IndoBurma

IndoBurma (also spelled Indo-Burma) is a term used in geography, linguistics, and history to denote connections between the eastern Indian subcontinent and mainland Southeast Asia. Depending on the context, it may refer to a biogeographic region, a language subgroup, or a historical military theatre.

In biogeography, Indo-Burma denotes a distinct biodiversity region that extends across parts of Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, and the adjacent margins of Bangladesh, India’s northeast, and southern China’s Yunnan. The region overlaps with the Indochinese peninsula and includes diverse habitats such as tropical forests and freshwater systems. It is recognized as a biodiversity hotspot by international conservation organizations, hosting numerous endemic and threatened species of plants and animals.

In linguistics, the Indo-Burman languages form a major branch of the Tibeto-Burman subgroup of the Sino-Tibetan language family. They are spoken across parts of Northeast India, Bangladesh, and Myanmar, with scattered communities in nearby regions. The assignment of languages to Indo-Burman and the internal structure of the group have been revised over time and remain active areas of research.

In military history, the Indo-Burma theatre refers to the Allied and Japanese campaigns in and around Burma (Myanmar) and adjoining regions during World War II, roughly 1942–1945. The campaigns affected Southeast Asian resistance movements, logistics routes, and the broader course of the war in the Asia-Pacific.