May Oung Explained

May Oung
Native Name Lang:my
Office:Minister of Home Affairs of British Burma
Term Start:1924[1]
Term End:5 June 1926
Office2:Minister of High Court of British Burma
Term Start2:1922
Term End2:1924
Birth Date:6 January 1880
Birth Place:Sittwe
Death Place:Maymyo, Burma, British India
Nationality:Burmese
Alma Mater:University of Cambridge
Parents:Tha Do Phyu (father)
Hnaung Dway (mother)
Spouse:Thein Mya
Occupation:Legal scholar, Judge, Politician
Children:Tha Doe Oung
Tun Hla Oung
Mya Sein

May Oung (Burmese: မေအောင်, also spelt May Aung; 6 January 1880 - 5 June 1926) was a Burmese legal scholar, judge and politician who served as Minister of Home Affairs during the colonial era. He was known for his expertise in Burmese Buddhist law and one of the founders of the Young Men's Buddhist Association Burma.

May Oung was the first law professor at Yangon University.

Early life and education

May Oung was born on 6 January 1880 in Sittwe to parents Tha Do Phyu and Hnaung Dway, the second eldest of three sons. His parents died when May Oung was a child, so he was raised by his mother's brother, Hla Aung and his wife, Mya May, who sent him to India for his formative education. He studied law at the University of Cambridge from 1904 and 1907, and pursued an LLM at Cambridge in 1922.[2]

Career

He was one of only two Burmese judges appointed to the High Court when it was established by the British administration in 1922.[3]

Notes and References

  1. Book: Kyaw . Aye . The Voice of Young Burma . 2018. Cornell University Press. 9781501719349. en.
  2. Book: Keck, Stephen L.. British Burma in the New Century, 1895–1918. 2015-10-06. Springer. 9781137364333. en.
  3. Book: Oung, Kin Thida. A Twentieth Century Burmese Matriarch. 2007. Lulu.com. 9780557102297. en.