{{Short description|Country in Southeast Asia}}
{{Hatnote group|
{{Redirect|Siam|other uses|Siam (disambiguation)}}
{{Redirect|Thai State|the newspaper|Thairath}}}}
{{pp-semi-indef|small=yes}}
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{{Use British English|date=December 2021}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2024}}
{{very long|date=September 2026}}
{{Infobox country
| conventional_long_name = Kingdom of Thailand
| common_name = Thailand
| native_name = {{ubl|{{native name|th|ราชอาณาจักรไทย|italics=off}}|{{lang|th-Latn|Ratcha-anachak Thai}}}}
| image_flag = Flag of Thailand.svg
| image_coat = Garuda Emblem of Thailand.svg
| symbol_type = Emblem
| national_anthem = {{lang|th|เพลงชาติไทย}}
{{transliteration|engvar=gb|th|[[Thai National Anthem|Phleng Chat Thai]]}}
"Thai National Anthem"{{parabr}}{{center|[[File:Thai National Anthem - US Navy Band.ogg]]}}
| royal_anthem = {{lang|th|สรรเสริญพระบารมี}}
{{transliteration|engvar=gb|th|[[Sansoen Phra Barami]]}}
"Praise the King"{{parabr}}{{center|[[File:Thai Royal Anthem - US Navy Band.ogg]]}}
| image_map = {{Switcher|[[File:Thailand (orthographic projection).svg|upright=1.15|frameless]]|Show globe|[[File:Location Thailand ASEAN.svg|upright=1.15|frameless]]|Show ASEAN|default=1}}
| map_caption = {{map caption |location_color= green |region= [[Southeast Asia]] |region_color= none}}
| capital = [[Bangkok]]{{efn-lr|Officially known in Thai as {{lang|th|Krung Thep Maha Nakhon}}|group=infobox}}
| coordinates = {{Coord|13|48|N|100|33|E|region:TH-10_type:city(8,300,000)}}
| largest_city = capital
| official_languages = [[Thai language|Thai]][{{Cite CIA World Factbook|country=Thailand|date=10 June 2021}}]
| languages = {{hlist|[[Isan language|Isan]]|[[Northern Thai language|Northern Thai]]|[[Southern Thai language|Southern Thai]]|[[Karenic languages|Karen]]|[[Kelantan–Pattani Malay|Pattani Malay]]|[[Bangkok Malay]]|[[Teochew dialect|Teochew]]|[[Hokkien]]}}
| languages_sub = yes
| ethnic_groups = {{tree list}}
* 80% [[Thai people|Thai]]
** 37% [[Thai people|Central Thai]]
** 25% [[Isan people|Isan]]
** 8% [[Northern Thai people|Northern Thai]]
** 8% [[Southern Thai language|Southern Thai]]
** 2% Western Thai
* 12% [[Thai Chinese]]
* 4% [[Northern Khmer people|Northern Khmer]]
* 4% [[Thai Malays|Thai Malay]]
{{tree list/end}}
| religion = {{tree list}}
* 93.46% [[Buddhism in Thailand|Buddhism]]
* 5.37% [[Islam in Thailand|Islam]]
* 1.13% [[Christianity in Thailand|Christianity]]
* 0.03% [[Religion in Thailand|other]]
{{tree list/end}}
| religion_ref = [{{cite web |title=Population statistics of the civil registration (monthly) |url=https://stat.bora.dopa.go.th/stat/statnew/statMONTH/statmonth/#/mainpage |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250224093538/https://stat.bora.dopa.go.th/stat/statnew/statMONTH/statmonth/#/mainpage |archive-date=24 February 2025 |access-date=25 May 2024}}]
| population_estimate_year = 2024
| population_estimate_rank = 22nd
| population_census = 64,785,909[National Statistics Office, [http://popcensus.nso.go.th/doc/8-thailand%20census.doc "100th anniversary of population censuses in Thailand: Population and housing census 2010: 11th census of Thailand"]. {{in lang|th}} {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120712002347/http://popcensus.nso.go.th/doc/8-thailand%20census.doc |date=12 July 2012}}. popcensus.nso.go.th.]
| population_census_year = 2010
| population_census_rank = 21st
| population_density_km2 = 132.1
| population_density_sq_mi = 342
| population_density_rank = 88th
| GDP_PPP = {{increase}} $1.964 trillion[{{cite web |date=14 April 2026 |title=World Economic Outlook Database (April 2026 Edition) |url=https://data.imf.org/en/Data-Explorer?datasetUrn=IMF.RES:WEO(9.0.0) |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251229200304/https://data.imf.org/en/Data-Explorer?datasetUrn=IMF.RES:WEO(9.0.0) |archive-date=29 December 2025 |access-date=19 April 2026 |website=www.imf.org |publisher=[[International Monetary Fund]]}}]
| GDP_PPP_year = 2026
| GDP_PPP_rank = 24th
| GDP_PPP_per_capita = {{increase}} $27,441[{{cite web |title=Gini Index |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SI.POV.GINI/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180727172441/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SI.POV.GINI |archive-date=27 July 2018 |access-date=12 August 2021 |publisher=World Bank}}]
| HDI = 0.798
| HDI_year = 2023
| HDI_change = decrease
| HDI_ref = [{{Cite web |date=6 May 2025 |title=Human Development Report 2025 |url=https://hdr.undp.org/system/files/documents/global-report-document/hdr2025reporten.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250506051232/https://hdr.undp.org/system/files/documents/global-report-document/hdr2025reporten.pdf |archive-date=6 May 2025 |access-date=6 May 2025 |publisher=[[United Nations Development Programme]]}}]
| HDI_rank = 76th
| currency = [[Thai baht]] (฿)
| currency_code = THB
| time_zone = [[UTC+07:00|ICT]]
| utc_offset = +7
| date_format = dd/mm/yyyy ([[Thai solar calendar|BE]])
| calling_code = [[Telephone numbers in Thailand|+66]]
| cctld = {{hlist|[[.th]]|[[.ไทย]]}}
| footnotes = {{notelist}}
}}
{{Contains special characters|Thai|compact=yes}}
'''Thailand''',{{efn-lr|name=endo|{{IPAc-en|ˈ|t|aɪ|l|æ|n|d|,_|-|l|ə|n|d|audio=LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-Thailand.wav}} {{respell|TY|land|,_|-|lənd}}; {{langx|th|ประเทศไทย}}, {{RTGS|''Prathet Thai''}}, {{IPA|th|prà.tʰê:t tʰāj|pron|th-Thailand.ogg}}}} officially the '''Kingdom of Thailand''',{{efn-lr|{{langx|th|ราชอาณาจักรไทย|italics=off}}; {{transliteration|engvar=gb|th|Ratcha-anachak Thai}} {{IPA|th|râːt.tɕá.ʔāː.nāː.t͡ɕàk tʰāj|pron}}}} and formerly known as '''Siam''',{{efn-lr|name=siam|{{IPAc-en|s|aɪ|'|æ|m|,_|ˈ|s|aɪ|æ|m}} {{respell|sy|AM|,_|SY|am}}; {{langx|th|สยาม}}, {{RTGS|''Sayam''}}, {{IPA|th|sà.jǎːm|pron}}; also spelled ''Siem'', ''Syâm'', or ''Syâma''}} is a country located in [[Mainland Southeast Asia]]. It shares land borders with [[Myanmar]] to the west and northwest, [[Laos]] to the east and northeast, [[Cambodia]] to the southeast, and [[Malaysia]] to the south. Its maritime boundaries include the [[Gulf of Thailand]] and the [[Andaman Sea]] and shares maritime borders with [[Vietnam]], [[Indonesia]], and [[India]]. Thailand has a population of nearly 66 million people[{{Cite web |date=2024-03-23 |title=Multiple Factors Behind Thailand's Birth Rate Decline, Experts Say |url=https://www.voanews.com/a/multiple-factors-behind-thailand-s-birth-rate-decline-experts-say/7539719.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240706164150/https://www.voanews.com/a/multiple-factors-behind-thailand-s-birth-rate-decline-experts-say/7539719.html |archive-date=6 July 2024 |access-date=2024-07-06 |website=Voice of America |language=en}}] and covers an area of approximately 513,115 km2 (198,115 sq mi).[{{Cite web |title=Land Area |url=https://thailand.go.th/page/land-area |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240601144822/https://thailand.go.th/page/land-area |archive-date=1 June 2024 |access-date=2024-06-01 |website=The Government Public Relations Department |language=en}}] The [[capital city|capital]] and [[List of municipalities in Thailand#Largest cities by urban population|largest city]] is [[Bangkok]].[{{Cite web |title=Capital City |url=https://thailand.go.th/page/capital-city |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240601144818/https://thailand.go.th/page/capital-city |archive-date=1 June 2024 |access-date=2024-06-01 |website=The Government Public Relations Department |language=en}}]
Archaeological evidence indicates that humans have inhabited the area for at least 40,000 years. Indigenous ethnic groups include the [[Mon people|Mon]], [[Khmer people|Khmer]], and [[Malay people|Malay]] people. The [[Tai people]] are believed to have originated from the [[Điện Biên Phủ]] region since the 5th century and began migrating into the territory of modern Thailand between the 8th and 10th centuries. During the classical historical period, major kingdoms such as [[Sukhothai Kingdom|Sukhothai]], [[Lan Na]], and [[Ayutthaya Kingdom|Ayutthaya]] were established. The Sukhothai Kingdom is regarded as the beginning of [[Thai history]], while the Ayutthaya Kingdom, founded in 1350 CE, became a [[regional power]] replacing the [[Khmer Empire]]. European contact began in 1511 when [[Portuguese Empire|Portuguese]] envoys arrived in Ayutthaya. The Ayutthaya Kingdom flourished until its complete destruction during the [[Burmese–Siamese War (1765–1767)|1765–1767 Burmese–Siamese War]] by the [[Royal Burmese Armed Forces|Burmese forces]] under the [[Konbaung dynasty]] in 1767.
After the fall of Ayutthaya, [[King Taksin]] reunified the kingdom and established the [[Thonburi Kingdom]], which lasted only 15 years before he was overthrown by [[Rama I|Phutthayotfa Chulalok]] (Rama I), the founder of the [[Chakri dynasty]]. King Rama I established the [[Rattanakosin Kingdom]] and moved the capital to Bangkok in 1782. During the era of [[Western imperialism in Asia|Western imperialism]], Siam remained the only country in [[Southeast Asia]] to avoid colonisation by European powers, although it ceded territory, trade rights, and legal privileges through several [[unequal treaties]].[{{cite journal |last1=Nuchkoom Smith |first1=Nucharee |last2=Smith |first2=Robert Brian |date=1 October 2019 |title=Has Thailand learnt any Lessons from the Bowring Treaty and the Treaty of Amity? |url=https://www.athensjournals.gr/law/2019-5-4-3-Smith.pdf |url-status=live |journal=Athens Journal of Law |volume=5 |issue=4 |pages=405–418 |doi=10.30958/ajl.5-4-3 |issn=2407-9685 |s2cid=211453326 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220511161132/https://www.athensjournals.gr/law/2019-5-4-3-Smith.pdf |archive-date=11 May 2022 |access-date=17 April 2022}}] The governance system evolved into an [[absolute monarchy]] centralised under the rule of [[King Chulalongkorn]] (Rama V). Siam [[1897 visit by Chulalongkorn to Europe|adapted to international relations]] during the imperialist era and joined [[World War I]] on the side of the [[Allies of World War I|Allies]], a political decision aimed at revising the effects of unequal treaties and enhancing Siam's international status.
Following the [[Siamese revolution of 1932]] by the [[Khana Ratsadon]] ({{literally|People's Party}}), Siam transitioned to a [[parliamentary constitutional monarchy]] and was officially renamed Thailand. During [[World War II in Thailand|World War II]], the country was under the [[military dictatorship]] of [[Plaek Phibunsongkhram]] and allied with the [[Empire of Japan]] as part of the [[Axis powers]], but Thailand did not become a defeated nation due to the underground [[Free Thai Movement]]'s "Declaration of Peace", which was recognised by the [[Allies in World War II|Allies]]. During the [[Cold War]], Thailand became a key [[major non-NATO ally]] of the [[United States]] and played a major role in [[anti-communism|countering communism]] in the [[Korean War]], the [[Vietnam War]], and other [[proxy wars]]. Thailand also joined the [[Southeast Asia Treaty Organization]] (SEATO). In the 1970s through 1990s, Thailand alternated between [[liberal democracy]] and military dictatorship.
In the 21st century, Thailand has experienced political conflict between supporters and opponents of Prime Minister [[Thaksin Shinawatra]], leading to the [[2006 Thai coup d'état|2006]] and [[2014 Thai coup d'état|2014]] coups d'état. Thailand operates under the [[Constitution of Thailand|2017 Constitution]] and a [[coalition government]] following the [[2019 Thai general election]], as well as [[2020–2021 Thai protests|political demonstrations demanding democracy and monarchy reform]]. The current constitutional structure allows ''de facto'' political influence by the [[Royal Thai Armed Forces]].[{{Cite news |last=Abuza |first=Zachary |date=27 September 2021 |title=Thailand's Constitutional Dictatorship Weathers the Storm |url=https://thediplomat.com/2021/09/thailands-constitutional-dictatorship-weathers-the-storm/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220314204800/https://thediplomat.com/2021/09/thailands-constitutional-dictatorship-weathers-the-storm/ |archive-date=14 March 2022 |access-date=14 March 2022 |work=[[The Diplomat (magazine)|The Diplomat]]}}][{{cite journal |last1=Glassman |first1=Jim |year=2020 |title=Lineages of the Authoritarian State in Thailand: Military Dictatorship, Lazy Capitalism and the Cold War Past as Post-Cold War Prologue |journal=[[Journal of Contemporary Asia]] |volume=50 |issue=4 |pages=571–592 |doi=10.1080/00472336.2019.1688378 |s2cid=211436855 |doi-access=free}}][{{cite news |last1=Bandow |first1=Doug |date=3 December 2020 |title=Thailand's Military Is Getting Ready for Another Crackdown |url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/12/03/thailand-military-crackdown-protests-biden/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220314204800/https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/12/03/thailand-military-crackdown-protests-biden/ |archive-date=14 March 2022 |access-date=14 March 2022 |work=[[Foreign Policy]]}}] Thailand has faced border tensions from the [[2008–2011 Cambodian–Thai border crisis]] extending to the [[2025 Cambodian–Thai border crisis]] involving territorial disputes and military clashes.
Thailand is recognised as a [[developing country]] and holds significant geopolitical importance in Southeast Asia. It is a [[unitary state]] governed under a [[parliamentary system]] with a [[National Assembly of Thailand|bicameral legislature]] comprising the elected [[House of Representatives of Thailand|House of Representatives]] and the appointed [[Senate of Thailand|Senate]]. Thailand is a member of the [[United Nations]], a major non-[[NATO]] ally of the United States, and a founding member of the [[Association of Southeast Asian Nations]] (ASEAN), as well as a [[regional power]]. Thailand's economy is the second-largest in the region and the 23rd globally by [[purchasing power parity]], ranking 29th by [[gross domestic product]]. It is classified as a [[newly industrialized country|newly industrialised country]], with manufacturing, agriculture, and [[Tourism in Thailand|tourism]] being the main economic sectors.[{{cite web |date=16 December 2005 |title=Thailand Country Overview |url=http://www.worldbank.or.th/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/EASTASIAPACIFICEXT/THAILANDEXTN/0,,menuPK:333304piPK:141121pagePK:141132theSitePK:333296,00.html |website=World Bank}}][{{cite news |date=25 April 2009 |title=Country profile: Thailand |url=https://www.theguardian.com/country-profile/thailand |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100523002651/http://www.guardian.co.uk/country-profile/thailand |archive-date=23 May 2010 |newspaper=The Guardian}}]
== Etymology ==
Thailand{{efn-lr|name=endo}} was known by outsiders before 1939 as ''Siam''.{{efn-lr|name=siam}} According to [[George Cœdès]], the word ''Thai'' ({{linktext|ไทย}}) means 'free man' in the [[Thai language]], "differentiating the Thai from the natives encompassed in Thai society as [[Serfdom|serfs]]".[{{Cite book |last=Cœdès |first=George |author-link=George Cœdès |title=The Indianized States of Southeast Asia |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |others=Trans. Susan Brown Cowing |year=1968 |isbn=978-0-8248-0368-1 |editor-last=Walter F. Vella}}]{{RP|197}} According to [[Chit Phumisak]], Thai ({{lang|th|ไท}}) simply means 'people' or 'human being'; his investigation shows that some rural areas used the word "Thai" instead of the usual Thai word ''khon'' ({{linktext|คน}}) for people.[{{Cite book |last=Phumisak |first=Chit |author-link=Chit Phumisak |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IadwAAAAMAAJ |title=ความเป็นมาของคําสยาม ไทย, ลาว และขอม และลักษณะทางสังคมของชื่อชนชาติ: ฉบับสมบูรณ์ เพิ่มเติม ข้อเท็จจริงว่าด้วยชนชาติขอม |date=1992 |publisher=Samnakphim Sayām |isbn=978-974-85729-9-4 |language=th |trans-title=Etymology of Siam, Thai, Lao, Khmer |access-date=31 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328150348/https://books.google.com/books?id=IadwAAAAMAAJ |archive-date=28 March 2024 |url-status=live}}] According to [[Michel Ferlus]], the ethnonyms Thai-Tai (or Thay-Tay) would have evolved from the etymon ''*k(ə)ri:'' 'human being'.{{efn-lr|Through the following chain: ''*kəri:'' > ''*kəli:'' > ''*kədi:/*kədaj'' > ''*di:/*daj'' > ''*dajA'' (Proto-Southwestern Tai) > ''tʰajA2'' (in [[Thai language|Siamese]] and [[Lao language|Lao]]) or > ''tajA2'' (in the other [[Southwestern Tai languages|Southwestern]] and [[Central Tai languages]] classified by [[Li Fang-Kuei|Li Fangkuei]]).[[https://hal.inria.fr/halshs-01182596/document Ferlus, Michel (2009). Formation of Ethnonyms in Southeast Asia] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161119060814/https://hal.inria.fr/halshs-01182596/document |date=19 November 2016}}. ''42nd International Conference on Sino-Tibetan Languages and Linguistics, November 2009, Chiang Mai, 2009'', p.3.] Ferlus work is based on simple rules of phonetic change observable in the [[Sinosphere (linguistics)|Sinosphere]] and studied for the most part by [[William H. Baxter]] (1992).}}[{{Cite journal |last=Pain |first=Frédéric |year=2008 |title=An Introduction to Thai Ethnonymy: Examples from Shan and Northern Thai |journal=Journal of the American Oriental Society |volume=128 |issue=4 |pages=641–662 |jstor=25608449}}]
Thais often refer to their country using the polite form ''prathet Thai'' ({{langx|th|ประเทศไทย}}). They also use the more colloquial term ''mueang Thai'' ({{langx|th|เมืองไทย}}) or simply ''Thai;'' the word ''[[mueang]]'', archaically referring to a [[Mandala (political model)|city-state]], is commonly used to refer to a city or town as the centre of a region. ''Ratcha Anachak Thai'' ({{langx|th|ราชอาณาจักรไทย}}) means 'kingdom of Thailand' or 'kingdom of Thai'. Etymologically, its components are: ''ratcha'' ({{langx|sa|राजन्}}, ''[[rājan]]'', 'king, royal, realm'), ''ana-'' ([[Pali]] ''āṇā'' 'authority, command, power', itself from the Sanskrit {{lang|sa|आज्ञा}}, ''ājñā'', of the same meaning), and ''-chak'' (from Sanskrit {{lang|sa|{{linktext|चक्र}}}} ''cakra-'' 'wheel', a symbol of power and rule). The [[Thai National Anthem]] ({{langx|th|เพลงชาติ}}), written by [[Luang Saranupraphan]] during the patriotic 1930s, refers to the Thai nation as ''prathet Thai'' ({{langx|th|ประเทศไทย}}). The first line of the national anthem is: ''prathet thai ruam lueat nuea chat chuea thai'' ({{langx|th|ประเทศไทยรวมเลือดเนื้อชาติเชื้อไทย}}), 'Thailand is founded on blood and flesh'.[{{Cite news |last=Panyasuppakun |first=Kornrawee |date=8 August 2017 |title=Patriotism remixed |url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/politics/1302183/patriotism-remixed |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240601094504/https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/politics/1302183/patriotism-remixed |archive-date=1 June 2024 |access-date=2024-06-01 |work=Bangkok Post}}]
The former name ''Siam'' may have originated from [[Sanskrit]] श्याम (''śyāma'', 'dark')[Barend Jan Terwiel, Chaichuen Khamdaengyodtai, ''Shan Manuscripts''. Franz Steiner, 2003, p. 9.] The word ''Śyâma'' is possibly not the true origin, but a pre-designed deviation from its proper, original meaning.[{{Cite book |last=Eliot |first=Charles |title=The Project Gutenberg EBook of Hinduism and Buddhism, An Historical Sketch, Vol. 3 (of 3) [EBook #16847] |publisher=Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd. |year=1921 |location=London |pages=Ch. xxxvii 1; citing in turn Footnote 189: The name is found on [[Champa]]n inscriptions of 1050 CE and according to Gerini appears in [[Ptolemy]]'s [[Geographia|Samarade]] = Sâmaraṭṭha. See Gerini, Ptolemy, p. 170. But Samarade is near Bangkok and there can hardly have been Thais there in Ptolemy's time; and Footnote 190: So too in Central Asia Kustana appears to be a learned distortion of the name [[Khotan]], made to give it a meaning in Sanskrit}}][{{Citation |last=Klikauer |first=Thomas |title=Management Communication: Communicative Ethics and Action |pages=55–73 |year=2008 |editor-last=Klikauer |editor-first=Thomas |chapter=Distorted Communication I: Classifications |place=London |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan UK |doi=10.1057/9780230583238_4 |isbn=978-0-230-58323-8}}] Another theory is the name derives from the Chinese calling this region 'Xian'. Yoneo Ishii traces the European form to a compound. After ''Xiān'' and ''Luó hú'' were joined in 1349, Chinese records call the result ''Xiānluó hú'' ({{lang|zh|暹羅斛}}), later shortened to ''Xiānluó''.[{{cite journal|url=https://thesiamsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2004/03/JSS_092_0d_Ishii_ExploringNewApproachToEarlyThaiHistory.pdf|title=Exploring a New Approach to Early Thai History|date=2004|volume=92|journal=Journal of the Siam Society|author=Yoneo Ishii|pages=37–42|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200715205744/https://thesiamsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2004/03/JSS_092_0d_Ishii_ExploringNewApproachToEarlyThaiHistory.pdf|archive-date=15 July 2020}}]{{rp|40}}{{efn-lr|"Ayutthaya emerged as a dominant centre in the late 14th century. The Chinese called this region Xian, which the Portuguese converted into Siam."}}[{{cite web |title=จารึกวัดศรีชุม |trans-title=Wat Sri Chum Inscription |url=https://db.sac.or.th/inscriptions/inscribe/detail/177 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240831011445/https://db.sac.or.th/inscriptions/inscribe/detail/177 |archive-date=2024-08-31 |access-date=29 August 2023 |publisher=[[Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Anthropology Centre]] |language=th}}]
[[File:Kingdom & People of Siam (Vol 1, 1857, 15).svg|thumb|''SPPM Mongkut Rex Siamensium'', [[King Mongkut]]'s signature]]
The signature of King [[Mongkut]] (r. 1851–1868) reads ''SPPM'' (''Somdet Phra Poramenthra Maha'') ''Mongkut Rex Siamensium'' (Mongkut, King of the Siamese). This usage of the name in [[Bowring Treaty|the country's first international treaty]] gave the name ''Siam'' official status, until 24 June 1939 when it was changed to ''Thailand''.[{{cite web |author= |title=Siam officially renamed Thailand |url=https://thailandjourney.bangkokpost.com/timeline/1949/siam-officially-renamed-thailand |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260222110513/https://thailandjourney.bangkokpost.com/timeline/1949/siam-officially-renamed-thailand |archive-date=22 February 2026 |access-date=22 February 2026 |publisher=Bangkok Post}}]
== History ==
{{main|History of Thailand}}
=== Prehistory and origins ===
{{main|Prehistoric Thailand}}There is evidence of continuous human habitation in what is now Thailand from 20,000 years ago to the present day.[{{Cite book |last=Barbara Leitch LePoer |title=Thailand: A Country Study |publisher=Federal Research Division, Library of Congress |year=1989}}]{{rp|4}} The earliest [[History of rice cultivation|evidence of rice growing]] is dated at 2,000 BCE.[{{Cite book |last1=Baker |first1=Chris |author-link=Chris Baker (writer) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GHiuDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA27 |title=A History of Ayutthaya |last2=Phongpaichit |first2=Pasuk |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |year=2017 |isbn=978-1-107-19076-4 |access-date=15 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328150305/https://books.google.com/books?id=GHiuDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA27#v=onepage&q&f=false |archive-date=28 March 2024 |url-status=live}}]{{rp|4}} The area comprised part of the Maritime Jade Road, a trading network which existed for 3,000 years, between 2000 BCE to 1000 CE.[{{Cite journal |last=Tsang |first=Cheng-hwa |date=2008-01-24 |title=Recent advances in the Iron Age archaeology of Taiwan |url=http://journals.lib.washington.edu/index.php/JIPA/article/view/11751 |journal=Bulletin of the Indo-Pacific Prehistory Association |volume=20 |doi=10.7152/bippa.v20i0.11751 |doi-broken-date=12 July 2025 |issn=1835-1794 |url-access=subscription}}{{Dead link|date=May 2026 |bot=InternetArchiveBot }}][Turton, M. (2021). Notes from central Taiwan: Our brother to the south. Taiwan's relations with the Philippines date back millennia, so it's a mystery that it's not the jewel in the crown of the New Southbound Policy. Taiwan Times.][Everington, K. (2017). Birthplace of Austronesians is Taiwan, capital was Taitung: Scholar. Taiwan News.][Bellwood, P., H. Hung, H., Lizuka, Y. (2011). Taiwan Jade in the Philippines: 3,000 Years of Trade and Long-distance Interaction. Semantic Scholar.] Bronze appeared {{circa|1,250}}–1,000 BCE, though others place the beginning some seven centuries earlier, at 2000–1800 BCE.[{{Cite journal |last1=Higham |first1=Charles |last2=Higham |first2=Thomas |last3=Ciarla |first3=Roberto |last4=Douka |first4=Katerina |last5=Kijngam |first5=Amphan |last6=Rispoli |first6=Fiorella |date=10 December 2011 |title=The Origins of the Bronze Age of Southeast Asia |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/257607857 |url-status=live |journal=Journal of World Prehistory |volume=24 |issue=4 |pages=227–274 |bibcode=2011JWPre..24..227H |doi=10.1007/s10963-011-9054-6 |s2cid=162300712 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511090306/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/257607857_The_Origins_of_the_Bronze_Age_of_Southeast_Asia |archive-date=11 May 2021 |access-date=10 February 2018 |via=Researchgate.net}}] Iron appeared around 500 BCE.[{{cite journal|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/20072298|title=Relics, Oaths and Politics in Thirteenth-Century Siam|date=2001|author=[[David K. Wyatt]]|journal=Journal of Southeast Asian Studies|volume=32|issue=1|pages=3–65|jstor=20072298|archive-date=20 September 2025|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250920131218/https://www.jstor.org/stable/20072298|access-date=29 August 2026|url-status=bot: unknown}}]{{rp|5}} The [[Khmer people]] established the [[Khmer Empire]], centred in [[Angkor]], in the 9th century.[[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/589625/Thailand/274233/History?anchor=ref509754 Thailand. History] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120402103818/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/589625/Thailand/274233/History?anchor=ref509754 |date=2 April 2012}}. ''Encyclopædia Britannica'']
