2024 Fiscal Year Annual Research Report
The Making of Modern Siamese-Burmese Boundaries: The Ethnographic Factor
| Project/Area Number |
22K00911
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| Research Institution | Kyoto University |
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Principal Investigator |
C Pavin 京都大学, 東南アジア地域研究研究所, 教授 (40646098)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2022-04-01 – 2025-03-31
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| Keywords | Territorial conflicts / Spatial knowledge / concept of sovereignty / Colonial politics / Thai-Burmese Relations |
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| Outline of Annual Research Achievements |
The research revealed that the Burma-Thailand border was not simply imposed by imperial powers but was the result of complex negotiations rooted in ethnographic practices. British and Siamese surveyors used ethnic classification often inconsistent and politically motivated to draw boundaries that both reflected and reshaped local identities. The study found that ethnic groups were strategically “fixed” to particular geographies in ways that served colonial and state interests, creating zones of ambiguity rather than clear demarcation. These findings challenge conventional narratives of border formation as top-down and purely geopolitical, showing instead how local ethnographic knowledge and on-the-ground encounters significantly influenced the shape and meaning of the modern border.
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