22.04.2561 Loikaw is the capital of Kayah State in Myanmar.

Loikaw

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Loikaw လွိုင်ကော်မြို့ Lwègaw[1]
Loikaw Location in Burma
Coordinates: 19°40′27″N 97°12′34″E
Country	Myanmar
Division	Kayah State
District	Loikaw
Township	Loikaw
Elevation	2,900 ft (884 m)
Population (2013)[1]	140 670
Time zone	MST (UTC+6.30)

Loikaw (Burmese: လွိုင်ကော်မြို့; MLCTS: lwing kaw mrui., pronounced [lwàikɔ̀ mjo̰]) is the capital of Kayah State in Myanmar. It is located in the Karen Hills area, near the State's northern tip, just above an embayment on the Pilu River.^[2] The inhabitants are mostly Kayah (Karenni). Myanmar's largest hydropower plant built (by the Japanese as war reparation) is located about 20 km east of Loikaw at Lawpita Falls.

Contents

  [hide] 

• 1History
  • 1.1Population history
• 2Climate
• 3Transport
• 4Education
• 5Health care
• 6See also
• 7References
• 8External links

History[edit]

Loikaw was the Headquarters of the Political Officer in Charge of the Karenni States, part of the Princely Statesof British Burma, in 1922 during British rule in Burma. The town was located in the only flat part of the Karenni area. In 1892 it numbered four huts. As an Agent of the British government he was exercising control over the local Karenni Rulers, being supervised by the Superintendent at Taunggyi.^[3] The headquarters of the American Baptist Mission to Hill Karens was also located in Loikaw.

Landscape of Loikaw in 1922. The bridges look flimsy, but were so substantial that elephants walked over them.

View of Taung Kwe Pagoda.

Population history[edit]

• 1983: 33,665
• 2013: 140,670^[4]

Climate[edit]

[hide]Climate data for Loikaw
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Average high °C (°F)	26 (79)	29 (84)	32 (90)	34 (93)	31 (88)	28 (82)	27 (81)	27 (81)	28 (82)	28 (82)	27 (81)	26 (79)	28.6 (83.5)
Average low °C (°F)	11 (52)	11 (52)	15 (59)	19 (66)	20 (68)	20 (68)	20 (68)	20 (68)	20 (68)	19 (66)	16 (61)	12 (54)	16.9 (62.5)
Average rainfall mm (inches)	8 (0.31)	3 (0.12)	7 (0.28)	50 (1.97)	178 (7.01)	222 (8.74)	251 (9.88)	289 (11.38)	236 (9.29)	151 (5.94)	51 (2.01)	14 (0.55)	1,460 (57.48)
Average rainy days	2	1	2	5	17	23	25	26	21	14	6	3	145
Mean monthly sunshine hours	279	280	310	270	217	150	124	124	150	186	210	248	2,548
Source: World Climate Guide

Transport[edit]

Air

Loikaw is linked to Yangon and Mandalay by air.

Rail

Loikaw is linked by the newly constructed Aungban-Pinlong-Loikaw rail line.

Buses

There are express buses from loikaw to Yangon, Mandalay and other towns.

Education[edit]

The town is home to Loikaw University, Technological University, Loikaw, Computer University, Loikaw.

Health care[edit]

Loikaw General Hospital serves not only locals in the state but also to those in the southern part of neighbouring Shan State. The existing buildings of the hospital were built in 1964. Due to increase demands, new two two-storey buildings were constructed with the 1.945 billion yen funding from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).^[5]

Naung Yah Lake

See also[edit]

• Loikaw Airport
• Kayah State Cultural Museum
• Lawpita Hydropower Plants

References[edit]

1. Jump up^ "Lwègaw (Variant)" Loikaw at GEOnet Names Server, United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency
2. Jump up^ Bitsch, Jørgen (1966) Why Buddha Smiles Taplinger Publishing, New York, pages 55-56, OCLC 421824
3. Jump up^ Imperial Gazetteer of India, v. 15, p. 36.
4. Jump up^ "City Population: Myanmar". Archived from the original on 6 October 2014.
5. Jump up^ "Loikaw to get new hospital buildings funded by JICA - Global New Light Of Myanmar". Global New Light Of Myanmar. 2015-02-11. Retrieved 2017-10-08.

External links[edit]

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Loikaw.