The [[Thai people]] are of the [[Tai peoples|Tai ethnic group]], characterised by common linguistic roots.[{{Cite book |last=Wyatt |first=David K. |author-link=David K. Wyatt |url=https://archive.org/details/thailand00davi |title=Thailand: A Short History |publisher=[[Yale University Press]] |year=1984 |isbn=978-0-300-03054-9 |location=New Haven}}]{{rp|2}} Chinese chronicles first mention the Tai peoples in the 6th century BCE. While there are many assumptions regarding the origin of Tai peoples, [[David K. Wyatt]], a historian of Thailand, argues that their ancestors who inhabit Laos, Thailand, Myanmar, India, and China came from the [[Điện Biên Phủ]] area between the 5th and the 8th century.[{{Cite web |last1=E. Jane Keyes |last2=James A. Hafner |display-authors=et al. |year=2018 |title=Thailand: History |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Thailand/Sports-and-recreation#ref274233 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624002018/https://www.britannica.com/place/Thailand/Sports-and-recreation#ref274233 |archive-date=24 June 2021 |access-date=4 April 2018 |website=Encyclopædia Britannica}}] Thus Thai culture was influenced by Indian, Mon, and Khmer cultures.[{{Cite book |last=Keyes |first=Charles F. |title=Government policies and ethnic relations in Asia and the Pacific |publisher=MIT Press |year=1997 |isbn=978-0-262-52245-8 |editor-last=Michael E. Brown |pages=197–232 |chapter=Cultural Diversity and National Identity in Thailand |editor-last2=Sumit Ganguly |editor-link2=Sumit Ganguly}}]{{rp|203}} Tai people intermixed with various ethnic and cultural groups in the region, resulting in many groups of present-day Thai people.{{efn-lr|See ''{{section link|#Ethnic groups}}''.}} Genetic evidences suggest that ethnolinguistics could not accurately predict the origins of the Thais.[{{cite journal |last1=Kutanan |first1=Wibhu |last2=Liu |first2=Dang |last3=Kampuansai |first3=Jatupol |last4=Srikummool |first4=Metawee |last5=Srithawong |first5=Suparat |last6=Shoocongdej |first6=Rasmi |last7=Sangkhano |first7=Sukrit |last8=Ruangchai |first8=Sukhum |last9=Pittayaporn |first9=Pittayawat |last10=Arias |first10=Leonardo |last11=Stoneking |first11=Mark |year=2021 |title=Reconstructing the Human Genetic History of Mainland Southeast Asia: Insights from Genome-Wide Data from Thailand and Laos |journal=Mol Biol Evol |volume=38 |issue=8 |pages=3459–3477 |doi=10.1093/molbev/msab124 |pmc=8321548 |pmid=33905512}}][{{cite web |date=18 October 2023 |title=ชนชาติไทย 'ไม่ใช่' คนไทย โดย สุจิตต์ วงษ์เทศ |url=https://www.matichon.co.th/columnists/news_4238682 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240220043823/https://www.matichon.co.th/columnists/news_4238682 |archive-date=20 February 2024 |access-date=20 February 2024 |website=Matichon}}]
According to French historian [[George Cœdès]], "The Thai first enter history of [[Farther India]] in the eleventh century with the mention of ''Syam'' slaves or prisoners of war in [[Champa]] epigraphy", and "in the twelfth century, the [[bas-relief]]s of [[Angkor Wat]]" where "a group of warriors" are described as ''Syam'',[{{Cite thesis |last=Smith |first=John |title=State, Community, and Ethnicity in Early Modern Thailand, 1351–1767 |access-date=5 April 2023 |degree=PhD |url=http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/handle/2027.42/151629 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328160310/https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/handle/2027.42/151629 |archive-date=28 March 2024 |year=2019 |institution=University of Michigan |hdl=2027.42/151629 |url-status=live}}] The origins and ethnicity of the ''Syam'' remain unclear, with some literature suggesting that ''Syam'' refers to the [[Shan people]], the [[Bru people]], or the [[Brau people]].[{{Cite journal |last=Juntanamalaga |first=Preecha |date=1 June 1988 |title=Thai or Siam? |url=http://ans-names.pitt.edu/ans/article/view/1181 |url-status=live |journal=Names |volume=36 |issue=1 |pages=69–84 |doi=10.1179/nam.1988.36.1-2.69 |issn=1756-2279 |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328150530/https://ans-names.pitt.edu/ans/article/view/1181 |archive-date=28 March 2024 |access-date=5 April 2023 |doi-access=free}}] However, [[Mainland Southeast Asia]]n sources from before the 14th century primarily used the word ''Syam'' as an [[ethnonym]], referring to those who belonged to a separate cultural category different from the Khmer, Cham, Bagan, or Mon. This contrasts with the Chinese sources, where ''Xian'' was used as a [[toponym]].[{{cite journal |last=Chamberlain |first=James R. |year=2016 |title=Kra-Dai and the Proto-History of South China and Vietnam |url=https://so06.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/pub_jss/article/view/158051 |url-status=live |journal=Journal of the Siam Society |volume=104 |pages=27–77 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103043101/https://so06.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/pub_jss/article/view/158051 |archive-date=3 January 2023 |access-date=18 January 2024}}] However, after several bloody centuries against Chinese influence in Guangxi between 333 BCE and the 11th century, hundreds of thousands of Tais were killed,[{{citation |last=Baker |first=Chris |title=From Yue To Tai |journal=Journal of the Siam Society |volume=90 |issue=1–2 |pages=1–26 |year=2002 |url=http://www.siamese-heritage.org/jsspdf/2001/JSS_090_0b_Baker_YueToThai.pdf |access-date=3 May 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304000932/http://www.siamese-heritage.org/jsspdf/2001/JSS_090_0b_Baker_YueToThai.pdf |archive-date=4 March 2016 |url-status=live |author-link1=Chris Baker (writer)}}]{{rp|5}}[{{citation |surname1=Taylor |given1=Keith W. |title=The Birth of Vietnam |year=1991 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rCl_02LnNVIC&pg=PA18 |access-date=1 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230707155549/https://books.google.com/books?id=rCl_02LnNVIC&pg=PA18 |archive-date=7 July 2023 |url-status=live |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=978-0-520-07417-0 |author-link1=Keith Taylor (historian)}}]{{rp|193, 239–249}} thus, Tai people began to move southwestward along the rivers and over the lower passes into the mountain north of Southeast Asia and river valleys in present-day [[Assam]] of India.[{{Citation |last=Evans |first=Grant |title=A Short History of Laos: The Land in Between |year=2002 |postscript=. |url=https://cdn.preterhuman.net/texts/history/A%20Short%20History%20of%20Laos.pdf |access-date=18 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240229191509/https://cdn.preterhuman.net/texts/history/A%20Short%20History%20of%20Laos.pdf |archive-date=29 February 2024 |url-status=live |publisher=Allen & Unwin |isbn=978-1-86448-997-2}}] Some evidence indicates that the ancestors of Tai people migrated en masse southwestwards out of Yunnan only after the 1253 [[Uriyangkhadai#Invasion of Yunnan and Tibet|Mongol invasion of Dali]]; however, it is not generally accepted.[{{Cite journal |last1=Du |first1=Yuting |last2=Chen |first2=Lufan |year=1989 |title=Did Kublai Khan's Conquest of the Dali Kingdom Give Rise to the Mass Migration of the Thai People to the South? |url=http://www.siamese-heritage.org/jsspdf/1981/JSS_077_1c_DuYutingChenLufan_KublaiKhanConquestAndThaiMigration.pdf |url-status=live |journal=[[Journal of the Siam Society]] |volume=77 |issue=1c |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200909224400/http://www.siamese-heritage.org/jsspdf/1981/JSS_077_1c_DuYutingChenLufan_KublaiKhanConquestAndThaiMigration.pdf |archive-date=9 September 2020 |access-date=18 January 2024 |quote=The Thai people in the north as well as in the south did not in any sense "migrate en masse to the south" after [[Kublai Khan]]'s conquest of the [[Dali Kingdom]]}}]{{rp|38}} A separate line of movement has been proposed for the middle [[Mekong]]. Tatsuo Hoshino places Tai-speaking groups attested in northern [[Champa]], in what are now [[Nghệ An province|Nghệ An]] and [[Thanh Hóa province|Thanh Hóa]], moving west into the central Mekong valleys during the 5th and 6th centuries and spreading across [[Isan]] and into the Chao Phraya basin over the centuries that followed, taking [[André-Georges Haudricourt|Haudricourt]]'s 3rd century as the earliest possible date for a westward movement of tonal Tai out of Chinese-controlled Vietnam.[{{cite book |last=Hoshino |first=Tatsuo |year=2002 |chapter=Wen Dan and its neighbours: the central Mekong Valley in the seventh and eighth centuries |editor1-last=Ngaosrivathana |editor1-first=Mayoury |editor2-last=Breazeale |editor2-first=Kennon |title=Breaking New Ground in Lao History: Essays on the Seventh to Twentieth Centuries |pages=25–72 |location=Chiang Mai |publisher=Silkworm Books |url=https://archive.org/details/breakingnewgroun0000unse/page/25/mode/1up}}]{{rp|38}} Tais defeated indigenous tribes and emerged as the new power in the new region. As a result, several Tai city-states were established, scattered from [[Điện Biên Phủ]] in present-day northwestern [[Vietnam]] and highland Southeast Asia to [[northeastern India]].[{{cite book |last=Jumsai |first=M.L. Manich |title=History of Laos |date=1967-08-05 |publisher=Chalermnit |isbn=978-974-7390-21-6}}][{{cite book |last=Ratanavongsa |first=Prince Phetsarath |title=The Iron Man of Laos |date=1978 |publisher=Dalley Book Service, Inc.}}][[http://www.manusya.journals.chula.ac.th/files/essay/Pittayawat%2047-68.pdf Pittayaporn, Pittayawat (2014). Layers of Chinese Loanwords in Proto-Southwestern Tai as Evidence for the Dating of the Spread of Southwestern Tai] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150627063518/http://www.manusya.journals.chula.ac.th/files/essay/Pittayawat%2047-68.pdf |date=27 June 2015}}. ''MANUSYA: Journal of Humanities'', Special Issue No 20: 47–64.]
According to the ''Simhanavati legend'' given in several chronicles, the first Tai city-state in northern Thailand, [[Singhanavati]], was founded around the 7th century BCE.[{{cite web |year=2023 |title=Wiang Nong Lom Cultural Heritage |url=https://www.finearts.go.th/storage/contents/2023/09/file/VlgtCnpcC8lb56DrYVwSxhkD0KppEIHHFYgZHxZn.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240121092447/https://www.finearts.go.th/storage/contents/2023/09/file/VlgtCnpcC8lb56DrYVwSxhkD0KppEIHHFYgZHxZn.pdf |archive-date=21 January 2024 |access-date=21 January 2024 |publisher=[[Fine Arts Department]] of Thailand |url-status=live}}]{{rp|5, 9}} However, several modern geology and archaeology studies found that its centre, Yonok Nahaphan, dates from 691 BCE–545 CE;[{{cite web |year=2022 |title=เมืองโยนก นครในตำนานล้านนา |url=https://www.finearts.go.th/fad7/view/26134-%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%B7%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%87%E0%B9%82%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%81-%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%84%E0%B8%A3%E0%B9%83%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%95%E0%B8%B3%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%A5%E0%B9%89%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%B2 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240118051652/https://www.finearts.go.th/fad7/view/26134-%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%B7%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%87%E0%B9%82%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%81-%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%84%E0%B8%A3%E0%B9%83%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%95%E0%B8%B3%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%A5%E0%B9%89%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%B2 |archive-date=18 January 2024 |access-date=18 January 2024 |publisher=[[Fine Arts Department]] of Thailand |language=th}}][{{cite web |author=พิเศษ เจียจันทร์พงษ์ |date=28 January 2022 |title=พระเจ้าพรหมมหาราช ในตำนานล้านนา นัยสำคัญของกษัตริย์สืบสายทางธรรม VS สายเลือด |url=https://www.silpa-mag.com/history/article_9394 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240123005838/https://www.silpa-mag.com/history/article_9394 |archive-date=23 January 2024 |access-date=23 January 2024 |website=silpa-mag.com |language=th}}][{{cite web |date=24 April 2020 |title="รอยเลื่อนแม่จัน" กับ "โยนกเชียงแสน" ตำนานที่อาจมีอายุมากกว่า 1,800 ปี |url=https://mgronline.com/onlinesection/detail/9620000029196 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240118051935/https://mgronline.com/onlinesection/detail/9620000029196 |archive-date=18 January 2024 |work=[[Manager Daily]] |language=th}}] this roughly coincides with the establishment of [[Shan people#History|Shan states]], another Tai's federated principalities in the present-day northeast [[Myanmar]].[Du & Chen (1989), p. 38][''Hou Hanshu'' [https://ctext.org/hou-han-shu/xiao-he-xiao-shang-di-ji?searchu=%E6%92%A3%E5%9C%8B&searchmode=showall#result vol. 5] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231008094638/https://ctext.org/hou-han-shu/xiao-he-xiao-shang-di-ji?searchu=%E6%92%A3%E5%9C%8B&searchmode=showall#result |date=8 October 2023}} "九年春正月, 永昌徼外蠻夷及撣國重譯奉貢."][Hou Hanshu [https://ctext.org/hou-han-shu/xiao-an-di-ji?searchu=%E6%92%A3%E5%9C%8B&searchmode=showall#result vol. 6] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231008094430/https://ctext.org/hou-han-shu/xiao-an-di-ji?searchu=%E6%92%A3%E5%9C%8B&searchmode=showall#result |date=8 October 2023}} txt: "十二月, 永昌徼外撣國遣使貢獻."][Hou Hanshu [https://ctext.org/hou-han-shu/xiao-shun-xiao-chong-xiao-zhi?searchu=%E6%92%A3%E5%9C%8B&searchmode=showall#result vol. 7] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231008094636/https://ctext.org/hou-han-shu/xiao-shun-xiao-chong-xiao-zhi?searchu=%E6%92%A3%E5%9C%8B&searchmode=showall#result |date=8 October 2023}} txt: "十二月, 日南徼外葉調國、撣國遣使貢獻."] as well as [[Muang Sua]] ([[Luang Prabang]]) in the east.[{{cite web |author=Maha Sila Viravond |title=HISTORY OF LAOS |url=http://www.reninc.org/bookshelf/history_of_laos_viravong.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200403030051/http://www.reninc.org/bookshelf/history_of_laos_viravong.pdf |archive-date=3 April 2020 |access-date=29 December 2017 |publisher=Refugee Educators' Network |url-status=live}}][{{cite web |author=M.L. Manich |title=HISTORY OF LAOS (including the history of Lonnathai, Chiangmai) |url=http://www.reninc.org/bookshelf/history_of_laos_manich.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211008182646/http://www.reninc.org/bookshelf/history_of_laos_manich.pdf |archive-date=8 October 2021 |access-date=29 December 2017 |publisher=Refugee Educators' Network}}]
After Singhanavati was submerged below [[Chiang Saen Lake]] by an earthquake in 545,[{{Cite journal |last1=Wood |first1=Spencer H. |last2=Wood |first2=Layle R. |last3=Ziegler |first3=Alan D. |date=2015-11-02 |title=Natural degradation of earthworks, trenches, walls and moats, Northern Thailand |url=http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00934690.2015.1103645 |url-status=live |journal=Journal of Field Archaeology |volume=40 |issue=6 |pages=675–694 |doi=10.1080/00934690.2015.1103645 |issn=0093-4690 |s2cid=32414373 |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240118052630/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00934690.2015.1103645 |archive-date=18 January 2024 |access-date=18 January 2024}}] the survivors then founded a new seat at [[Wiang Prueksa]]. The kingdom lasted for another 93 years.[{{cite web |title=ตามหาเมืองเงินยาง ตอน 3 |url=https://www.finearts.go.th/kamphaengphetmuseum/view/36351-%E0%B8%95%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%AB%E0%B8%B2%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%B7%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%87%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%87%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%87-%E0%B8%95%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%99-3 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20231103080945/https://www.finearts.go.th/kamphaengphetmuseum/view/36351-%E0%B8%95%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%AB%E0%B8%B2%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%B7%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%87%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%87%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%87-%E0%B8%95%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%99-3 |archive-date=3 November 2023 |access-date=10 November 2023 |website=finearts.go.th |language=th}}] [[Ngoenyang]] was established as the successor of Singhanavati in 638 by {{ill|Lavachakkaraj|th|ปู่เจ้าลาวจก}}, also centred in Wiang Prueksa (present-day [[Mae Sai District]], [[Chiang Rai province|Chiang Rai]]).[{{cite book |last=Coedès |first=George |author-link=George Coedès |title=The Indianized States of Southeast Asia |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |others=trans.Susan Brown Cowing |year=1968 |isbn=978-0-8248-0368-1 |editor=Walter F. Vella}}]{{rp|208}}
In the late 10th century, Tai people began to migrate further south.[{{cite book |last=Thepthani |first=Phra Borihan |url=http://www.car.chula.ac.th/rarebook/book2/clra53_0235/mobile/index.html |title=Thai National Chronicles: the history of the nation since ancient times |date=1953 |publisher=S. Thammasamakkhi |language=th |access-date=5 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231105023428/http://www.car.chula.ac.th/rarebook/book2/clra53_0235/mobile/index.html#p=1 |archive-date=5 November 2023}}]{{rp|46–9, 83–6}} By the 12th century several cities in this area, such as Songkwae, Sawankhalok, and Chakangrao, were ruled by the Tai people, eventually launching several battles against the Mon of [[Lavo Kingdom|Lavo]], who had been under [[Chenla]] and Khmer influences since the 7th century, thus bringing the establishment of the Tai people's independent state, [[Sukhothai Kingdom]], in the upper Chao Phraya River valley in 1238.[{{cite web |author=โรม บุนนาค |date=7 April 2023 |title=๒ มหาราชของคนไทยก่อนเกิดประเทศไทย! ๒ เมืองหลวงเป็นอำเภอและจังหวัดในปัจจุบัน!! |url=https://mgronline.com/onlinesection/detail/9660000032394 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240119005234/https://mgronline.com/onlinesection/detail/9660000032394 |archive-date=19 January 2024 |access-date=19 January 2024 |work=[[Manager Daily]] |language=th}}][{{cite web |year=2024 |title=ประวัติของจังหวัดเชียงราย |trans-title=History of Chiang Rai Province |url=http://123.242.164.131/cpwp/?page_id=60 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240121100907/http://123.242.164.131/cpwp/?page_id=60 |archive-date=21 January 2024 |access-date=21 January 2024 |publisher=Chiang Rai Provincial Administrative Organization |language=th}}] [[Phrom]] also marched the troops south to occupy [[Kamphaeng Phet province|Chakangrao]] from the enemy as well as founding the city of [[Phitsanulok|Songkwae]].[{{cite web |author=สงบ สุริยินทร์ |date=30 December 2022 |title=เมืองลพบุรีเป็นของไทยเมื่อใด? |url=https://www.silpa-mag.com/history/article_89008 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20231225062249/https://www.silpa-mag.com/history/article_89008 |archive-date=25 December 2023 |access-date=25 December 2023 |website=silpa-mag.com |language=th}}] In contrast, Tai people instead established relationships with Mon via [[royal intermarriage]]s.[{{Harvnb|Wyatt|2003|p=18}}] Samuel Beal identified the polity in Chinese records as "Duoluobodi". Archaeological excavations in the early 20th century established [[Nakhon Pathom Province]] as a major centre, alongside U Thong in modern [[Suphan Buri Province]]. Dvaravati inscriptions were written in [[Sanskrit]] and [[Mon language|Mon]] using scripts derived from the [[Pallava alphabet]].[{{cite journal|url=https://ia601905.us.archive.org/15/items/nan-zhao-invasionsand-buddhasof-thailandand-laosfinal/NanZhaoInvasionsandBuddhasofThailandandLaosfinal.pdf|title=Nan Zhao Invasions and Buddha idols of Northern Thailand and Laos in the 7th to 9th Centuries|date=2018|first=David|last=Lempert|journal=The Journal of Lao Studies|volume=6|issue=1|issn=2159-2152}}]{{rp|34}} The only native language attested in the early kingdom is [[Old Mon language|Old Mon]].[{{cite web |author=Chatchai Sukrakarn |date=October 2005 |title=พระเจ้าศรีธรรมาโศกราช |trans-title=Sri Thammasokaraj |url=http://dspace.nstru.ac.th:8080/dspace/bitstream/123456789/337/1/%E0%B8%9E%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B0%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%88%E0%B9%89%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A8%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B5%E0%B8%98%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%B2%E0%B9%82%E0%B8%A8%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%8A.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240812062734/http://dspace.nstru.ac.th:8080/dspace/bitstream/123456789/337/1/%E0%B8%9E%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B0%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%88%E0%B9%89%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A8%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B5%E0%B8%98%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%B2%E0%B9%82%E0%B8%A8%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%8A.pdf |archive-date=12 August 2024 |accessdate=6 November 2024 |language=th}}] Baker and Pasuk take [[Lopburi]] to be probably the Lavapura named in the inscriptions, its early form obscured by later building.[{{cite web|url=https://www.finearts.go.th/fad4/view/34507-%E0%B9%91-%E0%B8%AA%E0%B8%AB%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%AA%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%A9-%E0%B9%81%E0%B8%AB%E0%B9%88%E0%B8%87--%E0%B8%9E%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B0%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%A1-|title=๑ สหัสวรรษ แห่ง "พระนิยม"|language=th|access-date=26 October 2023|work=[[Fine Arts Department]]}}] a king of [[Tambralinga]] invaded and took Lavo and installed a Malay prince on the Lavo throne. The Malay prince was married to a Khmer princess who had fled an Angkorian dynastic bloodbath. The son of the couple contested the Khmer throne and became [[Suryavarman I]], a connection through which Lavo is said to have come under Khmer domination. Suryavarman I expanded into the [[Khorat Plateau]] (later styled "Isan"), constructing many temples. Baker and Pasuk read the relationship differently, holding that Angkorian control of Lavo from the 10th to the 13th centuries is asserted rather than demonstrated and that the tie was probably always flexible.[{{cite web |author=ศานติ ภักดีคำ |title=จาก 'ลวะปุระ' สู่ 'เมืองละโว้' ลูกหลวงแห่งเมืองพระนคร |trans-title=From 'Lavapura' to 'Lavo City', the frontier city of the capital of Phra Nakhon |url=https://www.matichonacademy.com/tour-story/%E0%B8%88%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%81-%E0%B8%A5%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%B0%E0%B8%9B%E0%B8%B8%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B0-%E0%B8%AA%E0%B8%B9%E0%B9%88-%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%B7%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%87%E0%B8%A5%E0%B8%B0%E0%B9%82 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231106075851/https://www.matichonacademy.com/tour-story/%E0%B8%88%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%81-%E0%B8%A5%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%B0%E0%B8%9B%E0%B8%B8%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B0-%E0%B8%AA%E0%B8%B9%E0%B9%88-%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%B7%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%87%E0%B8%A5%E0%B8%B0%E0%B9%82 |archive-date=6 November 2023 |access-date=6 November 2023 |language=th}}] Due to this political pressure, Lavo ruler [[Sri Dharmasokaraja II]], fled to Nakhon Si Thammarat, where his descendants ruled [[Tambralinga]] into the late 13th century.[{{rp|109}} Angkorian power meanwhile waned amid weak rule and feuding.][Higham, C., 2014, ''Early Mainland Southeast Asia'', Bangkok: River Books Co., Ltd., {{ISBN|9786167339443}}]{{rp|120}} In 1238 [[Si Inthrathit|Bang Klang Hao]] took Sukhothai from [[Khom Sabat Khlon Lamphong]], with the help of his brother-in-law [[Pha Mueang]] of Mueang Rat.[{{cite web |author=ผาสุข อินทราวุธ |title=ตำนวนเมืองลพบุรี (ละโว้) |url=http://www.damrong-journal.su.ac.th/upload/pdf/79_1.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231106081745/http://www.damrong-journal.su.ac.th/upload/pdf/79_1.pdf |archive-date=6 November 2023 |access-date=6 November 2023 |website=www.damrong-journal.su.ac.th |language=th}}] The event is conventionally treated as the kingdom's foundation, although Siamese rulers are recorded at the city earlier.[{{cite web |date=March 2009 |title=จาก "เสียม (สยาม)" สู่ "ไถ (ไทย)": บริบทและความหมายในการรับรู้ของชาวกัมพูชา |url=https://www.silpa-mag.com/history/article_90594 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20231223043505/https://www.silpa-mag.com/history/article_90594 |archive-date=23 December 2023 |access-date=23 December 2023 |website=silpa-mag.com |language=th}}] The name has also been sought in Chinese records of the middle [[Mekong]]. Tatsuo Hoshino identifies several polities in the Tang annals as early Tai or Siamese states along routes linking [[Champa]] with the Chao Phraya basin, based on their reported customs, fortifications and military organisation. He further proposes linguistic links between names such as [[Wen Dan]] and [[Cān Bàn Kingdom|Cān Bàn]] and an early form of Siam.[{{rp|39, 53–54, 68}} [[Hiram Woodward]] considers the linguistic argument tendentious and insufficient either to support or to invalidate Hoshino's geographical conclusions.][{{cite journal |last=Woodward |first=Hiram |year=2010 |title=Dvaravati, Si Thep, and Wendan |journal=Bulletin of the Indo-Pacific Prehistory Association |volume=30 |pages=87–97 |url=https://journals.lib.washington.edu/index.php/BIPPA/article/download/10808/10668}}]{{rp|87}}
Chinese sources of the Song period describe ''Xiān guó'' ({{lang|zh|暹國}}) in the western [[Chao Phraya]] region, while the eastern plain was associated with [[Lavo Kingdom|Lavo]].[{{cite web |date=1 December 2023 |title=เส้นทางศรีวิชัย: เครือข่ายทางการค้าที่ยิ่งใหญ่ที่สุดในทะเลใต้ยุคโบราณ ตอน ราชวงศ์ไศเลนทร์ที่จัมบิ (ประมาณ พ.ศ.1395–1533) (ตอนจบ) |url=https://mgronline.com/daily/detail/9660000105649 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20231223012308/https://mgronline.com/daily/detail/9660000105649 |archive-date=23 December 2023 |access-date=23 December 2023 |work=[[Manager Daily]] |language=th}}] These and other regional polities are conventionally associated with the wider Dvaravati cultural sphere. By the 13th–14th centuries, several Siamese polities including [[Phrip Phri]], [[Suphan Buri]], [[Ayutthaya Kingdom|Ayodhya]] and [[Sukhothai Kingdom|Sukhothai]] appear independently in Chinese records, before the political consolidation of the mid-14th century.[{{cite web |author=เพ็ญสุภา สุขคตะ |date=17 November 2022 |title=พระนางจามเทวี จารึกศรีวิชัย สายสัมพันธ์ขอมเจนละ-จามปา ในมุมมองของ ผศ.พงศ์เกษม สนธิไทย |url=https://www.matichonweekly.com/column/article_624632 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240116235530/https://www.matichonweekly.com/column/article_624632 |archive-date=16 January 2024 |access-date=17 January 2024 |publisher=[[Matichon]] |language=th}}] A [[Champa]] inscription further records Siamese and Angkorian forces attacking [[Vijaya (Champa)|Vijaya]] in 1201 under [[Jayavarman VII]].[{{cite web |title=Corpus of the Inscriptions of Campā: C. 3 Lintel from Phan Rang |url=https://isaw.nyu.edu/publications/inscriptions/campa/inscriptions/C0003.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240116233605/https://archive.today/20240116233605/https://isaw.nyu.edu/publications/inscriptions/campa/inscriptions/C0003.html |archive-date=16 January 2024 |access-date=17 January 2024 |publisher=[[New York University]]}}] [[Zhou Daguan]], who visited Angkor in 1296–97, likewise reported that Siamese exerted significant influence over Lavapura and were present in considerable numbers at [[Yaśodharapura]].[{{cite journal |last1=Leang |first1=UN |year=2010 |title=Reviewed Work: A record of Cambodia: the land and its people by Zhou Daguan, Peter Harris, David Chandler |journal=Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde |volume=166 |issue=1 |pages=155–157 |jstor=27868568}}][{{cite book |author=Zhou Daguan |title=A Record of Cambodia: The Land and Its People |publisher=Silkworm Books |year=2007 |isbn=978-1628401721 |translator=Peter Harris}}]
=== Xiān and Chen Li Fu (12th–14th centuries) ===
{{Main|Xiān|Chen Li Fu}}
[[File:พริบพรี.jpg|thumb|Proposed extent of the [[Phrip Phri]] polity in the late 12th century.]]
