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The Rohingya( Bangali ) (Template:Lang-my) are a Muslim people who live in the Arakan region.

Etymology

The origin of the term "Rohingya" is disputed. Some Rohingya historians like Khalilur Rahman contended that the term Rohingya is derived from Arabic word 'Raham' meaning sympathy. They trace the term back to the ship wreck in 8th century AD. According to them, after the Arab ship wrecked near Ramree Island, Arab traders were ordered to be executed by Arakanese king. Then, they shouted in their language, 'Raham'. Hence, these people were called 'Raham'. Gradually it changed from Raham to Rhohang and finally to Rohingyas. However, the claim was refuted by Jahiruddin Ahmed and Nazir Ahmed, former president and Secretary of Arakan Muslim Conference respectively. They argued that ship wrecked Muslims are currently called 'Thambu Kya' Muslims and currently residing along the Arakan sea shore. Should the term Rohingya derive from these Muslims, "Thambu Kyas" would have been the first group to be known as Ruhaingyas. According to them, Rohingyas were descendants of inhabitants of Ruha in Afganistan. Another historian, MA Chowdhury argued that among the Muslim populations, the term 'Mrohaung' (Old Arakanese Kingdom) is corrupted to Rohang. And thus inhabitants of the region are called Rohingya. These claims are categorically rejected by Burmese historians.

Burmese historians like Khin Maung Saw asserted that the term Rohingya has never appeared in history before 1950s. According to another historian, Dr. Maung Maung, there is no such word as Rohingya in 1824 census survey conducted by the British. Historian Aye Chan from Kanda University of International Studies noted that the term Rohingya was created by descendants of Bengalis in 1950s who migrated into Arakan during colonial area. He further argued that the term cannot be found in any historical source in any language before 1950s. However, he stated that it does not mean Muslim communities have not existed in Arakan before 1824.

Language

The Rohingya language is the modern written language of the Rohingya people of Arakan (Rakhine) State of Burma (Myanmar). It is linguistically similar to the Chittagonian language spoken in the southernmost part of Bangladesh bordering Burma. Rohingya scholars have successfully written the Rohingya language in different scripts such as Arabic, Hanafi, Urdu, Roman and Burmese, where Hanifi is a newly developed alphabet derived from Arabic with the addition of four characters from Latin and Burmese.

More recently, a Latin alphabet has been developed, using all 26 English letters A to Z and two additional Latin letters Ç (for retroflex R) and Ñ (for nasal sound). To accurately represent Rohingya phonology, it also uses five accented vowels (áéíóú). It has been recognized by ISO with ISO 639-3 "rhg" code.

History

Although Muslim settlements have existed in Arakan since the arrival of Arabs there in the 8th century AD, there is no clear connection between these early Arabs and the Rohingya, especially since the Rohingya are in many ways more Bengali. The direct descendants of Arab settlers live in central Arakan near Mrauk-U and Kyauktaw townships, not in the Mayu Frontier Area, the present day Rohingya populated area.

The British census of 1891 reported 58,255 Muslims in Arakan. By 1911, the Muslim population had increased to 178,647. The waves of immigration were primary due to the requirement of cheap labor from the British India to work at the paddy fields. Exactly why these increases in Muslim population are assumed to be the result of migration and not conversion of people in Arakan is an issue that Burmese historians seem to ignore more than address.

In 1939, The British authorities, who were wary of the long term animosity between the Rakhine Buddhists and the Rohingya Muslims, formed a special Investigation Commission led by James Ester and U Tin Htut to study the issue of Muslim immigration into the Rakhine state. The commission recommended securing the border, however, with the onset of World War II, the British retreated from Arakan.

World War 2 Japanese Occupation

On 28 March 1942, some thousands of Muslims (about 5,000) in Minbya and Mrohaung Townships were killed by Rakhine nationalists and Karenni. On the other side, the Muslims from Northern Rakhine State massacred around 20,000 Arakanese including the Deputy Commissioner U Kyaw Khaing who was killed while trying to settle the dispute.

During World War II, Japanese forces invaded Burma, then under British colonial rule. The British forces retreated and in the power vacuum left behind, considerable violence erupted. This included communal violence between Buddhist Rakhine and Muslim Rohingya villagers. The period also witnessed violence between groups loyal to the British and Burmese nationalists. The Rohingya supported the Allies during the war and oppose the Japanese forces, assisting the Allies in reconnaissance.

