolei is disputed even by the Karen themselves.
See also
References
- Garbagni, Giulia; Walton, Matthew J. (2020). "Imagining Kawthoolei: Strategies of petitioning for Karen statehood in Burma in the first half of the 20th century". Nations and Nationalism. 26 (3): 759–774. doi:10.1111/nana.12613. ISSN 1469-8129.
- Nyein, Nyein (October 10, 2017). "Central Govt Infringing Administration of KNU Regions, Say Leaders". The Irrawaddy. Retrieved May 9, 2020.
- Leckie, Scott (2010). Housing, Land and Property Rights in Burma: The Current Legal Framework. Displacement Solutions. pp. 1096, 1135, 1136. ISBN 978-2839905787.
- Languages of Security in the Asia-Pacific (March 13, 2014). "Karen – Kawthoolei".
- Crampton, William (1989). The Complete Guide to Flags (p.132). Kingfisher Books. ISBN 0 86272 466 X
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