Before Xiān appears in Chinese records, they describe [[Chen Li Fu|Chên Li Fu]], a polity west of [[Chenla]] on the northern shore of the gulf, placed by Walailak Songsiri in the [[Phraek Si Racha]] region.[{{cite web|author=Walailak Songsiri|title=ในดินแดนแห่งเจนลีฟู นครรัฐที่ไม่ได้อยู่ในอำนาจทางการเมืองของพระเจ้าชัยวรมันที่ ๗|trans-title=In the land of Chen Li Fu, a city-state outside the political power of Jayavarman VII|date=2025|access-date=14 July 2025|url=https://archive.org/details/in-the-land-of-genlifu-a-city-state-that-was-not-under-the-political-power-of-ki|language=th|work=Lek-Prapai Viriyaphan Foundation}}]{{rp|7–11}} It sent embassies to the [[Song dynasty|Song]] court in 1200, 1202 and 1205.[{{rp|20}} Its ruler, Sri Mahidharavarman, bore the Khmer title ''kamrateng'' and was credited with more than sixty settlements. Its tribute included elephants, ivory, rhinoceros horn and cloth,][{{cite journal|url=https://archive.org/details/chenlifu-wolters-The-Journal-of-the-Siam-Society-Vol.-XLVIII-Part-1-2-1960-pp1-35|author=[[O. W. Wolters]]|title=Chên Li Fu: A State on the Gulf of Siam at the Beginning of the 14th Century|date=1960|volume=48|journal=[[Journal of the Siam Society]]}}]{{rp|6}} After 1205 the name disappears from Chinese records. Whether Chên Li Fu was an Angkorian dependency is unsettled: [[O. W. Wolters]] treated it as one that broke away around 1200, while Walailak Songsiri argues for an autonomous polity tied to the [[Mahidharapura]] line of [[Phimai]] by dynasty rather than tribute.[{{rp|6–7}}][{{rp|7–11}}
The earliest notices of Xiān are Vietnamese. The ''[[Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư]]'' records that in 1149, during the reign of [[Lý Anh Tông]], merchant ships from Xiān and two other countries reached ''Hǎidōng'' ({{lang|zh|海東}}), obtained permission to settle and trade, and were assigned a post at ''Vân Đồn'' ({{lang|zh|雲屯}}).][{{cite web|url=https://ctext.org/wiki.pl?if=gb&chapter=771692|title=大越史記全書 《卷之四》|work=Chinese Text Project|language=zh|access-date=11 November 2024|archive-date=5 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220705194437/https://ctext.org/wiki.pl?if=gb&chapter=771692|trans-title=Complete Annals of Đại Việt, volume 4}}]{{rp|loc=line 61}} Xiān brought tribute in 1182,[{{rp|loc=line 25}} and its merchants returned to Vân Đồn in 1241.][{{rp|loc=line 29}} Chinese records of the late 13th and 14th centuries use [[Xiān]] for polities of the lower [[Chao Phraya River|Chao Phraya]], which [[Yoneo Ishii]] interpreted as several port polities around the [[Bay of Bangkok]] rather than a single state.][{{rp|38, 41–2}} Xiān first appears in the Chinese record in 1282 or 1283 and sent tribute missions in 1292, 1295, 1299, 1300, 1314, 1319 and 1323. [[Lavo Kingdom|Lavo]] sent four missions between 1289 and 1299 and [[Phrip Phri|Phetchaburi]] one in 1294; Baker and Pasuk note that Lavo, [[Suphan Buri]], [[Ayutthaya Kingdom|Ayodhya]] and Phetchaburi each dealt with China in its own name before the union of 1349.][{{rp|38–9}} The court preferred diplomacy to conquest, judging such small states of little strategic value, and limited its gifts accordingly. In 1299 it refused Xiān's request for a white horse and horse trappings, sending only the gold-threaded robe granted to the king's father. An edict of 1295 also ordered Xiān not to harm ''Ma-li-yu-er'' ([[Melayu Kingdom|Melayu]]), with whom it had long been at war.][{{cite book|last1=Siripaisarn|first1=Supakarn|last2=Bussabok|first2=Phiphu|title=การแปลและศึกษาเอกสารจีนโบราณเกี่ยวกับไทยในบริบทของเส้นทางสายไหม|url=https://sac-research.sac.or.th/file_thb/311-fullText.pdf|year=2018|trans-title=The Translation into Thai and Study of Ancient Chinese Records Relating to Thailand in Connection with the Maritime Silk Road|publication-place=Bangkok|publisher=[[Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Anthropology Centre]]|language=th|access-date=11 November 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240618151943/https://sac-research.sac.or.th/file_thb/311-fullText.pdf|archive-date=18 June 2024}}]{{rp|67}} The older identification of Xiān with [[Sukhothai Kingdom|Sukhothai]] was challenged in 1989 by {{ill|Yamamoto Tatsurō|ja|山本達郎}}, who noted that a 1297–1307 gazetteer places Sukhothai under Xiān and therefore distinguishes the two.[{{rp|37, 38}}
=== Sukhothai Kingdom (1238–1438) ===
{{main|Sukhothai Kingdom}}
{{multiple image
| perrow = 2/1
| total_width = 250
| caption_align = center
| align = right
| title = [[Sukhothai Kingdom]]
| image1 = Southeast Asian history - 13th century.png
| caption1 = Sukhothai and neighbours, end of 13th century CE
| image2 = Phra Achana (I).jpg
| caption2 = Phra Achana, Wat Si Chum, Sukhothai Historical Park
| image3 = Sukhothai Historical Park.jpg
| caption3 = The ruins of Wat Mahathat, [[Sukhothai Historical Park]]}}
After the decline of the Khmer Empire and [[Pagan Kingdom|Kingdom of Pagan]] in the early 13th century, various states thrived in their place. The domains of Tai people existed from the northeast of present-day India to the north of present-day Laos and to the [[Malay Peninsula]].][{{Cite book |last=Higham |first=Charles |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-ifNH4uK0LAC&pg=PA355 |title=The Archaeology of Mainland Southeast Asia |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1989 |isbn=0-521-27525-3 |access-date=6 September 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328150350/https://books.google.com/books?id=-ifNH4uK0LAC&pg=PA355#v=onepage&q&f=false |archive-date=28 March 2024 |url-status=live}}]{{rp|355}} Its initial expansion was through conquest and political marriage.
Before the end of the 15th century, Ayutthaya invaded the Khmer Empire three times and sacked its capital [[Angkor]].[{{Cite book |last=เกษตรศิริ |first=ชาญวิทย์ |title=อยุธยา: ประวัติศาสตร์และการเมือง |date=2005 |publisher=โรงพิมพ์มหาวิทยาลัยธรรมศาสตร์ |isbn=978-974-91572-7-5}}]{{rp|26}} The steady rise of the Ayutthaya Kingdom marked a major geopolitical shift, eventually allowing Ayutthaya to eclipse the Khmer Empire and assume the mantle of regional dominance in mainland Southeast Asia. Constant interference of Sukhothai effectively made it a vassal state of Ayutthaya and it was finally incorporated into the kingdom. Baker and Pasuk reject that account, holding that it applies a model of sovereignty foreign to the region, in which a defeated ruler remained a king and an overlord imposed no administration, and setting in its place the marriages by which Borommaracha I, Intharacha and Borommarachathirat II each took a daughter of [[Maha Thammaracha I|Li Thai]].[{{Cite book |last=Wyatt |first=David K. |title=Thailand: A Short History |date=2013 |publisher=มูลนิธิโครงการตำราสังคมศาสตร์และมนุษยศาสตร์, มูลนิธิโตโยต้าประเทศไทย |isbn=978-616-7202-38-9 |language=th |translator-last=ละอองศรี |translator-first=กาญจนี |trans-title=ประวัติศาสตร์ไทยฉบับสังเขป}}]{{rp|107}} Ayutthaya was interested in the [[Malay Peninsula]] but failed to conquer the [[Malacca Sultanate]], which was supported by the Chinese [[Ming dynasty]].[{{Cite web |title=Ayutthaya history Foreign Settlements |url=https://www.ayutthaya-history.com/Settlements_Portuguese.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200706001102/https://www.ayutthaya-history.com/Settlements_Portuguese.html |archive-date=6 July 2020 |access-date=24 May 2020}}] The Portuguese were followed in the 17th century by the French, Dutch, and English. Rivalry for supremacy over Chiang Mai and the Mon people pitted Ayutthaya against the Burmese Kingdom. Several wars with its ruling [[Taungoo dynasty]] starting in the 1540s in the reign of [[Tabinshwehti]] and [[Bayinnaung]] were ultimately ended with the [[Burmese–Siamese War (1568–70)|capture of the capital in 1570]].[{{Cite book |last1=Baker |first1=Christopher |title=A History of Thailand |last2=Phongpaichit |first2=Pasuk |date=2014 |publisher=C.O.S Printers Pte Ltd |isbn=978-1-107-42021-2 |location=Singapore}}]{{rp|11}}
Ayutthaya sought to improve relations with European powers for many successive reigns. The kingdom especially prospered during cosmopolitan [[Narai]]'s reign (1656–1688), when some European travellers regarded Ayutthaya as an Asian great power, alongside China and India.[{{Cite book |last=Harvey |first=G E |title=History of Burma |publisher=Frank Cass & Co. Ltd. |year=1925 |location=London}}]{{rp|250}} The Burmese under the new [[Alaungpaya]] dynasty quickly rose to become a new local power by 1759. After a 14-month siege, the capital city's walls fell and the city was burned in April 1767.[{{Cite book |last=Ruangsilp |first=Bhawan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0xBGwFrYnaMC |title=Dutch East India Company Merchants at the Court of Ayutthaya: Dutch Perceptions of the Thai Kingdom c. 1604–1765 |publisher=Koninklijke Brill NV |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-300-08475-7 |location=Leiden, Netherlands |access-date=20 November 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230628192706/https://books.google.com/books?id=0xBGwFrYnaMC |archive-date=28 June 2023 |url-status=live}}]{{RP|218}}
=== Thonburi Kingdom (1767–1782) ===
{{main|Thonburi Kingdom}}
The capital and many of its territories lay in chaos after the war. The former capital was occupied by the [[Burma|Burmese]] garrison army and five local leaders declared themselves overlords, including the lords of Sakwangburi, [[Phitsanulok]], [[Pimai]], [[Chanthaburi]], and [[Nakhon Si Thammarat]]. [[Taksin|Chao Tak]], a capable military leader, proceeded to make himself a lord by [[right of conquest]], beginning with the legendary sack of [[Chanthaburi]]. Based at Chanthaburi, Chao Tak raised troops and resources, and sent a fleet up the [[Chao Phraya]] to take the fort of [[Thonburi]]. In the same year, Chao Tak was able to retake Ayutthaya from the Burmese only seven months after the fall of the city.[จรรยา ประชิตโรมรัน. (2548). สมเด็จพระเจ้าตากสินมหาราช. สำนักพิมพ์แห่งจุฬาลงกรณ์มหาวิทยาลัย. หน้า 55]
Chao Tak then crowned himself as [[Taksin]] and proclaimed [[Thonburi]] as temporary capital in the same year. He also quickly subdued the other warlords. His forces engaged in wars with Burma, Laos, and Cambodia, which successfully [[Burmese–Siamese War (1774–1775)|drove the Burmese out of Lan Na]] in 1775,[{{Cite web |title=Rama I {{!}} Thai Monarch, Ayutthaya Dynasty {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Rama-I |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210124032752/https://www.britannica.com/biography/Rama-I |archive-date=24 January 2021 |access-date=2025-05-26 |website=www.britannica.com}}]
=== Rattanakosin Kingdom and modernisation (1782–1932) ===
{{Main|Rattanakosin Kingdom (1782–1932)|l1=Rattanakosin Kingdom}}
{{multiple image
| perrow = 1/2
| total_width = 270
| caption_align = center
| align = right
| title = [[Rattanakosin Kingdom]]
| image1 = Siam in 1900, During Rama V's Reign.jpg
| caption1 = Detailed map of Siam's provinces, vassals, and monthons in 1900
| image2 = Emerald Buddha, August 2012, Bangkok (cropped).jpg
| caption2 = [[Emerald Buddha]] in [[Wat Phra Kaew]]. Considered the sacred palladium of Thailand.
| image3 = King Chulalongkorn and Tsar Nicholas II 1897.png
| caption3 = [[Chulalongkorn]] with [[Nicholas II]] in Saint Petersburg, 1897
| caption4 = Siamese territory and dominion at its largest in 1805, resulting from the [[Burmese–Siamese War (1802–1805)]]
| image4 = Siamese Territory and Dominion in 1805.jpg}}
Under Rama I, Rattanakosin successfully defended against Burmese attacks and put an end to the incursions. He also created suzerainty over large portions of Laos and Cambodia.[{{Cite book |last=Nolan |first=Cathal J. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FMJ8KP8i3v0C&pg=PA1653 |title=The Greenwood Encyclopedia of International Relations: S-Z by Cathal J. Nolan |publisher=Greenwood Publishing |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-313-32383-6 |access-date=21 November 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328150813/https://books.google.com/books?id=FMJ8KP8i3v0C&pg=PA1653 |archive-date=28 March 2024 |url-status=live}}] In 1821, Briton [[John Crawfurd]] was sent to negotiate a trade agreement with Siam—the first sign of an issue which was to dominate 19th century Siamese politics.[{{Cite journal |last=Hwa |first=Cheng Siok |year=1971 |title=The Crawford Papers – A Collection of Official Records relating to the Mission of Dr. John Crawfurd sent to Siam by the Government of India in the year 1821 |journal=Journal of Southeast Asian Studies |volume=3 |issue=2 |pages=324–325 |doi=10.1017/S0022463400019421}}] Bangkok signed the [[Burney Treaty]] in 1826, after the British victory in the [[First Anglo-Burmese War]].[{{Cite web |year=2004 |title=Ode to Friendship, Celebrating Singapore – Thailand Relations: Introduction |url=http://www.a2o.com.sg/a2o/public/html/online_exhibit/odetoFriendship/html/Introduction/index.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070303000031/http://www.a2o.com.sg/a2o/public/html/online_exhibit/odetoFriendship/html/Introduction/index.htm |archive-date=3 March 2007 |access-date=24 April 2007 |publisher=National Archives of Singapore}}] The unexpected death of Mongkut from [[malaria]] led to the reign of underage King [[Chulalongkorn]], with [[Somdet Chaophraya Sri Suriwongse]] (Chuang Bunnag) acting as regent.[{{Cite news |date=22 September 2006 |title=King, country and the coup |url=http://www.indianexpress.com/news/king-country-and-the-coup/13140/0 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110514225625/http://www.indianexpress.com/news/king-country-and-the-coup/13140/0 |archive-date=14 May 2011 |access-date=3 November 2011 |work=The Indian Express |location=Mumbai}}] in part because Britain and France agreed in 1896 to make the Chao Phraya valley a [[buffer state]].[[http://treaties.fco.gov.uk/docs/fullnames/pdf/1896/TS0005%20(1896)%20C-8010%201896%2015%20JAN,%20LONDON%3B%20DECLARATION%20BETWEEN%20GB%20AND%20FRANCE%20WITH%20REGARD%20TO%20THE%20KINGDOM%20OF%20SIAM%20AND%20OTHER%20MATTERS.pdf ''Declaration between Great Britain and France with regard of the Kingdom of Siam and other matters''] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170331025152/http://treaties.fco.gov.uk/docs/fullnames/pdf/1896/TS0005%20(1896)%20C-8010%201896%2015%20JAN,%20LONDON%3B%20DECLARATION%20BETWEEN%20GB%20AND%20FRANCE%20WITH%20REGARD%20TO%20THE%20KINGDOM%20OF%20SIAM%20AND%20OTHER%20MATTERS.pdf |date=31 March 2017}} London. 15 January 1896. Treaty Series. No. 5] Not until the 20th century could Siam renegotiate every unequal treaty dating from the Bowring Treaty, including [[extraterritoriality]]. The advent of the ''monthon'' system marked the creation of the modern Thai nation-state.[Werner Gruhl, ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=ow5Wlmu9MPQC&pg=PA112 Imperial Japan's World War Two, 1931–1945] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328150816/https://books.google.com/books?id=ow5Wlmu9MPQC&pg=PA112#v=onepage&q&f=false |date=28 March 2024}}'', Transaction Publishers, 2007 {{ISBN|978-0-7658-0352-8}}] The Thai government then declared war on the United States and the United Kingdom.[{{cite journal |last1=Fine |first1=Herbert A. |date=1965 |title=The Liquidation of World War II in Thailand |journal=Pacific Historical Review |volume=34 |issue=1 |pages=65–82 |doi=10.2307/3636740 |issn=0030-8684 |jstor=3636740}}]{{rp|66}} The [[Free Thai Movement]] was launched both in Thailand and abroad to oppose the Thai government and Japanese occupation.[{{Cite journal |last=Darling |first=Frank C. |date=1962 |title=American Policy in Thailand |journal=The Western Political Quarterly |volume=15 |issue=1 |pages=93–110 |doi=10.2307/446100 |issn=0043-4078 |jstor=446100}}]
Field Marshal [[Sarit Thanarat]] took power by [[1957 Thai coup d'état|coup in 1957]], and he proceeded to reverse Phibun's democratic reforms and ban the Khana Ratsadon party from politics. His rule from 1959 to 1963 was autocratic; he built his legitimacy around the god-like status of the monarch and by channelling the government and public's loyalty to the king.[{{Cite web |title=The 1973 revolution and its aftermath |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Thailand/The-postwar-crisis-and-the-return-of-Phibunsongkhram#ref52685 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411132934/https://www.britannica.com/place/Thailand/The-postwar-crisis-and-the-return-of-Phibunsongkhram#ref52685 |archive-date=11 April 2019 |access-date=23 August 2019 |website=Encyclopædia Britannica}}] The aftermath of the event marked a short-lived parliamentary democracy.[{{Cite news |date=2 December 1982 |title=Thailand ..Communists Surrender En Masse |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=2r4yAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Ee8FAAAAIBAJ&dq=thai%20communists&pg=1189%2C1418196 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200401005725/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=2r4yAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Ee8FAAAAIBAJ&dq=thai%20communists&pg=1189%2C1418196 |archive-date=1 April 2020 |access-date=8 August 2023 |work=Ottawa Citizen}}]
Military figure [[Prem Tinsulanonda]] was appointed prime minister from in 1980. He oversaw the beginning of a period of significant economic growth[{{Cite journal |last=Phongpaichit |first=Pasuk |date=1996 |title=THE THAI ECONOMY IN THE MID-1990s |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/27912162 |url-status=live |journal=Southeast Asian Affairs |pages=369–381 |issn=0377-5437 |jstor=27912162 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251210211613/https://www.jstor.org/stable/27912162 |archive-date=10 December 2025 |access-date=11 September 2025}}] and democratisation throughout the 1980s. Prem's premiership was often referred to as "premocracy" because it involved semi-democratic practices such as a Parliament composed of an all-elected House and an all-appointed Senate.[{{Cite journal |last=Santasombat |first=Yos |date=1989 |title=The End of Premocracy in Thailand |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/27911983 |url-status=live |journal=Southeast Asian Affairs |article-number=SEAA89q |pages=317–335 |doi=10.1355/SEAA89Q |issn=0377-5437 |jstor=27911983 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251104184902/https://www.jstor.org/stable/27911983 |archive-date=4 November 2025 |access-date=11 September 2025}}] Prem's [[Constitutionalism|constitutionalist]] political approach aided with a transition away from military rule and a negotiated end to the Communist insurgency by 1983.[{{cite news |date=2 December 1982 |title=Thailand ..Communists Surrender En Masse |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=2r4yAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Ee8FAAAAIBAJ&dq=thai%20communists&pg=1189%2C1418196 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200401005725/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=2r4yAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Ee8FAAAAIBAJ&dq=thai%20communists&pg=1189%2C1418196 |archive-date=1 April 2020 |access-date=21 April 2010 |work=Ottawa Citizen}}] He maintained political stability via a close relationship with King Bhumibol, who helped to foil two military coups in attempts against Prem [[1981 Thai military rebellion|in 1981]] and [[1985 Thai coup d'état attempt|in 1985]].
In 1988, Thailand saw its first freely-elected prime minister since the 1976 coup. [[Chatichai Choonhavan]] ruled for 3 years before being overthrown in a coup that ushered in two years of military rule under the [[National Peace Keeping Council]].[{{Cite web |title=Partial democracy and the search for a new political order |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Thailand/The-postwar-crisis-and-the-return-of-Phibunsongkhram#ref52686 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180323005841/https://www.britannica.com/place/Thailand/The-postwar-crisis-and-the-return-of-Phibunsongkhram#ref52686 |archive-date=23 March 2018 |access-date=11 March 2018 |website=Encyclopædia Britannica}}] One of the coup leaders, [[Suchinda Kraprayoon]], was nominated as prime minister for the majority coalition government after the [[March 1992 Thai general election|March 1992 general election]]. This caused a popular demonstration in Bangkok, which ended with a bloody military crackdown known as [[Black May (Thailand)|Black May]].[{{Cite web |title=Asw |url=https://www.hrw.org/reports/1993/WR93/Asw-11.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221210000526/https://www.hrw.org/reports/1993/WR93/Asw-11.htm |archive-date=10 December 2022 |access-date=8 August 2023 |publisher=Human Rights Watch}}] King Bhumibol intervened in the event, granting amnesty to the belligerents and forcing the resignation of Suchinda.[{{Cite report |url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/asa390101992en.pdf |title=Thailand: The massacre in Bangkok |date=October 1992 |publisher=Amnesty International |access-date=8 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230810080801/https://www.amnesty.org/en/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/asa390101992en.pdf |archive-date=10 August 2023 |url-status=live}}]
Free elections were once again held in September 1992, bringing the [[Neoliberalism|neoliberal]] [[Democrat Party (Thailand)|Democrat Party]] to power. Power passed between various neoliberal parties throughout the decade, who all had a hand in drafting the [[1997 constitution of Thailand|1997 "People's Constitution."]] Spurred on by the events of Black May, the constitution explicitly acknowledged several human rights and established several government and electoral accountability measures, including the creation of a fully-elected [[bicameral legislature]].
=== Shinawatra era (2001–present) ===
{{Main|History of Thailand (2001–present)}}
The neoliberal government's attempt to [[Fixed exchange rate system|peg]] the [[Thai baht]] to the [[United States dollar]] induced the [[1997 Asian financial crisis]], crashing regional economies and ending nearly 40 years of uninterrupted economic growth in Thailand.[{{Cite book |last=Warr |first=Peter |title=Thailand Beyond the Crisis |date=2007 |publisher=Routledge Curzon |isbn=978-1-134-54151-5}}]{{rp|3}} To cover a shortage of foreign currency and investments, which had come primarily from Japan, [[Chavalit Yongchaiyudh]]'s government took out a $17 billion [[International Monetary Fund]] loan in US dollars.[{{Cite web |title=Thailand Letter of Intent, August 14, 1997 |url=https://www.imf.org/external/np/loi/081497.htm |access-date=2025-08-17 |website=imf.org}}] To satisfy the conditions of the loan, Thailand underwent a series of [[austerity]] measures until the loan was repaid in 2003.
