Thonze Explained

Thonze
Other Name:သုံးဆယ်မြို့
Settlement Type:Town
Pushpin Map:Myanmar
Pushpin Label Position:right
Pushpin Map Caption:Location in Myanmar
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name: Myanmar
Subdivision Type1:Region
Subdivision Type2:District
Subdivision Name2:Tharrawaddy District
Subdivision Type3:Township
Subdivision Name3:Tharrawaddy Township
Unit Pref:Imperial
Area Total Sq Mi:3.05
Population Footnotes:[1]
Population Total:22482
Population Density Km2:auto
Timezone:MMT
Utc Offset:+6.30
Coordinates:17.6278°N 95.7871°W
Elevation Footnotes:[2]

Thonze (my|သုံးဆယ်, also spelt Thonse) is a town in Tharrawaddy Township in western Bago Region, Myanmar. The town borders the town of Tharrawaddy's south side. It is divided into 13 urban wards and had a population of 22,482 people in 2019.[1]

History

During British colonial rule, Thonze was a logging hub where the taungya variety of teak was first grown in plantation style. In 1883, the Thonze forests were mapped and divided into compartments for the purpose of creating forest resource reserves.[3] The missionary Marilla Baker Ingalls settled in Thonze in 1859, describing it as a remote village, requiring a two-day boat trip from Rangoon up the Hlaing River. She set up a mission and created a community of Baptists through her life in the village.[4] The first rail line to Thonze was built in 1877, and the village grew into a station town.[5]

Notes and References

  1. Myanmar Information Management Unit . September 2019 . Thayawady Myone Daethasaingyarachatlatmya. my:သာယာဝတီမြို့နယ် ဒေသဆိုင်ရာအချက်လက်များ. Tharrawaddy Township Regional Information . MIMU . 4 September 2024.
  2. [GoogleEarth]
  3. Blanford . H.R. . Highlights of One Hundred Years of Forestry in Burma . March 1958 . 37 . 1 . 91 . 33–42 . Empire Forestry Review . 42600438 .
  4. Book: Gracey . Mrs J. T. . Eminent Missionary Women . 1898 . Eaton & Mains . 978-0-8370-6056-9 . 196–201 . 4 June 2022 . en.
  5. Kaloyanides . Alexandra . Ho Center for Buddhist Studies . 2016 . 'Show Us your God': Marilla Baker Ingalls and the Power of Religious Objects in Nineteenth-Century Burma . 10.3390/rel7070081 . 7 . 7 . 81 . Religions. free .