Myanmar (formerly Burma) is a Southeast Asian nation of more than 50 million people bordering India, Bangladesh, China, Laos and Thailand. Yangon (formerly Rangoon), the country's largest city, is home to bustling markets, numerous parks and lakes, and the towering, gilded Shwedagon Pagoda, which contains Buddhist relics and dates to the 6th century.

Its diverse ethnicity brings internal conflict, civil wars, and reported human rights violations. In 1989, the military junta decided to change the English name from "Burma" to "Myanmar". Adoption of the new name in the world has been mixed largely based on the question of whether the violent military regime has the legitimacy to change the country's name, particularly without a referendum. The choice of names stems from the existence of two different names for the country in Burmese, which are used in different contexts.

The United Nations, of which Myanmar is a member, endorsed the name change five days after its announcement. However, use of "Burma" has remained widespread including the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada. Even though in May 1990, the government held free elections for the first time in almost 30 years, the military junta refused to cede power. Finally, the military junta was officially dissolved following a 2010 general election, and a nominally civilian government was installed.

Sri Lanka is an island country formerly known as Ceylon in South Asia near Southeast India.

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