The crisis brought on the ascendancy of the populist [[Thai Rak Thai Party]], whose base consisted primarily of indebted rural workers. Prime Minister [[Thaksin Shinawatra]]'s policies were successful in reducing rural poverty[{{Cite web |title=Thailand Economic Monitor, November 2005 |url=http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTTHAILAND/Resources/Economic-Monitor/2005nov-econ-full-report.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090902021039/http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTTHAILAND/Resources/Economic-Monitor/2005nov-econ-full-report.pdf |archive-date=2 September 2009 |access-date=19 February 2010}}] and providing universal healthcare.[Na Ranong, Viroj, Na Ranong, Anchana, Universal Health Care Coverage: Impacts of the 30-Baht Health Care Scheme on the Rural Poor in Thailand, TDRI Quarterly Review, September 2006.] However, Thaksin was viewed by opponents among the Thai upper and upper middle classes as a corrupt populist who was destroying the middle class in order to favour himself and the rural poor. Additionally, his rural poverty policies directly conflicted with King Bhumibol's recommendations, drawing the ire of royalists, a powerful faction in Thailand. Thaksin also faced crises in the form of the [[southern Thailand insurgency]], which escalated starting from 2004, and the [[2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami]] which claimed around 8,000 lives in Thailand.[{{Cite web |date=2023-12-26 |title=Concerns arise over warning systems as Boxing Day marks 19 years since 2004 tsunami |url=https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/general/40034141 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240519044456/https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/general/40034141 |archive-date=19 May 2024 |access-date=2024-05-19 |website=nationthailand}}]
Massive protests against Thaksin led by the reactionary [[People's Alliance for Democracy]] (PAD) started in his second term as prime minister, and the monarchy and the military eventually agreed to oust him. The [[2005–2006 Thai political crisis|crisis peaked in 2005]] with a series of controversies surrounding Buddhist and monarchic institutions, and the army dissolved Thaksin's party with [[2006 Thai coup d'état|a coup d'état in 2006]] and banned over a hundred of its executives from politics. After the coup, a military government was installed for one year.'''[{{Cite journal |last=Phongpaichit |first=Pasuk |date=December 2008 |title=Thailand: Fighting Over Democracy. |journal=Economic and Political Weekly |volume=43 |issue=50 |pages=18–21}}]'''[{{Cite journal |last=Connors |first=Michael K. |date=28 November 2008 |title=Thailand-Four elections and a coup |url=http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10357710802480717 |url-status=live |journal=Australian Journal of International Affairs |volume=62 |issue=4 |pages=478, 483–484 |doi=10.1080/10357710802480717 |issn=1035-7718 |s2cid=154415628 |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230811000243/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10357710802480717 |archive-date=11 August 2023 |access-date=8 August 2023}}]
[[File:2010 09 19 red shirt protest bkk 09.JPG|right|thumb|[[United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship]], Red Shirts, [[2010 Thai political protests|protest]] in 2010]]
The military government faced significant resistance, with protesters frequently storming government buildings and elements within the military threatening yet another coup.'''[Erawan EMS Center, [http://www.ems.bangkok.go.th/report/totaldead7-6-53.pdf รายชื่อผู้เสียชีวิตจากสถานการณ์การชุมนุมของกลุมนปช.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120306172538/http://www.ems.bangkok.go.th/report/totaldead7-6-53.pdf|date=6 March 2012}}]
After [[2011 Thai general election|the general election of 2011]], the populist [[Pheu Thai Party]] won a majority. [[Yingluck Shinawatra]], Thaksin's younger sister, became prime minister. The [[People's Democratic Reform Committee]] organised another anti-Shinawatra protest[{{Cite news |date=24 February 2021 |title=PDRC leaders jailed for terrorism, insurrection over street rallies |url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/politics/2073863/pdrc-leaders-jailed-for-terrorism-insurrection-over-street-rallies |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240103121428/https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/politics/2073863/pdrc-leaders-jailed-for-terrorism-insurrection-over-street-rallies |archive-date=3 January 2024 |access-date=2024-01-03 |work=Bangkok Post}}] after the ruling party proposed an amnesty bill which would benefit Thaksin.[{{Cite news |date=11 November 2013 |title=Protests as Thailand senators debate amnesty bill |url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/11/thailand-protests-amnesty-bill |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203121817/http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/11/thailand-protests-amnesty-bill |archive-date=3 December 2013 |access-date=10 April 2019 |work=The Guardian}}] Yingluck dissolved Parliament, and [[2014 Thai general election|a general election]] was scheduled, but her decision was invalidated by the [[Constitutional Court of Thailand|Constitutional Court]]. The [[2013–2014 Thai political crisis|political crisis]] ended with [[2014 Thai coup d'état|another coup d'état in 2014]].[{{cite journal |last1=Prasirtsuk |first1=Kitti |date=2015 |title=Thailand in 2014: Another Coup, a Different Coup? |journal=Asian Survey |volume=55 |issue=1 |pages=200–206 |doi=10.1525/as.2015.55.1.200 |issn=0004-4687 |jstor=10.1525/as.2015.55.1.200}}]
The ensuing [[National Council for Peace and Order]], a military junta led by General [[Prayut Chan-o-cha]], led the country until 2019. Civil and political rights were restricted, and the country saw a surge in ''[[Lèse-majesté in Thailand|lèse-majesté]]'' cases. Political opponents and dissenters were sent to "attitude adjustment" camps;[{{Cite news |last=Beech |first=Hannah |date=8 February 2019 |title=Thailand's King Rejects His Sister's Candidacy for Prime Minister |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/08/world/asia/thailand-prime-minister-princess.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190213075249/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/08/world/asia/thailand-prime-minister-princess.html |archive-date=13 February 2019 |access-date=11 February 2019 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331}}] this was described by academics as indicating the return of fascism to Thailand.[{{Cite journal |last=Taylor |first=James |date=1 September 2021 |title=Thailand's new right, social cleansing and the continuing military–monarchy entente |url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/2057891120980835 |url-status=live |journal=Asian Journal of Comparative Politics |volume=6 |issue=3 |pages=253–273 |doi=10.1177/2057891120980835 |issn=2057-8911 |s2cid=234182253 |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211118123729/https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/2057891120980835 |archive-date=18 November 2021 |access-date=18 November 2021}}] Bhumibol, the longest-reigning Thai king, [[Death and funeral of Bhumibol Adulyadej|died in 2016]], and his son [[Vajiralongkorn]] ascended to the throne. The referendum and adoption of Thailand's current constitution happened under the junta's rule.{{efn-lr|The [[2016 Thai constitutional referendum]] was held on 7 August 2016. Its ratification was held on 6 April 2017.[[https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/04/06/522878983/thai-king-signs-military-backed-constitution Thai King Signs Military-Backed Constitution] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190410100145/https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/04/06/522878983/thai-king-signs-military-backed-constitution |date=10 April 2019}}, [[NPR]], 6 April 2017.]}} The junta bound future governments to a 20-year national strategy 'road map' it laid down, effectively locking the country into military-[[guided democracy]].[{{Cite journal |last=Montesano |first=Michael J. |year=2019 |title=The Place of the Provinces in Thailand's Twenty-Year National Strategy: Toward Community Democracy in a Commercial Nation? |url=https://www.iseas.edu.sg/images/pdf/ISEAS_Perspective_2019_60.pdf |url-status=live |journal=ISEAS Perspective |volume=2019 |issue=60 |pages=1–11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200913092250/https://www.iseas.edu.sg/images/pdf/ISEAS_Perspective_2019_60.pdf |archive-date=13 September 2020 |access-date=23 August 2020}}]
In 2019, the junta agreed to schedule [[2019 Thai general election|a general election]].[{{Cite news |date=25 March 2019 |title=Thailand election results delayed as allegations of cheating grow |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-25/thailand-election-results-delayed-concerns-over-irregularities/10937910 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190326035848/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-25/thailand-election-results-delayed-concerns-over-irregularities/10937910 |archive-date=26 March 2019 |access-date=26 March 2019 |work=ABC News |location=Australia}}] An extended two-year period of [[2020–2021 Thai protests|pro-democracy protests]] were subsequently triggered by distrust in the election as well as increasing [[royal prerogative]], democratic and economic regression under monarchy-supported military rule, retaliatory dissolution of the pro-democracy [[Future Forward Party]], regressive policies on political issues like women's and labour rights, forced disappearances and deaths of political activists like [[Wanchalearm Satsaksit]], and various political corruption scandals including [[1Malaysia Development Berhad scandal|1MDB]].[{{Cite news |date=16 August 2020 |title=Thai protesters stage biggest anti-government demonstration in years |url=https://www.france24.com/en/20200816-thai-protesters-stage-biggest-anti-government-demonstration-in-years |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200923205757/https://www.france24.com/en/20200816-thai-protesters-stage-biggest-anti-government-demonstration-in-years |archive-date=23 September 2020 |access-date=20 September 2020 |publisher=France 24}}][{{Cite news |date=27 August 2020 |title=Thailand: youthful protesters break the kingdom's biggest political taboo |url=https://www.ft.com/content/e2e921b6-ff7d-4432-b272-959bc4f9ecc5 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/https://www.ft.com/content/e2e921b6-ff7d-4432-b272-959bc4f9ecc5 |archive-date=10 December 2022 |work=Financial Times |location=London}}] The protests brought forward unprecedented demands to reform the monarchy[{{Cite news |date=11 August 2020 |title=[Full statement] The demonstration at Thammasat proposes monarchy reform |url=https://prachatai.com/english/node/8709 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200820123613/https://prachatai.com/english/node/8709 |archive-date=20 August 2020 |access-date=23 August 2020 |work=Prachatai English}}] and the highest sense of republicanism in the country's history.[{{Cite news |last=Cunningham |first=Philip J |date=23 September 2020 |title=An unexpectedly successful protest |url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/1990175/an-unexpectedly-successful-protest |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108024423/https://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/1990175/an-unexpectedly-successful-protest |archive-date=8 November 2020 |access-date=24 September 2020 |work=Bangkok Post}}]
Thailand's reformist opposition – the progressive [[Move Forward Party]] and the Pheu Thai Party – won the [[2023 Thai general election|2023 general election]], ending 9 years of royalist-military rule under Prayut.[{{Cite news |last=Rasheed |first=Zaheena |title='Impressive victory': Thai opposition crushes military parties |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/5/14/thailand-election-results-what-we-know-so-far |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230825090233/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/5/14/thailand-election-results-what-we-know-so-far |archive-date=25 August 2023 |access-date=1 September 2023 |publisher=Al Jazeera}}] [[Srettha Thavisin]] of the Pheu Thai Party became prime minister, while Thaksin Shinawatra returned after years in self-imposed exile from the military regime.[{{Cite news |title=Srettha Thavisin elected Thailand PM as Thaksin returns from exile |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/8/22/srettha-thavisin-elected-thailand-pm-as-thaksin-returns-from-exile |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230901094625/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/8/22/srettha-thavisin-elected-thailand-pm-as-thaksin-returns-from-exile |archive-date=1 September 2023 |access-date=1 September 2023 |publisher=Al Jazeera}}] Thavisin was dismissed on 14 August 2024 by the Constitutional Court for "gross ethics violations".[{{cite news |last1=Wongcha-um |first1=Panu |last2=Setboonsarng |first2=Chayut |date=August 14, 2024 |title=Thai court dismisses PM Srettha over cabinet appointment |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/judgment-day-thai-pm-srettha-court-rules-dismissal-case-2024-08-13/ |url-access=limited |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241217074635/https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/judgment-day-thai-pm-srettha-court-rules-dismissal-case-2024-08-13/ |archive-date=17 December 2024 |access-date=14 August 2024 |website=Reuters}}] He was succeeded by Thaksin's daughter [[Paetongtarn Shinawatra]], who spent a year in office before the Constitutional Court ordered her removal over a controversial phone call with Cambodia's president. The Court then ordered the arrest of Thaksin in September 2025.[{{Cite web |date=2025-09-09 |title=Thaksin Shinawatra: Thai court rules that ex-PM must serve one year in jail |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cly7k2g37g4o |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251104084841/https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cly7k2g37g4o |archive-date=4 November 2025 |access-date=2025-09-11 |website=www.bbc.com}}]
In July 2025, [[2025 Cambodian–Thai border crisis|violent clashes]] broke out between Thailand and Cambodia along their disputed border. On 27 December 2025, both countries mutually agreed to a ceasefire.[{{Cite web |title=Thailand and Cambodia agree ceasefire after weeks of deadly clashes |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0q5je8048xo |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260806045848/https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0q5je8048xo |archive-date=6 August 2026 |access-date=6 August 2026}}] [[Anutin Charnvirakul]] was elected Prime Minister in September 2025.[{{Cite news |date=5 September 2025 |title=Veteran Thai politician Anutin Charnvirakul wins vote in Parliament to become next prime minister |url=https://apnews.com/article/thailand-parliament-prime-minister-vote-23b2afb9bf815d918e11a47a33973ce3 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250905012425/https://apnews.com/article/thailand-parliament-prime-minister-vote-23b2afb9bf815d918e11a47a33973ce3 |archive-date=5 September 2025 |access-date=5 September 2025 |work=AP News |language=en}}] On 12 December 2025, Anutin dissolved the House of Representatives. The [[2026 Thai general election|2026 election]] resulted in Anutin's [[Bhumjaithai Party]] winning the most seats in the House of Representatives, an electoral revival for Thai conservatism.[{{Cite web |date=9 February 2026 |title=Thailand's conservatives win a shock big victory |url=https://www.economist.com/asia/2026/02/09/thailands-conservatives-win-a-shock-big-victory |access-date=9 February 2026 |website=The Economist |quote=Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul has revived the Thai right's electoral fortunes}}]
== Geography ==
{{Main|Geography of Thailand}}
[[File:Koh Tarutao, Thailand, Ancient Cambrian deposits.jpg|thumb|[[Ko Tarutao]], [[Satun Province|Satun]]]]
Totalling {{convert|513120|km2}}, Thailand is the [[List of countries and dependencies by area|50th-largest country]] by total area.[{{Cite web |date=2019-09-14 |title=Ports in Thailand - Siam Shipping |url=https://siam-shipping.com/thailand-asia/ports-thailand/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260518092505/https://siam-shipping.com/thailand-asia/ports-thailand/ |archive-date=18 May 2026 |access-date=2026-05-14 |language=en-US}}][{{cite report |url=https://erc.undp.org/evaluation/documents/download/9434 |title=Evaluation of the Country Programme for Thailand (CPD 2012 – 2016) |author=Richelieu, Alexandre |date=2015-12-24 |publisher=United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Bangkok |page=9 |language=en |access-date=2026-08-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250516040514/https://erc.undp.org/evaluation/documents/download/9434 |archive-date=16 May 2025 |url-status=live}}]
=== Climate ===
{{Further|Climate change in Thailand}}
[[File:Koppen-Geiger Map THA present.svg|thumb|Thailand map of Köppen climate classification]]
The climate is influenced by [[monsoon]] winds that have a seasonal character (the southwest and northeast monsoon).[{{Cite web |title=The Climate of Thailand |url=http://www.tmd.go.th/en/archive/thailand_climate.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160801225446/http://www.tmd.go.th/en/archive/thailand_climate.pdf |archive-date=1 August 2016 |access-date=18 August 2016 |publisher=Thai Meteorological Department}}]{{rp|2}} Most of the country is classified as [[Köppen climate classification|Köppen]]'s [[tropical savanna climate]].[{{Cite web |last=Dr. Susan L. Woodward |year=1997–2014 |title=Tropical Savannas |url=https://php.radford.edu/~swoodwar/biomes/?page_id=105 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131219124459/https://php.radford.edu/~swoodwar/biomes/?page_id=105 |archive-date=19 December 2013 |access-date=23 February 2014 |website=Biomes of the World |publisher=S. L. Woodward}}] The majority of the south, as well as the eastern tip, have a [[tropical monsoon climate]]. Parts of the south also have a [[tropical rainforest climate]]. A year in Thailand is divided into three seasons.[Overland, Indra et al. (2017) ''[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/320622312 Impact of Climate Change on ASEAN International Affairs: Risk and Opportunity Multiplier]'' ({{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200728065717/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/320622312_Impact_of_Climate_Change_on_ASEAN_International_Affairs_Risk_and_Opportunity_Multiplier |date=28 July 2020}}), Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI) and Myanmar Institute of International and Strategic Studies (MISIS).][{{Cite web |date=29 October 2019 |title=Report: Flooded Future: Global vulnerability to sea level rise worse than previously understood |url=https://www.climatecentral.org/report/report-flooded-future-global-vulnerability-to-sea-level-rise-worse-than-previously-understood |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220904125539/https://www.climatecentral.org/report/report-flooded-future-global-vulnerability-to-sea-level-rise-worse-than-previously-understood |archive-date=4 September 2022 |access-date=5 September 2022 |website=climatecentral.org}}]
=== Biodiversity and conservation ===
{{see also|List of species native to Thailand|Environmental issues in Thailand}}
[[File:Khaoyai 06.jpg|thumb|The population of [[Asian elephants]] in Thailand's wild has dropped to an estimated 2,000–3,000.[{{Cite web |title=Thailand's Elephants |url=http://www.thailandelephant.org/en/thaielephant.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150305080708/http://www.thailandelephant.org/en/thaielephant.html |archive-date=5 March 2015 |access-date=3 March 2015 |website=Thai Elephant Conservation Center}}]]]
[[List of national parks of Thailand|National parks in Thailand]] are defined as ''an area that contains natural resources of ecological importance or unique beauty, or flora and fauna of special importance''. [[List of protected areas of Thailand|Protected areas include]] 156 national parks, 58 wildlife sanctuaries, 67 non-hunting areas, and [[List of forest parks of Thailand|120 forest parks]]. They cover almost 31 per cent of the country.[{{cite web |date=6 August 2019 |title=Five New National Parks in Thailand |url=https://thailand.prd.go.th/1700/ewt/thailand/ewt_news.php?nid=8297&filename=index |access-date=4 January 2022 |department=The Government Public Relations Department}}{{Dead link|date=June 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes}}] The parks are administered by the [[Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation|National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department]] of the [[Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (Thailand)|Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment]]. The [[Khao Kheow Open Zoo]] in [[Chonburi]] is the second largest zoo in Asia.[{{Cite web |last=Tiwari |first=Ritesh |date=3 September 2025 |title=5 largest zoos in Asia – Three from India make the list |url=https://www.cnbctv18.com/photos/travel/destinations/top-five-largest-zoos-in-asia-by-area-three-from-india-thailand-taiwan-china-wildlife-conservation-19663338-2.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250930043134/https://www.cnbctv18.com/photos/travel/destinations/top-five-largest-zoos-in-asia-by-area-three-from-india-thailand-taiwan-china-wildlife-conservation-19663338-2.htm |archive-date=30 September 2025 |access-date=30 Sep 2025 |website=CNBCTV 18}}] The largest national park is [[Kaeng Krachan National Park]].
Thailand has a mediocre but improving performance in the global [[Environmental Performance Index]], with an overall ranking of 91 out of 180 countries in 2016. The environmental areas where Thailand performs worst (i.e., highest-ranking) are [[air quality]] (167), environmental effects of the agricultural industry (106), and the [[climate and energy]] sector (93), the later mainly because of a high [[CO2 emission|CO2 emission]] per kWh produced. Thailand performs best (i.e., lowest-ranking) in [[water resource management]] (66), with some major improvements expected for the future, and [[sanitation]] (68).[{{Cite journal |title=2016 Report |url=http://epi.yale.edu/reports/2016-report |journal=EPI Report |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160204021925/http://epi.yale.edu/reports/2016-report |archive-date=4 February 2016 |access-date=17 December 2016}}][EPI (2016): [http://epi.yale.edu/country/thailand Thailand] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161227041212/http://epi.yale.edu/country/thailand |date=27 December 2016}}] The country had a 2019 [[Forest Landscape Integrity Index]] mean score of 6.00/10, ranking it 88th globally out of 172 countries.[{{Cite journal |last1=Grantham |first1=H. S. |last2=Duncan |first2=A. |last3=Evans |first3=T. D. |last4=Jones |first4=K. R. |last5=Beyer |first5=H. L. |last6=Schuster |first6=R. |last7=Walston |first7=J. |last8=Ray |first8=J. C. |last9=Robinson |first9=J. G. |last10=Callow |first10=M. |last11=Clements |first11=T. |last12=Costa |first12=H. M. |last13=DeGemmis |first13=A. |last14=Elsen |first14=P. R. |last15=Ervin |first15=J. |display-authors=1 |year=2020 |title=Anthropogenic modification of forests means only 40% of remaining forests have high ecosystem integrity – Supplementary Material |journal=Nature Communications |volume=11 |issue=1 |page=5978 |bibcode=2020NatCo..11.5978G |doi=10.1038/s41467-020-19493-3 |issn=2041-1723 |pmc=7723057 |pmid=33293507 |doi-access=free |last16=Franco |first16=P. |last17=Goldman |first17=E. |last18=Goetz |first18=S. |last19=Hansen |first19=A. |last20=Hofsvang |first20=E. |last21=Jantz |first21=P. |last22=Jupiter |first22=S. |last23=Kang |first23=A. |last24=Langhammer |first24=P. |last25=Laurance |first25=W. F. |last26=Lieberman |first26=S. |last27=Linkie |first27=M. |last28=Malhi |first28=Y. |last29=Maxwell |first29=S. |last30=Mendez |first30=M. |last31=Mittermeier |first31=R. |last32=Murray |first32=N. J. |last33=Possingham |first33=H. |last34=Radachowsky |first34=J. |last35=Saatchi |first35=S. |last36=Samper |first36=C. |last37=Silverman |first37=J. |last38=Shapiro |first38=A. |last39=Strassburg |first39=B. |last40=Stevens |first40=T. |last41=Stokes |first41=E. |last42=Taylor |first42=R. |last43=Tear |first43=T. |last44=Tizard |first44=R. |last45=Venter |first45=O. |last46=Visconti |first46=P. |last47=Wang |first47=S. |last48=Watson |first48=J. E. M.}}]
The population of elephants, the [[List of national animals|national symbol]], has fallen from 100,000 in 1850 to an estimated 2,000.[{{Cite news |date=26 January 2012 |title=Poaching for meat poses new extinction risk to Thai elephants |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2012/jan/26/poaching-thailand-elephant-meat |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180205184341/https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2012/jan/26/poaching-thailand-elephant-meat |archive-date=5 February 2018 |access-date=4 February 2018 |work=The Guardian |agency=Associated Press}}] Young elephants are often captured for use in tourist attractions or as work animals, where there have been claims of mistreatment.[{{Cite news |last=Hile |first=Jennifer |date=6 October 2002 |title=Activists Denounce Thailand's Elephant "Crushing" Ritual |url=http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2002/10/1016_021016_phajaan.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070218231457/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2002/10/1016_021016_phajaan.html |archive-date=18 February 2007 |access-date=7 June 2007 |work=National Geographic Today}}] In 1989, the government banned the use of elephants for [[logging]], leading many elephant owners to move their domesticated animals to the tourism industry.[{{cite report |url=https://www.traffic.org/site/assets/files/3278/elephant-ivory-trade-thailand.pdf |title=The Elephant and Ivory Trade in Thailand |last=Stiles |first=Daniel |publisher=Traffic Southeast Asia |pages=1–2 |access-date=3 June 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240603025354/https://www.traffic.org/site/assets/files/3278/elephant-ivory-trade-thailand.pdf |archive-date=3 June 2024 |url-status=live}}]
Poaching of protected species remains a major problem. [[Tigers]], [[leopards]], and other large cats are hunted for their pelts. Many are farmed or hunted for their meat, which supposedly has medicinal properties. Although such trade is illegal, the well-known Bangkok market [[Chatuchak Weekend Market|Chatuchak]] is still known for the sale of endangered species.[{{Cite web |last=Teena Amrit Gill |date=18 February 1997 |title=Endangered Animals on Restaurant Menus |url=http://www.monitor.net/monitor/9702a/endangeredfood.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070516023649/https://www.monitor.net/monitor/9702a/endangeredfood.html |archive-date=16 May 2007 |access-date=7 June 2007 |publisher=Albion Monitor/News}}] The practice of keeping wild animals as pets affects species such as [[Asiatic black bear]], [[Malayan sun bear]], [[Lar gibbon|white-handed lar]], [[pileated gibbon]], and [[binturong]].[{{Cite web |title=Thai Forests: Dept. National Parks, Wildlife & Plants |url=http://www.tscwa.org/forests/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141126041139/http://tscwa.org/forests/index.html |archive-date=26 November 2014 |publisher=Thai Society for the Conservation of Wild Animals}}]
== Politics and government ==
{{main|Politics of Thailand|Government of Thailand}}
{{further|Constitutions of Thailand|Elections in Thailand}}
{{multiple image
| align = right
| direction = horizontal
| caption_align = center
| total_width = 300
| image1 = King Rama X official (crop) (cropped).png
| caption1 = [[Vajiralongkorn]]
[[King of Thailand]]
since 13 October 2016
| image2 = Anutin Charnvirakul in 2025.jpg
| caption2 = [[Anutin Charnvirakul]]
[[Prime Minister of Thailand]]
since 7 September 2025
}}
Prior to 1932, Thai kings were feudal or [[absolute monarchy|absolute monarchs]]. During Sukhothai Kingdom, the king was seen as a ''dharmaraja'' or 'king who rules in accordance with [[dharma]]'. The system of government was a network of tributaries ruled by local lords. Modern absolute monarchy and statehood was established by Chulalongkorn when he transformed the decentralised protectorate system into a unitary state. On 24 June 1932, [[Khana Ratsadon]] (People's Party) carried out a bloodless revolution which marked the beginning of [[constitutional monarchy]].
Thailand has had 20 constitutions and charters since 1932, including the latest and current 2017 constitution. All constitutions state that the politics is conducted within the framework of a constitutional monarchy, but the ''de facto'' form of government has ranged from military dictatorship to electoral democracy.[{{Cite news |date=19 September 2006 |title=A list of previous coups in Thailand |url=http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060919/thailand_coups_060919/20060919/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071016060633/http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060919/thailand_coups_060919/20060919/ |archive-date=16 October 2007 |access-date=25 April 2010 |agency=[[Associated Press]]}}][{{Cite news |date=19 September 2006 |title=Raw Data: List of Recent Coups in Thailand's History |url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/raw-data-list-of-recent-coups-in-thailands-history |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080706035133/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0%2C2933%2C214562%2C00.html |archive-date=6 July 2008 |access-date=25 April 2010 |publisher=[[Fox News]]}}] Thailand's current form of government is part democracy and part dictatorship; many terms are used to describe it.{{efn-lr|Such as: "constitutional dictatorship" or "parliamentary dictatorship",[{{cite news |last1=Abuza |first1=Zachary |date=27 September 2021 |title=Thailand's Constitutional Dictatorship Weathers the Storm |url=https://thediplomat.com/2021/09/thailands-constitutional-dictatorship-weathers-the-storm/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220314204800/https://thediplomat.com/2021/09/thailands-constitutional-dictatorship-weathers-the-storm/ |archive-date=14 March 2022 |access-date=14 March 2022 |work=[[The Diplomat (magazine)|The Diplomat]]}}] "military coup regime",[{{cite journal |last1=Glassman |first1=Jim |date=2020 |title=Lineages of the Authoritarian State in Thailand: Military Dictatorship, Lazy Capitalism and the Cold War Past as Post-Cold War Prologue |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/00472336.2019.1688378 |url-status=live |journal=[[Journal of Contemporary Asia]] |volume=50 |issue=4 |pages=571–592 |doi=10.1080/00472336.2019.1688378 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220314204800/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/00472336.2019.1688378 |archive-date=14 March 2022 |access-date=14 March 2022}}] "semicivilian" or "semi-elected",[{{cite news |title=Thailand: Freedom in the World 2021 Country Report |url=https://freedomhouse.org/country/thailand/freedom-world/2021 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220516112057/https://freedomhouse.org/country/thailand/freedom-world/2021 |archive-date=16 May 2022 |access-date=28 April 2022 |work=Freedom House}}] "managed democracy",[{{cite news |title=Prem Tinsulanonda's Legacy—and the Failures of Thai Politics Today |url=https://www.cfr.org/blog/prem-tinsulanondas-legacy-and-failures-thai-politics-today |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220427082611/https://www.cfr.org/blog/prem-tinsulanondas-legacy-and-failures-thai-politics-today |archive-date=27 April 2022 |access-date=28 April 2022 |work=Council on Foreign Relations}}] and "guided democracy".[{{cite news |date=27 March 2019 |title=Election observers call still-partial Thai vote count flawed |url=https://apnews.com/article/d0801b87d34b459bb45e6f3c9f679ac7 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220427082614/https://apnews.com/article/d0801b87d34b459bb45e6f3c9f679ac7 |archive-date=27 April 2022 |access-date=28 April 2022 |work=AP News}}]}} Thailand has had the fourth-most [[Coup d'état|coups]] in the world.[{{Cite web |script-title=th:สถิติที่ไม่น่าภูมิใจเมื่อไทยติดอันดับที่ 4 ประเทศที่มีการรัฐประหารบ่อยที่สุดในโลก |url=http://www.siamintelligence.com/thai-forth-coup-0f-the-world/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180406163620/http://www.siamintelligence.com/thai-forth-coup-0f-the-world/ |archive-date=6 April 2018 |access-date=6 April 2018 |website=Siam Intelligence |language=th}}] "Uniformed or ex-military men have led Thailand for 55 of the 83 years" between 1932 and 2009.[{{Cite news |last=Gray |first=Denis D. |date=22 August 2015 |title=Deadly bombing in military-ruled Thailand adds to mounting woes in one-time 'Land of Smiles' |url=https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2015/08/22/bombing-the-latest-of-many-challenges-for-thailands-junta |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150822143742/http://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2015/08/22/bombing-the-latest-of-many-challenges-for-thailands-junta |archive-date=22 August 2015 |access-date=23 August 2015 |work=U.S. News & World Report |agency=Associated Press}}] Most recently, the [[military junta]] self-titled as the [[National Council for Peace and Order]] ruled the country between 2014 and 2019.
[[File:Sappaya-Sapasathan Pano (III).jpg|thumb|[[Sappaya-Sapasathan]] is the current Parliament House of Thailand|alt=]]
Government is [[Separation of powers|separated]] into three branches:
* The legislative branch: the [[National Assembly of Thailand|National Assembly]] is composed of the [[Senate of Thailand|Senate]], the 200-member indirectly elected [[upper house]] and [[House of Representatives of Thailand|House of Representatives]], the elected 500-member [[lower house]]. Its most recent election is [[2026 Thai general election|the 2026 general election]]. A coalition led by the [[Bhumjaithai Party]] currently holds the majority. The [[2024 Thai Senate election]] was the first senate election held under the current constitution in the process criticised as "the most complicated election in the world".[{{cite news |date=17 April 2024 |title=A guide to Thailand's next Senate and 'the most complicated election in the world' |url=https://www.thaipbsworld.com/a-guide-to-thailands-next-senate-and-the-most-complicated-election-in-the-world/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240809005129/https://www.thaipbsworld.com/a-guide-to-thailands-next-senate-and-the-most-complicated-election-in-the-world/ |archive-date=9 August 2024 |access-date=22 April 2024}}] The senate is allegedly dominated by Bhumjaithai Party-affiliated senators.[{{cite news |date=23 July 2024 |title="มงคล สุระสัจจะ"ผงาดนั่ง "ประธานวุฒิสภา" คนใหม่ ด้วยมติสว.ท่วมท้น 159 คะแนน |url=https://www.thansettakij.com/politics/602380 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240807123506/https://www.thansettakij.com/politics/602380 |archive-date=7 August 2024 |access-date=23 July 2024 |work=thansettakij |language=th-TH}}]
* The executive branch consisting of the [[Prime Minister of Thailand]], the [[head of government]], and other cabinet members of up to 35 people. The prime minister is elected by the House of Representatives. The current constitution mandates that prime ministers are to be considered from candidates nominated by political parties before the election. The current prime minister is [[Anutin Charnvirakul]], a member of the Bhumjaithai Party.
* The [[judiciary]] is supposed to be independent of the executive and the legislative branches, although judicial rulings are suspected of being based on political considerations rather than on existing law.[{{Cite web |date=17 May 2014 |title=Thailand's juristocracy |url=http://asiapacific.anu.edu.au/newmandala/2014/05/17/thailands-juristocracy/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150905162923/http://asiapacific.anu.edu.au/newmandala/2014/05/17/thailands-juristocracy/ |archive-date=5 September 2015}}]
Military and bureaucratic aristocrats fully controlled political parties between 1946 and the 1980s.[{{Cite journal |last1=Teehankee |first1=Julio |last2=Tiulegenov |first2=Medet |last3=Wang |first3=Yi-ting |last4=Ciobanu |first4=Vlad |last5=Lindberg |first5=Staffan I. |title=Party System in South and Southeast Asia: A Thematic Report Based on Data 1900–2012 |journal=V-Dem Thematic Report Series, No. 2, October 2013}}]{{rp|16}} Most parties in Thailand are short-lived.[{{Cite journal |last1=Croissant |first1=Aurel |last2=Völkel |first2=Philip |date=21 December 2010 |title=Party system types and party system institutionalization: Comparing new democracies in East and Southeast Asia |journal=Party Politics |volume=18 |issue=2 |doi=10.1177/1354068810380096 |s2cid=145074799}}]{{rp|245}} Later constitutions created a multi-party system where a single party cannot gain a majority in the house.
A [[Hereditary monarchy|hereditary monarch]] serves as [[head of state]]. The current King of Thailand is [[Vajiralongkorn]] (Rama X), who has reigned since October 2016. The powers of the king are limited by the constitution and he is primarily a symbolic figurehead. However, the monarch still occasionally intervenes in politics, as all constitutions pave the way for customary royal rulings. Some academics outside Thailand, including [[Duncan McCargo]] and Federico Ferrara, note extraconstitutional role of the monarch through a "[[network monarchy]]" behind the political scenes.[McCargo, Duncan, "Network monarchy and legitimacy crises in Thailand", ''The Pacific Review'', volume 18, issue 4, December 2005.]
