Introduction

From the time I was little until now, I have been extremely interested in other cultures. One culture in particular that I have had great interest in is the Kayan Tribe from Burma who are now living as refugees in Thailand. My focus will be more on the Kayan women and the beautiful brass coils they wear around their necks. I first became intrigued when watching either the Discovery channel or the History channel with my oldest brother when we were in middle school. The program showed the Kayan women with the brass coils around their necks. I was fascinated, but at the same time wondered why anyone would want to wear them all the time, since to me, they looked heavy and slightly uncomfortable. Now that I am older and actually studying cultures, I would like to gain a better understanding of the tradition and the conflicts the Kayan face living as refugees in Thailand. The Kayan tribe has gone to Thailand due to civil war in Burma. According to the TIMESONLINE, in the Article “Kayan ‘Giraffe Women’ trapped in Thailand by tourist trade”, it is stated that the civil war in Burma has been going on for 58 years. The causes of the civil war are not my main focus, but if you are interested in finding out more, I found this article to be helpful in outlining different political groups. Here is the link to the article http://burmalibrary.org/docs3/smithpaper.htm . Until next time!