A Note on the <i>Sittans</i> of Hanthawadi Province

Abstract

This paper examines the form of the sittans, inquest records of the early Konbaung period and seeks to present a regional characterization of the Hanthawadi province.The sittans ate the statements made by the myothugyis, hereditary headmen in charge of local jurisdictions called myo, in response to the king's interrogations. A sittan contains various information about local administration such as hereditary claim of the myothugyi, the boundary and population of the myo, and the customary revenues and services. Although the sittans have been treated as one of the important sources to reveal the administrative and economic aspects of precolonial society, there is little research which has focused on investigating the form and contents of the sources in detail. For further research relating to the sittans, a study based on the extensive use of these sources with exhaustive scrutiny will be required.Having been ordered an inquiry into the situation of myos and villages by King Badon (Bawdawhpaya, r. 1782-1819), the local headmen submitted the sittans in the years of 1783-84 and 1802-03 respectively. “Sittan of Hanthawaddy thirty-two towns, B. E. -45, -64”, which are preserved in the National Library, Yangon and are available on microfilm from the Toyo Bunko, contains twenty six sittans of twenty two myos of Hanthawadi province in southern Burma. In order to arrange and compare the statements of each sittan, a table which consists of broad nine items was made. The items are A) date and headman's name; B) hereditary claim of the headmen; C) boundary of the myo; D) sources of revenue; E) judicial fees; F) population of the myo; G) history of Hanthawadi thirty two myos; H) situation of Rangoon port; and I) situation of Ranmawadi myoThe form of the Hanthawadi sittans came to be classified largely into two types. One is the sittan whose statements are limited to such items as the date and the headman's name, the headman's claim to office and the boundary and population of the myo. This type of sittan was submitted by fourteen myos which were situated along the river of the Pegu, the Ngamoyeik, or the Hlaing. Also, five of these sittans report that the myos were reorganized with the appointment of the headmen. The other is the sittan which gives details of reckoning the taxes and the additional charges which are the perquisite of the local officials. They also mention that the taxes collected are delivered to Toungoo where the crown granary was placed. This type of sittan was submitted together seven myos which were located near Toungoo in the Sittaung basin. The other five sittans could not be classified clearly into specific types, but among them it has been shown that Hanthawadi myoma (Pegu) and Ranmawadi myo (Arakan) had the role of provincial centers in the region respectively.Supposing that we regard the inquest as the ruler's policy of asserting effective control over the resources of the country, it is found that the myos which were situated along the river of the Pegu, the Ngamoyeik, or the Hlaing had been made little contribution, except manpower, to the financial resources of the state. Reorganizing myos seems to reflect the fact that these myos had been in the process of restoration from the devastation brought by the war preceding the rise of Konbaung Dynasty. On the other, the myos which were located in the Sittaung basin had more contact with Toungoo rather that with Hanthawadi myoma.They may have been little damaged by the war, for their sittans retain detailed descriptions about assessing the customary revenue and additional charges.