[[File:Timeline of Prime Ministers.jpg|thumb|Timeline of Prime Ministers]]The monarchy is protected by the severe [[Lèse-majesté in Thailand|''lèse majesté'' law]], even though the people's attitude towards the institution varies from one reign to another.[{{Cite news |last=Head |first=Jonathan |date=5 December 2007 |title=Why Thailand's king is so revered |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7128935.stm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090217135052/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7128935.stm |archive-date=17 February 2009 |access-date=17 October 2015 |publisher=BBC News}}][{{Cite news |last=Denby |first=Kenneth |title=Thai protests: The king who made himself a gift to republicans |url=https://www.thetimes.com/world/asia/article/thai-protests-the-king-who-made-himself-a-gift-to-republicans-zlzgtj6wp |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210731100534/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/thai-protests-the-king-who-made-himself-a-gift-to-republicans-zlzgtj6wp |archive-date=31 July 2021 |access-date=31 July 2021 |work=[[The Times]]}}] ''Lèse-majesté'' laws allow critics to be jailed for three to fifteen years.[{{Cite news |last=Champion |first=Paul |date=25 September 2007 |title=Professor in lese majeste row |url=https://www.reuters.com/news/video?videoId=67215&videoChannel=1 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013134234/https://www.reuters.com/news/video?videoId=67215&videoChannel=1 |archive-date=13 October 2007 |work=Reuters}}] After the [[2014 Thai coup d'état|coup d'état in 2014]], Thailand had the highest [[:Category:People accused of lèse majesté in Thailand|number of ''lèse-majesté'' prisoners]] in the nation's history.[[http://prachatai.com/english/node/4218 2014 coup marks the highest number of lèse-majesté prisoners in Thai history] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190501201647/https://prachatai.com/english/node/4218 |date=1 May 2019}}. ''Prachatai''.]["[https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/thailand-monarchy-insult-man-jailed-king-facebook-vichai-thepwong-social-media-online-block-a7783166.html Thailand jails man for 35 years for insulting the monarchy on Facebook] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180423035004/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/thailand-monarchy-insult-man-jailed-king-facebook-vichai-thepwong-social-media-online-block-a7783166.html |date=23 April 2018}}". ''The Independent''. 10 June 2017.] [[Human rights in Thailand]] has been rated ''[[Freedom in the World (report)|not free]]'' on the [[Freedom House]] Index since 2014.[{{Cite web |date=5 January 2018 |title=Thailand |url=https://freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-world/2018/thailand |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180414010430/https://freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-world/2018/thailand |archive-date=14 April 2018 |access-date=3 May 2018 |website=freedomhouse.org}}]
In 2024 the [[Constitutional Court of Thailand|Constitutional Court]] banned the victors of the [[2023 Thai general election|2023 parliamentary elections]], the [[Move Forward Party]] and all of its leaders from politics for its proposal to reform the ''lèse-majesté'', arguing it posed a threat to the constitutional order.[{{Cite news |date=7 August 2024 |title=Thailand's top court tramples over the country's democracy |url=https://www.economist.com/asia/2024/08/07/thailands-top-court-tramples-over-the-countrys-democracy |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240816203416/https://www.economist.com/asia/2024/08/07/thailands-top-court-tramples-over-the-countrys-democracy |archive-date=16 August 2024 |access-date=17 August 2024 |newspaper=The Economist}}] ''[[The Economist]]'' criticised the move as an example of "[[lawfare]]" and pointed to the dissolution of its predecessor party, [[Future Forward Party|Future Forward]] in 2020, as the latest example of how an "alliance of conservative forces in Thailand—including monarchists, the army and a handful of business tycoons—has sought to suppress opposition".[{{Cite news |date=7 August 2024 |title=Banning the opposition won't save Thailand's unpopular regime |url=https://www.economist.com/leaders/2024/08/07/banning-the-opposition-wont-save-thailands-unpopular-regime |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240816195826/https://www.economist.com/leaders/2024/08/07/banning-the-opposition-wont-save-thailands-unpopular-regime |archive-date=16 August 2024 |access-date=17 August 2024 |newspaper=The Economist}}]
On the [[Freedom House|Freedom in the World 2024 Report]], the status improved from ''not free'' to ''[[Freedom in the World|partly free]]'' due to competitive parliamentary elections and the formation of a new governing coalition by what had been a major opposition party, though unelected senators ensured that the party with the most votes was excluded.[{{Cite web |date=29 February 2024 |title=Thailand: Freedom in the World 2024 Report |url=https://freedomhouse.org/country/thailand/freedom-world/2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240602220348/https://freedomhouse.org/country/thailand/freedom-world/2024 |archive-date=2 June 2024 |access-date=29 February 2024 |website=freedomhouse.org}}]
=== Administrative divisions ===
{{Main|Organization of the government of Thailand|Provinces of Thailand|Administrative Divisions of Thailand}}
{{See also|Regions of Thailand}}
Thailand is a [[unitary state]]; the administrative services of the executive branch are divided into three levels by ''National Government Organisation Act, BE 2534'' (1991): central, provincial and local. Thailand is composed of 76 [[Provinces of Thailand|provinces]] ({{lang|th|จังหวัด}}, ''changwat''),[{{Cite web |date=13 March 2020 |title=ประกาศกรมการปกครอง เรื่อง แจ้งข้อมูลทางการปกครอง |url=http://www.oic.go.th/FILEWEB/CABINFOCENTER17/DRAWER007/GENERAL/DATA0000/00000024.PDF |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210520091920/http://www.oic.go.th/FILEWEB/CABINFOCENTER17/DRAWER007/GENERAL/DATA0000/00000024.PDF |archive-date=20 May 2021 |access-date=4 March 2018 |website=กรมการปกครอง |language=th}}] which are first-level [[administrative division]]s. There are also two specially governed districts: the capital Bangkok and [[Pattaya]]. Bangkok is at provincial level and thus often counted as a province.[{{cite web |title=Capital City |url=https://thailand.go.th/page/capital-city |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240601144818/https://thailand.go.th/page/capital-city |archive-date=1 June 2024 |access-date=2024-06-01 |website=The Government Public Relations Department}}] Each province is divided into [[Districts of Thailand|districts]] ({{lang|th|อำเภอ}}, ''amphoe'') and the districts are further divided into sub-districts ({{lang|th|ตำบล}}, ''tambons''). The name of each province's capital city ({{lang|th|เมือง}}, mueang) is the same as that of the province. For example, the capital of [[Chiang Mai Province]] (''Changwat Chiang Mai'') is ''Mueang Chiang Mai'' or ''Chiang Mai''. All provincial governors and district chiefs, which are administrators of provinces and districts respectively, are appointed by the central government.[{{Cite web |title=LOCAL PERSONNEL ADMINISTRATION B.E. 2542 (1999) |url=http://www.dla.go.th/upload/enDocument/2012/6/1_1.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190801073238/http://www.dla.go.th/upload/enDocument/2012/6/1_1.pdf |archive-date=1 August 2019 |access-date=11 December 2017 |website=Department of Local Administration (DLA)}}] The provinces are sometimes grouped into four to six regions, depending on the source.
{{Provinces of Thailand Image Map}}
=== Foreign relations ===
{{main|Foreign relations of Thailand}}
[[File:Rama IX of Thailand and Barack Obama.jpg|thumb|King [[Bhumibol Adulyadej]] in a meeting with U.S. President [[Barack Obama]], 18 November 2012]]
Siam's and Thailand's way of conducting foreign relations has long been described as "bamboo bending with the wind", of policies that are "always solidly rooted, but flexible enough to bend whichever way the wind blows in order to survive",[{{Cite web |last1=Chivvis |first1=Christopher S. |last2=Marciel |first2=Scot |last3=Geaghan‑Breiner |first3=Beatrix |date=26 October 2023 |title=Thailand in the Emerging World Order |url=https://carnegieendowment.org/research/2023/10/thailand-in-the-emerging-world-order?lang=en |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240923083425/https://carnegieendowment.org/research/2023/10/thailand-in-the-emerging-world-order |archive-date=23 September 2024 |access-date=19 May 2024 |website=Carnegie Endowment for International Peace}}] or adaptable and pragmatic. In order to secure independence, it sought to pit one great power against the others so that it would be dominated by none.[{{Cite news |date=10 September 2021 |title=The bamboo breaks: Thailand's diplomatic challenge |url=https://www.aspistrategist.org.au/the-bamboo-breaks-thailands-diplomatic-challenge/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220526192532/https://www.aspistrategist.org.au/the-bamboo-breaks-thailands-diplomatic-challenge/ |archive-date=26 May 2022 |access-date=27 April 2022 |work=The Strategist}}]
During the [[Cold War]], Thailand sought to prevent the spread of communism so it joined the United States, including participating in [[SEATO]] alliance, sending expeditions to Korea and Vietnam, and offering the US to use its base. Thailand is one of the five founding members of [[Association of Southeast Asian Nations]] (ASEAN), initially to safeguard against communism. The end of [[Vietnam War]] was a turning point in Thai foreign policy, and afterwards it sought to improve relations with communist China and its communist neighbours. Thailand remains an active member of ASEAN and seek to project its influence in it. Thailand has developed increasingly close ties with other members, with progressing regional co-operation in economic, trade, banking, political, and cultural matters.[{{Cite journal |last=Rakson |first=Katsamaporn |date=July–December 2018 |title=Investigating Thailand's self-perception in the regional context towards ASEAN |url=https://he02.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/Veridian-E-Journal/article/download/166438/141875/625674 |url-status=live |journal=Veridian E-Journal, Silpakorn University |volume=11 |issue=5 |pages=568–578 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230810230236/https://he02.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/Veridian-E-Journal/article/download/166438/141875/625674 |archive-date=10 August 2023 |access-date=9 August 2023}}]
In the 2000s, Thailand had taken an active role on the international stage and participated fully in international and regional organisations. It is a [[major non-NATO ally]] and Priority Watch List [[Special 301 Report]] of the United States. When [[East Timor]] gained independence from Indonesia, Thailand contributed troops to the international peacekeeping effort.[{{Cite journal |last1=Chieocharnpraphan |first1=Thosaphon |year=2015 |title=Strategic Partnership Between Australia and Thailand: A Case Study of East Timor |url=https://iafor.org/journal/iafor-journal-of-politics-economics-and-law/volume-2-issue-1/article-4/ |url-status=live |journal=IAFOR Journal of Politics, Economics & Law |volume=2 |doi=10.22492/ijpel.2.1.04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240101161923/https://iafor.org/journal/iafor-journal-of-politics-economics-and-law/volume-2-issue-1/article-4/ |archive-date=1 January 2024 |access-date=2024-01-01 |doi-access=free}}] As part of its effort to increase international ties, Thailand had reached out to such regional organisations as the [[Organization of American States]] (OAS)[{{Cite web |last=OAS |date=2009-08-01 |title=OAS – Organization of American States: Democracy for peace, security, and development |url=https://www.oas.org/en/media_center/press_release.asp?sCodigo=e-215/03 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240101162926/https://www.oas.org/en/media_center/press_release.asp?sCodigo=e-215/03 |archive-date=1 January 2024 |access-date=2024-01-01 |website=OAS – Organization of American States}}] and the [[Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe]] (OSCE).[{{Cite web |title=Thailand attends 2023 OSCE Asian Conference with aim to further promote Asia-Europe cooperation |url=https://www.mfa.go.th/en/content/osce170723-2?cate=5d5bcb4e15e39c306000683e |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240101161423/https://www.mfa.go.th/en/content/osce170723-2?cate=5d5bcb4e15e39c306000683e |archive-date=1 January 2024 |access-date=2024-01-01 |website=กระทรวงการต่างประเทศ}}]
During [[Thaksin Shinawatra]]'s premiership, negotiations for several [[free trade agreement]]s with China, Australia, Bahrain, India, and the US were initiated. Thaksin sought to position Thailand as a regional leader, initiating various development projects in poorer neighbouring countries. More controversially, he established close, friendly ties with the Burmese dictatorship.[[https://web.archive.org/web/20090103061415/http://www.burmait.net/ict-news/2007/aug07/thaksin-to-face-charges-over-burma-telecom-deal/ 'Thaksin to face charges over Burma telecom deal]. ICT News, 2 August 2007.] Thailand joined the US-led [[2003 invasion of Iraq|invasion of Iraq]], sending a [[Thai Humanitarian Assistance Task Force 976 Thai-Iraq|humanitarian contingent]] until September 2004.[{{Cite web |date=4 September 2003 |title=Thai troops join Iraq force – Sep. 4, 2003 |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/asiapcf/southeast/09/04/sprj.irq.thai.troops/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328150809/http://edition.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/asiapcf/southeast/09/04/sprj.irq.thai.troops/index.html |archive-date=28 March 2024 |access-date=20 December 2021 |publisher=CNN}}] Thailand also had contributed troops to reconstruction efforts in [[Afghanistan]].[{{Cite web |author1=Matichon |date=12 July 2021 |title=ภาพเก่าเล่าตำนาน: ทหารช่างไทย...ไปทำอะไร...ในอัฟกานิสถาน โดย พลเอก นิพัทธ์ ทองเล็ก |url=https://www.matichon.co.th/article/news_2822402 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240120062820/https://www.matichon.co.th/article/news_2822402 |archive-date=20 January 2024 |access-date=1 January 2024 |website=Matichon Online |language=th}}]
In April 2009, the [[2008–2013 Cambodian–Thai border crisis]] brought troops on territory immediately adjacent to the 900-year-old ruins of Cambodia's [[Preah Vihear]] Hindu temple near the border.[The Telegraph, [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/thailand/5101029/Troops-from-Thailand-and-Cambodia-fight-on-border.html Troops from Thailand and Cambodia fight on border] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100523080330/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/thailand/5101029/Troops-from-Thailand-and-Cambodia-fight-on-border.html |date=23 May 2010}}, 3 April 2009.][Bloomberg, [https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601080&sid=a2G.h3Ms.a3s&refer=asia Thai, Cambodian Border Fighting Stops, Thailand Says] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071014072312/http://bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601080 |date=14 October 2007}}]
After the 2014 coup, Thailand leaned more towards China.[Prashanth Parameswaran. (2014). [https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/thailand-turns-to-china/ Thailand Turns to China] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220427033345/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/thailand-turns-to-china/ |date=27 April 2022}}. ''The Diplomat''. Retrieved 3 January 2018.] Growing Chinese influence and capital inflow caused some members of parliament to raise the concern about "economic colony" under China after many concessions.[{{Cite news |date=28 February 2020 |title=MPs warned of an economic colony as opposition zeroed in on Thailand's impaired relationship with China |url=https://www.thaiexaminer.com/thai-news-foreigners/2020/02/28/thailand-relationship-china-thai-government-opposition-critiscism/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201019080345/https://www.thaiexaminer.com/thai-news-foreigners/2020/02/28/thailand-relationship-china-thai-government-opposition-critiscism/ |archive-date=19 October 2020 |access-date=6 November 2020 |work=Thai Examiner}}]
During the [[Gaza war|Israel-Gaza war]] in 2023, at first Thailand's prime minister stated that his government strongly condemns the attack against Israel and extends its deepest condolences to the government and the people of Israel[{{Cite tweet |number=1710624065076314165 |user=Thavisin |title=In light of today's tragic incident...}}] but the government later changed its position and announced that Thailand adopted a neutral stance in this conflict.[{{Cite web |date=9 October 2023 |title=Israel-Palestine war: Thailand adopts neutral stance |url=https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/general/40031729 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231016021118/https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/general/40031729 |archive-date=16 October 2023 |access-date=15 October 2023 |website=nationthailand}}] 28 Thai nationals were killed in this conflict.[{{Cite web |date=15 October 2023 |title=คนไทยในอิสราเอลตายเพิ่ม 4 รวมเป็น 28 คน เร่งอพยพกลับไทย |url=https://www.thaipbs.or.th/news/content/332821 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231016005435/https://www.thaipbs.or.th/news/content/332821 |archive-date=16 October 2023 |access-date=15 October 2023 |website=Thai PBS |language=th}}]
=== Armed forces ===
[[File:Chakri Naruebet 2001.JPEG|thumb|right|The [[HTMS Chakri Naruebet|HTMS ''Chakri Naruebet'']], an [[aircraft carrier]] of the [[Royal Thai Navy]]]]
The [[Royal Thai Armed Forces]] (กองทัพไทย; {{RTGS|Kong Thap Thai}}) consist of the [[Royal Thai Army]] (กองทัพบกไทย), the [[Royal Thai Navy]] (กองทัพเรือไทย), and the [[Royal Thai Air Force]] (กองทัพอากาศไทย). It also incorporates various [[paramilitary]] forces.[[http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/thailand/mod.htm Ministry of Defense] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100409162350/http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/thailand/mod.htm |date=9 April 2010 }}. www.globalsecurity.org. Retrieved on 18 January 2012.]
The [[Monarchy of Thailand|head of the Thai Armed Forces]] (จอมทัพไทย, ''Chom Thap Thai'') is the king,[[[s:2007 Constitution of Thailand#Chapter 2 : The King|Chapter 2 of the 2007 Constitution of Thailand]]] although this position is only nominal. The armed forces are managed by the [[Ministry of Defence (Thailand)|Ministry of Defence of Thailand]], which is headed by the Minister of Defence (a member of the [[cabinet of Thailand]]) and commanded by the [[Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters]], which in turn is headed by the [[List of Commanders of the Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters|Chief of Defence Forces of Thailand]].[{{Cite web |title=_cf63a28daf.jpg (3194×2055) |url=https://strapi.rtarf.mi.th/uploads/_cf63a28daf.jpg |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240101173458/https://strapi.rtarf.mi.th/uploads/_cf63a28daf.jpg |archive-date=1 January 2024 |access-date=2 January 2024 |website=กองบัญชาการกองทัพไทย |language=th}}] The annual defence budget almost tripled from US$1.98 billion in 2005 to US$5.88 billion in 2016, accounting for approximately 1.4% of GDP.[{{Cite web |title=World Bank Open Data |url=https://data.worldbank.org/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230526025607/https://data.worldbank.org/ |archive-date=26 May 2023 |access-date=2024-01-03 |website=World Bank Open Data}}] Thailand ranked 16th worldwide in the Military Strength Index based on the [[Credit Suisse]] report in 2015.[{{cite report |url=http://publications.credit-suisse.com/tasks/render/file/index.cfm?fileid=EE7A6A5D-D9D5-6204-E9E6BB426B47D054 |title=The End of Globalization or a more Multipolar World? |last1=O'Sullivan |first1=Michael |last2=Subramanian |first2=Krithika |date=2015-10-17 |publisher=[[Credit Suisse]] AG |access-date=2017-07-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180215235711/http://publications.credit-suisse.com/tasks/render/file/index.cfm?fileid=EE7A6A5D-D9D5-6204-E9E6BB426B47D054 |archive-date=15 February 2018}}]
[[File:Exercise Cope Tiger (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|A Royal Thai Air Force [[JAS 39 Gripen]]]]
The military is also tasked with humanitarian missions, such as escorting [[Rohingya]] to Malaysia or Indonesia,[{{Cite web |date=31 July 2019 |title=Thailand Offers Persecuted Rohingya Little Hope |url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/07/31/thailand-offers-persecuted-rohingya-little-hope |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200609171802/https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/07/31/thailand-offers-persecuted-rohingya-little-hope |archive-date=9 June 2020 |access-date=27 May 2020 |publisher=Human Rights Watch}}] ensuring security and welfare for refugees during [[Indochina refugee crisis]].[{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2Z6aDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA13 |title=Battlefield Bangkok: The Royal Thai Army 2000–2014 |date=4 April 2015 |publisher=Dean Wilson |isbn=978-1-326-04676-7 |access-date=1 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328150811/https://books.google.com/books?id=2Z6aDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA13#v=onepage&q&f=false |archive-date=28 March 2024 |url-status=live}}]
According to the constitution, serving in the armed forces is a duty of all citizens,[[[s:2007 Constitution of Thailand#Chapter 4: Duties of the Thai People|Chapter 4 of the 2007 Constitution of Thailand]]] with an active draft system for males over age 21. They are subjected to varying lengths of active service depending on the duration of reserve training as [[Territorial Defence Student]] and their level of education. Those who have completed three years or more of reserve training will be exempted entirely. The practice has long been criticised, as some media question its efficacy and value.[{{Cite news |date=29 August 2018 |title=Let's stop forcing boys to be soldiers |url=https://www.nationthailand.com/detail/opinion/30353201 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180828235424/http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/opinion/30353201 |archive-date=28 August 2018 |access-date=29 August 2018 |work=The Nation |department=Opinion}}][{{Cite news |date=24 March 2018 |title=Do away with conscription |url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/1434054/do-away-with-conscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328150820/https://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/1434054/do-away-with-conscription |archive-date=28 March 2024 |access-date=29 August 2018 |work=Bangkok Post |department=Opinion}}] It is alleged that conscripts end up as servants to senior officers[{{Cite news |date=18 July 2018 |title=Prawit denies servant for officer policy |url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/news/politics/1505262/prawit-denies-servant-for-officer-policy |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328150838/https://ow.pubmatic.com/setuid?bidder=amx&uid=b79ee476-fd20-4793-9474-9de566f7904e&do=www.bangkokpost.com |archive-date=28 March 2024 |access-date=18 July 2018 |work=Bangkok Post}}] or clerks in military cooperative shops.[{{Cite news |date=3 November 2017 |title=Ex-private stands firm after being harassed online for criticising military |url=https://prachatai.com/english/node/7454 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107021744/https://prachatai.com/english/node/7454 |archive-date=7 November 2017 |access-date=4 November 2017 |work=Pratchatai English}}][{{Cite news |date=19 July 2018 |title=Conscripts aren't servants |url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/1506062/conscripts-arent-servants |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328150837/https://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/1506062/conscripts-arent-servants |archive-date=28 March 2024 |access-date=20 July 2018 |work=Bangkok Post |department=Opinion}}] In a report issued in March 2020, [[Amnesty International]] charged that military conscripts face institutionalised abuse systematically hushed up by military authorities.[{{Cite news |date=23 March 2020 |title=Weeks after Korat massacre, Amnesty report describes conscript abuses |url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/1884760/weeks-after-korat-massacre-amnesty-report-describes-conscript-abuses |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328151325/https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/1884760/weeks-after-korat-massacre-amnesty-report-describes-conscript-abuses |archive-date=28 March 2024 |access-date=23 March 2020 |work=Bangkok Post |agency=Reuters}}]
Critics observed that the military's main objective is to deal with internal rather than external threats.[{{Cite news |date=14 November 2017 |title=Thailand's Deep State—The Military |url=https://www.asiasentinel.com/politics/thailand-military-deep-state/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171114130725/https://www.asiasentinel.com/politics/thailand-military-deep-state/ |archive-date=14 November 2017 |access-date=15 November 2017 |work=[[Asia Sentinel]]}}] [[Internal Security Operations Command]] is called the political arm of the military, which has overlapping social and political functions with civilian bureaucracy. It also has anti-democracy mission.[{{Cite web |date=19 July 2013 |title=Thai Navy Accused of Involvement in Smuggling Rohingya Muslims |url=https://www.chiangraitimes.com/thailand-national-news/news-asia-thailand/thai-navy-accused-of-involvement-in-smuggling-rohingya-muslims/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200929171722/https://www.chiangraitimes.com/thailand-national-news/news-asia-thailand/thai-navy-accused-of-involvement-in-smuggling-rohingya-muslims/ |archive-date=29 September 2020 |access-date=27 May 2020}}] and [[nepotism]] in promotion of high-ranking officers.[{{Cite news |last= |date=16 April 2016 |title="บิ๊กติ๊ก"ตั้งลูก ติดยศทหาร อ้างให้งานทำ |url=https://www.posttoday.com/politic/news/426850 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190620150611/https://www.posttoday.com/politic/news/426850 |archive-date=20 June 2019 |access-date=29 August 2018 |work=[[Post Today]]}}] The military is deeply entrenched in politics. Most recently, the appointed senators include more than 100 active and retired military.[{{Cite web |date=14 May 2019 |title=Thai Junta Fills Senate with Military, Police Officers |url=https://www.benarnews.org/english/news/thai/senate-list-05142019154817.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926050110/https://www.benarnews.org/english/news/thai/senate-list-05142019154817.html |archive-date=26 September 2020 |access-date=26 May 2020 |work=Benar News |publisher=benarnews}}]
Thailand is the 75th most peaceful country in the world, according to the 2024 [[Global Peace Index]].[{{Cite web |title=2024 Global Peace Index |url=https://www.economicsandpeace.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/GPI-2024-web.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240819091540/https://www.economicsandpeace.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/GPI-2024-web.pdf |archive-date=19 August 2024 |access-date=16 August 2024}}]
== Economy ==
{| class="wikitable" style="border: 1px solid #999; float: right; margin-left: 1em; width:300px"
|+ Economic indicators
|-
! scope="row" | Nominal [[GDP]]
| ฿14.53 trillion {{small| (2016)}}[{{Cite web |script-title=th:รายได้ประชาชาติของประเทศไทย พ.ศ. ๒๕๕๙ แบบปริมาณลูกโซ่ |url=http://www.nesdb.go.th/ewt_dl_link.php?nid=7196&filename=ni_page |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180426213453/http://www.nesdb.go.th/ewt_dl_link.php?nid=7196&filename=ni_page |archive-date=26 April 2018 |access-date=23 April 2018 |publisher=[[Office of the National Economic and Social Development Board]] |language=th}}]
|-
! scope="row" | GDP growth
| 3.9% {{small| (2017)}}[{{Cite web |year=2018 |script-title=th:ภาวะเศรษฐกิจไทยไตรมาสที่สี่ ทั้งปี 2560 และแนวโน้มปี 2561 |url=http://www.nesdb.go.th/ewt_dl_link.php?nid=7384 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180427115757/http://www.nesdb.go.th/ewt_dl_link.php?nid=7384 |archive-date=27 April 2018 |access-date=23 April 2018 |publisher=[[Office of the National Economic and Social Development Board]] |language=th}}]
|-
! scope="row" | Total public debt
| ฿6.37 trillion {{small| ({{nowrap|Dec.}} 2017)}}[{{Cite web |script-title=th:ข้อมูลหนี้สาธารณะคงค้าง |url=http://www.pdmo.go.th/export_pdf.php?m=money&ts2_id=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180426213342/http://www.pdmo.go.th/export_pdf.php?m=money&ts2_id=1 |archive-date=26 April 2018 |access-date=18 February 2018 |publisher=Public Debt Management Office |language=th}}]
|-
! scope="row" | Poverty
| 8.61% {{small| (2016)}}[{{Cite web |script-title=th:ภาวะสังคมไทยไตรมาสสี่และภาพรวม ปี 2560 |url=http://social.nesdb.go.th/social/Portals/0/Documents/%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%87%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%A0%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%B0%E0%B8%AA%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%87%E0%B8%84%E0%B8%A1%20Q4-2560_final_1253.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180426213417/http://social.nesdb.go.th/social/Portals/0/Documents/%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%87%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%A0%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%B0%E0%B8%AA%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%87%E0%B8%84%E0%B8%A1%20Q4-2560_final_1253.pdf |archive-date=26 April 2018 |access-date=23 April 2018 |publisher=[[Office of the National Economic and Social Development Board]] |language=th}}]{{rp|36}}
|-
! scope="row" | Net household worth
| ฿20.34 trillion {{small| (2010)}}[{{Cite web |last1=เสรีวรวิทย์กุล |first1=ชนาภรณ์ |last2=รุ่งเจริญกิจกุล |first2=ภูริชัย |date=July 2011 |script-title=th:ฐานะทางการเงินของภาคครัวเรือนและผลของความมั่งคั่งต่อการบริโภค |url=https://www.bot.or.th/Thai/MonetaryPolicy/ArticleAndResearch/WE_MPG/WE_MPG_July2554.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211010031615/https://www.bot.or.th/Thai/MonetaryPolicy/ArticleAndResearch/WE_MPG/WE_MPG_July2554.pdf |archive-date=10 October 2021 |access-date=24 April 2018 |publisher=[[Bank of Thailand]] |language=th}}]{{rp|2}}
|}
[[File:Bangkok (251385359).jpeg|thumb|[[Sathorn]] in Bangkok is a skyscraper-studded business district that is home to major hotels and embassies.]]
