View source for Mandalay

{{short description|Second-largest city in Myanmar}}
{{other uses|Mandalay (disambiguation)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2019}}
{{Infobox settlement
|established_title=Founded
|established_date=[[1857]]
| official_name            = Mandalay
| native_name              = {{nobold|{{lang|my|မန္တလေးမြို့}}}}
| settlement_type          = City
| image_skyline            = {{multiple image|total_width=270px|perrow=1/2/2/1|border=infobox
| image1                  = Mandalay - The worship of Buddha.jpg
| alt1                    = 
| caption1                = [[Mahamuni Buddha Temple]]
| image2                  = Ku Tho Taw Pagoda & Sandar Muni Pagoda, Mandalay.jpg
| alt2                    = 
| caption2                = [[Kuthodaw Pagoda]] and [[Sandamuni Pagoda]]
| image3                  = U Bein Bridge, Mandalay.jpg
| alt3                    = 
| caption3                = [[U Bein Bridge]]
| image4                  = Zay-Cho Time Tower.jpg
| alt4                    = 
| caption4                = [[Zegyo Market]]
| image5                  = Mandalar Thiri Sport Ground (Mandalay).jpg
| alt5                    = 
| caption5                = [[Mandalar Thiri Stadium]]
| image6                  = Mandalay, Palacio 03.jpg
| alt6                    = 
| caption6                = [[Mandalay Palace]]
}}
| image_map                = {{maplink|frame=yes|plain=yes|type=shape|stroke-width=2|stroke-color=#000000|zoom=8}}
| image_flag               = Flag of Mandalay Region.svg
| image_seal               = 
| map_caption              = 
| pushpin_map              = Myanmar#Asia
| pushpin_label_position   = bottom
| pushpin_map_caption      = Location of Mandalay, Myanmar
| coordinates              = {{coord|21|58|59|N|96|05|04|E|region:MM|display=it}}
| subdivision_type         = Country
| subdivision_name         = {{MMR}}
| subdivision_type1        = [[Administrative divisions of Myanmar|Region]]
| subdivision_type2        = [[Districts of Myanmar|District]]
| subdivision_name1        = [[Mandalay Region]]
| subdivision_name2        = [[Maha Aungmye District|Maha Aungmye]], [[Aungmyethazan District|Aungmyethazan]] and [[Amarapura District|Amarapura]]
| founder                  = [[King Mindon]]
| leader_title             = [[Mayor of Mandalay|Mayor]]
| leader_name              = [[Kyaw San]]
| unit_pref                = Metric
| area_footnotes           = <ref>{{cite journal |title=Water Purification Plant No. 8 in Aungmyethazan Township 60% Complete |journal=Bi-Weekly Eleven |language=my |publisher=Eleven Media Group |date=28 April 2011}}</ref>
| area_total_km2           = 163.84
| elevation_m              = 22
| elevation_ft             = 70
|population_rank = [[List_of_cities_and_largest_towns_in_Myanmar|2nd]]
| population_total         = 1,726,889
| population_as_of         = [[2014 Myanmar Census|2014 Census]]
| population_footnotes     = <ref name="census-2014">{{cite book |title=Census Report |publisher=Ministry of Immigration and Population |location=Naypyitaw |date=May 2015 |series=The 2014 Myanmar Population and Housing Census |volume=2 |page=57 |url=https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B067GBtstE5TeUlIVjRjSjVzWlk/view |access-date=26 April 2017}}</ref>
| population_density_km2   = auto
| population_urban         = 1,319,452 (76%)
| population_rural         = 407,437 (24%)
| population_blank1_title  = Ethnic groups
| population_blank1        = [[Bamar people|Bamar]]<br/>[[Chinese people in Myanmar|Chinese]]<br/>[[Shan people|Shan]] & other minorities
| population_blank2_title  = Religions
| population_blank2        = [[Theravada|Theravada Buddhism]], [[Christianity]], [[Hinduism]], [[Islam]]
| population_demonym       = Mandalayan
| area_code                = 02<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://en.18dao.net/Area_Code/Myanmar |title=Myanmar Area Codes |access-date=10 April 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091201164116/http://en.18dao.net/Area_Code/Myanmar |archive-date=1 December 2009 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all}}</ref>
| registration_plate       = MDY
| website                  = <!--{{url|www.mdn.gov.mm}}-->
| unemployment_rate        = 
| timezone                 = [[Myanmar Standard Time|MMT]]
| utc_offset               = +6:30
| name                     = 
}}

'''Mandalay'''{{efn|{{IPAc-en|ˌ|m|æ|n|d|ə|ˈ|l|eɪ}} or {{IPAc-en|ˈ|m|æ|n|d|əl|eɪ}}; {{MYname|MY=မန္တလေးမြို့|MLCTS=manta.le:}} {{IPA|my|máɰ̃dəlé|}}}} is the second-largest city in [[Myanmar]], after [[Yangon]]. It is located on the east bank of the [[Irrawaddy River]], 631&nbsp;km (392&nbsp;mi) north of Yangon. In 2014, the city had a population of 1,225,553.

Mandalay was founded in 1857 by King [[Mindon Min|Mindon]], replacing [[Amarapura]] as the new royal capital of the [[Konbaung dynasty]]. It was Burma's final royal capital before the kingdom's [[Third Anglo-Burmese War|annexation]] by the [[British Empire]] in 1885. Under British rule, Mandalay remained commercially and culturally important despite the rise of Yangon, the new capital of British Burma. The city suffered extensive destruction during the [[Japanese conquest of Burma]] in the [[World War II|Second World War]]. In 1948, Mandalay became part of the newly independent Union of Burma.

Today, Mandalay is the economic centre of [[Upper Myanmar]] and considered the centre of Burmese culture. A continuing influx of irregular [[Overseas Chinese|Chinese]] immigrants, mostly from [[Yunnan]], since the late 20th century, has reshaped the city's ethnic makeup and increased commerce with China.<ref name=iiss/><ref name=jt/>{{dead link|date=August 2020}} Despite [[Naypyidaw]]'s recent rise, Mandalay remains Upper Myanmar's main commercial, educational and health center.

==Etymology==
The city gets its name from the nearby [[Mandalay Hill]]. The name is probably a derivative of a [[Pali]] word, although the exact word of origin remains unclear. The root word has been speculated to be ''{{IAST|[[mandala|maṇḍala]]}}'' (မဏ္ဍလ), referring to circular plains<ref name=mdy-150>{{Cite journal |url=http://www.mmtimes.com/no471/n001.htm |title=Mandalay marks 150th birthday |author=Zon Pann Pwint, Minh Zaw and Khin Su Wai |date=18–24 May 2009 |journal=[[The Myanmar Times]] |access-date=23 May 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090602044006/http://www.mmtimes.com/no471/n001.htm |archive-date=2 June 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref> or ''[[Mount Mandara|Mandara]]'', a mountain from Hindu mythology.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Names and Their Histories: A Handbook of Historical Geography and Topographical Nomenclature |url=https://archive.org/details/namesandtheirhi01taylgoog |page=[https://archive.org/details/namesandtheirhi01taylgoog/page/n200 186] |author=Issac Taylor |publisher=Rivingtons |year=1898 |edition=2nd}}</ref>

When it was founded in 1857, the royal city was officially named '''Yadanarbon''' ({{lang|my|ရတနာပုံ}}, {{IPA|my|jədənàbòʊɰ̃|}}), a loan of the Pali name '''Ratanapūra''' ({{lang|my|ရတနပူရ}}) "City of Gems."<ref>{{cite web |author=ဦးဟုတ်စိန် |url=http://dictionary.sutta.org/browse/r/ratana |title=Entry for ratana |work=ပါဠိမြန်မာ အဘိဓာန် (Pāḷi-Myanmar Dictionary) |publisher=Pali Canon E-Dictionary Version 1.94 |access-date=15 February 2015 |language=my}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=ဦးဟုတ်စိန် |url=http://dictionary.sutta.org/browse/p/pūra |title=Entry for pūra |work=ပါဠိမြန်မာ အဘိဓာန် (Pāḷi-Myanmar Dictionary) |publisher=Pali Canon E-Dictionary Version 1.94 |access-date=15 February 2015 |language=my}}</ref> It was also called ''Lay Kyun Aung Myei'' ({{lang|my|လေးကျွန်းအောင်မြေ}}, {{IPA|my|lé dʑʊ́ɰ̃ àʊɰ̃ mjè|}}, "Victorious Land over the Four Islands") and [[Mandalay Palace]] ({{lang|my|မြနန်းစံကျော်}}, {{IPA|my|mja̰ náɰ̃ sàɰ̃ tɕɔ̀|}}, "Famed Royal Emerald Palace").

==History==
===Early history===
[[File:King-Mindon.jpg|left|thumb|King [[Mindon Min|Mindon]] is the founder of Mandalay royal capital]]
Like most former (and present) capitals of Burma, Mandalay was founded on the wishes of the ruler of the day. On 13 February 1857, King [[Mindon Min|Mindon]] founded a new royal capital at the foot of [[Mandalay Hill]], ostensibly to fulfill a prophecy on the founding of a metropolis of Buddhism in that exact place on the occasion of the 2,400th jubilee of Buddhism.<ref name="mandalay palace">{{Cite web |url=http://www.lib.washington.edu/asp/myanmar/pdfs/MP0001a.pdf |title=Mandalay Palace |publisher=Directorate of Archaeological Survey, Burma |access-date=22 August 2006 |year=1963 |archive-date=27 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090327111114/http://www.lib.washington.edu/asp/myanmar/pdfs/MP0001a.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>[[File:Thu-Da-Mar wayside public resthouse.jpg|left|thumb|The ''Thudamma'' [[zayat]]s built during the reign of [[Mindon Min]]]]The new capital city site was {{cvt|25.5|sqmi|km2|order=flip}} in area, surrounded by four rivers. The plan called for a 144-square block grid patterned citadel, anchored by a 16 square block royal palace compound at the center by Mandalay Hill.<ref name=kt>{{Cite book |title=The Management of Secondary Cities in south-east Asia. Case Study: Mandalay |author=Kyaw Thein |publisher=UN-Habitat |year=1996 |isbn=9789211313130}}</ref> The 1,020-acre (413-hectare) citadel was surrounded by four {{cvt|6666|ft|m|order=flip}} long walls and a moat {{cvt|210|ft|m|order=flip}} wide, {{cvt|15|ft|m|order=flip}} deep. At intervals of {{cvt|555|ft|m|order=flip}} along the wall, were turrets with gold-tipped spires for watchmen.<ref name=oconner>{{Cite book |title=Mandalay: And Other Cities of the Past in Burma |url=https://archive.org/details/mandalayandothe01ocogoog |author=Vincent Clarence Scott O'Connor |pages=[https://archive.org/details/mandalayandothe01ocogoog/page/n36 6]–9 |publisher=Hutchinson & Co. |year=1907}}</ref> The walls had three gates on each side, and five bridges to cross the moat.<ref name=kt/> In addition, the king also commissioned the [[Kuthodaw Pagoda]], the ''Pahtan-haw Shwe Thein'' [[Ordination hall|Ordination Hall]], the ''Thudamma'' [[zayat]]s or public houses for preaching Buddhism and a library for the [[Pāli Canon]].[[File:Mandalay-Palace-from-Watch-Tower.JPG|thumb|left|[[Mandalay Palace]] Grounds]]

