Kingdom of Thailand

Thailand (/ˈtaɪlænd/ ty-land or /ˈtaɪlənd/ ty-lənd; Thai: ประเทศไทย, Paiboon transliteration: "bprà-têet tai", rtgs: Prathet Thai); IPA: [pra(ʔ)˨˩.tʰeːt̚˥˩ tʰaj˧] ( listen), officially the Kingdom of Thailand (Thai: ราชอาณาจักรไทย, Paiboon transliteration: "raa-chá aa-naa-jàk tai", rtgs: Ratcha-anachak Thai; IPA: [raː˧.t͡ɕʰa(ʔ)˦˥ ʔaː˧.naː˧.t͡ɕak̚˨˩ tʰaj˧] ), formerly known as Siam (Thai: สยาม; rtgs: Sayam), is a country at the centre of the Indochinese peninsula in Mainland Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Myanmar and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the west by the Andaman Sea and the southern extremity of Myanmar. Its maritime boundaries include Vietnam in the Gulf of Thailand to the southeast, and Indonesia and India on the Andaman Sea to the southwest.

Thailand is governed by the National Council for Peace and Order that took power in the May 2014 coup d'état. Its monarchy is headed by King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who has reigned since 1946 as Rama IX, as he is the ninth monarch of the Chakri Dynasty. He is currently the world's longest-serving head of state and the country's longest-reigning monarch; he has reigned for 69 years, 279 days.

With a total area of approximately 513,000 km2 (198,000 sq mi), Thailand is the world's 51st-largest country. It is the 20th-most-populous country in the world, with around 66 million people. The capital and largest city is Bangkok, which is Thailand's political, commercial, industrial, and cultural hub. About 75–95% of the population is ethnically Tai, which includes four major regional groups: central Thai, northeastern Thai (Khon [Lao] Isan), northern Thai (Khon Mueang); and southern Thai. Thai Chinese, those of significant Chinese heritage, are 14% of the population, while Thais with partial Chinese ancestry comprise up to 40% of the population. Thai Malays represent 3% of the population, with the remainder consisting of Mons, Khmers and various "hill tribes". The country's official language is Thai and the primary religion is Theravada Buddhism, which is practised by around 95% of the population.

Thailand experienced rapid economic growth between 1985 and 1996, becoming a newly industrialised country and a major exporter. Manufacturing, agriculture, and tourism are leading sectors of the economy. Among the ten ASEAN countries, Thailand ranks third in quality of life. and the country's HDI is rated as "high". Its large population and growing economic influence have made it a middle power in the region and around the world.

Geography

Totalling 513,120 square kilometres (198,120 sq mi), Thailand is the world's 51st-largest country by total area. It is slightly smaller than Yemen and slightly larger than Spain.

Thailand comprises several distinct geographic regions, partly corresponding to the provincial groups. The north of the country is the mountainous area of the Thai highlands, with the highest point being Doi Inthanon in the Thanon Thong Chai Range at 2,565 metres (8,415 ft) above sea level. The northeast, Isan, consists of the Khorat Plateau, bordered to the east by the Mekong River. The centre of the country is dominated by the predominantly flat Chao Phraya river valley, which runs into the Gulf of Thailand.

Southern Thailand consists of the narrow Kra Isthmus that widens into the Malay Peninsula. Politically, there are six geographical regions which differ from the others in population, basic resources, natural features, and level of social and economic development. The diversity of the regions is the most pronounced attribute of Thailand's physical setting.

The Chao Phraya and the Mekong River are the indispensable water courses of rural Thailand. Industrial scale production of crops use both rivers and their tributaries. The Gulf of Thailand covers 320,000 square kilometres (124,000 sq mi) and is fed by the Chao Phraya, Mae Klong, Bang Pakong, and Tapi Rivers. It contributes to the tourism sector owing to its clear shallow waters along the coasts in the southern region and the Kra Isthmus. The eastern shore of the Gulf of Thailand is an industrial centre of Thailand with the kingdom's premier deepwater port in Sattahip and its busiest commercial port, Laem Chabang.

The Andaman Sea is a precious natural resource as it hosts the most popular and luxurious resorts in Asia. Phuket, Krabi, Ranong, Phang Nga, and Trang and their islands all lay along the coasts of the Andaman Sea and despite the 2004 tsunami, they are a tourist magnet for visitors from around the world.

Plans have resurfaced for a canal which would connect the Andaman Sea to the Gulf of Thailand, analogous to the Suez and the Panama Canals. The idea has been greeted positively by Thai politicians as it would cut fees charged by the Ports of Singapore, improve ties with China and India, lower shipping times, and eliminate pirate attacks in the Strait of Malacca, and support the Thai government's policy of being the logistical hub for Southeast Asia. The canal, it is claimed, would improve economic conditions in the south of Thailand, which relies heavily on tourism income, and it would also change the structure of the Thai economy by making it an Asia logistical hub. The canal would be a major engineering project and has an expected cost of US$20–30 billion.

