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The Padaung, or Ka-Kaung as they call themselves, are a sub-group of the Karen. ... Padaung women are often referred to as giraffe or long-necked because of the custom of placing brass rings around their necks from when they are young girls until they marry. ... The middle set of photos were taken in Kalaw market in Shan State, Myanmar in September 1998 when two Padaung women walked through the market with shawls almost concealing their neck rings from view. The last set of photos were taken on the same 1998 visit and show two Padaung women living in traditional houses built in the grounds of a hotel on the edge of Lake Inle, Shan State, Myanmar. ... One of the most striking of these groups is the Padaung. Natives of Kayah State the Padaung are seldom seen in the lowlands and, if they appear at all, tend to congregate around the provincial town of Loikaw near the border with Thailand.
Although the Padaung, a Mongolian tribe who have been assimilated into the Karen group, only number about 7,000 they have attracted a great deal of interest because of their practice of neck-stretching. ...
In the past Padaung girls were fitted with the rings at the age of five or six. ... A Padaung women of marriageable age will probably have had her neck extended by aboui 25 cms.
These severe decorations express the Padaung womens own concept of beauty and social ranking but there are other theories concerning the origins ofthese rings. ... A Padaung legend explains that the rings were protection against tiger bites, a constant hazard in their homeland in the north of China. ... Adultery among Padaung women has always been punished by the removal of the rings, a fate almost literally, worse than death. ... The neck rings however, may very well become extinct within a generation or two as younger Padaung women are beginning to refuse to fit the rings around their childrens necks.
The Padaung like to live in river valleys wherever they can. ... Each home had a spacious, open terrace where the Padaung sat in the shade in front to their looms, spinning and weaving cotton textiles, blankets and tunics. ... The Padaung men were conspicuous by their absence, out in the fields tending crops.
At first glance, the Padaung appear to belong to a different continent than Asia, their green and purple headresses, white caftans and shining ornaments suggesting some African tribe or even the Plain Indians of old. Whatever you think of their customs, striking is certainly the word to describe the Padaung of eastern Myanmar. It remains to be seen though, whether the Padaung will eventually come are small and containable but this may change.
Approximate Word count = 4346
Approximate Pages = 17.4
(250 words per page double spaced)
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