In June 1857, the former royal palace of [[Amarapura]] was dismantled and moved by elephants to the new location at the foot of Mandalay Hill, although construction of the palace compound was officially completed only two years later, on Monday, 23 May 1859.<ref name="mandalay palace"/>

For the next 26 years, Mandalay was to be the last royal capital of the [[Konbaung dynasty]], the last independent Burmese kingdom before its final [[Third Anglo-Burmese War|annexation]] by the [[British Empire]]. Mandalay ceased to be the capital on 28 November 1885 when the British conquered the city and sent [[Thibaw Min]] and his queen [[Supayalat]] into exile in India. Moreover, a group of drunken soldiers set fire to the [[Pitakataik (Mandalay)|Pitakataik]] (Royal Library) which had contained the genealogies of kings and the kingdom's official records. Mandalay was razed. However, the [[Mandalay Palace|palace]], its structures and the city walls were spared destruction.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Myint-U |first=Thant |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sX6lDwAAQBAJ |title=The Hidden History of Burma: A Crisis of Race and Capitalism |date=2020-01-16 |publisher=Atlantic Books |isbn=978-1-78649-789-5 |language=en |chapter=Chapter 1}}</ref>

===Colonial Mandalay (1885–1948)===
[[File:Mandalay Fort Wall.jpg|left|thumb|A bastion at [[Mandalay Palace]]]]
[[File:Baker's shop, Mandalay Chinatown.jpg|left|thumb|Old street scene in Chinatown of Mandalay during the British colonial period]]While Mandalay would continue to be the chief city of Upper Burma during the British colonial rule, the commercial and political importance had irreversibly shifted to Yangon. The British view on the development of Mandalay (and Burma) was mainly with commercial intentions. While rail transport reached Mandalay in 1889,<ref name="white">{{Cite book |title=A Civil Servant in Burma |url=https://archive.org/details/cu31924022998938 |author=Herbert Thirkell White |publisher=E. Arnold |place=London |year=1913}}</ref> less than four years after the annexation, the first college in Mandalay, [[Mandalay University|Mandalay College]], was not established until 40&nbsp;years later, in 1925.<ref name="mu">{{cite news |title=Prospects of Education in Myanmar |url=http://www.burmalibrary.org/reg.burma/archives/199912/msg00769.html |date=23 December 1999 |newspaper=The New Light of Myanmar |author=Ko Yin Aung}}</ref> The British looted the palace, with some of the treasures going on display in the [[Victoria and Albert Museum]]; in 1964 they were returned to Burma as a gesture of goodwill.<ref>Lowry, John,1974, Burmese Art, London</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://dlxs.library.cornell.edu/cgi/t/text/pageviewer-idx?c=sea;cc=sea;sid=f7c73dc350626ca80c0cf1c8ff80315f;rgn=full%20text;idno=sea282;view=image;seq=360 |title=Wanderings in Burma |first=George W |last=Bird |year=1897 |publisher=F J Bright & Son |location=London |pages=254}}</ref> The British also renamed the palace compound Fort [[Lord Dufferin|Dufferin]] and used it to billet troops.
{{Multiple image
| direction         = horizontal
| image1            = Myowun of Mandalay in court dress.jpg
| caption1          = Myowun (Mayor) of Mandalay, c. 1900
| image2            = Mandalay Burma map 1911.jpg
| caption2          = Map of Mandalay, 1911
| width1            = 160
| width2            = 168
}}
Throughout the colonial years, Mandalay was the centre of Burmese culture and Buddhist learning, and as the last royal capital, was regarded by the Burmese as a primary symbol of sovereignty and identity. Between the two World Wars, the city was Upper Burma's focal point in a series of nationwide protests against the British rule. The British rule brought in many immigrants from India to the city. In 1904–1905, a plague caused about one-third of the population to flee the city.<ref name="mdy-150" />

[[File:The British Army in Burma 1945 SE3271.jpg|thumb|Troops of [[19th Infantry Division (India)|19th Indian Division]] and a Lee tank in action during street fighting in Mandalay, 9–10 March 1945.]]
During [[World War II]], Mandalay suffered devastating air raids. On 3 April 1942, during the [[Japanese conquest of Burma]], the [[Imperial Japanese Army Air Service]] carried out an extensive assault. The city was in effect defenseless as its firefighting resources were weak, having been lost in earlier bombing, it had no anti-aircraft capacity, and the British [[RAF]] had by now withdrawn all its aircraft to India. Three-fifths of Mandalay's houses were destroyed and 2,000 civilians were killed.<ref>[http://history.howstuffworks.com/world-war-ii/axis-conquers-philippines9.htm The Axis Conquers the Philippines: January 1942 – July 1942] ''history.howstuffworks.com'', accessed 21 March 2021</ref><ref>[http://www.worldwar-2.net/timelines/asia-and-the-pacific/asian-mainland/asian-mainland-index-1942.htm World War II net] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250513104842/https://www.worldwar-2.net/timelines/asia-and-the-pacific/asian-mainland/asian-mainland-index-1942.htm |date=13 May 2025 }} ''www.worldwar-2.net'', accessed 21 March 2021</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cghbp0WbhxAC&q=Japanese+bombing+of+Rangoon+civilians&pg=PA41 |title=The British Empire and the Second World War |first=Ashley |last=Jackson |date=10 May 2006 |publisher=[[Bloomsbury Academic]] |pages=41 |isbn=9781852854171}}</ref> Many residents also fled when the city was under [[Imperial Japanese Army|Japanese]] occupation from May 1942 to March 1945. The palace citadel, which had been turned into a supply depot by the Japanese, was in turn burnt to the ground by Allied bombing; only the royal [[mint (coin)|mint]] and the watch tower survived. (A faithful replica of the palace was rebuilt in the 1990s.)

===Contemporary Mandalay (1948–present)===
After the country gained independence from Britain in 1948, Mandalay continued to be the main cultural, educational and economic hub of Upper Burma. Until the early 1990s, most students from Upper Burma went to Mandalay for university education. Until 1991, [[Mandalay University]], the [[University of Medicine, Mandalay]] and the [[Defence Services Academy]] were the only three universities in Upper Burma. Only a few other cities had "Degree Colleges" affiliated with Mandalay University that offered a limited number of subjects. Today, the city attracts a fraction of students as the military government requires students to attend their local universities in order to reduce concentration of students in one place.

In November 1959, Mandalay celebrated its centennial with a festival at the foot of Mandalay Hill. Special [[commemorative stamp]]s were issued.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://cgi.ebay.com/BURMA-First-Day-Cover-MANDALAY-CENTENARY-1959-CACHET_W0QQitemZ390007523149QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?_trksid=p3286.m20.l1116#ebayphotohosting |title=Mandalay Centenary Stamps |publisher=[[eBay]] |access-date=25 January 2009}}</ref>

During [[Ne Win]]'s isolationist rule (1962–1988), the city's infrastructure deteriorated. By the early 1980s, the second largest city of Burma resembled a town with low-rise buildings and dusty streets filled mostly with bicycles. In the 1980s, the city was hit by two major fires. In May 1981, a fire razed more than 6,000 houses and public buildings, leaving more than 90,000 homeless.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=1984-03-24 |title=BURMA – Fire |url=https://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/pbaab316.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170429082930/http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/pbaab316.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=29 April 2017 |website=Agency for International Development}}</ref> On 24 March 1984, another fire destroyed 2,700 buildings and made 23,000 people homeless.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9901E6D71139F935A15750C0A962948260 |title=23,000 Homeless in Burma Fire |publisher=[[New York Times]] via [[Reuters]] |date=26 March 1984 |access-date=25 January 2009}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://ocha-gwapps1.unog.ch/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/ACOS-64BUBF?OpenDocument |title=Myanmar Fire Mar 1984 UNDRO Information Reports 1 – 2 |publisher=ReliefWeb |date=27 March 1984 |access-date=25 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110429184742/http://ocha-gwapps1.unog.ch/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/ACOS-64BUBF?OpenDocument |archive-date=29 April 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The fire caused US$96 million in property damage.<ref name=":0" />

Fires continue to plague the city. A major fire destroyed Mandalay's second largest market, [[Yadanabon Market]], in February 2008, and another major fire in February 2009 destroyed 320&nbsp;homes and left over 1600&nbsp;people homeless.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-02/25/content_7665647.htm |title=Huge fire rages major market in Myanmar second largest city |publisher=China View via [[Xinhua]] |date=25 February 2008 |access-date=25 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161229180724/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-02/25/content_7665647.htm |archive-date=29 December 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.mmtimes.com/no460/n004.htm |title=Dry weather brings upsurge in outbreaks of fire in Myanmar |author=Ne Nwe Moe Aung and Sithu Naing |newspaper=The Myanmar Times |date=2 March 2009  |access-date=11 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101216080244/http://mmtimes.com/no460/n004.htm |archive-date=16 December 2010 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

On 28 March 2025, a [[2025 Myanmar earthquake|magnitude 7.7 earthquake]] with an epicenter northwest of the city caused extensive damage.<ref>{{Cite anss|M 7.7 – 2025 Mandalay, Burma (Myanmar) Earthquake|2025|us7000pn9s}}</ref> The earthquake killed more than 5,300 people across Myanmar including 3,300 deaths in Mandalay and the surrounding townships.<ref name="5Kdead">{{cite news|title=မန္တလေး Sky Villa ပြိုကျအပျက်စီးများကြား ရုပ်အလောင်း ၅ လောင်း ထပ်မံတွေ့ရှိ|language=my|url=https://bur.mizzima.com/2025/04/07/52417|access-date=7 April 2025|work=Mizzima|date=7 April 2025}}</ref> At least 1,736 people were killed in [[Mandalay District]] alone. The National Unity Government estimated that 17,637 homes were damaged across the region.<ref name="rfastats1">{{cite news |title=ငလျင်ကြောင့် နေအိမ် ၃ သောင်းနီးပါး ထိခိုက်ပျက်စီးခဲ့ကြောင်း NUG ထုတ်ပြန် |trans-title=NUG reports nearly 30,000 homes damaged by earthquake |url=https://www.rfa.org/burmese/news/myanmar-earthquake-nug-causalities-releases-04062025234946.html |access-date=7 April 2025 |work=Radio Free Asia |date=7 April 2025 |language=my}}</ref> In Mandalay, major historical sites, such the gates and walls of [[Mandalay Palace]], Mahamuni Buddha Temple, and [[Shwesayan Pagoda|Shwesayan Pagodas]] incurred significant damage.