Info:

Motto: ชาติ ศาสนา พระมหากษัตริย์ (Thai) Chat, Satsana, Phra Maha Kasat | Nation, Religions, King
Anthem: Phleng Chat Thai | Thai National Anthem
Royal Anthem: Sansoen Phra Barami | Thai Royal Anthem
Capital: Bangkok
Official Language: Thai
Religion: Buddhism
Demonym: Thai | Siamese (archaic)
Legislature: National Assembly (currently dissolved)
Area: 513,120 km2
Currency: Baht (฿) (THB)
Time Zone: ICT (UTC+7)
Date Format: dd-mm-yyyy
Drives on the: left
Calling code: +66
ISO 3166 Code: TH
International TLD: .th | .ไทย

Largest Cities/Towns/Districts of Thailand

1. Bangkok
2. Nonthaburi
3. Pak Kret
4. Hat Yai
5. Nakhon Ratchasima
6. Chiang Mai
7. Udon Thani
8. Surat Thani
9. Khon Kaen
10. Nakhon Si Thammarat
11. Pattaya
12. Nakhon Sawan
13. Ubon Ratchathani
14. Nakhon Pathom
15. Phitsanulok
16. Phuket
17. Songkhla
18. Chiang Rai
19. Laem Chabang
20. Yala

Flag of Thailand

The flag of the Kingdom of Thailand (Thai: ธงไตรรงค์, Thong Trairong, meaning "tricolour flag”) shows five horizontal stripes in the colours red, white, blue, white and red, with the central blue stripe being twice as wide as each of the other four.

Official Website: Thaigov.go.th

Did You Know?