The [[economy of Thailand]] is heavily export-dependent, with exports accounting for more than two-thirds of [[gross domestic product]] (GDP). Thailand exports over US$105 billion worth of goods and services annually.[{{Cite news |date=25 November 2014 |title=NESDB: Thailand facing unemployment problem |url=http://www.pattayamail.com/news/nesdb-thailand-facing-unemployment-problem-43104 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150104034806/http://www.pattayamail.com/news/nesdb-thailand-facing-unemployment-problem-43104 |archive-date=4 January 2015 |access-date=4 January 2015 |work=Pattaya Mail}}] In 2017, the economy grew an inflation-adjusted 3.9%, up from 3.3% in 2016, marking its fastest expansion since 2012.[{{Cite news |title=CThailand's GDP grows at fastest pace in 5 years in 2017 |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Economy/Thailand-s-GDP-grows-at-fastest-pace-in-5-years-in-2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200306223852/https://asia.nikkei.com/Economy/Thailand-s-GDP-grows-at-fastest-pace-in-5-years-in-2017 |archive-date=6 March 2020 |access-date=15 May 2020 |publisher=Nikkei Asian}}] High public spending, especially during the [[COVID-19 pandemic in Thailand|COVID-19 pandemic]], prompted the authorities to raise the public debt ceiling from 60% to 70% of GDP.[{{Cite news |date=20 September 2021 |title=Thailand raises public debt ceiling to fight COVID-19 outbreak |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/thailand-raises-public-debt-ceiling-fight-covid-19-outbreak-2021-09-20/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230421145101/https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/thailand-raises-public-debt-ceiling-fight-covid-19-outbreak-2021-09-20/ |archive-date=21 April 2023 |access-date=21 April 2023 |work=Reuters}}]
{{As of|2024}}, Thailand struggles with low productivity, poor education, high household debt, low private investment and slow economic growth,[{{cite news |last1=Allan |first1=Juan |date=3 April 2024 |title=Thailand's economy lags behind peers with protracted recovery – Thailand Business News |url=https://www.thailand-business-news.com/economics/134352-thailands-economy-lags-behind-peers-with-protracted-recovery |access-date=24 July 2024 |work=www.thailand-business-news.com}}][{{cite news |last1=Warr |first1=Peter |title=Thailand's economy remains beset by low productivity and slow growth |url=https://eastasiaforum.org/2024/01/25/thailands-economy-remains-beset-by-low-productivity-and-slow-growth/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240724053703/https://eastasiaforum.org/2024/01/25/thailands-economy-remains-beset-by-low-productivity-and-slow-growth/ |archive-date=24 July 2024 |access-date=24 July 2024 |work=East Asia Forum}}] with an economic research group forecasted an annual GDP growth of below 2% in the next decades without structural reforms.[{{cite news |last1=Banchongduang |first1=Somruedi |date=23 July 2024 |title=Kiatnakin Phatra Research: Potential growth rate below 2% |url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/general/2834207/kiatnakin-phatra-research-potential-growth-rate-below-2- |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240723223521/https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/general/2834207/kiatnakin-phatra-research-potential-growth-rate-below-2- |archive-date=23 July 2024 |access-date=24 July 2024 |work=Bangkok Post}}]
In 2025, the [[Bank of Thailand]]'s economic outlook page projected GDP growth of around 2.2% in 2025 and 1.6% in 2026, noting that growth in the first half of 2025 was supported by front‑loaded exports to the U.S. ahead of tariff hikes, while the second half was expected to slow as higher U.S. tariffs bit.[{{Cite web |title=Thai Economy |url=https://www.bot.or.th/en/thai-economy.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251205205435/https://www.bot.or.th/en/thai-economy.html |archive-date=5 December 2025 |access-date=2025-12-25 |website=www.bot.or.th |language=en}}]
=== Income and wealth disparities ===
[[File:Thailand GDP Per Capita Development 1890-2022.png|thumb|Development of real GDP per capita, 1890 to 2022]]
Thais had median wealth per one adult person of $1,469 in 2016,[{{Cite book |url=http://publications.credit-suisse.com/tasks/render/file/index.cfm?fileid=AD783798-ED07-E8C2-4405996B5B02A32E |title=Global Wealth Report 2016 |date=November 2016 |publisher=Credit Suisse AG |location=Zurich |access-date=1 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170515124834/http://publications.credit-suisse.com/tasks/render/file/index.cfm?fileid=AD783798-ED07-E8C2-4405996B5B02A32E |archive-date=15 May 2017}}]{{rp|98}} increasing from $605 in 2010.[{{Cite web |title=Table 3: Inequality-adjusted Human Development Index |url=http://hdr.undp.org/en/composite/IHDI |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160129103442/http://hdr.undp.org/en/composite/IHDI |archive-date=29 January 2016 |access-date=25 April 2018 |publisher=Human Development Report Office, [[United Nations Development Programme]]}}]
In 2017, median household income was ฿26,946 per month.[{{Cite web |script-title=th:บทสรุปผู้บริหาร การสำรวจภาวะเศรษฐกิจและสังคมของครัวเรือน พ.ศ. 2560 |url=http://www.nso.go.th/sites/2014/DocLib13/%e0%b8%94%e0%b9%89%e0%b8%b2%e0%b8%99%e0%b8%aa%e0%b8%b1%e0%b8%87%e0%b8%84%e0%b8%a1/%e0%b8%aa%e0%b8%b2%e0%b8%82%e0%b8%b2%e0%b8%a3%e0%b8%b2%e0%b8%a2%e0%b9%84%e0%b8%94%e0%b9%89/%e0%b9%80%e0%b8%a8%e0%b8%a3%e0%b8%a9%e0%b8%90%e0%b8%81%e0%b8%b4%e0%b8%88%e0%b8%aa%e0%b8%b1%e0%b8%87%e0%b8%84%e0%b8%a1%e0%b8%84%e0%b8%a3%e0%b8%b1%e0%b8%a7%e0%b9%80%e0%b8%a3%e0%b8%b7%e0%b8%ad%e0%b8%99/60/Sum_Eco-Socio60.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180426213254/http://www.nso.go.th/sites/2014/DocLib13/%e0%b8%94%e0%b9%89%e0%b8%b2%e0%b8%99%e0%b8%aa%e0%b8%b1%e0%b8%87%e0%b8%84%e0%b8%a1/%e0%b8%aa%e0%b8%b2%e0%b8%82%e0%b8%b2%e0%b8%a3%e0%b8%b2%e0%b8%a2%e0%b9%84%e0%b8%94%e0%b9%89/%e0%b9%80%e0%b8%a8%e0%b8%a3%e0%b8%a9%e0%b8%90%e0%b8%81%e0%b8%b4%e0%b8%88%e0%b8%aa%e0%b8%b1%e0%b8%87%e0%b8%84%e0%b8%a1%e0%b8%84%e0%b8%a3%e0%b8%b1%e0%b8%a7%e0%b9%80%e0%b8%a3%e0%b8%b7%e0%b8%ad%e0%b8%99/60/Sum_Eco-Socio60.pdf |archive-date=26 April 2018 |access-date=25 April 2018 |publisher=[[National Statistical Office (Thailand)|National Statistical Office]] |language=th}}]{{rp|1}} Top quintile households had a 45.0% share of all income, while bottom quintile households had 7.1%.[{{Cite web |date=December 2013 |title=Profile of the Protestors: A Survey of Pro and Anti-Government Demonstrators in Bangkok on November 30, 2013 |url=https://asiafoundation.org/resources/pdfs/FinalSurveyReportDecember20.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180426213735/https://asiafoundation.org/resources/pdfs/FinalSurveyReportDecember20.pdf |archive-date=26 April 2018 |access-date=24 April 2018 |publisher=Asia Foundation}}]{{rp|7}}
In 2014, [[Credit Suisse]] reported that Thailand was the world's third most unequal country, behind Russia and India.[{{Cite news |last=พงศ์พิพัฒน์ บัญชานนท์ |date=18 June 2017 |script-title=th:ยิ่งนานยิ่งถ่าง ช่องว่างทางรายได้ ปัญหาใหญ่ที่รอ คสช. แก้ |url=http://www.bbc.com/thai/thailand-40317663 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180514163313/https://www.bbc.com/thai/thailand-40317663 |archive-date=14 May 2018 |access-date=25 April 2018 |newspaper=BBC News ไทย |publisher=[[BBC]] Thailand |language=th}}] [[Bank of Thailand]] reported that during 2006–16, Thailand's top 5% largest companies had 85% of all corporate revenue in the nation, and only 6% of the country's companies were in export industries, which made up 60% of the country's GDP.[{{Cite news |title=แบงก์ชาติวิจัย "ไม่แข่ง-ยิ่งแพ้" เมื่อบริษัทใหญ่ 5% ครองรายได้ 85% |url=https://www.prachachat.net/finance/news-376905 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230421142949/https://www.prachachat.net/finance/news-376905 |archive-date=21 April 2023 |access-date=21 April 2023 |work=Prachachat |language=th}}]
In 2016, 5.81 million people lived in poverty, or 11.6 million people (17.2% of population) if "near poor" is included.[{{Cite web |year=2016 |script-title=th:รายงานการวิเคราะห์สถานการณ์ความยากจนและความเหลื่อมล้าในประเทศไทย ปี 2559 |url=http://social.nesdb.go.th/social/Portals/0/PDF%20%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%87%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%84%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%88%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%AF%202559.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180426213301/http://social.nesdb.go.th/social/Portals/0/PDF%20%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%87%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%84%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%88%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%AF%202559.pdf |archive-date=26 April 2018 |access-date=24 April 2018 |publisher=[[Office of the National Economic and Social Development Board]] |language=th}}]{{rp|1}} The proportion of the poor relative to total population in each region was 12.96% in the Northeast, 12.35% in the South, and 9.83% in the North.[{{Cite news |last1=Arunmas |first1=Phusadee |date=26 August 2022 |title=Thai household debt surges, reaching a 16-year climax |url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/2377191/thai-household-debt-surges-reaching-a-16-year-climax |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328151412/https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/2377191/thai-household-debt-surges-reaching-a-16-year-climax |archive-date=28 March 2024 |access-date=21 April 2023 |work=Bangkok Post}}] In 2016, there were estimated 30,000 homeless persons in the country.[{{Cite news |last= |date=16 June 2017 |script-title=th:สสส. เผยสถานการณ์คนไร้บ้าน ทั่วประเทศกว่า 3 หมื่นคน |url=https://www.posttoday.com/social/PR/498823 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181107015321/https://www.posttoday.com/social/PR/498823 |archive-date=7 November 2018 |access-date=25 April 2018 |work=posttoday.com |language=th}}]
=== Exports and manufacturing ===
In 2022, Thailand's export of goods is worth roughly {{Currency|290 billion|USD|passthrough=yes|linked=no}} while its import worth roughly {{Currency|305 billion|USD|passthrough=yes|linked=no}}.[{{Cite journal |date=2023 |title=Asean Statistical Highlights 2023 |url=https://www.aseanstats.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/ASH-2023-v1.pdf |url-status=live |journal=ASEAN Centre for Energy |page=4 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241227133040/https://www.aseanstats.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/ASH-2023-v1.pdf |archive-date=27 December 2024 |access-date=22 October 2024}}] Recovery from the 1997–1998 Asian financial crisis depended mainly on exports, among various other factors. {{as of|2025}}, the [[Automotive industry in Thailand|Thai automotive industry]] was the largest in Southeast Asia and the [[List of countries by motor vehicle production|12th largest in the world]].[{{Cite journal |last=Santivimolnat |first=Santan |date=18 August 2012 |title=2-million milestone edges nearer |url=http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/economics/308171/2-million-milestone-edges-nearer |url-status=live |journal=Bangkok Post |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160204182433/http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/economics/308171/2-million-milestone-edges-nearer |archive-date=4 February 2016 |access-date=4 January 2015}}][{{Cite news |last=Languepin |first=Olivier |date=3 January 2013 |title=Thailand poised to Surpass Car Production target |url=http://thailand-business-news.com/business/43750-thailand-poised-to-surpass-car-production-target |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130115152809/http://thailand-business-news.com/business/43750-thailand-poised-to-surpass-car-production-target |archive-date=15 January 2013 |access-date=20 January 2013 |work=Thailand Business News}}][{{Cite web |title=Production Statistics |url=http://oica.net/category/production-statistics/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131106174001/http://www.oica.net/category/production-statistics/ |archive-date=6 November 2013 |access-date=26 November 2012 |publisher=OICA (International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers)}}] The Thailand industry has an annual output of near 1.5 million vehicles, mostly commercial vehicles.[{{Cite news |last=Takahashi |first=Toru |date=27 November 2014 |title=Thailand's love affair with the pickup truck |url=http://asia.nikkei.com/magazine/20141127-Abenomics-on-the-ballot/Business/Thailand-s-love-affair-with-the-pickup-truck |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150103135212/http://asia.nikkei.com/magazine/20141127-Abenomics-on-the-ballot/Business/Thailand-s-love-affair-with-the-pickup-truck |archive-date=3 January 2015 |access-date=4 January 2015 |work=Nikkei Asian Review}}] As of 2012, due to its favourable taxation for 2-door pick-ups at only 3–12% against 17–50% for passenger cars, Thailand was the second largest consumer of pick-up trucks in the world, after the US.[{{Cite web |last=Finlay |first=Steve |date=6 July 2012 |title=Pickup Trucks Reign in Thailand |url=https://www.wardsauto.com/industry/pickup-trucks-reign-thailand |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190605223447/https://www.wardsauto.com/industry/pickup-trucks-reign-thailand |archive-date=5 June 2019 |access-date=5 June 2019 |publisher=[[Ward's]]}}] In 2014, pick-ups accounted for 42% of all new vehicle sales in Thailand.[{{Cite journal |date=18 December 2020 |title=UNWTO World Tourism Barometer and Statistical Annex, December 2020 {{!}} World Tourism Organization |journal=UNWTO World Tourism Barometer (English Version) |volume=18 |issue=7 |pages=1–36 |doi=10.18111/wtobarometereng.2020.18.1.7 |s2cid=241989515 |doi-access=free}}] and was the fourth highest in international tourism earning 60.5 billion [[US dollars]].
Thailand was the most visited country in Southeast Asia in 2013, according to the World Tourism Organisation. Estimates of tourism receipts directly contributing to the GDP of 12 trillion baht range from 9 per cent (1 trillion baht) (2013) to 16 per cent.[{{Cite news |date=24 August 2015 |title=Government moves to head off tourist fears |url=http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/politics/666028/government-moves-to-head-off-tourist-fears |access-date=24 August 2015 |work=Bangkok Post}}] When including the indirect effects of tourism, it is said to account for 20.2 per cent (2.4 trillion baht) of Thailand's GDP.[{{Cite book |url=http://www.wttc.org/-/media/files/reports/economic%20impact%20research/country%20reports/thailand2014.pdf |title=Travel and Tourism, Economic Impact 2014: Thailand |date=2014 |publisher=World Travel & Tourism Council |edition=2014 |location=London |access-date=10 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150319212933/http://www.wttc.org/-/media/files/reports/economic%20impact%20research/country%20reports/thailand2014.pdf |archive-date=19 March 2015}}]{{RP|1}}
Asian tourists primarily visit Thailand for Bangkok and the historical, natural, and cultural sights in its vicinity. Western tourists visit Bangkok and surrounding areas, as well as the southern beaches and islands. The north is the chief destination for trekking and [[adventure travel]] with its diverse ethnic minority groups and forested mountains. The region hosting the fewest tourists is Isan.[[http://www.amazing-thailand.com/Police.html Tourist Police in Thailand] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080703161503/http://www.amazing-thailand.com/Police.html |date=3 July 2008}}. Amazing-Thailand.com. Retrieved 16 September 2010.]
Thailand ranks as the worlds fifth largest [[medical tourism]] destination in spending, according to the [[World Travel and Tourism Council]], attracting over 2.5 million visitors in 2018,[{{Cite web |title=Medical Tourism in Thailand |url=https://www.mymeditravel.com/guide/medical-tourism-in-thailand |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190218141716/https://www.mymeditravel.com/guide/medical-tourism-in-thailand |archive-date=18 February 2019 |access-date=17 February 2019 |publisher=MyMediTravel}}] and is number one in Asia.[{{Cite web |title=Medical Tourism Report |url=https://wttc.org/en-gb/Research/Insights |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200516071216/https://wttc.org/en-gb/Research/Insights |archive-date=16 May 2020 |access-date=15 May 2020 |publisher=WTTC}}] The country is popular for the growing practice of [[sex reassignment surgery]] and cosmetic surgery.[Chokrungvaranont, Prayuth, Gennaro Selvaggi, Sirachai Jindarak, Apichai Angspatt, Pornthep Pungrasmi, Poonpismai Suwajo, and Preecha Tiewtranon. "The Development of Sex Reassignment Surgery in Thailand: A Social Perspective". ''The Scientific World Journal''. Hindawi Publishing Corporation, 2014. Web. 23 March 2017.] [[Prostitution in Thailand]] and sex tourism also form a ''de facto'' part of the economy. Campaigns promote Thailand as exotic to attract tourists.[Ocha, Witchayanee. "Transsexual emergence: gender variant identities in Thailand". ''Culture, Health & Sexuality''14.5 (2012): 563–575. Web.] One estimate published in 2003 placed the trade at US$4.3 billion per year or about 3% of the Thai economy.[[http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/11/26/1069825832486.html?oneclick=true Thailand mulls legal prostitution.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929131217/http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/11/26/1069825832486.html?oneclick=true |date=29 September 2007}} ''[[The Age]]'', 26 November 2003.] It is believed that at least 10% of tourist dollars are spent on the sex trade.[{{Cite web |last=Martin |first=Lorna |date=25 January 2006 |title=Paradise Revealed |url=http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/archives/2006/01/25/2003290710/4 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141202022539/http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/archives/2006/01/25/2003290710/4 |archive-date=2 December 2014 |access-date=29 January 2015 |website=Taipei Times}}]
=== Agriculture and natural resources ===
{{Further|Agriculture in Thailand}}
[[File:Rice farmers Mae Wang Chiang Mai Province.jpg|thumb|upright=1.35|Thailand has long been [[Rice production in Thailand|one of the largest rice exporters in the world]]. Forty-nine per cent of Thailand's labour force is employed in agriculture.[International Grains Council. [http://www.igc.int/en/downloads/gmrsummary/gmrsumme.pdf "Grain Market Report (GMR444)"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140702110607/http://www.igc.int/en/downloads/gmrsummary/gmrsumme.pdf |date=2 July 2014}}, London, 14 May 2014. Retrieved 13 June 2014.] Thailand has the highest percentage of arable land, 27.25%, of any state in the [[Greater Mekong Subregion]].[{{Cite web |title=CIA World Factbook – Greater Mekong Subregion |url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2097.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140326095031/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2097.html |archive-date=26 March 2014 |access-date=3 November 2011 |publisher=Central Intelligence Agency}}] About 55% of the arable land area is used for rice production.[{{Cite web |title=Rice Around The World. Thailand |url=http://www.irri.org/science/cnyinfo/thailand.asp |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080327095326/http://www.irri.org/science/cnyinfo/thailand.asp |archive-date=27 March 2008 |access-date=25 April 2010 |publisher=Irri.org}}]
Agriculture has been experiencing a transition from labour-intensive and transitional methods to a more industrialised and competitive sector.[Henri Leturque and Steve Wiggins 2010. [http://www.odi.org.uk/resources/details.asp?id=5108&title=thailands-progress-agriculture-transition-sustained-productivity-growth Thailand's progress in agriculture: Transition and sustained productivity growth] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110427222924/http://www.odi.org.uk/resources/details.asp?id=5108&title=thailands-progress-agriculture-transition-sustained-productivity-growth |date=27 April 2011}}. London: Overseas Development Institute] Between 1962 and 1983, the agricultural sector grew by 4.1% per year on average and continued to grow at 2.2% between 1983 and 2007.[{{Cite web |title=Country Trends |url=http://data.footprintnetwork.org/#/countryTrends?cn=216&type=BCpc,EFCpc |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170808050235/http://data.footprintnetwork.org/#/countryTrends?cn=216&type=BCpc,EFCpc |archive-date=8 August 2017 |access-date=9 October 2019 |publisher=Global Footprint Network}}] of biocapacity per person, compared to the world average of 1.6.[{{Cite journal |last1=Lin |first1=David |last2=Hanscom |first2=Laurel |last3=Murthy |first3=Adeline |last4=Galli |first4=Alessandro |last5=Evans |first5=Mikel |last6=Neill |first6=Evan |last7=Mancini |first7=Maria Serena |last8=Martindill |first8=Jon |last9=Medouar |first9=Fatime-Zahra |last10=Huang |first10=Shiyu |last11=Wackernagel |first11=Mathis |year=2018 |title=Ecological Footprint Accounting for Countries: Updates and Results of the National Footprint Accounts, 2012–2018 |journal=Resources |volume=7 |issue=3 |page=58 |bibcode=2018Resou...7...58L |doi=10.3390/resources7030058 |doi-access=free}}] In 2016, Thailand used 2.5 global hectares—the [[ecological footprint]] of consumption. This means the country uses about twice as much biocapacity as it contains, resulting in a deficit.[{{Cite journal |last1=Kongtip |first1=Pornpimol |last2=Nankongnab |first2=Noppanun |last3=Chaikittiporn |first3=Chalermchai |last4=Laohaudomchok |first4=Wisanti |last5=Woskie |first5=Susan |last6=Slatin |first6=Craig |date=2015 |title=Informal Workers in Thailand: Occupational Health and Social Security Disparities |journal=New Solutions |volume=25 |issue=2 |pages=189–211 |bibcode=2015NewSo..25..189K |doi=10.1177/1048291115586036 |issn=1048-2911 |pmc=5812466 |pmid=25995374}}] Between 1993 and 1995, 10 per cent of the labour force moved from the agricultural sector to urban and industrial jobs, especially in the manufacturing sector. It is estimated that between 1988 and 1995, the number of factory workers doubled from two to four million, as the GDP tripled.[{{Cite book |last=Bales |first=Kevin |url=https://archive.org/details/disposablepeople00bale_0 |title=Disposable People: New Slavery in the Global Economy |publisher=[[University of California Press]] |year=1999 |isbn=978-0-520-21797-3 |url-access=registration |via=Internet Archive}}]
While the [[1997 Asian financial crisis|Asian financial crisis]] that followed in 1997 hit the economy hard, the industrial sector continued to expand under widespread deregulation, as Thailand was mandated to adopt a range of structural adjustment reforms upon receiving funding from the IMF and World Bank. These reforms implemented an agenda of increased privatisation and trade liberalisation and decreased federal subsidisation of public goods and utilities, agricultural price supports, and regulations on fair wages and labour conditions.[{{Cite journal |last=Guille |first=Howard |year=2014 |title=Reforming Asian Labor Systems: Economic Tensions and Worker Dissent |journal=Asian Studies Review |volume=39 |pages=98-112}}] Many migrant farmers took jobs in [[Sweatshop|sweatshops]] and factories with few labour regulations and often exploitative conditions.[{{Cite web |last=Warunsiri |first=Sasiwimon |year=2011 |title=The Role of Informal Sector in Thailand |url=http://www.ipedr.com/vol4/89-F10110.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411211727/http://www.ipedr.com/vol4/89-F10110.pdf |archive-date=11 April 2019 |access-date=22 April 2018 |website=Research Institute for Policy Evaluation and Design}}] Those that could not find formal factory work, including illegal migrants and the families of rural Thai migrants, are under the regulation imposed by the structural adjustment programmes. Scholars argue that the economic consequences and social costs of Thailand's labour reforms in the wake of the 1997 Asian financial crisis fell on individuals and families rather than the state.[{{Cite web |last=Coorlim |first=Leif |date=20 June 2014 |title=U.S. human trafficking report drops four nations to lowest tier |url=https://www.cnn.com/2014/06/20/us/human-trafficking-report/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220523102719/https://www.cnn.com/2014/06/20/us/human-trafficking-report/index.html |archive-date=23 May 2022 |access-date=23 May 2022 |publisher=CNN}}] especially in fishing where slave-like conditions have been reported.[{{Cite news |last1=Hodal |first1=Kate |last2=Kelly |first2=Chris |date=2014-06-10 |title=Trafficked into slavery on Thai trawlers to catch food for prawns |url=https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2014/jun/10/-sp-migrant-workers-new-life-enslaved-thai-fishing |access-date=2024-10-22 |work=The Guardian |issn=0261-3077}}]
=== Science and technology ===
Thailand ranked 45th in the [[Global Innovation Index]] in 2025.[{{Cite web |title=GII Innovation Ecosystems & Data Explorer 2025 |url=https://www.wipo.int/gii-ranking/en/thailand |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250424125612/https://www.wipo.int/gii-ranking/en/thailand |archive-date=24 April 2025 |access-date=2025-10-16 |website=WIPO}}][{{Cite book |last1=Dutta |first1=Soumitra |url=https://www.wipo.int/web-publications/global-innovation-index-2025/en/index.html |title=Global Innovation Index 2025: Innovation at a Crossroads |last2=Lanvin |first2=Bruno |publisher=[[World Intellectual Property Organization]] |year=2025 |isbn=978-92-805-3797-0 |page=19 |language=en |doi=10.34667/tind.58864 |access-date=2025-10-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251012035001/https://www.wipo.int/web-publications/global-innovation-index-2025/en/index.html |archive-date=12 October 2025 |url-status=live}}] The [[Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation]] and [[Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation#Organization|its agencies]] oversees the development of science, technology, and research. According to the National Research Council of Thailand, the country devoted 1.1% of its GDP to the research and development of science in 2019, with over 166,788 research and development personnel in full-time equivalent that year.[{{Cite web |title=Research and development expenditure (% of GDP) |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/GB.XPD.RSDV.GD.ZS |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190519013757/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/GB.XPD.RSDV.GD.ZS |archive-date=19 May 2019 |access-date=14 May 2020 |publisher=World Bank}}][{{Cite web |title=Results of survey on R&D expenditure and manpower in 2019 announced |url=https://www.nxpo.or.th/th/en/7981/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221025042537/https://www.nxpo.or.th/th/en/7981/ |archive-date=25 October 2022 |access-date=25 October 2022 |website=Office of National Higher Education Science Research and Innovation Policy Council {{!}}}}]
== Infrastructure ==
=== Transportation ===
{{main|Transport in Thailand|List of airports in Thailand}}
[[File:Bangkok Skytrain 2011.jpg|left|thumb|The [[BTS Skytrain]] is an elevated rapid transit system in Bangkok.]]
The [[State Railway of Thailand]] (SRT) operates all national rail lines. [[Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Terminal]] and [[Bangkok (Hua Lamphong) railway station|Bangkok (Hua Lamphong)]] are the main termini of intercity routes. Phahonyothin and ICD [[Lat Krabang]] are the main freight terminals. {{as of|2025}} SRT had {{convert|4507|km|mi|abbr=on}} of track, all of it [[meter gauge|metre gauge]]. Nearly all is single-track (2702.1 km), although some important sections around Bangkok are double ({{convert|1,234.9|km|mi|abbr=on|disp=or}}) or triple-tracked ({{convert|107|km|mi|abbr=on|disp=or}}), and there are plans to extend this.[{{Cite web |last=Thongkamkoon |first=Chaiwat |date=17 November 2017 |title=25601124-RaiwalDevOTP.pdf |url=https://www.otp.go.th/uploads/tiny_uploads/PDF/2560-11/25601124-RaiwalDevOTP.pdf |access-date=3 January 2024 |website=Office of Transport and Traffic Policy and Planning}}{{Dead link|date=March 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes}}][{{Cite web |last=Thongkamkoon |first=Chaiwat |title=PowerPoint Presentation |url=https://www.boi.go.th/upload/content/Infrastructure%20Development%20Plan%20by%20Mr.%20Chaiwat%20Thongkamkoon%20(EN)_5b7f83df1eff2.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240103133819/https://www.boi.go.th/upload/content/Infrastructure%20Development%20Plan%20by%20Mr.%20Chaiwat%20Thongkamkoon%20(EN)_5b7f83df1eff2.pdf |archive-date=3 January 2024 |access-date=3 January 2024 |website=Thailand Board of Investment}}] [[Rail transport in Bangkok]] includes long-distance services, with four rapid transit rail systems: the [[BTS Skytrain]], [[MRT (Bangkok)|MRT]], [[SRT Red Lines]], and the [[Airport Rail Link (Bangkok)|Airport Rail Link]].[{{Cite journal |last=Malaitham |first=Sathita |date=2013 |title=A Study Of Urban Rail Transit Development Effects In Bangkok Metropolitan Region |url=https://repository.kulib.kyoto-u.ac.jp/dspace/bitstream/2433/180485/2/dkogk03781.pdf |url-status=live |journal=Kyoto University |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241127002425/https://repository.kulib.kyoto-u.ac.jp/dspace/bitstream/2433/180485/2/dkogk03781.pdf |archive-date=27 November 2024 |access-date=22 October 2024}}]
Thailand has {{convert|390000|km|mi|abbr=off}} of highways.[{{Cite news |last=Janssen |first=Peter |date=23 January 2017 |title=Thailand's expanding state 'threatens future growth' |url=http://asia.nikkei.com/Politics-Economy/Economy/Thailand-s-expanding-state-threatens-future-growth |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20211124094900/https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics-Economy/Economy/Thailand-s-expanding-state-threatens-future-growth |archive-date=24 November 2021 |access-date=23 January 2017 |work=Nikkei Asian Review}}] {{As of|2017}}, there are over 462,133 roads and 37 million registered vehicles, 20 million of them motorbikes.[{{Cite news |date=19 January 2017 |title=Life and death on Thailand's lethal roads |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-38660283 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191015221844/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-38660283 |archive-date=15 October 2019 |access-date=17 June 2022 |publisher=BBC News}}] Many undivided two-lane highways have been converted into divided four-lane highways. Within the Bangkok Metropolitan Region, there are many [[Controlled-access highways in Thailand|controlled-access highways]]. There are 4,125 public vans operating on 114 routes from Bangkok alone.[{{Cite news |last=Mahittirook |first=Amornrat |date=7 November 2016 |title=Public vans likely to offer 10% fare cut |url=http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/tourism-and-transport/1128693/public-vans-likely-to-offer-10-fare-cut |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328151333/https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/general/1128693/public-vans-likely-to-offer-10-fare-cut |archive-date=28 March 2024 |access-date=7 November 2016 |work=Bangkok Post}}] Other forms of road transport includes [[Auto rickshaw|tuk-tuks]], taxis—with over 80,647 registered taxis nationwide as of 2018—[{{Cite news |date=14 November 2018 |title=The meter is ticking |url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/1575514/the-meter-is-ticking |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200606194211/https://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/opinion/1575514/the-meter-is-ticking |archive-date=6 June 2020 |access-date=14 November 2018 |work=Bangkok Post |department=Opinion}}]vans ([[minibus]]), motorbike taxis, and [[songthaew]]s.