=== Illegal Chinese immigration ===
The 1980s fires augured a significant change in the city's physical character and ethnic makeup. Huge swaths of land left vacant by the fires were later purchased, mostly by the [[Chinese people in Myanmar|ethnic Han Chinese]], many of whom were recent immigrants from [[Yunnan]].<ref name=crtm>{{cite magazine |title=The Chinese Road to Mandalay |url=http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=15404 |author=Min Lwin |date=April 2009 |magazine=The Irrawaddy}}</ref> The Chinese influx accelerated after the [[State Peace and Development Council]] came to power in 1988. Many Chinese immigrants from Yunnan and, to a lesser extent, [[Sichuan]] poured into [[Upper Burma]] in the 1990s and many ending up in Mandalay, living illegally there.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Chang|first=Wen-Chin|title=Beyond borders : stories of Yunnanese Chinese migrants of Burma|date=2014|isbn=978-0-8014-5451-6|location=Ithaca|oclc=904979076}}</ref><ref name=jt/> In the 1990s alone, about 250,000 to 300,000 Yunnanese are estimated to have migrated to Mandalay.<ref name=pks>{{Cite journal |url=http://www.ritsumei.ac.jp/acd/cg/ir/college/bulletin/e-vol1/1-3shee.pdf |title=The Political Economy of China–Myanmar Relations: Strategic and Economic Dimensions |author=Poon Kim Shee |year=2002 |journal=Ritsumeikan Annual Review of International Studies |publisher=Ritsumeikan University |access-date=11 April 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304052220/http://www.ritsumei.ac.jp/acd/cg/ir/college/bulletin/e-vol1/1-3shee.pdf |archive-date=4 March 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Today, ethnic Chinese people are believed to make up about 40%–50% of the city's population that is nearly the same as the natives,<ref name=pks/> and are a major factor in the city's doubling of population from about 500,000 in 1980 to one million in 2008. Chinese festivals are now firmly embedded in the city's cultural calendar.<ref name=crtm/> The Chinese dominance in the city center has pushed out the rest to the suburbs. The urban sprawl now encompasses Amarapura, the very city King Mindon left some 150&nbsp;years ago. Mandalay celebrated its 150th birthday on 15 May 2009, at precisely 4:31:36&nbsp;am.<ref name=mdy-150/>

Most new immigrants from China in recent times move to Mandalay for business, and did not intend to settle there.<ref name="auto7"/> Being poorer, they rely on Burmese Chinese already in Mandalay helping them negotiate the local economic landscape. These "new Chinese" tend to settle outside Mandalay, as the central city's Burmese Chinese areas are too expensive for them. These areas become new Chinese neighbourhoods as they develop and are recognisably distinct from the older Chinese quarters.<ref name="Ying 2017"/> The cultural attitudes of Chinese businesspeople in Mandalay who view local Burmese to easy-going fuel tensions with local Burmese perceive the Chinese as condescending.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/27/world/asia/mandalay-china-myanmar-trade.html|title=Animosity in a Burmese Hub Deepens as Chinese Get Richer |last=Perlez |first=Jane |work=The New York Times |date=28 November 2016 |publication-date=27 November 2016}}</ref>

==Geography==
[[File:Txu-oclc-6654394-nf-47-7th-ed.jpg|thumb|Map of Mandalay and surrounding region from the [[International Map of the World]] (1971)]]
Mandalay is located in the central [[Dry Zone (Myanmar)|Dry Zone]] of Burma by the Irrawaddy river at 21.98° North, 96.08° East, 80 meters (260&nbsp;feet) above sea level. Its standard time zone is UTC/GMT +6:30&nbsp;hours and is 626&nbsp;km from Yangon.

Mandalay lies along the [[Sagaing Fault]], a [[tectonic plate]] boundary between the [[India Plate|India]] and [[Sunda Plate|Sunda]] plates. The biggest earthquake in its history occurred on [[1839 Ava earthquake|23 March 1839]], when an estimated magnitude 8.2 destroyed the former capital [[Inwa|Ava]] and caused extreme destruction in nearby cities. Another strong quake with a [[moment magnitude scale|magnitude]] of 7, occurred in 1956.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.geologie.ens.fr/~vigny/articles/2002JB001999.pdf |author=Christophe Vigny |title=Present-day crustal deformation around Sagaing fault, Myanmar |publisher=[[Journal of Geophysical Research]], vol&nbsp;108, 19 November 2003 |pages=2–4 |access-date=25 January 2009|display-authors=etal}}</ref> The devastation was greatest in nearby [[Sagaing]], and it came to be known as the [[1956 Sagaing earthquake|Great Sagaing Quake]].
 
On 28 March 2025, a [[2025 Myanmar earthquake|magnitude 7.7 earthquake]] occurred just north of Mandalay on the Sagaing fault.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us7000pn9s/executive|access-date=March 29, 2025|date=March 28, 2025|title= M 7.7 – 2025 Mandalay, Burma (Myanmar) Earthquake |publisher=US Geological Survey (USGS)}}</ref>

Bodies of water near Mandalay are Mandalay Kantawgyi, a small lake and [[Irrawaddy River]] to the west of the city.

==Climate==
Although the [[rain shadow]] of the [[Arakan Mountains]] is powerful, the city qualifies as having a [[tropical wet and dry climate]] (Köppen climate classification: ''Aw''), bordering a [[semi-arid climate#Hot semi-arid climates|hot semi-arid climate]] (''BSh''), though if using 1981–2010 data, Mandalay does qualify as hot semi-arid (''BSh'').

Mandalay features noticeably warmer and cooler periods of the year. Average temperatures in January, the mildest month, hovers around {{cvt|22|°C|1|disp=or}} while the hottest month, April, averages {{cvt|32|°C|1|disp=or}}. Mandalay is very hot in the months of April and May, with average high temperatures easily exceeding {{cvt|37|°C|disp=or}}. It is not uncommon to see high temperatures surpass {{cvt|40|°C|disp=or}} during these two months in the city. Mandalay also features [[wet season|wet]] and [[dry season|dry]] seasons of nearly equal length, with the wet season running from May through October and the dry season covering the remaining six months. The highest reliably recorded temperature in Mandalay is {{cvt|45.0|°C|°F}} on 12 May 2010 while the lowest is {{cvt|7.6|°C|°F}} on 26 December 1999.<ref name=meteoclimat/> There is considerably more [[diurnal temperature variation]] in the dry season than the wet season.
{{Weather box
| location = Mandalay (1991–2020, extremes 1889–present)
| metric first = y
| single line  = y
|Jan record high C = 37.2
|Feb record high C = 39.2
|Mar record high C = 42.8
|Apr record high C = 44.8
|May record high C = 45.0
|Jun record high C = 42.0
|Jul record high C = 41.6
|Aug record high C = 40.5
|Sep record high C = 43.4
|Oct record high C = 39.2
|Nov record high C = 38.5
|Dec record high C = 34.5
|year record high C = 45.0
| Jan high C = 29.8
| Feb high C = 33.2
| Mar high C = 37.0
| Apr high C = 39.1
| May high C = 37.1
| Jun high C = 35.6
| Jul high C = 35.4
| Aug high C = 34.3
| Sep high C = 34.2
| Oct high C = 33.4
| Nov high C = 31.7
| Dec high C = 29.3
|year high C = 34.2
| Jan mean C = 22.0
| Feb mean C = 24.8
| Mar mean C = 29.0
| Apr mean C = 32.0
| May mean C = 31.6
| Jun mean C = 30.9
| Jul mean C = 30.8
| Aug mean C = 30.1
| Sep mean C = 29.9
| Oct mean C = 28.8
| Nov mean C = 26.0
| Dec mean C = 22.6
|year mean C = 28.2
| Jan low C = 14.2
| Feb low C = 16.3
| Mar low C = 20.9
| Apr low C = 25.0
| May low C = 26.0
| Jun low C = 26.3
| Jul low C = 26.3
| Aug low C = 25.9
| Sep low C = 25.6
| Oct low C = 24.2
| Nov low C = 20.3
| Dec low C = 15.8
|year low C = 22.2
|Jan record low C = 8.0
|Feb record low C = 10.0
|Mar record low C = 12.8
|Apr record low C = 15.0
|May record low C = 17.4
|Jun record low C = 20.0
|Jul record low C = 20.0
|Aug record low C = 19.5
|Sep record low C = 20.5
|Oct record low C = 18.5
|Nov record low C = 11.1
|Dec record low C = 7.6
|year record low C = 7.6
| precipitation colour = green
| Jan precipitation mm = 5.3
| Feb precipitation mm = 3.1
| Mar precipitation mm = 7.2
| Apr precipitation mm = 42.1
| May precipitation mm = 151.8
| Jun precipitation mm = 90.8
| Jul precipitation mm = 73.2
| Aug precipitation mm = 159.5
| Sep precipitation mm = 176.7
| Oct precipitation mm = 142.8
| Nov precipitation mm = 36.3
| Dec precipitation mm = 5.5
| year precipitation mm = 894.3
|unit precipitation days = 1.0 mm
| Jan precipitation days = 0.6
| Feb precipitation days = 0.5
| Mar precipitation days = 1.0
| Apr precipitation days = 4.2
| May precipitation days = 9.9
| Jun precipitation days = 7.8
| Jul precipitation days = 6.9
| Aug precipitation days = 10.3
| Sep precipitation days = 11.6
| Oct precipitation days = 8.8
| Nov precipitation days = 3.0
| Dec precipitation days = 0.6
| year precipitation days = 65.1
| Jan humidity = 68
| Feb humidity = 58
| Mar humidity = 49
| Apr humidity = 50
| May humidity = 66
| Jun humidity = 73
| Jul humidity = 71
| Aug humidity = 76
| Sep humidity = 76
| Oct humidity = 77
| Nov humidity = 74
| Dec humidity = 72
| year humidity = 68
| Jan sun = 309
| Feb sun = 280
| Mar sun = 301
| Apr sun = 291
| May sun = 267
| Jun sun = 208
| Jul sun = 182
| Aug sun = 168
| Sep sun = 215
| Oct sun = 223
| Nov sun = 269
| Dec sun = 278
| year sun = 2991
| source 1 = [[NCEI]]<ref name=WMOCLINO>{{cite web
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210717013353/https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/archive/arc0216/0253808/1.1/data/0-data/Region-2-WMO-Normals-9120/Myanmar/XLS/48042_Mandalay.xlsx
| archive-date = 17 July 2021
| url = https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/archive/arc0216/0253808/1.1/data/0-data/Region-2-WMO-Normals-9120/Myanmar/XLS/48042_Mandalay.xlsx
| title = World Meteorological Organization Climate Normals for 1991–2020: Mandalay-48042
| publisher = [[NOAA|National Oceanic and atmospheric administration]]
| format = CSV
| access-date = 2 August 2023}}</ref>
| source 2 = Danish Meteorological Institute (sun and relative humidity, 1931–1960),<ref name=DMI>{{cite web |last1=Cappelen |first1=John |last2=Jensen |first2=Jens |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130427173827/http://www.dmi.dk/dmi/tr01-17.pdf |archive-date=27 April 2013 |url=http://www.dmi.dk/dmi/tr01-17.pdf |work=Climate Data for Selected Stations (1931–1960) |title=Myanmar – Mandalay |page=188 |publisher=Danish Meteorological Institute |language=da |access-date = 23 February 2013}}</ref> Meteo Climat (record highs and lows)<ref name = meteoclimat>
{{cite web |url=http://meteo-climat-bzh.dyndns.org/index.php?page=stati&id=1512 |title=Station Mandalay |publisher=Meteo Climat |language=fr |access-date = 11 June 2016}}</ref>
| date     = January 2016}}

