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Richard Humpheries (Black and White) Jason Miller Shwe Koako, Karen State Sylvia Murcfeld Photographs Jean de La Tour Richard Humphries _______________ Version Date June 2004 12/01/2005 Website: Designed, Built and written by Paul Keenan |
Name
- Ma Pun Tin Age -
75 Sex -
F Religion
- Buddhist Occupation -
What
did your parents do for work? My
parents were farmers and they did other jobs as they could.
What kind of games did you play when you were a child? My friends and I wrapped clothes around our heads and then we danced and played drums. We also looked after the
buffalos and cows. We swam and took baths in the river. We climbed trees.
What traditions did you have about marriage and death?
If people could not get married then they
ran away with their lover. Those
that do marry enlist one boy and one girl who both have parents. For the wedding
ceremony, the boy and girl act as the children of the bride and groom. The old
people tied the wrists of the bride and the groom with threads, signifying the
marriage. They also prayed for their future. After that the girl and boy must
eat first, followed by the bride and groom.
For death people sang poetic songs or Htas.
How did you make the money? We
cooked Karen wine, planted rice in the field, and raised pigs and chickens.
Why did you get married? I
thought we would live together and depend on each other. But he got a new wife
and I also took a new
husband.
.
How many husbands did you have? I
had three husbands. I have two children from each husband.
Why did you take three husbands? Because,
the first husband got a new wife so I took a new one. The second husband died
with diarrhea. Then I took a new one but he has died with sickness'.
Did people divorce after getting married? Very
few people did. I never did. Did people remarry after their partners died? Yes,
after three years you can get married again. Did
people previously marry and then remarry the same way? No,
if the widow remarried, women who have small babies cannot go to the ceremony
and eat.
People said that it is not good.
Did you parents like you when you got married? They
did not like me because I ran away with my lover. But they could not do
anything. When I came back they accepted me. Some of my cousins told my parents
that running away is good because if she married she must provide expenses, such
as five tins of rice and two pigs. Where did you give birth? I
gave birth in the village with a midwife. There
was no hospital. Where
did you study? I
just studied a little bit at school. What
kind of houses did people use to build?
They
built houses using wood and bamboo for the floor and walls. They used leaves for
the roof but they did not use thatch.
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