Back شعب كارين Arabic شعب كارين ARZ Карэны BE Карени Bulgarian စောက်ꩻလိုꩻခွိုꩻ BLK Karen (nació) Catalan Karenové Czech Karen (folkeslag) Danish Karen (Volk) German Karenoj EO
 Flag of the Karen National Union | |
 Karen woman in traditional attire, 1912 | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
|---|---|
 Myanmar | 3,371,100[1] |
 Thailand | 350,000 (2000)[2] |
 United States | 215,000[3] |
 Australia | 11,000[4] |
 Canada | 6,050[5] |
 India (Andaman Islands) | 2,500[6] |
| Languages | |
| Karen languages, including S'gaw Karen, Pwo Karen, Karenni and Pa'O | |
| Religion | |
| Theravada Buddhism, Christianity, Karen folk religion | |
The Karen[a] (/kəˈrɛn/ kə-REN), also known as the Kayin, Kariang or Kawthoolese, are an ethnolinguistic group of Tibeto-Burman language-speaking people. The group as a whole is heterogeneous and disparate as many Karen ethnic groups do not associate or identify with each other culturally or linguistically. These Karen groups reside primarily in Kayin State, southern and southeastern Myanmar. The Karen account for around 6.69% of the Burmese population.[1] Many Karen have migrated to Thailand, having settled mostly on the Myanmar–Thailand border. A few Karen have settled in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India, and other Southeast Asian and East Asian countries.
The Karen consist of two subgroups, the White Karen and the Red Karen.[7] The Karen groups as a whole are often confused with the Padaung tribe, best known for the neck rings worn by their women, but they are just one sub-group of Red Karens (Karenni), one of the tribes of Kayah in Kayah State, Myanmar.
Karen insurgent groups, led primarily by the Karen National Union (KNU), have waged war against the Burmese government since early 1949. The original aim of the KNU was to create an independent Karen homeland called Kawthoolei, but since 1976 they have shifted towards calling for a federal system in Myanmar instead. Even so, the KNU has declined invitations to speak with the Burmese junta.[8]
- ^ a b "Party Mergers: Falling Short of Expectation (YMG Season 2 Episode 2) | ISP-Myanmar". 15 December 2020. Archived from the original on 10 May 2024. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
- ^ International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination; Reports submitted by States parties under article 9 of the Convention: Thailand (PDF) (in English and Thai). United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. 28 July 2011. p. 13. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 October 2016. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
- ^ "Jobs and housing lure karen refugees to spread across minnesota". Archived from the original on 24 July 2020. Retrieved 25 February 2020.
- ^ "Burmese Community Profile" (PDF). dss.gov.au. Archived (PDF) from the original on 30 December 2016. Retrieved 28 June 2017.
- ^ "Profile table, Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population – Canada". Statistics Canada. Government of Canada. 9 February 2022. Archived from the original on 20 June 2022. Retrieved 13 June 2023.
- ^ Maiti, Sameera. "The Karen – A Lesser Known Community of the Andaman Islands (India)". Man in India. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.517.7093.
- ^ "Karen". Britannica. Encyclopedia Britannica. Archived from the original on 5 December 2024. Retrieved 13 November 2024.
- ^ "The Karen National Union in Post-Coup Myanmar • Stimson Center". Stimson Center. 7 April 2022. Archived from the original on 26 July 2022. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
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