The Tribes of Burma/Bibliographical notes/Was

by Cecil Champain Lowis

THE WAS.

References :
DAVIES = "Yunnan: The Link between India and the Yangtze." H.R. Davies, Cambridge, 1909.

Serial No.	Head.	Brief description.	Authority.	Page.
1	2	3	4	5
1	Present habitat.	East of Shan States near Chinese border.	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. I, Part I. Davies ...	495  373
2	Political and social divisions.	Was proper (tame and wild). Tailoi, En, Hsen Hsum, etc. Five clans of tame Was.	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. I, Part I.	513
3	Allied tribes	Palaungs, Riangs, Kamus.	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. I, Part I.	495
4	Language and and dialects.	Wa language placed in Wa-Palaung group of Mon-Annam subfamily of Indo-Chinese language family.[1] Vocabularies. ...	Burma Census Report, 1901, Part I.   Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol I, Part I.	89, 94    626-645
5	Religion	Here and there nominally Buddhists, but the great bulk spirit worshippers.	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. I, Part I.	512
6	Magic and witchcraft.	Head hunting ; divination by chicken bones; forked sticks; record of sacrifices.	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. I, Part I.	498, 505, 515
7	Totems and tribal marks.	No real traces of totemism discovered.	Burma Census Report, 1901, Part I.	133
8	Marriage customs and ceremonies.	Marriage by purchase. Price (buffalo, dog or fowl) varying with attractions of bride.	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. I, Part I.	511
9	Marital relations.	Polygamy permissible, but not much practised.	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. I, Part I.	511
10	Death and burial ceremonies.	Dead buried at foot of steps leading up to the house or by road side near village ; personal ornaments buried! with corpse.	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. !, Part I.	514
11	Clothing ...	In some cases only small waist-cloth or petticoat. Elsewhere women wear dark blue jackets and striped petticoats, sometimes white jacket and petticoat.	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. I, Part I. Davies ... ... A. R. Colquhoun, Amongst the Shans, London, 1885.	510  87, 374  61
12	Personal ornaments.	Necklaces, bangles, ear-tubes, chicken bone ear ornaments, etc.	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. I, Part I.	513
13	Painting and tattooing.	Tattooing not common but is found here and there.	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. I, Part I.	514
14	Games and amusements.	Dances ... ...	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. I, Part I.	516
15	Agriculture ...	Opium, buck-wheat, rice, etc.	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. I, Part I.	509
16	Habitations ...	Houses of timber and wattles, substantially built. Entrance to some villages through tunnel.	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. 1, Part I. Davies ... ...	504, 505  374
17	Government ...	No Central Government. Village communities, governed by headmen. Here and there a federation of villages under a chief.	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. I, Part I.	508
18	Crimes ...	Head hunting ...	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. I, Part I. Davies ... ... A. R. Colquhoun, Amongst the Shans, London, 1885.	498  88  61
19	Character ...	Apart from head hunting propensities on the whole estimable.	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. I, Part I.	516
20	Trade ...	Gold given in exchange for cattle. Opium for salt	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. I, Part I. A. R. Colquhoun, Amongst the Shans, London, 1885.	504  62
21	Arts, e.g., pottery, weaving, dyeing.	Clothes woven by village women.	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. I, Part I.	513
22	Food ...	Dogs, rice—spirit, etc.	Upper Burma Gazetteer, Vol. I, Part I.	506

1. Now shown (vide Imperial Gazetteer of India, Volume I, page 390) as belonging to the Mon Khmer family.