{{as of|2012}}, Thailand has 103 airports with 63 paved runways, in addition to 6 heliports. The busiest airport is Bangkok's [[Suvarnabhumi Airport]].[{{Cite web |title=Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport – FNM2024 |url=https://www.fnm2024.com/getting-there/bangkok-suvarnabhumi-airport/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240519054909/https://www.fnm2024.com/getting-there/bangkok-suvarnabhumi-airport/ |archive-date=19 May 2024 |access-date=2024-05-19}}]
=== Energy ===
{{further|Energy in Thailand}}
75% of electrical generation is powered by [[natural gas]] in 2014.[{{Cite web |year=2013 |title=International Index of Energy Security Risk |url=http://www.energyxxi.org/sites/default/files/pdf/InternationalIndex-Final2013.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150104014043/http://www.energyxxi.org/sites/default/files/pdf/InternationalIndex-Final2013.pdf |archive-date=4 January 2015 |access-date=14 September 2014 |website=Institute for 21st Century Energy}}] Coal-fired power plants produce an additional 20% of electricity, with the remainder coming from biomass, hydro, and biogas.[{{Cite journal |date=November 2023 |title=ASEAN Oil and Gas Updates 2023 |url=https://aseanenergy.sharepoint.com/PublicationLibrary/Forms/AllItems.aspx?id=%2FPublicationLibrary%2F2023%2F02%2E%20External%20Communications%2F04%2E%20Report%2FASEAN%20Oil%20and%20Gas%20Updates%202023%20%2Epdf&parent=%2FPublicationLibrary%2F2023%2F02%2E%20External%20Communications%2F04%2E%20Report&p=true&ga=1 |journal=ASEAN Centre for Energy}}]{{Rp|17}} In 2022, oil and gas production dropped by 19% and 17%, respectively.[{{Cite journal |date=December 2023 |title=Thailand energy report |url=https://www.enerdata.net/estore/country-profiles/thailand.html |url-status=live |journal=Enerdata |at=Energy Supply |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241102190242/https://www.enerdata.net/estore/country-profiles/thailand.html |archive-date=2 November 2024 |access-date=October 22, 2024}}][{{Cite web |date=2020 |title=Alternative Energy Development Plan 2018–2037 |url=https://climate-laws.org/document/alternative-energy-development-plan-2018-2037_c79f |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241204095317/https://climate-laws.org/document/alternative-energy-development-plan-2018-2037_c79f |archive-date=4 December 2024 |access-date=2024-10-22 |website=Climate Change Laws of the World}}][{{Cite journal |date=January 2020 |title=Shifting to alternative energy |url=https://assets.kpmg.com/content/dam/kpmg/th/pdf/2020/01/th-shifting-to-alternative-energy.pdf |url-status=live |journal=KPMG Phoomchai Audit Co. LTD. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241202082012/https://assets.kpmg.com/content/dam/kpmg/th/pdf/2020/01/th-shifting-to-alternative-energy.pdf |archive-date=2 December 2024 |access-date=22 October 2024}}]
== Demographics ==
{{Main|Demographics of Thailand}}
{{Pie chart
|thumb = right
|caption =Ethnic groups
of Thailand
(2015 estimate by [[The World Factbook]])[{{Cite web |date=17 January 2025 |title=Thailand's Population Drops Below 66 Million as Births hit 75-year Low |url=https://www.khaosodenglish.com/featured/2025/01/17/thailands-population-drops-below-66-million-as-births-hit-75-year-low/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250918125839/https://www.khaosodenglish.com/featured/2025/01/17/thailands-population-drops-below-66-million-as-births-hit-75-year-low/ |archive-date=18 September 2025 |access-date=30 October 2025 |website=Khaosod English}}] There were 64,953,661 Thai nationals and 997,549 non-Thai residents.[{{Cite web |title=The Population of Thailand from 1909 to 2000 |url=http://doc.nso.go.th/en/census/poph/prelim_e.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230810230406/http://doc.nso.go.th/en/census/poph/prelim_e.htm |archive-date=10 August 2023 |access-date=10 August 2023 |publisher=[[National Statistical Office (Thailand)]]}}] The population is largely rural, concentrated in the rice-growing areas of the central, northeastern, and northern regions. About 44.2% lived in urban areas {{As of|2010|lc=y}}, slowly increasing from 29.4% in the 1990 census and 31.1% in the 2000 census.[{{Cite web |year=2012 |title=20230512163226_54316.pdf |url=https://www.nso.go.th/nsoweb/storage/title_presentation/2023/20230512163226_54316.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240101181315/https://www.nso.go.th/nsoweb/storage/title_presentation/2023/20230512163226_54316.pdf |archive-date=1 January 2024 |access-date=2 January 2024 |website=National Statistical Office |page=12}}]
The government-sponsored family planning programme resulted in a dramatic decline in population growth from 3.1% in 1960 to around 0.4% today. In 1970, an average of 5.7 people lived in a Thai household; in 2022, the average household size was 3 people.[{{Cite web |title=Average Household Size in Thailand |url=https://hub.arcgis.com/maps/esri::average-household-size-in-thailand/about |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231214160537/https://hub.arcgis.com/maps/esri::average-household-size-in-thailand/about |archive-date=14 December 2023 |access-date=14 December 2023 |website=hub.arcgis.com}}] Now, more than 20% of its population is aged over 60 and has a low birth rate, posing economic challenges.[{{cite news |last1=Singh |first1=Akanksha |date=3 June 2024 |title=Thailand's aging population hits consumption and economic growth – Thailand Business News |url=https://www.thailand-business-news.com/economics/142662-thailands-aging-population-hits-consumption-and-economic-growth |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240703150347/https://www.thailand-business-news.com/economics/142662-thailands-aging-population-hits-consumption-and-economic-growth |archive-date=3 July 2024 |access-date=24 July 2024 |work=www.thailand-business-news.com}}] The [[sex ratio]] between male and female is 1.05.[{{Citation |title=Thailand |date=2024-10-15 |work=The World Factbook |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/thailand/#:~:text=Age%20structure,comparison%20ranking:%20189 |access-date=2024-10-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210610164345/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/thailand/#:~:text=Age%20structure,comparison%20ranking:%20189 |archive-date=10 June 2021 |url-status=dead |publisher=Central Intelligence Agency}}] [[Total fertility rate]] declined to 1.0 in 2024,[{{Cite web |last=Yonpiam |first=Chairith |date=2 Feb 2025 |title=Experts urge action as declining birth rate set to hit Thai workforce |url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2952626/experts-urge-action-as-declining-birth-rate-set-to-hit-thai-workforce |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250604161928/https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2952626/experts-urge-action-as-declining-birth-rate-set-to-hit-thai-workforce |archive-date=4 June 2025 |access-date=14 August 2025 |website=Bangkok Post}}][{{Cite web |date=13 Feb 2026 |title=Thailand pushes to arrest plunging birth rate |url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/3196723/thailand-pushes-to-arrest-plunging-birth-rate |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260214051233/https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/3196723/thailand-pushes-to-arrest-plunging-birth-rate |archive-date=14 February 2026 |access-date=13 April 2026 |website=Bangkok Post}}] which ranks among countries with [[Sub-replacement fertility|ultra-low fertility]] rates.[{{cite journal |author1=Wibhu Kutanan |author2=Jatupol Kampuansai |author3=Metawee Srikummool |author4=Daoroong Kangwanpong |author5=Silvia Ghirotto |author6=Andrea Brunelli |author7=Mark Stoneking |year=2016 |title=Complete mitochondrial genomes of Thai and Lao populations indicate an ancient origin of Austroasiatic groups and demic diffusion in the spread of Tai-Kadai languages |url=https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/063172v1.full |journal=Human Genetics |volume=136 |issue=1 |pages=85–98 |doi=10.1007/s00439-016-1742-y |hdl=11858/00-001M-0000-002C-0639-D |pmc=5214972 |pmid=27837350 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240118183802/https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/063172v1.full |archive-date=18 January 2024 |hdl-access=free}}][{{cite journal |author1=Wibhu Kutanan |author2=Jatupol Kampuansai |author3=Andrea Brunelli |author4=Silvia Ghirotto |author5=Pittayawat Pittayaporn |author6=Sukhum Ruangchai |author7=Roland Schröder |author8=Enrico Macholdt |author9=Metawee Srikummool |author10=Daoroong Kangwanpong |author11=Alexander Hübner |author12=Leonardo Arias Alvis |author13=Mark Stoneking |year=2017 |title=New insights from Thailand into the maternal genetic history of Mainland Southeast Asia |url=https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/162610v1.full |journal=European Journal of Human Genetics |volume=26 |issue=6 |pages=898–911 |doi=10.1038/s41431-018-0113-7 |hdl=21.11116/0000-0001-7EEF-6 |pmc=5974021 |pmid=29483671 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240118231746/https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/162610v1.full |archive-date=18 January 2024 |access-date=19 January 2024 |hdl-access=free}}]
According to the Royal Thai Government's 2011 Country Report to the UN Committee responsible for the [[International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination|International Convention for the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination]], available from the Department of Rights and Liberties Promotion of the Thai Ministry of Justice, 62 ethnic communities are officially recognised in Thailand.[{{cite book |url=http://www.rlpd.go.th/rlpdnew/images/rlpd_1/HRC/CERD%201_3.pdf |title=International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination; Reports submitted by States parties under article 9 of the Convention: Thailand |date=28 July 2011 |publisher=United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination |language=en, th |access-date=8 October 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161009184727/http://www.rlpd.go.th/rlpdnew/images/rlpd_1/HRC/CERD%201_3.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2016 |url-status=dead}}]{{RP|3}} Twenty million Central Thai (together with approximately 650,000 [[Khorat Thai]]) made up approximately 20,650,000 (34.1 per cent) of the state's population of 60,544,937[{{Cite web |title=Population total – Thailand |url=http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.POP.TOTL?locations=TH |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161013071134/http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.POP.TOTL?locations=TH |archive-date=13 October 2016 |access-date=12 October 2016 |publisher=World Bank Group}}] at the time of completion of the Mahidol University ''Ethnolinguistic Maps of Thailand'' data (1997).[{{Cite book |url=http://www.newmandala.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Thailand-Ethnolinguistic-Maps.pdf |title=Ethnolinguistic Maps of Thailand |date=2004 |publisher=Office of the National Culture Commission |language=th |access-date=8 October 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161009124208/http://www.newmandala.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Thailand-Ethnolinguistic-Maps.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2016}}]
The 2011 Thailand Country Report provides population numbers for mountain peoples ('hill tribes') and ethnic communities in the Northeast and is explicit about its main reliance on the Mahidol University Ethnolinguistic Maps of Thailand data.[{{Cite journal |last=Luangthongkum |first=Theraphan |author-link=Theraphan Luangthongkum |year=2007 |title=The Position of Non-Thai Languages in Thailand |journal=Language, Nation and Development in Southeast Asia |page=191}}]
Increasing numbers of migrants from neighbouring Myanmar, Laos, and Cambodia, as well as from Nepal and India, have pushed the total number of non-national residents to around 3.5 million {{As of|2009|lc=y}}, up from an estimated 2 million in 2008.[[http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=84844 Thailand: Burmese migrant children missing out on education]. IRIN Asia. 15 June 2009. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120227185950/http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=84844 |date=27 February 2012}}] Some 41,000 [[British people|Britons]] and 20,000 [[Australians]] live in Thailand.[{{Cite news |last=McGeown |first=Kate |date=14 December 2006 |title=Hard lessons in expat paradise |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6176647.stm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090813164737/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6176647.stm |archive-date=13 August 2009 |access-date=1 March 2015 |publisher=BBC News}}][{{Cite web |date=3 July 2008 |title=Speech to the Australian-Thai Chamber of Commerce |url=http://foreignminister.gov.au/speeches/2008/080704_bangkok.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190612030327/https://foreignminister.gov.au/speeches/2008/080704_bangkok.html |archive-date=12 June 2019 |access-date=12 November 2019 |website=Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade}}]
=== Population centres ===
{{Further|List of cities in Thailand}}
{{Largest cities
| country = Thailand
| kind = municipalities
| stat_ref = {{cite web |title=รายงานสถิติจำนวนประชากรและบ้านประจำปี พ.ศ.2563 |url=https://stat.bora.dopa.go.th/new_stat/file/63/stat_a63.txt}}
| div_name = Province
| city_1 = Bangkok{{!}}Bangkok | div_1 = Bangkok | pop_1 = 5,588,222
| city_2 = Nonthaburi (city){{!}}Nonthaburi City | div_2 = Nonthaburi Province{{!}}Nonthaburi | pop_2 = 251,026
| city_3 = Pak Kret{{!}}Pak Kret City | div_3 = Nonthaburi Province{{!}}Nonthaburi | pop_3 = 189,458
| city_4 = Hat Yai{{!}}Hat Yai City | div_4 = Songkhla Province{{!}}Songkhla | pop_4 = 149,459
| city_5 = Chaophraya Surasak{{!}}Chaophraya Surasak City | div_5 = Chonburi Province{{!}}Chonburi | pop_5 = 146,474
| city_6 = Surat Thani{{!}}Surat Thani City | div_6 = Surat Thani Province{{!}}Surat Thani | pop_6 = 131,599
| city_7 = Nakhon Ratchasima{{!}}Nakhon Ratchasima City | div_7 = Nakhon Ratchasima Province{{!}}Nakhon Ratchasima |pop_7 = 122,730
| city_8 = Chiang Mai{{!}}Chiang Mai City | div_8 = Chiang Mai Province{{!}}Chiang Mai | pop_8 = 122,627
| city_9 = Udon Thani{{!}}Udon Thani City | div_9 = Udon Thani Province{{!}}Udon Thani | pop_9 = 120,202
| city_10 = Pattaya{{!}}Pattaya City | div_10 = Chonburi Province{{!}}Chonburi | pop_10 = 117,606
| city_11 = Khon Kaen{{!}}Khon Kaen City | div_11 = Khon Kaen Province{{!}}Khon Kaen | pop_11 = 110,615
| city_12 = Nakhon Si Thammarat{{!}}Nakhon Si Thammarat City | div_12 = Nakhon Si Thammarat Province{{!}}Nakhon Si Thammarat | pop_12 = 100,416
| city_13 = Laem Chabang{{!}}Laem Chabang City | div_13 = Chonburi Province{{!}}Chonburi | pop_13 = 89,457
| city_14 = Rangsit, Thailand{{!}}Rangsit City | div_14 = Pathum Thani Province{{!}}Pathum Thani | pop_14 = 84,268
| city_15 = Nakhon Sawan{{!}}Nakhon Sawan City | div_15 = Nakhon Sawan Province{{!}}Nakhon Sawan | pop_15 = 81,239
| city_16 = Phuket city{{!}}Phuket City | div_16 = Phuket Province{{!}}Phuket | pop_16 = 77,778
| city_17 = Chiang Rai (city){{!}}Chiang Rai City | div_17 = Chiang Rai Province{{!}}Chiang Rai | pop_17 = 77,545
| city_18 = Ubon Ratchathani{{!}}Ubon Ratchathani City | div_18 = Ubon Ratchathani Province{{!}}Ubon Ratchathani | pop_18 = 72,855
| city_19 = Nakhon Pathom{{!}}Nakhon Pathom City | div_19 = Nakhon Pathom Province{{!}}Nakhon Pathom | pop_19 = 72,753
| city_20 = Ko Samui{{!}}Ko Samui City | div_20 = Surat Thani Province{{!}}Surat Thani | pop_20 = 68,994
}}{{Largest cities
| country = Thailand
| kind = cities by urban population
| stat_ref = {{URL|https://onedptgis.dpt.go.th/onedpt-complain-ppl/}}
{{URL|https://www.bora.dopa.go.th}}
| div_name = Province
| city_1 = Bangkok {{!}}Bangkok | div_1 = Bangkok | pop_1 = 10,539,000
| city_2 = Chiang Mai{{!}}Chiang Mai | div_2 = Chiang Mai Province{{!}}Chiang Mai | pop_2 = 1,198,000
| city_3 = Nakhon Ratchasima{{!}}Nakhon Ratchasima | div_3 = Nakhon Ratchasima Province{{!}}Nakhon Ratchasima | pop_3 = 466,098
| city_4 = Khon Kaen{{!}}Khon Kaen | div_4 = Khon Kaen Province{{!}}Khon Kaen | pop_4 = 412,758
| city_5 = Hat Yai{{!}}Hat Yai | div_5 = Songkhla Province{{!}}Songhkla | pop_5 = 404,044
| city_6 = Udon Thani{{!}}Udon Thani | div_6 = Udon Thani Province{{!}}Udon Thani | pop_6 = 400,581
| city_7 = Chonburi{{!}}Chonburi | div_7 = Chonburi Province{{!}}Chonburi |pop_7 = 342,959
| city_8 = Pattaya{{!}}Pattaya | div_8 = Chonburi Province{{!}}Chonburi | pop_8 = 328,961
| city_9 = Si Racha{{!}}Si Racha | div_9 = Chonburi Province{{!}}Chonburi | pop_9 = 327,172
| city_10 = Phitsanulok{{!}}Phitsanulok | div_10 = Phitsanulok Province{{!}}Phitsanulok | pop_10 = 281,929
}}
=== Language ===
{{Main|Languages of Thailand}}
{{multiple image
| perrow = 2/1
| total_width = 300
| caption_align = center
| align = left
| image1 = Thailand ethnic map.svg
| caption1 = An ethnolinguistic map of Thailand
| image2 = Bangkok National Museum - 2017-04-22 (008).jpg
| caption2 = The Silajaruek of [[Sukhothai Kingdom]] are hundreds of stone inscriptions that form a historical record of the period.
}}
[[Thai language|Thai]] is the official language. It is a [[Kra–Dai language]] closely related to [[Lao language|Lao]], [[Shan language|Shan]] in Myanmar, and numerous smaller languages spoken in an arc from [[Hainan]] and [[Yunnan]] south to the Chinese border. It is the principal language of education and government and spoken throughout the country.[{{Cite book |last=Lewis |first=M. Paul |url=https://archive.org/details/ethnologuelangua0000unse_k9t5 |title=Ethnologue: languages of the world |publisher=SIL International |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-55671-216-6 |edition=16th |location=Dallas, Texas |pages=529–533, 829–831}}] The standard is based on the dialect of the central Thai people, and it is written in the [[Thai alphabet]], an [[abugida]] script that evolved from the [[Khmer alphabet]].[{{citation |last1=Hartmann |first1=John F. |title=The spread of South Indic scripts in Southeast Asia |page=8 |year=1986}}]
Sixty-two languages are recognised by the Royal Thai Government.[{{Cite web |date=5 October 2011 |title=CERD/C/THA/1-3 |url=https://www.rlpd.go.th/rlpdnew/images/rlpd_1/HRC/CERD%201_3.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161009184727/http://www.rlpd.go.th/rlpdnew/images/rlpd_1/HRC/CERD%201_3.pdf |archive-date=9 October 2016 |access-date=13 April 2024}}] For the purposes of the national census, four dialects of Thai exist; these partly coincide with regional designations, such as [[Southern Thai language|Southern Thai]] and [[Northern Thai language|Northern Thai]].[{{Cite web |title=Thailand {{!}} Ethnologue Free |url=https://www.ethnologue.com/country/TH/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230309065755/https://www.ethnologue.com/country/TH/ |archive-date=9 March 2023 |access-date=2024-04-12 |website=Ethnologue (Free All)}}][{{Cite web |date=December 2012 |title=The Global Religious Landscape |url=http://www.pewforum.org/2012/12/18/global-religious-landscape-exec/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140828202350/http://www.pewforum.org/2012/12/18/global-religious-landscape-exec/ |archive-date=28 August 2014 |access-date=5 November 2018 |publisher=Pew Research Center}}] According to the 2018 [[National Statistical Office (Thailand)|National Statistical Office]] data, 93.46% of the country's population self-identified as Buddhists.[{{Cite web |title=Population by religion, region and area, 2018 |url=http://statbbi.nso.go.th/nso/nso_center/project/table/files/S-soc-health/2561/000/00_S-soc-health_2561_000_000000_00100.xls |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210424172255/http://statbbi.nso.go.th/nso/nso_center/project/table/files/S-soc-health/2561/000/00_S-soc-health_2561_000_000000_00100.xls |archive-date=24 April 2021 |access-date=9 March 2021 |publisher=NSO}}]
[[File:Phutthamonthon Buddha.JPG|thumb|''[[Samanera]]'' of [[Theravada]] Buddhism, the most practised religion in Thailand]]
[[Islam in Thailand|Muslims]] constitute the second largest religious group in Thailand, comprising 5.37% of the population in 2018.[{{Cite book |last1=Gerson |first1=Ruth |title=Jews in Thailand |last2=Mallinger |first2=Stephen Mark |date=2011 |publisher=River Books |isbn=978-616-90895-0-6 |location=Bangkok}}]
The constitution does not name an official state religion, and provides for freedom of religion. There have been no widespread reports of societal abuses or discrimination based on religious belief or practice.[United States Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor. [https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2007/90155.htm Thailand: International Religious Freedom Report 2007] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191110084721/https://2001-2009.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2007/90155.htm |date=10 November 2019}}. The article incorporates text from this source, which is in the [[public domain]].] Thai law officially recognises five religious groups: Buddhists, Muslims, Brahmin-Hindus, Sikhs, and Christians.[{{Cite news |title=2018 Report on International Religious Freedom: Thailand |url=https://www.state.gov/reports/2018-report-on-international-religious-freedom/thailand/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221208143016/https://www.state.gov/reports/2018-report-on-international-religious-freedom/thailand/ |archive-date=8 December 2022 |access-date=28 June 2021 |work=US Department of State}}] However, some laws are inspired from Buddhist practices, such as banning alcohol sales on religious holidays.[{{Cite news |date=8 February 2020 |title=No alcohol sales today – Makha Bucha Day |url=https://thethaiger.com/news/national/no-alcohol-sales-today-makha-bucha-day-february-7-2020 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328151332/https://thethaiger.com/news/national/no-alcohol-sales-today-makha-bucha-day-february-7-2020 |archive-date=28 March 2024 |access-date=31 July 2021 |work=Thaiger}}]
=== Education ===
{{Main|Education in Thailand}}
[[File:Chulalongkorn University Auditorium.jpg|thumb|[[Chulalongkorn University]], established in 1917, is the oldest university in Thailand.]]