{{Weather box
| width = auto
| location     = Mandalay (1981–2010, extremes 1889–present)
| metric first = yes
| single line  = yes
| collapsed = yes
|Jan record high C = 37.2
|Feb record high C = 39.2
|Mar record high C = 42.8
|Apr record high C = 44.8
|May record high C = 45.0
|Jun record high C = 42.0
|Jul record high C = 41.6
|Aug record high C = 39.8
|Sep record high C = 43.4
|Oct record high C = 39.2
|Nov record high C = 38.5
|Dec record high C = 34.5
|year record high C = 45.0
| Jan high C = 29.6
| Feb high C = 32.7
| Mar high C = 36.6
| Apr high C = 38.9
| May high C = 36.9
| Jun high C = 35.2
| Jul high C = 35.1
| Aug high C = 34.3
| Sep high C = 34.0
| Oct high C = 33.4
| Nov high C = 31.1
| Dec high C = 29.1
|year high C = 33.9
| Jan mean C = 21.9
| Feb mean C = 24.4
| Mar mean C = 28.8
| Apr mean C = 31.9
| May mean C = 31.3
| Jun mean C = 30.8
| Jul mean C = 30.8
| Aug mean C = 30.2
| Sep mean C = 29.7
| Oct mean C = 28.8
| Nov mean C = 25.7
| Dec mean C = 22.2
|year mean C = 28.0
| Jan low C = 13.7
| Feb low C = 16.0
| Mar low C = 20.4
| Apr low C = 24.7
| May low C = 25.9
| Jun low C = 26.1
| Jul low C = 26.2
| Aug low C = 25.8
| Sep low C = 25.4
| Oct low C = 24.0
| Nov low C = 19.9
| Dec low C = 15.4
|year low C = 22.0
|Jan record low C = 8.0
|Feb record low C = 10.0
|Mar record low C = 12.8
|Apr record low C = 13.0
|May record low C = 17.4
|Jun record low C = 20.0
|Jul record low C = 20.0
|Aug record low C = 19.5
|Sep record low C = 20.5
|Oct record low C = 18.5
|Nov record low C = 11.1
|Dec record low C = 7.6
|year record low C = 7.6
| rain colour = green
| Jan rain mm = 0.9
| Feb rain mm = 3.8
| Mar rain mm = 5.8
| Apr rain mm = 40.4
| May rain mm = 130.0
| Jun rain mm = 99.5
| Jul rain mm = 74.7
| Aug rain mm = 132.9
| Sep rain mm = 157.1
| Oct rain mm = 130.7
| Nov rain mm = 36.4
| Dec rain mm = 4.9
| year rain mm = 817.1
| Jan rain days = 0.4
| Feb rain days = 0.4
| Mar rain days = 0.4
| Apr rain days = 3.3
| May rain days = 8.3
| Jun rain days = 7.2
| Jul rain days = 5.9
| Aug rain days = 8.7
| Sep rain days = 8.1
| Oct rain days = 6.8
| Nov rain days = 2.8
| Dec rain days = 0.7
| year rain days = 53.0
| Jan humidity = 68
| Feb humidity = 58
| Mar humidity = 49
| Apr humidity = 50
| May humidity = 66
| Jun humidity = 73
| Jul humidity = 71
| Aug humidity = 76
| Sep humidity = 76
| Oct humidity = 77
| Nov humidity = 74
| Dec humidity = 72
| year humidity = 68
| Jan sun = 309
| Feb sun = 280
| Mar sun = 301
| Apr sun = 291
| May sun = 267
| Jun sun = 208
| Jul sun = 182
| Aug sun = 168
| Sep sun = 215
| Oct sun = 223
| Nov sun = 269
| Dec sun = 278
| year sun = 2991
| source 1 = [[Norwegian Meteorological Institute]] (average high and average low, and rainfall 1981–2010),<ref name="metnomandalay">{{cite web |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181008145507/http://met-xpprod.customer.enonic.io/publikasjoner/met-report/met-report-2017/_/attachment/download/a3bf1468-4e93-486a-aa3f-4bea3871cffa:b8f39ba9ecfbde7d7c6da8ca769f4a1a96d61d39/MyanmarClimateReportFINAL24Oct2017.pdf |archive-date = 8 October 2018 |url=http://met-xpprod.customer.enonic.io/publikasjoner/met-report/met-report-2017/_/attachment/download/a3bf1468-4e93-486a-aa3f-4bea3871cffa:b8f39ba9ecfbde7d7c6da8ca769f4a1a96d61d39/MyanmarClimateReportFINAL24Oct2017.pdf |title=Myanmar Climate Report |publisher=Norwegian Meteorological Institute |pages=26–36 |access-date = 8 October 2018}}</ref> World Meteoroglogical Organization (rainy days 1961–1990),<ref name="WMOmandalay">{{cite web |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120506125832/http://worldweather.wmo.int/180/c00588.htm| archive-date = 6 May 2012 |url=http://worldweather.wmo.int/180/c00588.htm |title=World Weather Information Service – Mandalay |publisher=World Meteorological Organization |access-date = 23 February 2013}}</ref> [[Deutscher Wetterdienst]] (mean temperatures 1991–2010)<ref name = mandalayDWD>
{{cite web |url=https://www.dwd.de/DWD/klima/beratung/ak/ak_480420_kt.pdf |title=Klimatafel von Mandale (Mandalay) / Myanmar (Birma) |work=Baseline climate means (1961–1990) from stations all over the world |publisher=Deutscher Wetterdienst |language=de |access-date = 6 November 2018}}</ref>

| source 2 = Danish Meteorological Institute (sun and relative humidity, 1931–1960),<ref name=DMImandalay>{{cite web |last1=Cappelen |first1=John |last2=Jensen |first2=Jens |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130427173827/http://www.dmi.dk/dmi/tr01-17.pdf |archive-date=27 April 2013 |url=http://www.dmi.dk/dmi/tr01-17.pdf |work=Climate Data for Selected Stations (1931–1960) |title=Myanmar – Mandalay |page=188 |publisher=Danish Meteorological Institute |language=da |access-date = 23 February 2013}}</ref> Meteo Climat (record highs and lows),<ref name = meteoclimatmandalay>
{{cite web |url=http://meteo-climat-bzh.dyndns.org/index.php?page=stati&id=1512 |title=Station Mandalay |publisher=Meteo Climat |language=fr |access-date = 11 June 2016}}</ref>
| date     = January 2016}}

