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Burma vs Myanmar: Which Name Is Correct?

Published 17 June 2025 · Updated 3 July 2026 · By Myanmar Yellow Pages Editorial

Photo: Phat Nguy (Pexels)

Both “Burma” and “Myanmar” refer to the same country in Southeast Asia — and both names are, in a meaningful sense, correct. The difference comes down to politics, history, and context. This guide explains where each name came from, why the debate has lasted for decades, and what travelers, journalists, and official bodies tend to use today.

A Tale of Two Names

The country at the heart of this debate sits between Bangladesh, India, China, Laos, and Thailand, with a long coastline on the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea. Its written history stretches back more than a thousand years, and in that time it has been called many things — by its own people, by colonial administrators, and by the international community.

The two forms of the name that are used today — Burma and Myanmar — share a common origin, but they diverged in the way languages and politics often cause names to diverge: through the filter of time, colonial translation, and deliberate political choice.

The Origins of “Burma”

“Burma” is the anglicisation that British colonial administrators settled on during the nineteenth century. When the British East India Company began its gradual annexation of the territory — through three wars between 1824 and 1885 — English speakers took the colloquial, informal Burmese pronunciation of the name for the dominant ethnic group (the Bamar) and rendered it in Roman script as “Burma.”

This form, “Burma,” became the official name used in English-language colonial administration, maps, and international discourse. It remained the name used by the government and internationally from independence in 1948 through the late 1980s.

The Origins of “Myanmar”

“Myanmar” is not a new invention. In written Burmese, the country has been referred to by a name that sounds approximately like “Mranma” or “Myanma” for many centuries. This is the more formal, literary register of the same name — the version used in writing, official proclamation, and elevated speech, as opposed to the colloquial spoken form that British translators turned into “Burma.”

In 1989, the ruling military government — the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) — announced a series of place-name changes across the country. Rangoon became Yangon. Moulmein became Mawlamyine. And the country’s name in English was changed from Burma to Myanmar (with the name of the people changed from Burmese to Bamar or Myanmar).

The military government argued, with some linguistic justification, that “Myanmar” was more authentically rooted in the country’s own language and better represented the full range of the country’s many ethnic groups, not only the Bamar majority.

Why the Debate Became Political

What should have been a straightforward question of transliteration became politically charged almost immediately.

The name change was announced by a military junta that had suppressed a major democratic uprising the previous year, killing many protesters. The main pro-democracy opposition movement, led by Aung San Suu Kyi and the National League for Democracy (NLD), refused to recognise the name change. Their argument was that a government which had not been freely elected by the people had no legitimate authority to rename the country on behalf of those people.

Many Western governments followed suit. The United States government used “Burma” in official documents for decades, as did the United Kingdom and several international NGOs. The BBC, for a long period, continued to use “Burma.” Many journalists and human-rights organisations chose “Burma” as an explicit signal of non-recognition of military authority.

Countries that had no particular political stake in the question — or that prioritised diplomatic normalcy — generally adopted “Myanmar” earlier. The United Nations uses “Myanmar.” China, Japan, India, and most of Southeast Asia use “Myanmar” or its equivalent in their own languages.

What Different Groups Use Today

Usage has shifted considerably over the years. Here is a general map of current practice:

There is no strict rule that makes one usage more factually correct than the other. A person who says “I visited Burma” and a person who says “I visited Myanmar” are both referring to the same place. The choice sometimes signals where someone stands politically; more often today, it simply reflects which era’s conventions a speaker grew up with.

Place Names That Changed With the Country Name

The 1989 name changes extended beyond the country itself. A number of major cities and geographic features received new official romanisations at the same time:

Again, whether one uses the old or new forms can carry political undertone — or simply reflect when someone last updated their geography knowledge.

What Should Travelers Use?

For practical purposes, using “Myanmar” is generally the safer and more universally understood choice when traveling, booking flights and hotels, or communicating with people inside the country. Official documents — visas, border crossings, and government forms — use “Myanmar.” Maps on major digital platforms use “Myanmar.” Airlines, hotels, and tour operators use “Myanmar.”

That said, older Burmese people who lived through the colonial era and its aftermath sometimes feel more attached to “Burma,” and you may hear both used in everyday conversation. Using either name will not cause offense in most contexts; context and intent matter more than the syllables themselves.

If you are preparing for a trip and want to understand the lay of the land before you go, our Myanmar map guide offers an overview of regions, states, and major geographic features — under whichever name you prefer to use.

A Nuance: “Burmese” Language and People

One complication worth noting: the adjective “Burmese” has largely survived the name change. The primary language of the country is still widely called Burmese (or “the Burmese language”) in English, even by people who use “Myanmar” for the country itself. The script is referred to as “Burmese script.” You will see “Myanmar language” used in some formal and official contexts, but “Burmese” remains the more common English adjective for the language and, often, for the cuisine (Burmese food) and cultural forms (Burmese classical music, Burmese puppetry).

This inconsistency — “Myanmar” the country, “Burmese” the language and cuisine — is common in English usage and is not considered contradictory.

FAQ

Is “Burma” or “Myanmar” the official name of the country?

The official name in English, as recognised by the United Nations and most international bodies, is Myanmar (formally the Republic of the Union of Myanmar). “Burma” was the official English name before 1989. Both remain in common use today.

Why did some countries refuse to use “Myanmar”?

Several Western governments and human-rights organisations refused to adopt “Myanmar” because the name change was decreed by the ruling military junta in 1989, following the violent suppression of a democratic uprising. Using “Burma” was a way of signaling non-recognition of the military government’s legitimacy.

Is it offensive to say “Burma”?

Not inherently. Context and intent matter most. Inside the country, people of different political views and generations use both terms. For practical travel and business purposes, “Myanmar” is the standard used in official documents, airports, and international communication.

Are “Myanmar” and “Burma” really the same word?

Linguistically, they derive from the same root — the name of the Bamar (Burman) people, the largest ethnic group. “Burma” is a colloquial English transliteration of the spoken form; “Myanmar” is a romanisation of the more formal, written form used in classical Burmese literature and speech for centuries.

What do Burmese/Myanmar people call their own country?

In everyday spoken Burmese, people typically use a form that sounds like “Bama” (informal) or “Myanma” (formal). Both forms have coexisted in the Burmese language for a very long time; the external debate in English reflects that duality more than it introduces a new one.