4th January: Myanmar (Burma) Independence Day

Myanmar gained independence from the UK on this date in 1948. Here are some facts you may not know about the country:

1. The country's official full name is the "Republic of the Union of Myanmar", but since this name was given to it by a military government that not every country or political group accepts, and so "Union of Burma" is also used by many. Both names are derived from the name of the Burmese Bamar ethnic group. Myanmar is the literary form of the name of the group, while Burma is derived from the colloquial form.
2. The elections in 2015 saw a victory for the party led by Aung San Suu Kyi. From 1989-2010 Aung San Suu Kyi was under house arrest for 15 of the 21 years.
3. The country's national sport, Chinlone, has no opposing teams and is not based on scoring goals or points, but on how beautifully players play the game. Any number of players form a circle and keep the chinlone in the air for as long as possible by kicking it soccer-style from player to player, using any body part except the hands.
4. The national dish is Mohinga, a rice noodle and fish soup. If you want to order it (or anything else) in a restaurant, the correct way to summon a waiter is to make a kissing noise as if you were calling a Cat.
5. The capital city is Naypyidaw but it isn't the largest city or even the second largest. Yangon (Rangoon) is the largest and Mandalay, the economic hub of Upper Burma and the centre of Burmese culture is the second largest. Rudyard Kipling wrote a poem called "Mandalay" (1890), which is the origin of the phrase "on the road to Mandalay".
6. Hkakabo Razi, in Kachin State, at 5,881 metres (19,295 ft), is the highest point in Myanmar.
7. The Burmese people celebrate New Year in April. The Myanmar New Year is called Thingyan (or the Water Festival). Businesses are closed and the tradition is to pour water onto each other to ‘wash away unlucky things and sins’ from the previous year.
8. Many of the people, especially in rural areas, are superstitious and worship spirits called nats, which are similar to saints. There are 37 principal nats, who were were human beings who met violent deaths, and any number of minor ones. Each village and household has its own nat, and each person has a personal guardian nat.
9. The main religion is Buddhism and the monastery is a focal point of a traditional village. When boys come of age, they are encouraged to enter the monastery, for a short time, at least. When girls come of age, they have their ears pierced.
10. The unit of weight commonly used in Myanmar is the peiktha, which equals 3.6 pounds. Myanmar is one of only three countries in the world not to have officially adopted the metric system (the other two are Liberia and the USA).