, a Wa village in
Cangyuan Va Autonomous County, Yunnan British journalist and colonial administrator
Sir George Scott described how in the Wa
origin narratives the first Wa originated from two female ancestors
Ya Htawm and
Ya Htai who spent their early phase as
tadpoles
(rairoh) in a small lake known as
Nawng Hkaeo. The lake is located in the northeastern Wa territory in the border area between China and Myanmar. Very little is known about the early history of the Wa. What is known is mostly composed of local narratives telling that in the distant past the historical
Wa States and all the territories of eastern Shan State, as well as large swathes of the adjacent areas of present-day China had belonged to the Wa. In the area of the former
Kengtung State the Wa were displaced around 1229 and were later defeated by King
Mangrai. At the time of
British rule in Burma the
Shan were the majority in Kengtung state, with other groups such as
Akha and
Lahu forming sizable communities. The Wa now form a minority of only about 10% in Kengtung District despite having been the original inhabitants. The Wa originally had
animist religious beliefs centered around ritual blood sacrifices. Villages had a spirit healer
(Tax Cao Chai) and the traditional way of dealing with sickness or other problems was to sacrifice a chicken, a pig or a larger animal, depending from the magnitude of the affliction. According to local legend, the practice of cutting a
human head was intended as a ritual sacrifice in order to improve the
fertility of the rice fields. Traditional villages had also shrines
(Nyiex Moeg) where a buffalo was sacrificed once every year at a special Y-shaped post named
Khaox Si Gang with an offering of the blood, meat and skin performed at it. Additionally, among the traditional spirit-worshiping Wa—a practice that still exists among the Christian Wa—animals were sacrificed at festivities like weddings and funerary rituals. However, the Wa that were under Buddhist influence developed different traditions. In the traditional Wa society
monogamous marriage was the norm and there was sexual freedom for both men and women before marriage. The chewing of
betel with
areca nut was formerly also an important custom. The Wa have different kinds of traditional dances. One important dance in their culture is accompanied by the beating of a large hollow wooden drum. This way of dancing, among other Wa dances such as the hair dance and festivals, is being promoted as a tourist attraction by the Yunnan tourism authorities in China. The
Wa Women's Association also promotes dance, as well as other cultural and philanthropic activities.
Language and script The
Wa language forms a language group belonging to the
Palaungic branch of the
Austroasiatic language family. It formerly had no script and the few Wa who were literate used
Chinese characters, while others used the
Shan language and its script.
Christian missionary work among the Wa began at the beginning of the 20th century first in the Burmese and later in the Chinese areas of the Wa territory. It was led by
William Marcus Young of
Nebraska. The first transcription of the Wa language was devised by Young and Sara Yaw Shu Chin in 1931 with the purpose of translating the Bible. This first Wa alphabet was based on the
Latin script and the first publication was a compilation of Wa
hymns in 1933, the Wa
New Testament being completed in 1938. This transcription, known as "Bible orthography" is known as "" () in Chinese, and is now used mainly in the Burmese Wa areas and among the Wa in Thailand. A revised Bible orthography has been adopted as "official Wa spelling" by the authorities of the
Wa Self-Administered Division in Pangkham, which have published a series of primers in order to improve the literacy of the United Wa State Army troops. Also, after 2000 Wa people in social networks such as
Facebook and other online media, as well as Wa songwriters in
karaoke lyrics of Wa songs use this Myanmar (revised Bible) "official Wa orthography" in its main variations. In China, a transcription adapted to the new
pinyin romanization, known as "PRC orthography" or "China official orthography", was developed for the Wa people in 1956. However, its publications, mainly propagated through the Yunnan administration, are yet to reach a wider public beyond academics. This new Wa alphabet is treated as the first formal script of the Wa. The
Western Lawa are officially considered part of the Wa minority in China and are also known as 'tame Wa'.
British rule and enduring prejudices Very little has been written about the Wa people except in the
Chinese language. The area where they live had been traditionally administered by a
Saopha, a Shan hereditary chief. In the second half of the 19th century, the British authorities in Burma judged the Wa territory remote and of difficult access. Thus, excepting
Mang Lon where the
Saopha resided, the British left the Wa State without administration, its border with China undefined. That situation suited the Wa well, for throughout their history they had consistently preferred being left alone. The Wa were largely portrayed by colonial administrators as wild and dirty people owing to their practice of
headhunting. The prejudice continues in modern times when the Wa, who are economically not that different from other ethnic
hill tribes in the area such as the
Lahu people, are largely known for their rebel army and as being involved in drug trafficking, overshadowing other aspects of their culture.
Post World War II The international border that had been defined between Burma and China made that the Wa people were divided between the two countries. The Wa regions in Burma were largely left alone until the 1950s, when remnants of
Chiang Kai-shek's
National Revolutionary Army fled the 1949
Chinese Communist Revolution. A decade and a half later, the region was under the influence of the
Communist Party of Burma, which was very active in the area. During that time opium cultivation and sales grew and the ancient traditional life became disrupted, but also an administrative system that collected revenue and maintained a significant armed force, as well as a rudimentary infrastructure, ushered the Wa region into the modern era. In 1989 the Wa authorities expelled the Burma Communist Party and negotiated a cease-fire with the then leader of Burma's military junta
Khin Nyunt. They founded the
United Wa State Army and
United Wa State Party with a centralized command. In return for agreeing to the ban of poppy cultivation and opium production the region experienced a massive influx of international development aid. The
Wa Special Region 2 was created within the northeastern Shan State, with its de facto capital in
Pangkham. During the 1990s the areas controlled by the UWSA were involved in heroin production. During the 2000s, the United Wa State Army shifted focus into amphetamine production. Records of official seizures compiled by the United Nations suggest that in 2006 Myanmar was the source of half of Asia's methamphetamine, known in Thailand as
yaba, and some experts postulate that most drug labs are in areas under Wa control. == Geographic distribution ==