Sittwe

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Sittwe (Burmese: စစ္‌တ္ဝေမ္ရုိ့; MLCTS: sac twe mrui.; Rakhine: Saitway; 2006 population 181,000), formerly known as Akyab, (latitude 20° South and longitude 92°56¼ E), is a city and district in Rakhine State, Myanmar.

Sittwe is situated on an estuarial island at the confluence of the Kaladan River, Myu River, and Lemyo River.

Originally a small fishing village, Sittwe became an important seat of maritime commerce, especially as a port for the export of rice after the British occupation of Arakan following the First Anglo-Burmese War. In 1826, the seat of government was transferred from the old Arakan capital of Myohaung to Sittwe on the seacoast. During the first 40 years of British rule it increased from a village to a town of 15,536 inhabitants, and by 1901 it was the third port of Burma with a population of 31,687. During colonial times, Sittwe had a bad reputation for malaria and cholera, although historical records indicate that it was no better or worse than many other locations along the India coast.

The Scottish author Hector Hugh Munro (Saki) was born in Sittwe in 1870.

In February 2007, India announced a plan to develop the port, which would enable ocean access from Indian Northeastern states like Mizoram, via the Kaladan River.^[1]

The city is home to the Sittway University.