Thaton

Thaton, a town and district in the Tenasserim division of Lower Burma. The town is situated below a hill range, io m. from the sea. It was formerly the capital of the Talaing kingdom and a sea-port. Pop. (1901) 14,342. The district has an area of 5079 sq. m.; pop. (1901) 343,510, showing an increase of 29 per cent. in the decade. It was formerly a subdivision of Amherst district, but was formed in 1895 out of part of that and of Shwegyin district, which has now ceased to exist. The staple crop is rice, but a good deal of tobacco also is grown. The railway from Pegu to Martaban, recently opened, passes through this district and is calculated to increase its prosperity and population.