The Shan Hills, also known as Shan Highland, are part of the range of hills that extends through Yunnan to Burma and Thailand, linking to the Himalayas, of which they may be considered foothills.

Etymology

The name of the range is derived from the Shan State and its peoples, said in its turn to be derived from the word "Siam", that occupies most of the Shan Highland area.

Geography

The area of the Shan Highland is a combination of hill ranges, high plateau and steep river valleys. The Shan Hills straddle central eastern Burma and northwestern Thailand.

They rise steeply from Burma's central plain and stretch for hundreds of kilometres eastwards into Thailand's northwest. The average elevation is around 1,000 m. Its surface is cut across by steep river gorges, part of the drainage basins of the Chao Phraya, the Irrawaddy and the Salween or Thanlwin River.

A series of mountain ranges rises in near-parallel fashion above the plateau, up to heights of 2,500 m. Doi Inthanon, the highest point in Thailand, reaching 2,565 m (8,415 ft), is part of a mountain range separating Burma from Thailand also known as Loi Lar Mountain Range or Daen Lao Range. This range, the westernmost of the Shan Highland system, separates the Salween watershed from the Mekong watershed. Other high peaks of the Loi Lar Mountain Range are Doi Luang Chiang Dao (2,175 m), Doi Pui (1,685 m), and Doi Suthep (1,676 m).

The Daen Lao Mountain Range begins at Chiang Saen in the east. Its western end is not clearly defined though. Some geographers include Doi Inthanon as part of the Thanon Thongchai subsystem, connecting the Daen Lao Range with the beginning of the Tenasserim Hills further south. The tallest point of the Thanon Thongchai range is Mae Ya Peak (2,005 m), located on the eastern side of these mountains in the Pai District of Mae Hong Son Province.

Features

Karstic ranges are common, for a large part of the Shan Hills are limestone. In the highlands of the Shan hills there are also lakes, like the Inle Lake near Yawnghwe.

The Shan Hills is the area of Burma which accounts for most of the national potato production.

In British colonial times, the main hill station in Burma, Pyin U Lwin, was built in the western region of the Shan Hills. Located at 1,000 m above sea level and about one-hour drive from Mandalay, it was one of the retreats for colonial officials escaping the heat of the Burmese summer. Pyin-U-Lwin is still famous for its botanical gardens and, like all British hill stations, has samples of colonial architecture.

credited to wikipedia