The Japanese committed atrocities toward thousands of Rohingya, the Japanese engaged in an orgy of rape, murder and torture. In this period, some 22,000 Rohingya are believed to have crossed the border into Bengal, then part of British India, to escape the violence.

40,000 Rohingya eventually fled to Chittagong after repeated massacres by the Burmese and Japanese forces.

2012 Rohingya riots

2012 Rohingya riots are a series of ongoing riots, arson and murders perpetrated by groups of Rohingya in northern Rakhine State, Myanmar. Although the riots came after weeks of sectarian disputes between ethnic Rakhine and Burmese Muslims, most Burmese Muslims have condemned the riots.

The immediate cause of the riots is unclear. The commonly cited reason is the killing of ten Burmese Muslims by ethnic Rakhine in response to rape and murder of a Rakhine woman. As of June 09, over three hundred houses and a number of public buildings have been razed with casualty figures ranging from 7 to 30. The government has responded by imposing curfews and by deploying troops in the regions. On June 10, state of emergency was declared in Rakhine, allowing military to take over administrative control of the region.

Religion

Religion is particularly important to the Rohingya people, who are predominantly Muslims. Mosques and religious schools occupy most villages. Traditionally, men pray in congregation and women pray at home.

See also

• Persecution of Muslims in Burma
• Islam in Burma
• Human rights in Burma
• Burmese Indians
• Muslims of Manipur
• Rohingya massacre

Notes

1. ^ (MA Chowdhury 1995, pp. 7–8)
2. (Khin Maung Saw 1993, pp. 93)
3. (Khin Maung Saw 1993, p. 90)
4. Dr. Aye Kyaw. "A Historian Looks at Rohingya". The Irrawaddy. Retrieved November 1, 2011.
5. (Aye Chan 2005, p. 396)
6. ISO 639 Code Tables - SIL International
7. (Aye Chan 2005, p. 397)
8. (Aye Chan 2005, p. 401)
9. ^ Kyaw Zan Tha, MA (2008). "Background of Rohingya Problem": 1. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
10. Kurt Jonassohn (1999). Genocide and gross human rights violations: in comparative perspective. Transaction Publishers. p. 263. ISBN 0765804174. Retrieved 12 April 2011.
11. Howard Adelman (2008). Protracted displacement in Asia: no place to call home. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. p. 86. ISBN 0754672387. Retrieved 12 April 2011.
12. Human Rights Watch (Organization) (2000). Burma/Bangladesh: Burmese refugees in Bangladesh: still no durable solution. Human Rights Watch. p. 6. Retrieved 12 April 2011.
13. Asian profile, Volume 21. Asian Research Service. 1993. p. 312. Retrieved 12 April 2011.
14. "Four killed as Rohingya Muslims riot in Myanmar: government". Reuters. June 08, 2012. Retrieved June 09, 2012. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
15. "Myanmar: Calm restored after rioting that killed 7". Associated Press. June 09, 2012. Retrieved June 09, 2012. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
16. "Dozens killed, hundreds of buildings burnt down by Bengali Rohingya mobs in border town of Maungdaw". Eleven Media Group. June 9, 2012. Retrieved June 09, 2012. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
17. Keane, Fergal (2012-06-11). "Old tensions bubble in Burma". BBC News Online. Retrieved 2012-06-11.

References

• Khin Maung Saw (1993). "Khin Maung Saw on Rohingya" (PDF). {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help); Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
• MA Chowdhury (1995). The advent of Islam in Arakan and the Rohingyas (PDF). Chittagong University. Arakan Historical Society. Retrieved October 31, 2011. {{cite conference}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
• Aye Chan (2005). "The Development of a Muslim Enclave in Arakan (Rakhine) State of Burma (Myanmar)" (PDF). SOAS. Retrieved November 1, 2011. {{cite web}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• "Myanmar, The Rohingya Minority: Fundamental Rights Denied". Amnesty International. Retrieved August 2005. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
• Amnesty International (English)
• The Burmanization of Myanmar's Muslims, the acculturation of the Muslims in Burma including Arakan, Jean A. Berlie, White Lotus Press editor, Bangkok, Thailand, published in 2008. ISBN 9744801263, 9789744801265.

External links

• The Muslim “Rohingya” of Burma by Martin Smith 1995 Arakan Rohingya National Organisation

• Articles with multiple maintenance issues from December 2011
• Ethnic groups in Burma
• Indo-Aryan peoples
• Languages of Bangladesh
• Muslim communities
• Ethnic groups in Pakistan
• Ethnic groups in Bangladesh
• Statelessness