In Myanmar traditional wedding, novitiation ceremonies and national events, most of the

people wear traditional clothes, especially Acheik Longyi (skirt). When you find a lady wearing
Acheik Longyi abroad, she is certainly from Myanmar. Myanmar people regard Acheik textile as
the identity of Myanmar tradition. Luntaya Acheik is an indispensable item that projects the
social status of women.

Why do we call it Luntaya Acheik? The term “lun” means shuttle and “taya” means a
hundred while “acheik” means connect and it is also the term for tapestry weaving method. So
Luntaya Achiek is a kind of woven cloth with threads crossing under and over each other on
plain textile using many shuttles.

Acheik textile flourished since monarchy time during the 19th century AD. During the
ancient period, Achiek was used for royal costumes and ordinary people were not allowed to
wear Achiek. Highest ranking official, royal services and merchants could only wear them if the
king rewarded them. Until now, Achiek workshops are mainly produced in Amarapura, Sagaing
and Mandalay in upper Myanmar.

For the weaving process, three of four raw silk threads are twisted tightly with the aid of
machine for taut and smooth. After that, silk-woven faces are removed by washing in boiling
soap- nut liquid and it needed to be softer than ordinary silk thread. While boiling silk, colors can
be added to the boiling water for dyeing. After dyeing, the dyed threads are washed with water
and dry them in the sunlight. For weaving, the silk threads are kneaded into the bobbins and then
the bobbins will be attached on the loom, the weavers will weave the desired Achiek weaving
patterns. There are 100 up to 300 small bobbins used to weave intricate and complicated Acheik
designs. Traditional Acheiks have a lot of names according to the designs and depending on the
usage of color and the number of small bobbins. There are 52 kinds of classic Achiek designs
and these are expensive.

In Achiek weaving, two women weavers sit in the loom and weave manually by hands.
While weaving Achiek, a kind of cloth is used to cover from dust and other particles. The
weaving takes many days thus the fabric is expensive.

Nowadays cotton and silk are mixed and Achiek designs are modified to produce
cheaper versions by weaving machine. Though handmade Achiek are expensive, Myanmar
ladies proudly wear this classic design textile pattern for both special social and religious
occasions. Since Myanmar people wear Acheik designs in special events and ceremonies until
the present time, Myanmar Acheik continues to be a living heritage. In addition, the weaving
practitioners relentlessly transmit their knowledge and skills to the young generation.