He Ping Shanguo is not a Shan Kingdom: To Correct a Mistake Related to the Early History of Tai-speaking Peoples in China and Mainland Southeast Asia1 A ccording to Chinese annals, there was a Burma and the history of Sino-Burmese ~ngdom named Shan-guo~~~) which sent relations. As part of today's Dehong is envoys to China for many times during the considered to be within this so-called "Shan first and 2nd centuries. Of the two Chinese kingdom", some scholars studying the history characters, the first one "shan" is just the name of Dai in Yunnan naturally relate the early of this kingdom, and the second one "guo", history ofDai to the Shanguo mentioned above, means kingdom or state or country etc. so the it being regarded as an early Dai kingdom and transliteration of these two characters is refer to it in their books and articles on the Shanguo, means Shan kingdom (or state or history of the Dai in Yunnan. Some other country etc.). The first group of envoys of the scholars even conclude that the territory of kingdom Shanguo, according to Chinese annals, Shanguo included some parts of present day came from somewhere beyond Y ongchang Laos. The history of Laos is, therefore, also (today's Baoshan in western Yunnan, China; considered to be related to this Shanguo. A while farther west of Baoshan, e.g. "beyond few scholars go even further to conclude that Yongchang", are coincidently located Dehong, the territory of Shanguo includes present day a Dai prefecture in western Yunnan, and the Thailand and Vietnam. Shan States in Burma). It is that region where However, more and more materials and many Tai-speaking peoples live today, and, as results of studies on the history of Tais have they are called "Shan" in Burma, some scholars shown that Shanguo is neither a Shan kingdom conclude therefore, that the Shanguo mentioned nor any other Dai-Tai kingdom. It is not even in in Chinese annals is located in today's mainland Southeast Asia. This article is just to northeastern Burma and a part of Dehong, and correct a mistake which has produced a great it is a kingdom built by the ancestors of the impact on Tai studies, especially on the Tai present Dai-Shan people living there. Some studies in China, for a long time. scholars always mention this Shanguo when The original materials on Shanguo are scarce. they talk about the early history of Burma, They are just six pieces of materials recorded in especially the early history of the Shan in different volumes in Houhan Shu (Annals of Journal ofthe Siam Society 88.1 & 2 (2000) pp. 178-185 Shanguo is not a Shan Kingdom 179 Later Han Dynasty). Of the six records about today's Dehong, western Yunnan and the Shan Shanguo, the earliest one says: "In spring, States in Burma. January, of the ninth year of Yongyuan, the A problem quickly becomes apparent. If we envoys of barbarians and Shanguo from conclude that the location of Shanguo is in the somewhere beyond Yongchang came, through Shan State ofBurma and some parts ofDehong, several interpretations, to contribute".2 This is western Yunnan, based on the above-mentioned the first group of envoys from Shanguo to China records, there is another record in another to be recorded in Chinese annals. The ninth volume in the same Houhan Shu saying: year of Yongyuan of Later Han Dynasty was 97 AD. In December of the fifth year of Yongjian, the About this visit of the envoys of Shanguo, envoys of Yediaoguo and Shanguo came from another record on "southwestern barbarians" in somewhere beyond Rinanto to contribute.5 Houhan Shu states: There is no doubt that this group of envoys In the ninth year (of Yongyuan), the envoys sent was sent by the king of Shanguo because the by the barbarians and Y ongyoudiao, the king of time when they came to China was 131 AD. Shanguo, came from outside, through several What is noteworthy here is that the direction the interpretations, and brought with them the jewelry envoys came from this time is somewhere as the contributions, His Majesty Hedi bestowed "beyond Rinan" (the old name of present day gold seals and purple brands to them, all the central Vietnam) rather than "beyond Yong­ small chieftains were granted seals, brands, chang". clothes and money etc.3 If the location of Shanguo is in the Shan State of Burma and parts of Dehong, why did This record only says that the envoys of the the envoys of Shanguo travel to China by a barbarians and Shanguo came from "outside". longer route rather than the existing ready-made Y ongchang is not mentioned. We can, however, road between