Professor U Pe Maung Tin (1888-1973): The Life and Work of an Outstanding Burmese Scholar

Journal of Burma Studies, Volume 9 11 PROFESSOR U PE MAUNG TIN (1888—1973) The Life and Work of an Outstanding Burmese Scholar Anna Allo� * U Pe Maung Tin was born on 24 April 1888 (qk‡raz\ 1250KuNHs\ kSun\ l`pv\. AgCfen>) in Pauktaw, in the Insein township in the northern part of Rangoon, the fi�h child of U Pe and Daw Myaing. U Pe was a Christian, the son of the first national pastor of Henzada Burmese Baptist Church in the delta region of Burma. It seems that U Pe’s family had earlier moved from Henzada to Pauktaw because of disagreements with the Henzada group concerning Christian doctrine. Although his parents were Christian, Maung Tin, as he was known when young, started his schooling at a nearby private school run by Saya Koyin-gyi where he was taught basic Buddhist texts such as the Lokaniti and the Mangala Su�a. At age eight he entered the First Standard of the Rangoon Government High School where, at age fourteen, he won a scholarship. Already the quick understanding and powerful memory that were to carry him so far were in evidence. In 1906, Maung Tin entered Rangoon College (at that time an affiliated college of Calcu�a University) to begin his study of Pali; he won the Jardine Prize for coming in first in the Intermediate Arts examination and, at age twenty-one, graduated with an honors degree in Pali. He was then granted special permission to study for an M.A. and to take the exam from Rangoon College instead of having to travel to Calcu�a. Almost at once, he started teaching Pali at the college and, barely one year later in July 1912, was promoted to professor of Pali Studies when his teacher, Charles Duroiselle, le� the college to become Superintendent of Archaeology. Maung Tin thus became, at age twenty-four, the youngest-ever professor * Senior ResearchAssociate in Burmese Studies, University of London, School of Oriental and African Studies. 12 Journal of Burma Studies, Volume 9 Anna Allo� of Pali in Rangoon. With the professorship went the post of librarian of the only free library in Rangoon at the time, the Bernard Free Library, which later became the (Myanmar) National Library. T�� B���� R������� S������ Ameeting held in the Bernard Free Library in 1910 had seen the inauguration of the Burma Research Society, the result of an initiative by a young member of the colonial administration, John Sydenham Furnivall, a Cambridge graduate who had arrived in Burma in 1902. A�er spending five or six years as a district officer, he conceived the idea of founding a society that would increase the fund of knowledge about Burma available to those interested in learning more. He discussed the idea with a Burmese friend, U May Oung (a lawyer trained in England and a devout Buddhist), with Charles Duroiselle, and with Maung Tin; in March 1910 the project was launched. In 1911 the Journal of the Burma Research Society was started with Maung Tin as editor; in fact he contributed his very first article to it.1 By 1912 he was elected to the post of honorary treasurer. The aims of the society were the investigation and encouragement of art, science, and literature in relation to Burma and the neighboring countries as well as the fostering of good relations between the British and Burmese communities. The society saw itself as dedicated to the study of all aspects of Burma’s culture, history, and religion, and in particular its language and literature; its regular meetings witnessed many spirited debates, and its twice-yearly journal carried valuable research articles and book reviews on Burma for seventy years. The title of Maung Tin’s first article in the Journal, “Missionary Burmese,” revealed that his interests lay not only with Pali but also with his own language. While acknowledging the achievements of the pioneer missionarylexicographer Adoniram Judson (1788–1849), he warned contemporary missionaries that they ought to study the best Professor U Pe Maung Tin (1888–1973) Journal of Burma Studies, Volume 9 13 examples of Burmese literature before a�empting to write their sermons, as their infelicitous use of language...