Pyay ပြည်မြို့ Prome |
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City | |
Shwesandaw Pagoda in Pyay
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Coordinates: 18°49′01″N 95°13′05″E / 18.81694°N 95.21806°E | |
Country | Burma |
Division | Bago Region |
District | Pyay District |
Township | Pyay Township |
Population (2014) | |
• Total | 134,861 |
Time zone | +7 (UTC+7) |
Pyay (Burmese: ပြည်မြို့; MLCTS: prany mrui., pronounced: [pjì mjo̰]; Mon: ပြန်, [prɔn]; also known as Prome) is principal town of Pyay Township in the Bago Region in Myanmar. Pyay is located on the Irrawaddy River and is 260 km (160 mi) north-west of Yangon.
The British Irrawaddy Flotilla Company established the current town in the late 19th century on the Irrawaddy as a transshipment point for cargo between Upper and Lower Burma.
The district of Pyay encompasses the valley of the Irrawaddy, located between Thayetmyo, Hinthada and Tharrawaddy districts. Along the western side of Pyay District are the Arakan Mountains and along the eastern side are the Pegu Range. Pyay District's main towns are Pyay, Shwedaung, and Paungde.
The name "Pyay" means "country" in Burmese, and refers to the ruins of the main city of the Pyu city-states, Sri Ksetra (Burmese: သရေခေတ္တရာ, Sanskrit Śrīkṣetra "blessed place, country"), which is located 8 km (5.0 mi) to the south-east of modern Pyay and is in the village of Hmawa.