Shan

Shan

noun \ˈshän, ˈshan\

plural Shan or Shans

Definition of SHAN

1

: a member of a people living primarily in Myanmar and southern China

2

: the Thai language of the Shan

Origin of SHAN

Burmese Shàn

First Known Use: 1795

Rhymes with SHAN

an, ban, bran, can, clan, Dan, fan, flan, Jan, Klan, man, pan, Pan, panne, plan, scan, span, tan, van, Van

Shan

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Any member of a Southeast Asian people who live primarily in eastern and northwestern Myanmar (Burma) and also in Yunnan province, China. The Shan are the largest minority group in Myanmar, numbering more than four million. They live mainly in the valleys and plains on the Shan Plateau, where they grow rice or practice shifting agriculture. They are Theravada Buddhists and have their own written language and literature. They dominated much of Myanmar from the 13th to the 16th century; since the 1970s they have been at odds with the national government over the issue of local autonomy. See also Tai.

Variants of SHAN

Shan Shan Tai