Khun Borom Rachathirath is the legendary progenitor of the Tai-speaking peoples, considered by the Lao and others to be the father of their race. "Thai peoples" redirects here For the subgroup of the Tai see Thai people The Tai or Tai-Kadai ethnicity refers collectively to the Ethnic The Lao (Lao ລາວ IPA laːw are an ethnic subgroup of Tai/Dai in Southeast Asia.
Mythology
According to the myth of Khun Borom, commonly related among the Lao, people in ancient times were wicked and crude. A great deity destroyed them with a flood, leaving only three worthy chiefs who were preserved in heaven to be the founders and guides for a new race of people. A flood is an overflow of an expanse of water that submerges land a deluge Heaven may refer to the physical heavens the sky or the seemingly endless expanse of the Universe beyond The deity sent the three chiefs back to the earth with a buffalo to help them till the land. Bubalus is a genus of Bovines the English name of which is buffalo The chiefs and the buffalo arrived in the land of Muang Then (believed to be present-day Dien Bien Phu in Vietnam). For the 1992 film see Dien Bien Phu (film. For the 1954 battle see Battle of Dien Bien Phu. Vietnam (ˌviːɛtˈnɑːm Việt Nam) officially Once the land had been prepared for rice cultivation, the buffalo died and a gourd vine grew from his nostril. Rice is a Cereal foodstuff which forms an important part of the diet of many people worldwide and as such it is a staple food for many This article refers to the Dried fruit shell For the alternative country musical group of a similar name see The Gourds. From the gourds on the vine, the new human race emerged- relatively dark-skinned aborigonal peoples emerging from gourds cut open with a hot poker, and the lighter skinned Lao emerging from cuts made with a chisel.
The gods then taught the Tai people how to build houses and cultivate rice. They were instructed in proper rituals and behaviour, and grew prosperous. As their population grew, they needed aid in governing their relations and resolving disputes. The chief god sent his son, Khun Borom, to be the ruler of the Tai people. Khun Borom ruled the Tai people for 25 years, teaching them to use new tools and other arts. After this quarter-century span, Khun Borom divided the Tai kingdom among his seven sons, giving each one of them a portion of the kingdom to rule. The eldest son, Khun Lo, was given the kingdom of Muang Sua- modern day Luang Prabang. Khun Lo was the eldest of the sons of Khun Borom and first of the Lao kings. Muang Sua was the name of Luang Phrabang following its conquest in 698 by a Tai prince Khun Lo, who seized his opportunity when the king of Luang Prabang, or Louangphrabang (Lao ຫລວງພະບາງ, IPA /luaŋ pʰabaːŋ/ is a city located in north central Laos, on the Other sons was given the kingdoms of Siang Khwang, Ayutthaya, Chiang Mai, Sipsong Pan Na (Southern Yunnan, China), Hamsavati (a Mon state in modern-day Myanmar), and an unknown area apparently in north-central Vietnam, sometimes identified with Nghe-an province. The kingdom of Ayutthaya (อาณาจักรอยุธยา was a Thai kingdom that existed from 1351 to 1767 Chiang Mai (in Thai; locally (Kham Muang Jiang Mai also sometimes written as "Chiengmai" is the largest and most culturally significant Administrative subdivisions Xishuangbanna governs 1 County-level city and 2 counties. The Mon ( Mon language: မန် or မည် မွန်လူမျိုး mùn lùmjóʊ Thai: มอญ are an Ethnic group from Burma, officially the Union of Myanmar ( pjìdàunzṵ mjàmmà nàinŋàndɔ̀ is the largest country by geographical area in mainland Southeast Asia. Vietnam (ˌviːɛtˈnɑːm Việt Nam) officially
Scholarship
