The Kingdom of Pagan (also commonly known as the Pagan Dynasty and the Pagan Empire) was the first kingdom to unify the regions that would later constitute modern-day Burma (Myanmar). Pagan's 250-year rule over the Irrawaddy valley and its periphery laid the foundation for the ascent of Burmese language and culture, the spread of Burman ethnicity in Upper Burma, and the growth of Theravada Buddhism in Burma and in mainland Southeast Asia.

Gianluca Pardelli is something of an expert on markets. For the past two years, he’s travelled across eastern Europe, from Azerbaijan to Uzbekistan, Moldova to Georgia, photographing them. Here: Telavi, Georgia. (Photo by Gianluca Pardelli)

A woman takes a selfie picture as Turkish Kurds gather as part of Newroz celebrations in Diyarbakir, on March 21, 2016. Nowruz, the Farsi-language word for “New Year”, is an ancient Persian festival, celebrated on the first day of spring, on March 21, in Central Asian republics, Iraq, Turkey, Afghanistan and Iran. (Photo by Ilyas Akengin/AFP Photo)

Chinese American actress Bai Ling arrives at the 58th Golden Horse Awards in Taipei, Taiwan, Saturday, November 27, 2021. Bai is a guest at this year's Golden Horse Awards, one of the Chinese-language film industry's biggest annual events. (Photo by Billy Dai/AP Photo)

In this Sunday, March 29, 2015 photo, a young performer from the Parinacochas district of Ayacuhco dances in the Vencedores de Ayacucho dance festival, in the Acho bullring in Lima, Peru. The performers sang in the Quechua language, portraying the planting of corn and potatoes. From very young children to elderly people dressed as farmers, tigers, and foxes, as well as members of auto-defense groups, soldiers and police officers, to portray the violence that tore apart their families and communities. (Photo by Rodrigo Abd/AP Photo)

Heesco, Windsor. Born and raised in Mongolia and now living and working in Melbourne, Heesco is well known for his skill in rendering photo-realistic portraits. They speak to the viewer in a way that the subtext is enjoyable to decipher. Just what is the Blue Lady’s message? The sunglasses might mask the confronting gaze but her body language fills in the gaps. Heesco’s characters often wear traditional jewellery and clothing that remind us of his Mongolian cultural heritage. (Photo by Lou Chamberlin/The Guardian)

Felix Gelin and Claudine Jean describe in sign language how their community, the La Piste encampment, went up in flames this past summer, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Sunday, September 20, 2021. According to residents and a United Nations account, police lead the assault at dusk on the encampment, a shelter for deaf and disabled Haitians relocated there by the International Red Cross after the 2010 earthquake leveled the capital. (Photo by Rodrigo Abd/AP Photo)

A Sorb egg painter decorates an Easter egg while using bent spoons full of melted wax as coloring at the annual Easter egg market on March 16, 2013 in Schleife, Germany. Easter is a particularly important time of year for Sorbs, a Slavic minority in eastern Germany, and the period includes the tradition of painting Easter eggs that include visual elements intended to ward off evil. Many Sorbs still speak Sorbian, a language closely related to Polish and Czech. (Photo by Adam Berry)