==Cityscape==
===Around the city===
[[File:20160729 Atumashi Mandalay 5865.jpg|thumb|[[Atumashi Monastery]] has been rebuilt as a faithful replica of the original destroyed by a fire.]]
* [[Atumashi Monastery]]:  The "Atumashi [[kyaung]]", which literally means 'inimitable [[vihara]]', is also one of the well known sights. The original structure was destroyed by a fire in 1890 though the masonry plinth survived. The reconstruction project was started by the government on 2 May 1995 and completed in June 1996.
* [[Buddha's Replica Tooth Relic Pagoda]]:  One of the Buddha's Sacred Replica Tooth Relics was enshrined in the Mandalay Swedaw Pagoda on Maha Dhammayanthi Hill in [[Amarapura]] Township. The pagoda was built with cash donations contributed by the peoples of Burma and Buddhist donors from around the world under the supervision of the State Peace and Development Council. The authorities and donors hoisted Buddha's Replica Tooth Relic Pagoda Mandalay's ''Shwe Htidaw'' (sacred golden umbrella), ''Hngetmyatnadaw'' (sacred bird perch vane) and ''Seinhpudaw'' (sacred diamond bud) on 13 December 1996.[[File:mandalay kuthodaw.jpg|thumb|[[Kuthodaw Pagoda]] – Some of the 729 [[stupa]]s known as the [[Tripiṭaka tablets at Kuthodaw Pagoda|world's largest book]]]]
* [[Kuthodaw Pagoda]] (The World's Biggest Book):  Built by King Mindon in 1857, this pagoda modeled on the [[Shwezigon Pagoda]] at [[Nyaung-U]], is surrounded by 729 upright stone slabs on which are inscribed the entire ''[[Tripiṭaka|Tipiṭaka]]'' as edited and approved by the [[Fifth Buddhist council]]. It is popularly known as the [[Tripiṭaka tablets at Kuthodaw Pagoda|world's largest book]] for its stone scriptures.
* [[Kyauktawgyi Buddha Temple (Mandalay)|Kyauktawgyi Pagoda]]: Near the southern approach to Mandalay Hill stands the Kyauktawgyi Buddha image built by King Mindon in 1853–78. The Image was carved out of a huge single block of marble. Statues of 80 [[arhat|arahants]] are assembled around the Image, twenty on each side. The carving was completed in 1865.
* [[Mahamuni Buddha Temple]]: The image of Gautama Buddha at Mahamuni Buddha Temple is said to have been cast in the life-time of the Gautama Buddha and that the Buddha embraced it seven times, thereby bringing it to life. Consequently, devout Buddhists hold it to be alive and refer to it as the Mahamuni Sacred Living Image. Revered as the holiest pagoda in Mandalay, It was built by King [[Bodawpaya]] in 1784. The image in a sitting posture is 12&nbsp;feet and 7&nbsp;inches (3.8&nbsp;m) high. As the image was brought from [[Rakhine State]], it was also called the Great Rakhine Buddha. The early morning ritual of washing the Face of Buddha Image draws a large crowd of devotees every day.[[File:Irrawaddy Mandalay-Hill.JPG|thumb|[[Mandalay Hill]], at 790&nbsp;ft (240&nbsp;m), is home to many of Mandalay's religious sites.]]
* [[Mandalay Hill]]:  The hill has for long been a holy mount. Legend has it that the Buddha, on his visit, had prophesied that a great city would be founded at its foot. Mandalay Hill, 230&nbsp;metres high, provides a view of the city and surrounding countryside. The construction of a motor road to reach the hill-top has already been finished.
* [[Mandalay Palace]]:  The whole palace complex was destroyed by a fire during World War II. The palace walls, the city gates with their crowning wooden pavilions and the surrounding moat, "Mya-nan-san-kyaw Shwenandaw", were rebuilt using forced labor. A model of the Mandalay Palace, Nanmyint-saung and [[Mandalay Cultural Museum]] are located inside the palace grounds.
[[File:Mandalay, Shwe Nan Daw 01.jpg|thumb|[[Shwenandaw Monastery]]]]
* [[Shwenandaw Monastery]]: known for its wood carvings, it was a part of the old palace. In 1880 it was moved by King Thibaw to its current site close to Atumashi Monastery.[[File:U Bein Bridge Mandalay 4.jpg|thumb|[[U Bein Bridge]]]]
*[[U Bein Bridge]]: known for the oldest and once longest teakwood bridge in the world. It was constructed when the capital of Ava Kingdom moved to Amarapura.
* [[Yadanabon Zoological Gardens]]: A small zoo between the [[Mandalay Palace]] and [[Mandalay Hill]]. It has over 300 species and is notably the only zoo to have [[Burmese roofed turtle]]s.

==Administration==
[[File:Headquater of MCDC.jpg|thumb|Mandalay City Hall and MCDC Headquarter]]
The [[Mandalay Region Government]] is the government for Mandalay Region including Mandalay City. The [[Mandalay City Development Committee]] (MCDC) is municipal organization for Mandalay City. The [[Mandalay District]] consists of seven townships.
*[[Amarapura]]
*[[Aungmyethazan Township|Aungmyethazan]]
*[[Chanayethazan Township|Chanayethazan]] (city centre)
*[[Chanmyathazi Township|Chanmyathazi]]
*[[Maha Aungmye Township|Maha Aungmye]]
*[[Patheingyi Township|Patheingyi]]
*[[Pyigyidagun Township|Pyigyidagun]]

==Transport==
Mandalay's strategic location in Central Burma makes it an important hub for transport of people and goods. The city is connected to other parts of the country and to China and India by multiple modes of transportation.

===Air===
[[File:Mandalay airport 1.jpg|thumb|Mandalay International Airport]]
[[Mandalay International Airport]] (MDL) was one of the largest and most modern airports in Myanmar until the modernization of [[Yangon International Airport]] in 2008. Built at a cost of US$150&nbsp;million in 2000, it is highly underused; it serves mostly domestic flights with the exception of those to [[Kunming]] and to/from [[Bangkok]] and Chiang Mai, with daily flights on Air Asia and Bangkok Airways.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bangkokair.com/eng/pages/view/flight-schedule |title=Flight Schedule |access-date=2015-05-05 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150505081016/http://www.bangkokair.com/eng/pages/view/flight-schedule |archive-date=5 May 2015}}</ref> The airport has come to represent the military regime's propensity for bad planning and penchant for [[white elephant]] projects.<ref name=mia>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=25 |title=Junta's New White Elephant Project is Paying Off |author=Maung Maung Oo |magazine=[[The Irrawaddy]] |date=26 November 2001 |access-date=26 December 2008 |archive-date=23 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120323123805/http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=25 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Myanmar's recent opening stance on tourism means the airport is now receiving a growing number of visitors from Bangkok and Chiang Mai.

The airport is far from the city, {{cvt|45|km}} on a modern highway. Before the construction of this airport, [[Mandalay Chanmyathazi Airport]] was the main airport of the city. The airport serves some flights to Myanmar towns.

===River===
The [[Irrawaddy River|Ayeyarwady River]] remains an important arterial route for transporting goods such as farm produce including rice, beans and pulses, cooking oil, pottery, bamboo and teak.

===Rail===
[[File:Mandalay Central Station.JPG|thumb|Central Railway Station on 78th and 30th]]
[[Mandalay Central Railway Station]] is the terminus of [[Myanmar Railways]]'s [[metre gauge]] main rail line from Yangon ([[Yangon–Mandalay Railway]]) and the starting point of branch lines to [[Pyin U Lwin]] (Maymyo), [[Lashio]] ([[Mandalay–Lashio Railway]]), [[Monywa]], [[Pakokku]], [[Kalemyo|Kalay]], [[Gangaw]], and to the north, [[Shwebo]], [[Kawlin]], [[Naba, Sagaing|Naba]], [[Kanbalu]], [[Mohnyin]], [[Hopin (Kachin State)|Hopin]], [[Mogaung]] and [[Myitkyina]] ([[Mandalay–Myitkyina Railway]]).

Mandalay has a station on the [[standard gauge]] in [[Kunming]], [[China]] – [[Kyaukphyu]] port railway.

Mandalay does not have an intra-city [[rapid transit|metro rail]] system. The former [[Trams in Mandalay]] have been decommissioned.

===Roads===
Mandalay is at the very center of Burma's road network. The highway network includes roads towards:<ref name=md>{{cite news |url=http://www.myanmar.gov.mm/Article/Article2005/Feb/Feb13.htm |title=Mandalay Division marching to new golden land of unity and amity |date=13 February 2005 |author=Thiha Aung |newspaper=[[New Light of Myanmar]]}}</ref>
* Upper Burma and China—Mandalay–[[Tagaung]]–[[Bhamo]]–[[Myitkyina]] Road, Mandalay–Mogok–Singu–Bhamo Road, Mandalay–Lashio–[[Muse (Shan State)|Muse]] Road (part of [[Asian Highway]] route&nbsp;14 or AH14)<ref name=AH>{{Cite web |url=http://www.unescap.org/ttdw/Publications/TIS_pubs/pub_2303/MyanmarB5.pdf |title=Asian Highway in Myanmar |website=unescap.org |access-date=12 January 2009 |archive-date=29 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110429003140/http://www.unescap.org/ttdw/Publications/TIS_pubs/pub_2303/MyanmarB5.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* Western Burma and India—Mandalay–[[Sagaing]]–[[Monywa]]–[[Kalewa]]–[[Tamu, Burma|Tamu]] Road<ref name=AH/>
* Lower Burma– [[Yangon-Mandalay Expressway]] and [[National Highway 1 (Burma)|AH1]]<ref name=AH/>

Most stretches of these highways are one-lane roads in poor condition.

===Buses and cars===
As the government allows only a few thousand vehicles to be imported each year, motor transportation in Burma is very expensive for most of its citizens.<ref name=nyt>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/29/world/asia/29aid.html?scp=18&sq=myanmar&st=nyt |title=Burmese Economy Is an Obstacle to Aid |date=29 May 2008 |newspaper=[[New York Times]]}}</ref> Most people rely on [[bicycles]], [[motorcycles]] and/or private and public [[buses]] to get around. Back in the 2000s, the most popular car in Mandalay was the 1982/83 [[Nissan Sunny]] [[pickup truck]]. Because of its utility as a private bus or taxi, the two-and-a-half-decade old model still had strong demand and heady prices to match—from K10&nbsp;million to K14&nbsp;million (US$8,000 to US$11,000) in mid-2008.<ref name=sunny>{{Cite news |url=http://www.mmtimes.com/feature/care2008/care06.htm |title=Sunny pick-ups turn back the clock on Mandalay's roads |author=Phyo Wai Kyaw |work=[[Myanmar Times]] |date=2 June 2008 |access-date=26 December 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110430044720/http://www.mmtimes.com/feature/care2008/care06.htm |archive-date=30 April 2011 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all}}</ref> To get around severe import limits, people in Mandalay had turned to illegally imported and hence unregistered (called 'without' in [[Myanmar English]]) motorcycles and cars despite the government's periodic confiscation sprees.<ref name=jeep>{{Cite news |url=http://www.mmtimes.com/no377/n019.htm |title=Domestic autos take over Mandalay streets |author=Phyo Wai Kyaw |work=[[Myanmar Times]] |date=30 July 2007 |access-date=26 December 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110430044716/http://www.mmtimes.com/no377/n019.htm |archive-date=30 April 2011 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

