Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Humanities/2017 December 21

= December 21 =

Did Bangladesh and Burma ever fight each other in ancient times?
These two nations are beside each other. Have Bangladesh and Myanmar ever fought each other in ancient times? If so, when was it? 99.239.236.168 (talk) 01:13, 21 December 2017 (UTC)
 * For one thing, there was no "Bangladesh" or "Burma" in ancient times. For example, see: History of Rakhine & Pagan Kingdom —2606:A000:4C0C:E200:B8D8:3FE9:323E:5312 (talk) 01:31, 21 December 2017 (UTC)
 * The article on Military history of Myanmar includes several references to conflicts between states which were in what is now Myanmar and and others which were in what is now Bangladesh. Just check for references to Bengal in that article - Bengali rulers do seem to have meddled in the affairs of their neighbours from time to time. Wymspen (talk) 13:10, 21 December 2017 (UTC)
 * Knowing human nature... if you point to any group of people, you will find that they have fought with their neighbors at some point in time. Towns fight with neighboring towns... tribes fight with neighboring tribes... ethnic groops fight with neighboring ethic groups, etc. Blueboar (talk) 13:57, 21 December 2017 (UTC)
 * Conflicts for territory and resources have also been observed in other primates. I am far from certain if it is "human" nature or has to do with a tendency to organize ourselves into competing tribes. Dimadick (talk) 12:28, 22 December 2017 (UTC)


 * The mere fact that the Bengali language is more closely related to Irish and the Burmese language to Chinese should clarify the fact that these two are not neighbors because they originated in peaceful primordial coexistence. μηδείς (talk) 16:30, 24 December 2017 (UTC)


 * "...beyond Bengal, the border with Burma is defended by young mountains that are often covered in a nearly impenetrable jungle". The Geopolitics of South Asia: From Early Empires to the Nuclear Age by Graham P. Chapman.
 * Communication across the border was (and probably still is) appallingly difficult, a fact that only became an advantage when the Japanese attempted to invade India in 1944 but were held at the Battle of Kohima. See also Ledo Road and Hell Pass. Alansplodge (talk) 23:00, 27 December 2017 (UTC)