Pagan Kingdom

A medieval Burmese kingdom centered at Pagan (Bagan), flourishing from the ninth to thirteenth centuries. Its rulers consolidated much of the Irrawaddy basin and sponsored a lasting Buddhist temple culture.

Pyu city-states: Early urban polities in central Myanmar, known for walled cities, irrigation, and Buddhist communities. Their cities and institutions preceded Pagan’s rise in the Irrawaddy basin.
Theravada Buddhism: A Buddhist tradition emphasizing the Pali canon, monastic discipline, and the path to liberation. It became the kingdom’s dominant religious tradition and shaped royal patronage.
Ananda Temple: A major Buddhist temple at Bagan, built during the reign of Kyanzittha in the late eleventh century. Its design and sculpture show the scale of royal Buddhist patronage at Pagan.
Burmese language: A Sino-Tibetan language spoken primarily in Myanmar and written in the Burmese script. Pagan-era use of Burmese helped establish the language’s place in public inscriptions.
Anawrahta: A Pagan king who ruled from 1044 to 1077 and expanded the kingdom across much of central Myanmar. His conquests and religious policies marked Pagan’s transformation into a major power.
Pali: A Middle Indo-Aryan language in which the Theravada Buddhist canon is preserved. Pali texts and inscriptions connected Pagan’s religious life to wider Theravada traditions.
Dhammayangyi Temple: A large Buddhist temple at Bagan, constructed in the twelfth century under King Narathu. Its massive brick structure stands out among Pagan’s surviving monuments.
Burmese script: The writing system used for Burmese and several other languages of Myanmar. Its early development is visible in inscriptions produced under Pagan rulers.
Thaton Kingdom: A Mon polity in Lower Myanmar traditionally associated with the spread of Theravada Buddhism to Pagan. Accounts of Pagan’s expansion connect its conquest of Thaton with religious and cultural exchange.
Old Burmese: The earliest attested stage of the Burmese language, documented in inscriptions from the Pagan period. Pagan-era inscriptions reveal the growth of Burmese as a language of administration and religious record.

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