In March 2008, Mandalay had nearly 81,000 registered motor vehicles<ref name=mv>{{Cite news |url=http://www.mmtimes.com/feature/care2008/care03.htm |title=Motor vehicles in Myanmar |author=Shwe Yinn Mar Oo |work=Myanmar Times |date=2 June 2008 |access-date=26 December 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081120210045/http://www.mmtimes.com/feature/care2008/care03.htm |archive-date=20 November 2008 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all}}</ref> plus an unknown number of unregistered vehicles. Although the number of cars for a city of one million is low, traffic in Mandalay is highly chaotic as thousands of bicycles and (unregistered) motorbikes freely roam around all the lanes of the streets. Unlike in Yangon where motorbikes, [[cycle rickshaw]]s and bicycles are prohibited from entering downtown and busy areas, in Mandalay it is anything goes. In 2018, as part of Mandalay Smart City initiatives, new traffic lights with internet-connected sensors have been installed by the Mandalay City Development Committee to manage traffic at junctions.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.mmtimes.com/news/mandalays-challenging-road-becoming-smart-city.html |title=Mandalay's challenging road to becoming a smart city |website=www.mmtimes.com |date=19 November 2018 |access-date=21 March 2021}}</ref>

==Demographics==
{{Historical populations|type=Burma
| 1950|167000
| 1960|250000
| 1970|374000
| 1980|499000
| 1990|636000
| 2000|810000
| 2007|961000
| 2010|1034000
| footnote = <ref name=un>{{Cite web |url=http://esa.un.org/unup/index.asp?panel=2 |title=United Nations World Urbanization Prospects, 2007 revision |access-date=24 January 2009 |publisher=The United Nations Population Division |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081218103032/http://esa.un.org/unup/index.asp?panel=2 |archive-date=18 December 2008}}</ref>
}}

A 2007 estimate by the UN puts Mandalay's population at nearly 1 million. The city's population is projected to reach nearly 1.5&nbsp;million by 2025.<ref name=un/> While Mandalay has traditionally been the bastion of [[Bamar]] (Burman) culture and populace, the massive influx of illegal ethnic Han Chinese in the last 20&nbsp;years has effectively influenced the ethnic Bamar majority there.<ref name=iiss>{{Cite news |author=China's Ambitions in Myanmar |url=http://www.asiapacificms.com/articles/myanmar_influence/ |title=China's Ambitions in Myanmar |date=July 2000 |publisher=IISS Strategic Comments}}</ref><ref name=jt>{{cite news |url=http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/fv19990513a2.html |title=Myanmar's Chinese connection |author=Stephen Mansfield |date=13 May 1999 |newspaper=[[Japan Times]] |url-status=dead |access-date=25 December 2008 |archive-date=10 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090110081051/http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/fv19990513a2.html}}</ref><ref>Forbes, Andrew ; Henley, David (2011). ''Traders of the Golden Triangle''. Chiang Mai: Cognoscenti Books. ASIN: B006GMID5</ref> Although many ethnic [[Han Chinese]] could not get Burmese citizenship, the foreign-born [[Yunnanese]] can easily obtain Burmese [[citizenship]] cards on the black market.<ref name=jt/> [[Ludu Daw Amar]] of Mandalay, the native journalist had said it felt like "an undeclared colony of [[Yunnan]]".<ref name="Ludu">{{Cite web |url=http://www.irrawaddymedia.com/article.php?art_id=2739&page=4 |title=Ludu Daw Amar: Speaking Truth to Power by Min Zin |publisher=[[The Irrawaddy]], October 2002 |access-date=12 January 2009 |archive-date=3 October 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111003045907/http://www.irrawaddymedia.com/article.php?art_id=2739&page=4 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Today, the percentage of ethnic Han Chinese, estimated at 50% of the city (with the [[Yunnanese]] forming an estimated 30% of Mandalay's population), is believed to be nearly the same as that of the ethnic Bamar.<ref>{{cite book |last=Rieffel |first=Lex |title=Myanmar/Burma: inside challenges, outside interests |publisher=Brookings Institution Press |year=2010 |pages=95–97 |isbn=978-0-8157-0505-5}}</ref> A sizable community of [[Burmese Indians|Indian immigrants]] (mostly [[Tamil people|Tamils]]) also resides in Mandalay.

[[Burmese language|Burmese]] is the principal language of the city, while [[Chinese language|Chinese]] is increasingly heard in the city's commerce centers as the second language. [[English language|English]] is the third language, only known by some urban people.<gallery widths="160">
File:Yunnanese Temple in Mandalay.jpg|The Yunnanese Buddhist Temple and Association in Mandalay is a major Chinese temple in the city.
File:Population percentage of Mandalay in 2014.png|Population of Mandalay in 2014
</gallery>

==Culture==
[[File:Buddha relics.JPG|thumb|right|Buddha relics from [[Kanishka stupa]] in [[Peshawar]], [[Pakistan]], now in Mandalay. Teresa Merrigan, 2005]]
Mandalay is Burma's cultural and religious center of Buddhism, having numerous monasteries and more than 700&nbsp;[[Burmese pagoda|pagodas]]. At the foot of [[Mandalay Hill]] sits the world's official "[[Tripiṭaka tablets at Kuthodaw Pagoda|Buddhist Bible]]", also known as the world's largest book, in [[Kuthodaw Pagoda]]. The styles of Mandalay Buddha Images and Buddha Statues were many since King Mandon, who was a devout Buddhist, and had filled Mandalay with them and through the years Mandalay Buddhist art became established as the pure art of Myanmar. There are 729&nbsp;slabs of stone that together are inscribed with the entire [[Pāli Canon]], each housed in its own white [[stupa]].
[[File:Mandalay, Palacio 02.jpg|thumb|The [[Mandalay Palace]]]]
The buildings inside the old Mandalay city walls, surrounded by a moat, which was repaired in recent times using prison labor, comprise the [[Mandalay Palace]], mostly destroyed during [[World War II]]. İt is now replaced by a replica, military Prison and a military garrison, the headquarters of the [[Myanmar Army|Central Military Command]].

===Media===
Much of the media in Mandalay – like elsewhere in Burma – comes from Yangon. The city's non-satellite [[TV programming]] comes from Yangon-based state-run [[TV Myanmar]] and military-run [[Myawaddy TV|Myawaddy]], both of which provide Burmese-language news and entertainment. Since December 2006, [[MRTV]]-4, formerly a paid channel, has also been available in Mandalay.<ref name=fm>{{Cite news |title=Myanmar to launch 2nd FM radio station in northern city |url=http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90001/90777/90851/6377348.html |date=20 March 2008 |publisher=[[People's Daily]] Online via [[Xinhua]]}}</ref> Mandalay has two radio stations. [[Naypyidaw]]-based [[Myanmar Radio National Service]] is the national radio service and broadcasts mostly in Burmese (and in English during specific times.) Semi-state-run [[Mandalay City FM]] (87.9FM) is the Mandalay metropolitan area's [[popular culture|pop culture]] oriented station.<ref name=radio>{{Cite news|url=http://www.mmtimes.com/no411/n002.htm |title=Mandalay gets FM station |date=24 March 2008 |author=Kyaw Zin Htun and Soe Than Linn |newspaper=Myanmar Times |access-date=24 December 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101216064919/http://mmtimes.com/no411/n002.htm |archive-date=16 December 2010 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all}}</ref>

The military government, which controls all daily newspapers in Burma, uses Mandalay to publish and distribute its three [[national newspaper]]s, the Burmese language ''[[Myanmar Alin]]'' and ''[[Kyemon]]'' and the English language ''[[New Light of Myanmar]]''.<ref name=mmn>{{Cite web |url=http://www.myanmars.net/myanmar-travel/myanmar-mandalay/mandalay.htm |title=Mandalay Media |access-date=24 December 2008 |publisher=Myanmar's Net |archive-date=9 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170209141644/http://www.myanmars.net/myanmar-travel/myanmar-mandalay/mandalay.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> The state-run ''[[Yadanabon (newspaper)|Yadanabon]]'' is published in Mandalay and serves the Upper Burma market.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=14834 |title=Naypyidaw to Launch New Daily |date=23 December 2008 |magazine=Irrawaddy}}</ref>
The ''Mandalay Daily'' newspaper is published by Mandalay City Development Committee since 30 November 1997.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.mandalaynews.net |title=Mandalay Daily Newspaper |date=30 November 1997 |publisher=Mandalay City Development Committee |access-date=23 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120301210442/http://www.mandalaynews.net/ |archive-date=1 March 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Sports==
[[File:Mandalarthiri Main Stadium in Sports Complex.jpg|thumb|[[Mandalarthiri Stadium|Mandalarthiri Sports Complex]]]]
Mandalay's sporting facilities are quite poor by international standards but are still the best in Upper Burma. The 17,000&nbsp;seat [[Bahtoo Stadium]] was the largest in Upper Myanmar before the construction of [[Mandalarthiri Stadium]] and hosts mainly local and regional association football and track-and-field tournaments. Since May 2009, professional football has arrived in Mandalay, with [[Yadanabon FC]] representing the city in the newly formed [[Myanmar National League]], the country's first professional football league.<ref name="mnl">{{Cite journal |url=http://www.mmtimes.com/no461/sport01.htm |title=New era for football |author=Han Oo Khin |date=9–15 March 2009 |journal=[[The Myanmar Times]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120215122240/http://www.mmtimes.com/no461/sport01.htm |archive-date=15 February 2012}}</ref>
In 2013, a new stadium, [[Mandalarthiri Stadium]] was built to host the Women Football matches of [[2013 Southeast Asian Games|27th SEA Games]] and became the largest stadium in Mandalay and Upper Myanmar.

===Sport climbing===
At Waterfall Hill, the first bolted rock climbing site in Myanmar have been developed with the help of Mandalay climbers led by Steve, Tylor and Technical Climbing Club of Myanmar since 2010.
<ref>[https://www.facebook.com/climbmyanmar/?ref=ts&fref=ts Technical Climbing Club of Myanmar] ''www.facebook.com'', accessed 15 March 2021</ref>
<ref>[http://goldenlandproject-blog.tumblr.com/page/4 golden land project] ''goldenlandproject-blog.tumblr.com'', accessed 15 March 2021</ref>
<ref>[https://www.mountainproject.com/v/mandalay/110276403 Mandalay Area Rock Climbing] ''www.mountainproject.com'', accessed 15 March 2021</ref>

==Economy==
[[File:Zay-Cho Time Tower.jpg|thumb|Zaycho market, the biggest market of the city]]
Mandalay is the major trading and communications center for [[Upper Myanmar]]. Much of Burmese external trade to China and India goes through Mandalay.<ref>{{Cite book |title=The Dragon Looks South: China and Southeast Asia in the New Century |last=Percival  |first=Bronson  |publisher= Praeger |year=2007 |isbn=978-978-097-899-0 |publication-date=June 1, 2007 |page=40}}</ref>

Among the leading traditional industries are silk weaving, [[tapestry]], [[jade]] cutting and polishing, stone and wood carving, making marble and bronze Buddha images, temple ornaments and paraphernalia, the working of gold leaves and of silver, the manufacture of matches, brewing and distilling.

