Ep. 292 | Olive Yang

In this episode, Laszlo introduces the story of Olive Yang, 杨金秀. She was a Kokang Chinese born and raised around the border region of Myanmar and China. Her story took place in the Shan State of Myanmar. Though she was not someone of great historical impact on the times she lived in, she was part of a lot of the drama happening around her. She mixed with many interesting parties from the 1950s to the 1980s. This included Kokang royalty, KMT remnant armies, the CIA, and drug lords.

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Terms in Episode

Pinyin/Term	Chinese	English/Meaning
Yáng Jīnxiù	杨金秀	1927-2017, Olive Yáng, opium warlord and prominent figure in the Shan State of Burma
Yúnnán	云南	Province in soutghwest China
Zhèng Yī Sǎo	郑一嫂	Qing Dynasty era Pirate Queen
Báidù	百度	China-based search engine, sometimes referred to as "the Google of China"
Guǒ Gǎn	果敢	Kokang is located in the northern part of Myanmar Shan State, with the Salween River to its west, and sharing a border with Yunnan Province to the east. Its total land area is around 10,000 square kilometers (3,900 sq mi). The capital is Laukkai. Kokang is mostly populated by Kokang Chinese, a Han Chinese group living in Myanmar.
Wáng Zhèn	王振	15th century Ming era eunuch, famous for causing the Tumu Crisis
Liú Jǐn	刘瑾	1451-1510, powerful Ming era eunuch
Wèi Zhōngxián	魏忠贤	1568-1627, one of the most powerful and destructive eunuchs in all of Chinese history. Helped speed up the end of the dynasty
House off Zhū	朱家族	The ruling family of the Ming Dynasty were surnamed Zhu
Qīng Dynasty	清朝	China's last imperial dynasty, 1644-1911
Ming Chóngzhēn	崇祯	1611-1644, final emperor of the Mong Dynasty
Yuè Fēi	岳飞	1103-1142, Southern Song military general who fought against the Jurchens and was later executed on dubious charges
Zhèng Chénggōng	郑成功	1624-1662, better known in trhe West as Koxinga, a loyalist to the fallen Ming dynasty who kept up the fight to restore their dynasty
Yáng	杨	The surname of Olive Yang as well as her ancestors and the ruling dynasty she was born into
Jiāngsū	江苏	Coastal province in eastern China
Nánjīng	南京	Capital of Jiangsu
Guǒgǎn Huárén	果敢华人	Kokang Chinese
Qiánlóng	乾隆	Qing dynasty emnperor of China from 1735-1796
Dà Yè	大叶	Big Leaf (variety of Camellia sinensis, the tea plant)
Yáng Èr Xiǎojié	杨二小姐	One of the names of Olive Yang, No. 2 sister
Jípǔ	吉普	The name of Olive Yang;'s only son, Duàn Jípǔ 段吉普
Lǐ Mí	李弥	1902-1973, high-ranking Nationalist general who withdrew his forces to the Golden Triangle area
Péng Déhuái	彭德怀	1898-1974, great CCP military leader and China's defense minister 1954-1959
Chángjìn Hú	长津湖	Site of the Battle of Chosin Reservoir in North Korea that took place between November 27 and December 13, 1950
Luó Xīnghàn	罗星汉	ca. 1930 to 2013, known as Lo Hsing Han, Burmese drug lord and businessman
Yáng Zhèncái	杨振材	Olive Yang's older brother Edward. He served as the final Saopha of Kokang
Zhāng Qífū	长奇夫	1934-2007, The Golden Triangle Drug Lord Khun Sa
Ruìlì	瑞丽	A major border crossing town on the Yunnan side of the border with Myanmar, located in the west of Yunnan
Liú Xiǎobō	刘晓波	1955-2017, Winner of the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize and famous political dissident in China

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Resources

Books/Articles

The Female Warlord Who Had C.I.A. Connections and Opium Routes by Gabrielle Paluch

The royal-turned-warlord and opium pioneer of the Golden Triangle dies at 90 by Gabrielle Paluch

Royal-turned-warlord and opium pioneer of the Golden Triangle: Olive Yang dies aged 90 by Gabrielle Paluch

Check out Gabrielle Paluch’s new book, The Opium Queen: The Untold Story of the Rebel Who Ruled the Golden Triangle set to release in Dec 2022

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