Bago

Bago Region is an administrative region of Myanmar, located in the southern central part of the country. It is bordered by Magway Region and Mandalay Region to the north; Kayin State, Mon State and the Gulf of Martaban to the east; Yangon Region to the south and Ayeyarwady Region and Rakhine State to the west. It is located between 46°45’N and 19°20’N and 94°35’E and 97°10’E. It has a population of 4,867,373 (2014).

According to legend, two Mon princes from Thaton founded the city of Bago in 573 AD. They saw a female goose standing on the back of a male goose on an island in a huge lake. Believing this was an auspicious omen, the princes built a city called Hanthawady on the edge of the lake.

The earliest mention of this city in history is by the Arab geographer Ibn Khudadhbin around 850 AD. At the time, the Mon capital had shifted to Thanton. The Bamar from Bagan ruled the area in 1056. After the collapse of Bagan to the Mongols in 1287, the Mon regained their independence.