Since the country's post-1988 shift towards [[economic liberalization]], large numbers of Chinese migrants in search of economic opportunity have poured into Mandalay. These migrants brought with them talent, skills, goods and services, and capital, but also purchased most of the shops and real estate in the centre of Mandalay, transforming the economic dynamics of the city.<ref name="Hiebert 2020 107">{{Cite book |title=Under Beijing's Shadow: Southeast Asia's China Challenge |last= Hiebert |first=Murray |publisher=  [[Center for Strategic & International Studies]] |year=2020 |isbn=978-1-4422-8138-7 |pages=107–109}}</ref> This influx of poor Han Chinese immigrants mostly trace their ancestry to the Southwestern Chinese province of [[Yunnan]].<ref name=iiss/> Many were able to illegally obtain identity papers on the black market to become naturalized Burmese citizens overnight.<ref name="auto7">{{Cite book |title=China's Asian Dream: Empire Building Along the New Silk Road |last= Miller  |first=Tom |publisher=Zed Books |year=2017 |isbn= 978-1-78360-923-9}}</ref> Arriving impoverished, they now sit at the helm of the Burmese economy as a prosperous business community.<ref name="Chua 2003 24">{{Cite book |title=World On Fire |last=Chua |first=Amy |publisher=Knopf Doubleday Publishing |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-385-72186-8 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/worldonfirehowex00chua_0/page/24 24] |url=https://archive.org/details/worldonfirehowex00chua_0/page/24 }}</ref> Identity cards allowed the Chinese immigrants to stay indefinitely and bypass legal barriers on foreign ownership of businesses such as hotels, shops, and restaurants.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Southeast Asia and the Rise of China: The Search for Security |last=Storey |first=Ian  |publisher=Routledge |year=2011 |isbn= 978-0-415-83835-1 |page=153}}</ref>

The imposition of sanctions by the [[United States]] and the [[European Union]] in the 1990s and Burma's open-door immigration policy in the 1990s encouraged Chinese entrepreneurs to move to Mandalay.<ref name="auto4">{{Cite book |title=Chinese Capitalism in Southeast Asia: Cultures and Practices |last=Santasombat |first=Yos |publisher= Palgrave Macmillan |year=2017 |isbn=978-981-10-4695-7 |page=237}}</ref> A substantial increase in [[foreign direct investment]] has poured in from mainland China, mostly ending up in Mandalay's [[real estate]] sector, through Burmese citizen intermediaries of Chinese ancestry.<ref name="auto7"/> Retail outlets were opened by Chinese entrepreneurs, ranging from cement mixing to financial services turning Mandalay into the prosperous business centre it is today.<ref name="auto9">{{Cite book |title=Ethnic Chinese As Southeast Asians |last= Suryadinata  |first=Leo |publisher=Institute of Southeast Asian Studies |year=1997 |isbn= 978-981-3055-50-6 |page=144}}</ref>
<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Shannon |first1=Stephanie |last2=Farrelly |first2=Nicholas  |date=April 1, 2014 |title=Ethnic Chinese in the Midst of Myanmar's Transition |url=https://www.iseas.edu.sg/images/pdf/ISEAS_Perspective_2014_19.pdf |journal=Institute of Southeast Asian Studies |publication-date=April 1, 2014 |issue=19 |pages=6–7 |issn=2335-6677}}</ref> As Mandalay became more economically prosperous, existing Burmese Chinese have facilitated continued immigration from China.<ref name="Ying 2017">{{Cite book |chapter=Rethinking "pauk-phaw" |last=Ying |first=Duan |title=China's Rise and the Chinese Overseas |editor-last1=Wong |editor-first1=Bernard |editor-last2=Tan |editor-first2= Chee-Beng  |publisher=Routledge |year=2017 |isbn=978-1-138-29368-7 |publication-date=August 10, 2017 |pages=117–127 }}</ref> The transformation of Mandalay into a booming modern metropolis filled with foreign businesses and gem trading centers occurred under the auspices of the entrepreneurial Chinese minority.<ref name="auto7"/>

The Chinese minority in Mandalay own virtually all of Mandalay's retail gold shops, mining concessions, foreign businesses and timber trading companies.<ref name="Becker 2007 228–229">{{Cite book |title=Dragon Rising: An Inside Look at China Today |last=Becker |first=Jasper |publisher=National Geographic Press |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-4262-0116-5 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/dragonrisinginsi0000beck/page/228 228–229] |url=https://archive.org/details/dragonrisinginsi0000beck/page/228 }}</ref> In Central Mandalay, about 80 percent or four out of five gold and jewellery shops are Chinese-owned.<ref name="auto10"/> Many Chinese-owned and operated businesses such as trading cooperatives, market stalls, food joints, traditional Chinese medicinal clinics, hotels, gemstone mining concessions,<ref name="auto7"/> wholesale marketing, hotels, restaurants, and real estate have also flourished.<ref name="auto10">{{Cite book |title=Impact of China's Rise on the Mekong Region |last=Santasombat |first=Yos  |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |year=2015 |isbn=978-1-349-69307-8}}</ref> Foreign purchasers of jade and gems flock to the city of Mandalay, with clients from Hong Kong continuing to be the source of main customers. Mandalay has been virtually sinicized economically and culturally, to the resentment of locals.<ref name="Hiebert 2020 107"/><ref>{{Cite book |title=World On Fire |last=Chua | first=Amy |publisher=Knopf Doubleday Publishing |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-385-72186-8 |page=30}}</ref> More than 50 percent of the commercial business activity generated in Downtown Mandalay is derived from the eclipsing plethora of Chinese-owned shops, hotels, restaurants, and showrooms that predominate the area. About 80 percent of the hotels and guesthouses, more than 70 percent of the restaurants, more than 45 percent of gold and jewellery shops, about 30 percent of jade and gemstone trading, and nearly 100 percent of the sale centres for mainland Chinese-made commodities in Mandalay are owned and operated by the Chinese.<ref name="auto4"/> Chinese entrepreneurs and investors have acquired much of Central Mandalay's economic crown jewels and have been disproportionately responsible for generating much of the city's output of commercial business activity relative to their small population size.<ref name="auto9"/>

Prime residential and commercial real estate in central Mandalay have been bought by wealthy Chinese businessmen and investors.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Identity and Ethnic Relations in Southeast Asia: Racializing Chineseness |last= Tong  |first=Chee Kiong |publisher= Springer |year=2014 |isbn= 978-94-007-9518-1 |page=155}}</ref> As many as half of the city's residents have Chinese ancestry with the seven of the top ten entrepreneurs in Mandalay being of Chinese descent fully controlling 60 percent of its entire economy.<ref name="Hiebert 2020 107"/> About 50 percent of the land plots in Downtown Mandalay are controlled by the Chinese.<ref name="auto4"/> In addition, all of Mandalay's shopping malls and hotels were entirely built by Chinese-owned construction and real estate development companies. Besides Mandalay's economic development being shaped by the Burmese Chinese business community's immense development output, it has also been amplified with additional investment from foreign Chinese investment from mainland China and overseas [[bamboo network]]s.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Ethnic Chinese as Southeast Asians |last1= Suryadinata |first1=Leo  |publisher=Institute of Southeast Asian Studies|year=1997 |isbn= 981-3055-58-8 |page=128}}</ref> The apparent influence of mainland China is also ostensibly felt throughout the city, where the local inhabitants have alluded to Mandalay as a "Chinese city" dominated by an inflow of international expatriate mainland and overseas Chinese capital, with much of it invested in real estate, including hotels and restaurants.<ref>{{Cite book |last= Kurlantzick |first=Joshua | title = Charm Offensive: How China's Soft Power Is Transforming the World |publisher= Yale University Press  |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-300-13628-9 |series= A New Republic Book |publication-date=May 27, 2008 |page=105}}</ref>


Despite the rise of Naypyidaw, the country's capital since 2006, Mandalay remains Upper Burma's main commercial, educational and health center. In October 2018, Mandalay was ranked by CIO Asia as number fifth among the top 10 cities in Southeast Asia in the process of becoming a [[smart city]] for [[ASEAN Smart Cities Network]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.cio-asia.com/article/3315258/internet-of-things/top-10-smart-cities-in-southeast-asia.html |title=Top 10 Smart Cities in Southeast Asia |access-date=23 November 2018 |archive-date=23 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181123200956/https://www.cio-asia.com/article/3315258/internet-of-things/top-10-smart-cities-in-southeast-asia.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Mandalay's other major industries include sports where the nation's popularity of soccer has sprung across the city. The Burmese soccer club, [[Yadanabon FC]] represents the city in the Myanmar National League, making it the nation's first professional soccer league.<ref name="auto7"/>

==Education==
{{See also|Category:Universities and colleges in Mandalay}}
[[File:University of Mandalay Building.jpg|thumb|left| [[University of Mandalay]]]]
Mandalay has the best educational facilities and institutions, after Yangon, in Burma where state spending on education is among the lowest in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |title=HRDU Yearbook 2006 Chapter 9: Rights to Education and Health |url=http://burmalibrary.org/docs4/HRDU2006-CD/education.html |publisher=Human Rights Documentation Unit |access-date=2008-09-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080922093012/http://burmalibrary.org/docs4/HRDU2006-CD/education.html |archive-date=22 September 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Students in poor districts routinely drop out in middle school as schools have to rely on forced "donations" and various fees from parents for nearly everything – school maintenance to teachers' salaries.<ref name="dvb-edu">{{Cite news |title=Educationalists concerned by Burmese literacy rate |url=http://english.dvb.no/news.php?id=1732 |date=10 September 2008 |author=Yee May Aung |publisher=[[Democratic Voice of Burma|DVB]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080914132228/http://english.dvb.no/news.php?id=1732 |archive-date=14 September 2008}}</ref>
For the rest of the students who cannot afford to go abroad for studies, Mandalay offers Upper Burma's best institutions of higher education. There are over 15 universities in the city. The city's [[University of Mandalay]], [[University of Medicine, Mandalay]], [[University of Dental Medicine, Mandalay]], [[Mandalay Technological University]] and [[University of Computer Studies, Mandalay]] are among the nation's most selective universities.