Burma and Yunnan? To resolve judge from the record that they should be the this problem, some scholars argue that there same envoys who came from somewhere beyond were two Shan kingdoms in mainland Southeast Yongchang mentioned in the first record. What Asia: one was in the region beyond Y ongchang, is different is the name of the king of Shanguo e.g. in today's Dehong of western Yunnan and is in this material. the Shan State of Burma while the other was in Twenty four years later, another group of the region "beyond Rinan", e.g. in present day envoys was sent by the king of Shanguo to Laos, which is just beyond central Vietnam from China. Another record in Houhan Shu says: China's perspective. The Laotian people in Laos, in a broad sense, are a branch of the Tai who, it In December of the first year ofYongning (121 is generally considered, are also related to the AD.), the envoys of Shanguo came from Shan in Burma. 6 somewhere beyond Yongchang to contribute.4 Another problem emerges here because while generally thought that the word 'Shan' is According to the above-mentioned records, just the name given by the Burmese to the Dai­ most scholars believe that as the envoys of Tai in Burma, the Dai-Tai people there still call Shanguo came from somewhere beyond themselves Dai or Tai rather than Shan. If Yongchang, the location of Shanguo should be Shanguo is a kingdom built by the Tai in Burma in today's Shan State of Burma and some parts and the Dai in Yunnan, why did they call of Dehong. It is this region, just to the west of themselves Shan all along rather than their own Baoshan, e.g. beyond Y ongchang, where the name Dai or Tai? And why had the Chinese not main residents now are coincidently Dai-Shan yet known despite the envoys visits to China peoples. What seems to be more evident is that that their real appellation was not Shan but Dai the Dai-Tai people living there are called Shan or Tai? As for the names of Laos in history, in Burma, so Shanguo should be a kingdom what we can find from ancient Chinese and built by the ancestors of Dai-Shan people in Vietnamese annals are only those such as Journal ofthe Siam Society 88.1 & 2 (2000) 180 HE PING 'Ailao', 'Laoya', 'Niuhou', 'Liaocha' and terms, such as Dai Mo, Dai Mian etc. are not 'Laozhua' etc. None is related to the pronun­ mentioned until after the 15th century. ciation of' Shan', although the Laotian have the In order to support their view-point, some same origin as the Shan in Burma in a broad scholars take Dianyue in Shiji (Historical sense. No appellation pronounced like 'Shan' Records) as evidence. According to Dawan can be found in contemporary ethnological Liezhuan (History ofDawan) in Shiji, there were materials about Laos. So it is even more difficult some ethnic groups called Kunming around to argue that there is another Shanguo--a Shan Erhai Lake, Dali, western Yunnan in the 2nd kingdom in the history of Laos. century BC. about 1,000 li westward away from Other scholars even hold that, " Rinan was the Kunming ethnic groups, there was a "Riding the southern-most district of Jiaozhou (e.g. Elephant Kingdom" called Dianyue. Of the two Cochin, in the central Vietnam today), all the Chinese characters Dianyue, the character Dian foreign envoys coming to China could be met can be explained as another simple name for by Chinese officials at Rinan which Shanguo present day Yunnan, while Yue is the same just bordered, so present day Thailand, Laos character which is generally considered as the and Vietnam wew also part of the Shan region name of the ancestors of present day Dai-Tai then".7 This is a more strained interpretation peoples in China and Southeast Asia. So it seems without any reliable evidence. that Dianyue can be explained as Yue in Yunnan. It has been suggested that the Chinese Furthermore, present day Dehong Dai Autono­ character Dianyue <lUll> can be pronounced as mous Prefecture in Yunnan seems to be about 'tan' while 'tan' sounds like Tai, so Shanguo 1,000 li west from Dali, while elephants have should be pronounced as Tanguo, e.g Taiguo or been used for transportation by the Dai people Tai kingdom.8 But this explanation is problematic. in ancient times, so some scholars conclude that Firstly, the Chinese character M can be pro­ Dianyue is a Dai kingdom in today's Dehong. nounced as 'tan' but as 'tan' and 'tai' only have Some scholars even conclude that Dianyue is the same consonant, the differentiation between just the predecessor of Shanguo, e.g. the first the vowels of these two words is obvious.