• Tunku Abdul Rahman first announced the date of Malaya's Independence Thailand’s name in the Thai language is Prathet Thai, which means “Land of the Free.” It is the only country in Southeast Asia that was never colonized by a European nation
• Thailand has had several names over the centuries. For hundreds of years it was known by the names of its dominant cities, such as Sukhothai, Ayutthaya, and Thonburi. Since the 1800s, it has repeatedly switched back and forth between Siam (Sanskrit meaning dark or brown) and Thailand.
• Thailand set the world record of the longest line of washed plates in May 2010 when 10,488 washed plates were lined up. However, that record was crushed on April 6, 2011, in India when 15,295 washed plates were lined up, equaling more than 2.36 miles.
• Thailand shares a border with four countries: Myanmar (formerly Burma) to the north and west, Laos to the north and east, Cambodia to the southeast, and Malaysia to the south.
• Thailand is home to the world’s largest gold Buddha, the largest crocodile farm, the largest restaurant, the longest single-span suspension bridge, and the world’s tallest hotel.
• In the past, all Thai young men including the kings became Buddhist monks for at least a short period of time before their 20th birthday. Today, fewer young men observe the practice.
• The world’s smallest mammal, the Craseonycteris thonglongyai (the bumble bat), is found in Thailand.
• Thailand houses the world’s largest fish, the 12-meter Rhincodon typus, otherwise known as the whale shark.
• Medicine man Hoo Sateow from Thailand has the world’s documented longest hair at 16’ 11" long. He says his hair “keeps him nice and warm.”
• In 1996, two rare “diamond-eyed cats,” Phet and Ploy, were married in a lavish $16,241 Thai wedding, the most expensive pet wedding in the world.
• In 1999, 30 vets worked to heal a 38-year-old cow elephants’ foot, which had been destroyed when she stepped on a landmine in Thailand. It set the record for the largest number of vets in one procedure.
• In 1999, a group of 282 skydivers set the record for the largest number of skydivers in a free-fall formation above Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand. They held the link for 7.11 seconds.
• Thailand is the world’s 51st largest country. Russia is the largest. The United States is third largest.
• Thailand is slightly larger than the size of Wyoming at 198,115 square miles (513,115 sq km).
• Seventy five percent of the people in Thailand are Thai, 14% are Chinese, and 11% are “other.”
• Buddhism is Thailand’s largest religion with approximately 94.6% of the population practicing the religion. Muslims make up 4.6%, Christians 0.7%, and “other” 0.1%.
• The world’s largest Christmas log cake was made in Bangkok, Thailand, on December 25, 1997. The cake weighed 5,071 lbs. and reached 27’ 6". It was later cut into 19, 212 portions.
• Thailand set the record for the longest catwalk on April 9, 2010. The catwalk was 1,584 meters long and was part of the Pattaya International Fashion Week.
• Thailand is home to the world’s hairiest child, Supatra “Nat” Sasuphan.
• The highest elevation in Thailand is Doi Inthanon at 8,514 feet (2,595 m). It is also a popular tourist destination. In fact, an estimated 12,000 people visit the summit each New Year’s Day. The lowest elevation is sea level along the coast.
• The longest place name in the world is the full name of Bangkok, the capital city of Thailand: Krungthepmahanakhon Amonrattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilokphop Noppharatratchathaniburirom Udomratchaniwetmahasathan Amonphimanawatansathit Sakkathattiyawitsanukamprasit. It means “City of Angels, Great City of Immortals, Magnificent City of the Nine Gems, Seat of the King, City of Royal Palaces, Home of Gods Incarnate, Erected by Visvakarman at Indra’s Behest.”
• A century ago, northern Thailand was covered with dense hardwood forests. Today only about ¼ of the country remains wooded. Thailand has the second-highest rate of forest loss in Southeast Asia. Only Singapore has lost more. Today, logging is banned in Thailand.
• A nuclear family in Thailand is rare because most people live in large extended families.
• Thailand’s national language is called Thai, which many scholars believe is a form of Chinese that was gradually brought to the area between the 7th and 13th centuries. Like Lao, Vietnamese, and Chinese, Thai is a very tonal language. Its alphabet has 32 vowels and 44 consonants.
• Bangkok was once called the “Venice of the East” because its original buildings stood on stilts above the Chao Phraya River. However, as Bangkok grew larger, most canals were filled and paved.
• Traffic police in Bangkok wear facemasks because of dangerous levels of air pollution. Additionally, police stations are equipped with oxygen tanks in case exhaust fumes overwhelm the officers. More than 20% of Bangkok’s police have some form of lung disease. One Thai bank estimated that Bangkok’s pollution woes cost the nation $2.3 billion annually in lost production, wasted energy, and health costs.
• The 2004 tsunami hurtled a wall of water 30 feet high over Thailand’s coast, killing over 8,000 people. An estimated 1,500 Thai children lost their parents and more than 150,000 Thais working in the fishing or tourist industries lost their livelihoods.
• One-tenth of all animal species on Earth live in Thailand.
• Prostitution is technically illegal in Thailand, but the law is very rarely enforced. Estimates of the number of sex workers vary from 30,000 to more than 1 million.e
• More than 1,500 species of orchids grow wild in Thai forests. Thailand is the world’s number one orchid exporter.
• Siamese cats are native to Thailand. In Thai they are called wichen-maat, meaning “moon diamond.” A 14th-century book of Thai poems describes 23 types of Siamese cats; today only six breeds are left. Giving a pair of Si Sawat cats (a type of Siamese cats) to a bride is supposed to bring good luck to the marriage.
• Thailand is home to what may be the world’s longest snake, the reticulated python. The largest one ever found stretched over 33 feet (10 m) from end to end.
• Thailand is home to the world’s longest poisonous snake, the king cobra. The cobra can reach more than 18 feet long, and one bite from it can kill an elephant.
• The largest living lizard is native to Thailand. The monitor lizard can grow as long as 7 feet.
• Approximately 10% of the world’s bird species live in Thailand, a greater proportion than in all of Europe or North America.
• Swiftlet nests are made from strands of saliva from the male swiftlet bird. Swiftlet nests collected from Thai caves can fetch more than $900 per pound. It is one of the world’s most coveted and expensive food items.
• The Mekong River, which forms part of Thailand’s eastern border, supports more than 1,300 species of fish. It holds some of the world’s largest freshwater fish, including a giant catfish which can reach nearly 10 feet long and weigh as much as 660 lbs.
• One of Thailand’s most curious creatures is the mudskipper, which is a fish that is capable of walking on land and climbing trees. It uses its fins to “walk” and can absorb oxygen through its skin and lining in its mouth. It spends most of its time out of the water, eating the algae in tidal pools
• A century ago, more than 100,000 elephants lived in Thailand, with about 20,000 of them untamed. Now, there are about 5,000, with less than half of them wild.
• Both the Hollywood movie and Broadway play of The King and I are banned in Thailand. Based on the Siamese ruler King Mongkut and a teacher named Anna Leonowens, the movie is seen as insulting to the king. While the movie depicts him as uncultured, he is believed to be the first Asian ruler to speak, read, and write English fluently. He also is considered highly intelligent, cultured, and well read. Further, he is known as the father of Thai scientists.
• Thailand’s and the world’s longest reigning monarch is Bhumibol Adulyadej, who became King Rama IX in June 1946. He was born in the U.S. in 1927 when his father was studying medicine at Harvard. He owns a patent on a form of cloud seeding and holds a degree in engineering from Switzerland. He also plays the sax and composed Thailand’s national anthem

References

• Wikipedia
• Random History
• Wikimedia