==Health care==
{{See also|List of hospitals in Mandalay}}
[[File:10 storey Building of MGH.jpg|thumb|Mandalay General Hospital]]
The general state of [[healthcare in Myanmar]] is poor. The military government spends anywhere from 0.5% to 3% of the country's GDP on health care, consistently ranking among the lowest in the world.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.ppionline.org/ppi_ci.cfm?knlgAreaID=108&subsecID=900003&contentID=254167 |title=PPI: Almost Half of All World Health Spending is in the United States |date=17 January 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080205231908/http://www.ppionline.org/ppi_ci.cfm?knlgAreaID=108&subsecID=900003&contentID=254167 |archive-date=5 February 2008}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2007/06/28_Burma.shtml |title=Burma junta faulted for rampant diseases |date=28 June 2007 |author=Yasmin Anwar |publisher=[[UC Berkeley]] News}}</ref>
[[File:Main Building of UMM.jpg|thumb|[[University of Medicine, Mandalay]]|left]]In 2005, the public health care system of [[Mandalay Region]] with over 7.6&nbsp;million people consisted of slightly over 1000&nbsp;doctors and about 2000&nbsp;nurses working in 44&nbsp;hospitals and 44&nbsp;health clinics. Over 30 of the so-called hospitals had less than 100&nbsp;beds.<ref name="md" /> Although health care is nominally free, in reality, patients have to pay for medicine and treatment, even in public clinics and hospitals. Public hospitals lack many of the basic facilities and equipment.
Nonetheless, Mandalay remains the main health care center for Upper Burma<ref name="mdy health">{{Cite news |url=http://www.mmtimes.com/feature/health/h011.htm |title=Mandalay continues to play vital role as healthcare centre for the upper north |author=Aye Lei Tun |newspaper=[[Myanmar Times]] |date=11 June 2007  |access-date=24 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080720031631/http://www.mmtimes.com/feature/health/h011.htm |archive-date=20 July 2008 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all}}</ref> as almost all of large public hospitals and private hospitals are in Mandalay. The city has ten public hospitals and one hospital specializing in traditional Burmese medicine. For a semblance of adequate health care, the well-to-do from Upper Burma go to private hospitals and clinics in Mandalay. For more advanced treatments, they have to go to Yangon or abroad. The wealthy Burmese routinely go abroad (usually [[Bangkok]] or Singapore) for treatment.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.mmtimes.com/feature/health/h012.htm |title=Medical tourism gives patients options |author=Thein Win Nyo |newspaper=Myanmar Times |date=11 June 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080720093301/https://www.mmtimes.com/feature/health/h012.htm |archive-date=20 July 2008}}</ref>

==Twin towns – sister cities==
Mandalay is [[Twin towns and sister cities|twinned]] with:
* {{flagicon|IDN}} [[Cirebon]], Indonesia
* {{flagicon|PRC}} [[Kunming]], China
* {{flagicon|CAM}} [[Phnom Penh]], Cambodia
*{{flagicon|South Korea}} [[Ulsan]], South Korea

==Mandalay in popular culture==

* [[Rudyard Kipling]] wrote a poem called "[[Mandalay (poem)|Mandalay]]" (1890), which is the origin of the phrase "on the road to Mandalay".<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://raysweb.net/poems/mandalay/index.html |title=Mandalay Rudyard Kipling |access-date=25 October 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081205040235/http://raysweb.net/poems/mandalay/index.html |archive-date=5 December 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref> In 1907, the poem was set to music by [[Oley Speaks]] as ''[[On the Road to Mandalay (song)|On the Road to Mandalay]]''. Speaks' version was widely recorded. Among the best known renditions is the one by [[Frank Sinatra]] on ''[[Come Fly with Me (Frank Sinatra album)|Come Fly With Me]]''.
* [[Bithia Mary Croker]] wrote a novel in 1917, ''The Road to Mandalay'', which was the uncredited basis for a 1926 American silent [[The Road to Mandalay (1926 film)|film]]. Of this, only excerpts survive. A further [[The Road to Mandalay (2016 film)|film of the same name]] was  directed by [[Midi Z]] in 2016.
* The large hotel/casino/convention center [[Mandalay Bay]] in [[Las Vegas]] is named for the city, despite the fact that the city is 500 kilometers from the nearest bay, perhaps in reference to the line in Kipling's poem, "An' the dawn comes up like thunder outer China 'crost the Bay! "
* [[George Orwell]] was stationed at Mandalay for a time while working for the [[Indian Imperial Police]] in Burma, and his first novel, ''[[Burmese Days]]'' (1934), was based on his experiences in Burma. He also wrote a number of short non-fiction essays and short stories about Burma, such as "[[A Hanging]]" (1931) and "[[Shooting an Elephant]]" (1936).
* [[John Masters]] wrote a book about his wartime experiences in Burma called ''The Road Past Mandalay'' (1961)..
* In the 1956 children's song "[[Nellie the Elephant]]", the road to Mandalay is the location for a rendezvous of the herd:
<blockquote>
:The head of the herd was calling far far away.
:They met one night in the silver light,
:On the road to Mandalay.</blockquote>
* The American film studio ''[[Mandalay Pictures]]'' is named after the city. The logo also features a tiger, which is often seen roaming around the city.
* British pop singer [[Robbie Williams]] sang a song called [[The_Road_to_Mandalay_(song)|The Road to Mandalay]] which was released as a single in 2001.

==Notable people==
<!---♦♦♦ Only add a person to this list if they already have their own article on the English Wikipedia ♦♦♦--->
<!---♦♦♦ Please keep the list in alphabetical order by LAST NAME ♦♦♦--->
* [[Saw Maung]] (1928–1997), Burmese general, chairman of [[State Peace and Development Council|State Law and Order Restoration Council]]
* [[Oo Zun]] (1868–1944), social worker and Buddhist nun
* [[Zwe Ohn Chein]] (1910–1979), Burmese inventor and writer

==Gallery==
<gallery class="center">
File:Mandalay Hill, Myanmar.JPG|[[Mandalay Hill]]
File:Mandalay, Wall, Myanmar.jpg|Moat
File:Maha aung mye bon zhan monastry in inwa.jpg|[[Maha Aungmye Bonzan Monastery]] in Inwa
File:Mandalay-Palace-Watch-Tower.JPG|Mandalay Palace Watch Tower
File:The Glass Palace of Mandalay.jpg|The Palace of Mirrors (''Hmannan'') inside Mandalay Palace
File:Mandalay, Mandalay Palace, Myanmar.jpg|Great Audience Hall in [[Mandalay Palace]]
File:Mandalay-Shwe-Kyaung.JPG|Shwe Kyaung, a famous monastery
File:Old Myoma Thingyan.JPG|Mandalay early Thingyan Festival
File:Mandalay Thingyan Rehearsal 2012.JPG|Opening Ceremony Myanmar [[Thingyan]] Festival in front of the City Hall
File:Ku Tho Taw Pagoda & Sandar Muni Pagoda, Mandalay.jpg|Kuthodaw Pagoda and Sandar Muni Pagoda
File:Birmanie 0005a.jpg|A Mandalayan girl
File:MANDALAY PUENTE COLONIAL SOBRE EL RIO AYEYARWADY.jpg|Now defunct old Sagaing Bridge
</gallery>

==See also==
{{portal|Myanmar}}
*[[Sacred Heart Cathedral, Mandalay]]
*[[Sandamuni Pagoda]]
*[[Setkyathiha Pagoda]]
*[[Shwekyimyin Pagoda]]
*[[State Pariyatti Sasana University, Mandalay]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

== Bibliography ==
* {{cite book |last=Larkin |first=Emma|author-link=Emma Larkin |title=Finding George Orwell in Burma |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zLvDnIOyViEC |date=6 March 2006 |publisher=Penguin Publishing Group |isbn=978-1-101-11812-2}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Mandalay}}
{{Wikiquote}}
* {{Wikivoyage-inline}}
*[http://www.pyinoolwin.info/index.htm See also nearby Pyin Oo Lwin, the historic hill station above Mandalay] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090804055257/http://www.pyinoolwin.info/index.htm |date=4 August 2009 }}
* {{cite web |url=http://web.soas.ac.uk/burma/2.1%20pdf%20files/2.1%2011%20colbeck2.pdf |title=Mandalay in 1885–1888 – the letters of James Alfred Colbeck |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070103043301/http://web.soas.ac.uk/burma/2.1%20pdf%20files/2.1%2011%20colbeck2.pdf |archive-date= 3 January 2007 |df=dmy-all}}&nbsp;{{small|(107&nbsp;[[Kibibyte|KiB]])}} SOAS
* [http://www.mandalayemporium.com Mandalay Gallery with antique, colonial views of Mandalay]
*[http://www.seasite.niu.edu/Burmese/Culture/WilsonPages/MandalayRegion/MandalayRegion.htm Mandalay, the Burmese Heartland by Dr. Constance Wilson, Northern Illinois University] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090415133906/http://www.seasite.niu.edu/Burmese/Culture/WilsonPages/MandalayRegion/MandalayRegion.htm |date=15 April 2009 }}
*[http://www.orientalarchitecture.com/mandalay/MANDALAYMAP.htm Asian Historical Architecture – Mandalay by Prof. Robert D. Fiala, Concordia University, Nebraska]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20120218121659/http://www.mrtv3.net.mm/pages/song4.html Mandalay Centenary Song by Than Myat Soe] [[MRTV]]3

{{s-start}}
{{s-hou}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Amarapura]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Capital of Burma]]|years=23 May 1859 – 29 November 1885}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Yangon]]}}
{{s-end}}

{{Townships of Mandalay}}
{{Mandalay Division}}
{{Administrative divisions of Burma (Myanmar)}}
{{Most populous cities in Myanmar}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Mandalay| ]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1857]]
[[Category:Populated places in Mandalay Region]]
[[Category:Irrawaddy River]]
[[Category:Township capitals of Myanmar]]
[[Category:1857 establishments in Burma]]