Some interpreters of the story of Khun Borom believe that it describes Tai-speaking peoples arriving in Southeast Asia from China (mythically identified with heaven, from which the Tai chiefs emerge after the flood). The system of dividing and expanding a kingdom in order to provide for the sons of a ruler agrees in general with the apparent organization and succession practices of ancient Tai village groups, called mueang. Mueang (เมือง Muang ( Lao ເມືອງ Mường () or Mong (Shan were semi-independent city-states or principalities in present-day
Khun Bourom Maharasa dynasty - The great King of the Nan Chao (Ai Lao) Empire Khun Bourom had 9 sons and 7 of them became king in different kingdom in the area of so called "Lamthong": "Khun Lor" ruled Moung Sawa (Sua), (LuangPhrabang, Laos) "Khun Palanh" ruled SipsongPanna, (China) "Khun Chusong" ruled TungKea, (Muang HuaoPhanh to Tonkin, Vietnam) "Khun Saiphong" ruled Lanna, (ChiengMai, Thailand) "Khun Ngua In" ruled Ayuthaya, (Thailand) "Khun Lok khom" ruled Moung Hongsa (Inthaputh), (Shan state, Burma) "Khun ChetCheang" ruled Moung Phuan, (XiengKhouang, Laos)
There were 19 Kings after Khun Loor that ruled Muang Sawa(Sua). The last one was Khun Vaang. After his death, his son who was named "Lang" took the throne and was then named "King Langthirath". After King Langthirath died, his son (Thao Khamphong) was crowned as "King Souvanna Khamphong. " After King Souvanna Khamphong died, his son "Chao Fifah" or "Khamhiao" took the throne. Chao Fifah (Khamhiao) had 6 sons and one of them was "Chao FaNgum". King FaNgum was the creator of the Lan Xang Kingdom during his reign in the 13th century. The Lao kingdom of Lan Xang or Lan Ch'ang ( Pali: Sisattanakhanahut ລ້ານຊ້າງ lâansâang - ລ້ານ "million"
Both King Mengrai of Chiang Mai and U-Thong of Ayutthaya is said to have come from Khum Borom Lao Dynasty. King Mangrai (1239-1311 was the 25th King of Ngoen Yang (r1261-1296 and the first King of Chiang Mai (r King Ramathibodi I (1314 &ndash 1369 was the first king of the kingdom Ayutthaya (now part of Thailand) reigning from 1351 to 1369 The kingdom of Ayutthaya (อาณาจักรอยุธยา was a Thai kingdom that existed from 1351 to 1767
Scholar David K. Wyatt believes that the Khun Borom myth may provide insight into the early history of the Tai people in Southeast Asia. David K Wyatt ( September 21 1937 - November 15 2006) was a highly acclaimed American Historian, working on Southeast Versions of the Khun Borom myth occur as early as 698 CE in Siang Khwang, and identify Tai-speaking kingdoms that would be formally established years later. This may provide an indication of the early degree of geographical spread found in Tai-speaking peoples, and provides a mythological explanation for why modern Tai-speaking peoples are found in such widespread pockets. Linguistic analysis indicates that the division of the early Tai speakers into the language groups that gave rise to modern Thai, Lao and other languages occurred sometime between the 7th and 11th Centuries CE. Thai (th ภาษาไทย, transcription: phasa thai, transliteration:; pʰāːsǎːtʰāj is the national and Lao or Laotian (BGN/PCGN phasa lao IPA: pʰaːsaː laːw is a Tonal Language of the Tai-Kadai language family This split proceeded along geographic lines very similar to the division given in the Khun Borom legend, and left the original area of occupation of the Tai people- in Vietnam, in the vicinity of Dien Bien Phu- occupied by speakers from linguistic groups that may have already diverged earlier in history. For the 1992 film see Dien Bien Phu (film. For the 1954 battle see Battle of Dien Bien Phu.
Sources
- Wyatt, David K., Thailand: A Short History, New Haven (Yale University Press), 2003. David K Wyatt ( September 21 1937 - November 15 2006) was a highly acclaimed American Historian, working on Southeast ISBN 0-300-08475-7
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