HISTORY
Teaching Myanmar as a foreign language course was first offered in 1974 at Institute of Foreign Languages (IFL). Since the Department of Myanmar had not yet established then, the teachers from Yangon University came to teach Myanmar. Department of Myanmar was established at Institute of Foreign Languages in 1985. Only Myanmar proficiency classes were opened there till 1988- 1989 academic year. Undergraduate program was begun in 1997-1998 academic year and Diploma program from 1999-2000 academic years. There are altogether 1727 foreign students who were taught Myanmar language in YUFL from 1974 to 2016-2017 academic years. Most of the students who came to learn Myanmar Language are scholarship holders, army officers, diplomats, businessmen, those who want to learn Tharawada Buddhism and the university students who come by the partnership program so the students are from various countries who speak various languages with various ages.
Now, Centre of Excellence for teaching of Myanmar as a Foreign Language is founded and drawn future plans in order to support the department and the students studying Myanmar language, literature and culture.
In YUFL, Myanmar Language course for Foreigners was opened firstly in 1974. As Myanmar department had not yet been established in IFL at that time, teachers from Yangon University had to come to teach Myanmar Language. Myanmar department was established in 1985 at this institute then known as Institute of Foreign Languages. At first, it was called the Department of Myanmarsar and then, according to the other foreign languages departments, it was renamed as the Department of Myanmar Language.
The proficiency classes were introduced in 1988-89 Academic year. BA programme was introduced in 1997-98 Academic year, Diploma programme in 1999-2000 AY, CHRD evening classes in 2013 and MA programme in 2018-2019 AY.
The heads of the Department of Myanmar Language are as follows:
Daw Nu Nu Swe
Daw Mar Lay …
MISSION
To increase the number of international studends and to train Myanmar Language teachers to be exellent foreign language teachers in Myanmar departments around the world.
VISION
- To be the focal department for teaching and learning Myanmar as a foreign language
- To introduce Myanmar culture to oversea students
- To encourage more foreigners to come to Myanmar and study the Myanmar language at YUFL
Research
2006 : ‘What is Tourism’ in the Journal of Myanmar Academy of Arts and Science
2011 : ‘A Studies of Adaptations’ in Myingyan Degree College Research Journal
2012(Vol 3) : A Study of the Similarities Between English Proverbs and Myanmar Proverbs’ in Loikaw University Research Journal
2015 : ‘A Studies of the Morphology of Kayah Language Focusing on Linguistics’ in Loikaw University Departmental Research
2015(Vol 7) : ‘The Characteristic of Adapted Novels’ in Yangon University of Foreign Languages Research Journal
2017 : ‘A Study of the Kayah Compound Words’ in 53rd Annual Paper Reading, Yangon University of Foreign Languages