In 1995, as minister of education, [[Sukavich Rangsitpol]]laid let out his plans for educational reform in Thailand.[{{Cite web |title=Education Reform at the Ministry of Education Thailand |url=https://elibrary.ksp.or.th/doc_num.php?explnum_id=4954 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230927003957/https://elibrary.ksp.or.th/doc_num.php?explnum_id=4954 |archive-date=27 September 2023 |access-date=8 October 2023 |website=elibrary.ksp.or.th}}] The reform was considered a landmark movement after nearly 100 years of education under the previous system.[{{Cite web |title=The Thailand Educational Reform Project |url=https://backoffice.onec.go.th/uploaded/Category/EngBook/SchoolReformPolicy-04-03-2011.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231107091802/https://backoffice.onec.go.th/uploaded/Category/EngBook/SchoolReformPolicy-04-03-2011.pdf |archive-date=7 November 2023 |access-date=8 October 2023 |website=backoffice.onec.go.th}}] Thailand's youth literacy rate was 98.1% in 2015.[{{Cite web |title=Thailand-Youth literacy rate |url=https://knoema.com/atlas/Thailand/topics/Education/Literacy/Youth-literacy-rate |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210304210909/https://knoema.com/atlas/Thailand/topics/Education/Literacy/Youth-literacy-rate |archive-date=4 March 2021 |access-date=13 May 2020 |publisher=knoema}}] Education is provided by a school system of kindergartens, primary, lower secondary and upper secondary schools, numerous vocational colleges, and universities. Education is compulsory up to and including age 14, while the government is mandated to provide free education through to age 17. Issues concerning university entrance have been in constant upheaval for a number of years. The country is also one of the few that still mandates uniform up to the university years, which is still a subject of ongoing debate.[{{cite news |last1=Boonyatus |first1=Jeerapa |date=28 June 2023 |title=Voices of students on school rules and uniforms |url=https://www.thaipbsworld.com/voices-of-students-on-school-rules-and-uniforms/ |work=Thai PBS World}}]
In 2013, the [[Ministry of Information and Communication Technology (Thailand)|Ministry of Information and Communication Technology]] announced that 27,231 schools would receive classroom-level access to [[internet|high-speed internet]].[{{Cite web |date=11 March 2013 |title=Thailand Provides 27,231 Schools With Internet |url=http://www.inceva.co.th/2013/03/thailand-provides-27231-schools-internet |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140716224136/http://www.inceva.co.th/2013/03/thailand-provides-27231-schools-internet/ |archive-date=16 July 2014 |access-date=30 January 2015 |work=Software Development | Marketing | Consulting | เพิ่มพูนผลกำไร}}] However, the country's educational infrastructure was still underprepared for online teaching, as smaller and more remote schools were particularly hindered by COVID-19 restrictions.[{{Cite news |last1=Mala |first1=Dumrongkiat |date=4 January 2021 |title=Covid hinders education again |url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2045015/covid-hinders-education-again |access-date=10 August 2021 |work=Bangkok Post}}]
The number of higher education institutions in Thailand has grown over the past decades to 156 officially. The two top-ranking universities in Thailand are [[Chulalongkorn University]] and [[Mahidol University]].[{{Cite web |title=University Ranking |url=https://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/world-university-rankings/2020 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201226033634/https://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/world-university-rankings/2020 |archive-date=26 December 2020 |access-date=13 May 2020 |publisher=topuniversities}}] Thai universities' research output is still relatively low, even though the country's journal publications increased by 20% between 2011 and 2016.[{{Cite journal |last=Buasuwan |first=Prompilai |year=2018 |title=Rethinking Thai higher education for Thailand 4.0 |journal=Asian Education and Development Studies |publisher=emerald |volume=7 |issue=2 |pages=157–173 |doi=10.1108/AEDS-07-2017-0072 |doi-access=free}}] Thailand has the second highest number of English-medium private international schools in [[ASEAN|Southeast Asian Nations]].[{{cite news |last1=Charassangsomboon |first1=Varissara |date=17 September 2018 |title=Exclusive: Thailand's plan to fight inequality in education |url=https://govinsider.asia/intl-en/article/exclusive-thailand-education-inequality-teerakiat-jareonsettasin |access-date=3 June 2024 |work=GovInsider}}]
Students in ethnic minority areas score consistently lower in standardised national and international tests.[{{Citation |last=Draper |first=John |title=Revisiting English in Thailand |work=Asian EFL Journal |volume=14 |issue=4 |pages=9–38 |year=2012 |url=http://asian-efl-journal.com/quarterly-journal/2012/12/01/revisiting-english-in-thailand/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140312225048/http://asian-efl-journal.com/quarterly-journal/2012/12/01/revisiting-english-in-thailand/ |archive-date=12 March 2014 |url-status=live |issn=1738-1460}}][{{Citation |last=OECD |title=Structural Policy Country Notes: Thailand |year=2013 |url=http://www.oecd.org/dev/asia-pacific/Thailand.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140312224513/http://www.oecd.org/dev/asia-pacific/Thailand.pdf |archive-date=12 March 2014 |url-status=live |publisher=OECD}}][{{Cite news |last=Khaopa |first=Wannapa |date=12 December 2012 |title=Thai students drop in world maths and science study |url=https://www.nationthailand.com/detail/national/30195966 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140312224452/http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Thai-students-drop-in-world-maths-and-science-stud-30195966.html |archive-date=12 March 2014 |work=The Nation}}] This is likely due to unequal allocation of educational resources, weak teacher training, poverty, and low Thai language skill, the language of the tests.[{{Cite news |last=Draper |first=John |date=12 December 2011 |title=Solving Isaan's education problem |url=http://isaanrecord.com/2011/12/12/op-ed-solving-isaans-education-problem |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130226030123/http://isaanrecord.com/2011/12/12/op-ed-solving-isaans-education-problem/ |archive-date=26 February 2013 |publisher=The Isaan Record}}][{{Cite news |last=Draper |first=John |date=21 February 2014 |title=PISA Thailand regional breakdown shows inequalities between Bangkok and Upper North with the rest of Thailand |url=http://isaanrecord.com/2014/02/21/pisa-thailand-regional-breakdown-shows-inequalities-between-bangkok-and-upper-north-with-the-rest-of-thailand |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140312225108/http://isaanrecord.com/2014/02/21/pisa-thailand-regional-breakdown-shows-inequalities-between-bangkok-and-upper-north-with-the-rest-of-thailand/ |archive-date=12 March 2014 |publisher=The Isaan Record}}] {{As of|2020}}, Thailand was ranked 89th out of 100 countries globally for English proficiency.[{{Cite news |date=27 November 2020 |title=English skills drop again |url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2026031/english-skills-drop-again |access-date=10 August 2021 |work=Bangkok Post}}] Thailand is the third most popular study destination in ASEAN. The number of international degree students in Thailand increased by 9.7 times between 1999 and 2012, from 1,882 to 20,309 students. Most of international students come from neighbour countries[{{Cite web |date=6 February 2018 |title=Education in Thailand |url=https://wenr.wes.org/2018/02/education-in-thailand-2 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200919062516/https://wenr.wes.org/2018/02/education-in-thailand-2 |archive-date=19 September 2020 |access-date=13 May 2020 |publisher=WENR}}] like China, Myanmar, Cambodia and Vietnam.[{{Cite web |title=สถิติอุดมศึกษา Higher Education Statistics 2558–2560 |url=http://www.mua.go.th/assets/img/pdf/61.10.26_%E0%B8%AA%E0%B8%96%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%95%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%B8%E0%B8%94%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%A8%E0%B8%B6%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%A9%E0%B8%B2%202558-2560_V4.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211025160558/http://www.mua.go.th/assets/img/pdf/61.10.26_%E0%B8%AA%E0%B8%96%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%95%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%B8%E0%B8%94%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%A8%E0%B8%B6%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%A9%E0%B8%B2%202558-2560_V4.pdf |archive-date=25 October 2021 |access-date=13 May 2020 |publisher=Office of The higher Education Commission}}]
=== Health ===
{{Main|Health in Thailand|Healthcare in Thailand|Hospitals in Thailand}}
[[File:Siriraj Hospital,Bangkok.jpg|thumb|[[Siriraj Hospital]] in Bangkok, the oldest and largest hospital in Thailand]]
Thailand ranks world's sixth, and Asia's first in the 2019 [[Global Health Security Index]] of global health security capabilities in 195 countries,[{{Cite web |title=2019 Global Health Security Index |url=https://www.ghsindex.org/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803202057/https://www.ghsindex.org/ |archive-date=3 August 2020 |access-date=15 May 2020 |publisher=GHS INDEX}}] making it the only [[developing country]] on the world's top ten. Thailand had 62 hospitals accredited by [[Joint Commission|Joint Commission International]].[{{Cite web |title=Search for JCI-Accredited Organizations |url=https://www.jointcommissioninternational.org/en/about-jci/accredited-organizations/#f:_Facet_Country= |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201001181625/https://www.jointcommissioninternational.org/en/about-jci/accredited-organizations/#f:_Facet_Country= |archive-date=1 October 2020 |access-date=15 May 2020 |publisher=JCI}}] In 2002, [[Bumrungrad International Hospital|Bumrungrad]] became the first hospital in Asia to meet the standard.[{{Cite journal |last=Finch |first=Steve |date=2014-01-07 |title=Thailand top destination for medical tourists |journal=Canadian Medical Association Journal |volume=186 |issue=1 |pages=E1–E2 |doi=10.1503/cmaj.109-4655 |pmc=3883860 |pmid=24246587}}]
Health and medical care is overseen by the [[Ministry of Public Health (Thailand)|Ministry of Public Health]], with national expenditures on health amounting to 4.3 per cent of GDP in 2009. [[Non-communicable disease]]s form the major burden of morbidity and mortality, while infectious diseases including malaria[{{Cite journal |date=20 November 2023 |others=Design and layout by Claude Cardot, cover design by Lushomo |title=World malaria report 2023 |url=https://www.who.int/teams/global-malaria-programme/reports/world-malaria-report-2023 |journal=World Health Organization |pages=22–23, 85 |isbn=978-92-4-008617-3}}] and tuberculosis,[{{Cite journal |last1=Mingchay |first1=Pichanon |last2=Paitoonpong |first2=Leilani |last3=Kawkitinarong |first3=Kamon |last4=Ohata |first4=Pirapon June |last5=Suwanpimolkul |first5=Gompol |date=2024-08-20 |title=Tuberculosis at a university hospital, Thailand: A surprising incidence of TB among a new generation of highly exposed health care workers who may be asymptomatic |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=17 |issue=8 |article-number=e0273027 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0273027 |pmc=9401166 |pmid=36001595 |doi-access=free}}] as well as traffic accidents, are also important public health issues.[{{Cite web |date=2023-01-06 |title=14,737 lives lost on Thai roads in 2022 |url=https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/general/40023780 |access-date=2024-10-20 |website=nationthailand}}]
In 2018, the interim parliament voted to legalise the use of [[Medical cannabis|cannabis for medical reasons]], making Thailand the first Southeast Asian country to allow the use of medical cannabis.[{{Cite web |last1=Olam |first1=Kocha |last2=Goldschmidt |first2=Debra |date=25 December 2018 |title=Thailand approves medical marijuana |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2018/12/25/health/thailand-medical-marijuana-bn/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181226030858/https://edition.cnn.com/2018/12/25/health/thailand-medical-marijuana-bn/index.html |archive-date=26 December 2018 |access-date=26 December 2018 |publisher=CNN}}]
== Culture ==
File:Silk Loom Jim Thompson House photo D Ramey Logan.jpg|Thai women wearing [[sabai]], [[Jim Thompson House]]
File:นายกรัฐมนตรี มอบบ้านตามโครงการแก้ไขปัญหาความเดือดร้อนท - Flickr - Abhisit Vejjajiva (1).jpg|[[Thai greeting]], the smile is an important symbol of refinement in Thai culture.
File:Poi Sang Long Festiva03.JPG|Poy Sang Long in [[Mae Hong Son]], northern Thailand
File:Songkran 012.jpg|The roads along the old moat of [[Chiang Mai]] are full of vehicles during the [[Songkran (Thailand)|Songkran]] water splashing festival.
File:Buddhist worship.jpg|[[Śrāmaṇera|Buddhist novices]] receiving [[joss sticks]].
[[Culture of Thailand|Thai culture and traditions]] incorporate influences from India, China, Cambodia, and the rest of Southeast Asia. Thailand's national religion, [[Theravada|Theravada Buddhism]], the national religion, is central to modern [[Thainess|Thai identity]]. [[Buddhism in Thailand|Thai Buddhism]] has evolved over millennia from the Mon kingdom of Dvaravati. Nowadays it includes many regional beliefs originating from [[Hinduism]], [[animism]], as well as ancestor worship. The [[Thai solar calendar|official calendar]] is based on the Eastern version of the [[Buddhist calendar|Buddhist Era]] (BE). The ancient Thai identity originates from the Tai-speaking groups who migrated from southern China to Southeast Asia in 6th to 11th century.[{{Cite web |last=Stentiford |first=Barry M. |date=2022 |title=Tai Peoples |url=https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/history/tai-peoples |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251102203705/https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/history/tai-peoples |archive-date=2 November 2025 |access-date=2 November 2025 |website=EBSCO Knowledge Advantage}}] They mixed with the existing Austro-Asiatic groups like the Mon and Khmer while absorbing their cultures and beliefs in the Chao Phraya Basin.[{{Cite web |last=Bankston |first=Carl L., III |date=2022 |title=Ramkhamhaeng Conquers the Mekong and Menam Valleys |url=https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/history/ramkhamhaeng-conquers-mekong-and-menam-valleys |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260414102452/https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/history/ramkhamhaeng-conquers-mekong-and-menam-valleys |archive-date=14 April 2026 |access-date=14 April 2026 |website=EBSCO}}] The prevalent culture of central Thailand formed the basis of the modern Thai identity. This was [[Thaification|spread nationwide]] by the [[Plaek Phibunsongkhram|Phibun]] regime to assimilate the ethnic groups in the 1940s.[{{cite web |last=Wongworakul |first=Eve |date=21 December 2020 |title=History of Pad Thai as a Symbol of Nationalism in Thailand |url=https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/d0392aa1bf6a48659b9d15fc557f7a2e |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510003143/https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/d0392aa1bf6a48659b9d15fc557f7a2e |archive-date=10 May 2024 |access-date=9 May 2024 |website=[[ArcGIS|arcgis.com]]}}][{{cite journal |last=Reynolds |first=E. Bruce |date=2004 |title=Phibun Songkhram and Thai Nationalism in the Fascist Era |journal=European Journal of East Asian Studies |publisher=[[Brill Publishers|Brill]] |volume=3 |issue=1 |pages=99–134 |doi=10.1163/1570061033004686 |jstor=23615170}}][{{cite journal |last=Thepboriruk |first=Kanjana Hubik |date=August 2019 |title=Dear Thai Sisters: Propaganda, Fashion, and the Corporeal Nation under Phibunsongkhram |url=https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/231696876.pdf |url-status=live |journal=Southeast Asian Studies |volume=8 |issue=2 |pages=233–258 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510003143/https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/231696876.pdf |archive-date=10 May 2024 |access-date=9 May 2024}}]
Several ethnic groups mediated change between their traditional local culture, national Thai, and global cultural influences. [[Overseas Chinese]] also form a significant part of Thai society, particularly in and around Bangkok. Thai Chinese businesses prosper as part of the larger [[bamboo network]].[{{Cite book |last=Murray L Weidenbaum |url=https://archive.org/details/bamboonetworkhow00weid |title=The Bamboo Network: How Expatriate Chinese Entrepreneurs are Creating a New Economic Superpower in Asia |publisher=Martin Kessler Books, Free Press |year=1996 |isbn=978-0-684-82289-1 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/bamboonetworkhow00weid/page/4 4]–8 |url-access=registration}}]
[[File:Loi Krathong 2010 John Shedrick.jpg|thumb|People floating krathong rafts during the [[Loi Krathong]] festival in Chiang Mai, Thailand]]
Respect for elderly and superiors (by age, position, monks, or certain professions) is Thai [[mores]], reflected in many [[Thai honorifics|classes of honorifics]].[Kummer, Manfred. "Politeness in Thai". ''Politeness in Language: Studies in its History, Theory, and Practice''. Ed. Richard J. Watts, Sachiko Ide, and Konrad Ehlich. Berlin: Moutun de Gruyter, 1992. 325-336.] ''[[Wai (gesture)|Wai]]'' is a familiar greeting and is generally offered first by a person who is younger or lower in social status and position.[{{Cite web |last=Scroope |first=Chara |date=2016 |title=Thai – Family |url=https://culturalatlas.sbs.com.au/thai-culture/thai-culture-family |access-date=2025-03-17 |website=Cultural Atlas}}] [[Taboo]]s include touching someone's head or pointing with the feet, as the head is considered the most sacred and the foot the lowest part of the body.[{{cite thesis |last=Smutkupt |first=Suriya |title=A Descriptive Study of Thai Nonverbal Communication |access-date=17 March 2025 |publisher=Portland State University |url=https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3592&context=open_access_etds |doi=10.15760/etd.2584 |doi-access=free |pages=4, 18, 20, 31–32 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240218163745/https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3592&context=open_access_etds |archive-date=18 February 2024 |year=1976 |url-status=live}}]
=== Art ===
[[File:WatPhraKeaw Ramayana Chariot.JPG|thumb|Scene from the [[Ramakien]] depicted on a mural at [[Wat Phra Kaew]]]]
The origins of [[Thai art]] were influenced by [[Buddhist art]] and by scenes from the Indian epics. Traditional Thai sculpture almost exclusively depicts images of the Buddha, being very similar to the other styles from Southeast Asia. Traditional paintings usually consist of book illustrations and painted ornamentation of buildings such as palaces and temples.
Thai art was influenced by indigenous civilisations of the Mon and other civilisations. By the Sukothai and Ayutthaya periods, Thai had developed into its own unique style and was later further influenced by the other Asian styles, mostly by [[Indian art|Sri Lankan]] and [[Chinese art|Chinese]]. The royal courts provided patronage, erecting temples and other religious shrines as acts of merit or to commemorate important events.[{{Cite web |title=Buddhist Arts of Thailand |url=http://www.buddhanet.net/pdf_file/budartthai2.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191211220801/http://www.buddhanet.net/pdf_file/budartthai2.pdf |archive-date=11 December 2019 |access-date=4 December 2019}}]
Traditional paintings showed subjects in two dimensions without [[Perspective (graphical)|perspective]]. The size of each element in the picture reflected its degree of importance. The primary technique of [[Composition (visual arts)|composition]] is that of apportioning areas: the main elements are isolated from each other by space transformers. This eliminated the intermediate ground, which would otherwise imply perspective. Perspective was introduced only as a result of [[Western world|Western]] influence in the mid-19th century. Monk artist [[Khrua In Khong]] is well known as the first artist to introduce [[linear perspective]] to traditional art.[{{Cite news |last=PCL |first=Post Publishing |title=Wat Borommaniwat |url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/travel/sightseeing/26933/wat-borommaniwat |work=Bangkok Post}}]
The most frequent narrative subjects for paintings were or are: the [[Jataka]] stories, episodes from the life of the Buddha, the Buddhist [[heaven]]s and [[hell]]s, themes derived from the Thai versions of the ''[[Ramayana]]'' and ''[[Mahabharata]]'', and scenes of daily life. Some of the scenes are influenced by [[Thai folklore]] instead of following strict Buddhist iconography.[{{Cite web |title=โครงการจักทำองค์ความรู้ด้านการสำรวจสถาปัตยกรรมเพื่อการอนุรักษ์โบราณสถาน |url=http://www.finearts.go.th/olddata/files/01_Knowledge_1-3.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191213140750/http://www.finearts.go.th/olddata/files/01_Knowledge_1-3.pdf |archive-date=13 December 2019 |access-date=13 December 2019 |publisher=[[Fine Arts Department]], Ministry of Culture(Thailand)}}] [[List of Buddhist temples in Thailand|Buddhist temples in Thailand]] are known as "[[wat]]s", from the [[Pāḷi]] ''vāṭa'', meaning an enclosure: a temple has an enclosing wall that divides it from the secular world. Wat architecture demonstrates many differences in layout and style, but they all adhere to the same principles.[{{Cite web |title=วัด |url=http://www.elca.ssru.ac.th/suriyun_ch/pluginfile.php/132/block_html/content/009%20%20%20%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%94%E0%B9%81%E0%B8%A5%E0%B8%B0%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%87%E0%B8%84%E0%B9%8C%E0%B8%9B%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B0%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%9A.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200617135050/http://www.elca.ssru.ac.th/suriyun_ch/pluginfile.php/132/block_html/content/009%20%20%20%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%94%E0%B9%81%E0%B8%A5%E0%B8%B0%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%87%E0%B8%84%E0%B9%8C%E0%B8%9B%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B0%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%9A.pdf |archive-date=17 June 2020 |access-date=13 December 2019}}]
=== Literature ===
{{Main|Thai literature|Thai poetry}}
During the Sukhothai Kingdom, most literary works were written in simple prose with certain alliteration schemes. Major works include King [[Ram Khamhaeng Inscription]] describing life at the time, which is considered the first literary work in Thai script, but some historians question its authenticity.[{{Cite conference |last=Terwiel |first=Barend Jan |date=January 2007 |title=Using Ockham's Razor with respect to the Ram Khamhaeng Controversy |url=https://www.academia.edu/9903229 |conference="Breaking the Bonds" Hamburg 24–26 November 2006 |access-date=8 December 2017 |archive-date=30 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220530042606/https://www.academia.edu/9903229 |url-status=live}}] ''Trai Phum [[Phra Ruang]]'', written in 1345 by King [[Maha Thammaracha I]], expounds Buddhist philosophy based on an extensive study with reference to over 30 sacred texts and could be considered the nation's first piece of research dissertation.[{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Thai literature |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/art/Thai-literature |access-date=11 May 2020 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201019151510/https://www.britannica.com/art/Thai-literature |archive-date=19 October 2020}}]
[[File:Sunrise on Hat Saikaew, Koh Samet.jpg|thumb|Sculptures of [[Phra Aphai Mani]] and the Mermaid from the [[epic poem]] ''[[Phra Aphai Mani]]'', a work of [[Sunthorn Phu]]]]
During the Ayutthaya Kingdom, new poetic forms were created, with different rhyme schemes and metres. It is common to find a combination of different poetic forms in one poetic work. ''Lilit [[Yuan Phai]]'' is a narrative poem describing [[Ayutthaya–Lan Na War (1441–1474)|the war]] between King [[Borommatrailokkanat]] of Ayutthaya and Prince [[Tilokaraj]] of [[Lan Na]]. One literary work is ''Kap He Ruea'', composed by Prince [[Thammathibet]] in the ''[[nirat]]'' tradition. Traditionally, the verse is sung during the [[royal barge]] procession[{{Cite journal |date=May 9, 2024 |title=การสร้างสรรค์ภาพประกอบศิลปะดิจิทัล: ภาพเย่เนี่เยอ บทแห่งชมกนในพระนิพนธ์เจ้าฟ้าธรรมธิเบศร (เจ้าฟ้ากุ้ง) |trans-title=Digital Art Illustration Creation: Ye Nie Ye, the Chapter of Chomkan in the writings of Prince Dharma Thibesra (Prince Kung) |url=https://so07.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/HUSO-J/article/view/2936/3101 |journal=Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences Nakhon Pathom Rajabhat University |language=th |volume=14 |issue=2}}] and has been the model for subsequent poets to emulate. The same prince also composed the greatly admired ''Kap Ho Khlong'' on the Visit to Than Thongdaeng and ''Kap Ho Khlong Nirat Phrabat''.[{{Cite web |title=Culture Overview: Literature and Performances |url=http://www.thaiembassy.org/lima/en/thai-people/7305/79482-Literature-and-Performances.html |publisher=thaiembassy}}{{Dead link|date=January 2026 |bot=InternetArchiveBot }}] The [[Thonburi Kingdom|Thonburi]] period produced ''[[Ramakien]]'', a verse drama contributed by King [[Taksin]].
During the 18th century Rattanakosin period, which still fought with the Burmese, many of the early Rattanakosin works dealt with war and military strategy. Some examples are ''Nirat Rop Phama Thi Tha Din Daeng'', ''Phleng Yao Rop Phama Thi Nakhon Si Thammarat''. There were also verse recitals with musical accompaniment, such as [[Mahori]] telling the story of ''[[Kaki Klon Suphap|Kaki]]'' and [[Sepha]], relating the story of ''[[Khun Chang Khun Phaen]]''. Other recitals include [[Sri Thanonchai]]. Thai poet [[Sunthorn Phu]] is known as "the bard of Rattanakosin" ({{langx|th|กวีเอกแห่งกรุงรัตนโกสินทร์}}). Sunthorn Phu is best known for his epic poem ''[[Phra Aphai Mani]]'', a versified fantasy-adventure novel, a genre of Siamese literature known as {{transliteration|engvar=gb|th|nithan kham klon}} ({{langx|th|นิทานคำกลอน}}).[{{Cite journal |last=Scrima |first=Andrea |date=April 2019 |title=Duanwad Pimwana and Mui Poopoksakul with Andrea Scrima |url=https://brooklynrail.org/2019/04/books/Duanwad-Pimwana-and-Mui-Poopoksakul-with-Andrea-Scrima |journal=The Brooklyn Rail |access-date=7 April 2019}}]
=== Music and dance ===
{{Main|Music of Thailand|Dance in Thailand}}
[[File:Dance of the Ramayana.jpg|thumb|upright=1|[[Khon]] show]]
Aside from folk and regional dances (southern Thailand's [[Menora (dance)|Menora]] and [[Romvong|Ramwong]], for example), the two major forms of classical dance drama are [[Khon]] and [[Lakhon nai]]. In the beginning, both were exclusively court entertainments, and it was not until much later that a popular style of dance theatre, [[likay]], evolved as a diversion for common folk.[{{Cite web |title=Thai Traditional Dances – Dance costume Thailand |url=https://www.thai2siam.com/thai-traditional-dances |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200203174740/https://www.thai2siam.com/thai-traditional-dances |archive-date=3 February 2020 |access-date=12 May 2020 |publisher=Thai to Siam}}] Folk dance forms include dance theatre forms like likay, numerous regional dances (''ram''), the ritual dance [[ram muay]], and homage to the teacher, [[Wai khru ram muay|wai khru]].[{{Cite journal |last1=Guffey |first1=Ryan V. |last2=Kaewkaen |first2=Anothai |date=2017-09-01 |title=Historical Practices and Modern Interpretations: Understanding the Wai Khru Ceremony as a Thai Educational and Cultural Tradition |url=https://digitalcommons.lindenwood.edu/ela/vol5/iss1/3 |journal=Journal of Educational Leadership in Action |volume=5 |issue=1 |at=Wai Khru: Guide to Rites and Symbolism |doi=10.62608/2164-1102.1049 |issn=2164-1102 |doi-access=free}}] Both ram muay and wai khru take place before traditional [[muay Thai]] matches.[{{cite web |last=Rajadamnern Stadium |date=2025-01-06 |title=What is an Authentic Wai Kru in Muay Thai |url=https://rajadamnern.com/blog/muay-thai-wai-kru/ |access-date=2026-08-06 |publisher=Global Sport Ventures Co., Ltd. |language=en}}] The three primary classical ensembles are the [[Piphat]], [[Khrueang sai]], and [[Mahori]]. Mahori employ small ching hand cymbals.[{{Cite journal |last1=Yang |first1=Mi |last2=Roongruang |first2=Panya |date=May 30, 2022 |title=The Mahori Music At Bangkok Thonburi University |url=https://so06.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/ajrc/article/view/256015 |journal=Asia Pacific Journal of Religions and Cultures |volume=6 |issue=1 |page=51}}]
=== Media ===
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| footer = [[Jeff Satur]] and [[Lalisa Manobal]]{{efn-lr|Lisa spells her surname ''Manobal'' in the Latin alphabet. However, ''Manoban'' is a better approximation of the Thai pronunciation and is the spelling recommended by the [[Royal Thai General System of Transcription]].[{{cite web |author=Yim Seung-hye |date=August 26, 2021 |title=Title of single by Blackpink's Lisa is her real name |url=https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/2021/08/26/entertainment/kpop/lisa-blackpink-lalisa-manobal/20210826112900544.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210910114715/https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/2021/08/26/entertainment/kpop/lisa-blackpink-lalisa-manobal/20210826112900544.html |archive-date=September 10, 2021 |access-date=September 10, 2021 |website=[[Korea JoongAng Daily]]}}][{{cite web |author=Ryu Jae-yeon |date=July 1, 2018 |title=Blackpink Lisa Deceiving Other Members with Her Real Name??? |url=https://mnews.joins.com/article/22677888?IgnoreUserAgent=y#home |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210526081742/https://mnews.joins.com/article/22677888?IgnoreUserAgent=y#home |archive-date=May 26, 2021 |access-date=March 17, 2021 |website=[[JoongAng Ilbo]]}}]}}
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{{Main|Mass media in Thailand|Censorship in Thailand|4 = Thai television soap opera}}
[[Cinema of Thailand|Thai films]] are exported and exhibited in Southeast Asia.[{{Cite news |last1=Rithdee |first1=Kong |date=23 October 2015 |title=Expanding the Asean screen |url=https://www.bangkokpost.com/life/arts-and-entertainment/740772/expanding-the-asean-screen |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230210161236/https://www.bangkokpost.com/life/arts-and-entertainment/740772/expanding-the-asean-screen |archive-date=10 February 2023 |access-date=10 May 2020 |work=Bangkok Post}}] Thai cinema has developed its own unique identity.[{{Cite web |date=3 April 2007 |title=Thai films get in on the action |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/thai-films-get-action-133270 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200911145033/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/thai-films-get-action-133270 |archive-date=11 September 2020 |access-date=10 May 2020 |work=The Hollywood Reporter}}] Thriller film ''[[Bad Genius (2017 film)|Bad Genius]]'' (2017) was one of the most internationally successful Thai films; it broke film earning records in several Asian countries[{{Cite web |title='Thai wave' in showbiz poised for big splash in China |url=https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Business-trends/Thai-wave-showbiz-faces-golden-opportunity-to-court-Chinese-market |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200603095710/https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Business-trends/Thai-wave-showbiz-faces-golden-opportunity-to-court-Chinese-market |archive-date=3 June 2020 |access-date=5 April 2026 |publisher=NIKKEI Asian Review}}] and won in 12 categories at the 27th [[Suphannahong National Film Awards]], and also won the Jury Award at the 16th [[New York Asian Film Festival]] with a worldwide collection of more than $42 million.[{{Cite web |date=16 May 2019 |title=From Singapore to Malaysia: Markets Leading the Expansion of Southeast Asian Cinema |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/markets-leading-expansion-southeast-asian-cinema-1211133/item/cannes-spotlight-southeast-asia-singapore-1211134 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200911145002/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/markets-leading-expansion-southeast-asian-cinema-1211133/item/cannes-spotlight-southeast-asia-singapore-1211134 |archive-date=11 September 2020 |access-date=10 May 2020 |work=The Hollywood Reporter}}] ''[[Shutter (2004 film)|Shutter]]'' (2004) was one of the best-known Thai horror movies and was recognised worldwide.[{{Cite news |last=Scheck |first=Frank |date=24 March 2008 |title="Shutter" a bland horror remake |url=https://uk.reuters.com/article/film-film-shutter-dc/shutter-a-bland-horror-remake-idUKN2313717520080324 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200915003528/https://uk.reuters.com/article/film-film-shutter-dc/shutter-a-bland-horror-remake-idUKN2313717520080324 |archive-date=15 September 2020 |access-date=10 May 2020 |work=Reuters}}] Films such as ''[[Ong-Bak: Muay Thai Warrior]]'' (2003) and ''[[Tom-Yum-Goong]]'' (2005), starring [[Tony Jaa]], feature distinctive aspects of Thai martial arts "[[Muay Thai]]". Thailand television dramas, known as [[Thai television soap opera|Lakorn]], have become popular in Thailand and regionally.[{{Cite news |date=3 July 2018 |title=Thailand's 'lakorn' soap operas come to PH |url=https://entertainment.inquirer.net/281741/thailands-lakorn-soap-operas-come-ph |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200603095607/https://entertainment.inquirer.net/281741/thailands-lakorn-soap-operas-come-ph |archive-date=3 June 2020 |access-date=10 May 2020 |newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer}}]
The entertainment industries are estimated to have directly contributed $2.1 billion in GDP to the economy in 2011. They also directly supported 86,600 jobs.[{{Cite web |title=The economic contribution of the film and television industries in Thailand |url=https://www.mpa-apac.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/The_Economic_Contribution_of_the_Film_and_Television_Industries_in_Thailand1.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200603095649/https://www.mpa-apac.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/The_Economic_Contribution_of_the_Film_and_Television_Industries_in_Thailand1.pdf |archive-date=3 June 2020 |access-date=10 May 2020 |publisher=Oxford Economics}}] Several [[dance-pop]] artists are internationally successful like [[Lisa (rapper)|Lisa]],[{{Cite web |date=25 December 2019 |title=7 Rising Style Stars to Watch in 2020 |url=https://www.vogue.com/vogueworld/slideshow/7-style-stars-to-watch-in-2020 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200603095812/https://www.vogue.com/vogueworld/slideshow/7-style-stars-to-watch-in-2020 |archive-date=3 June 2020 |access-date=11 May 2020 |publisher=VOGUE}}] [[Violette Wautier]],[{{Cite web |date=2020-06-23 |title=Universal Music Group ดัน วิโอเลต วอเทียร์ เป็นศิลปินสากลเต็มตัว เปิดตัวแรง! จนเพลงจากอัลบั้ม Glitter and Smoke ติดท็อปชาร์ตถึง 12 ประเทศ {{!}} HITZ THAILAND |url=https://hitz.teroradio.com/news/48967/universal-music-group-%E0%B8%94%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%99-%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%B4%E0%B9%82%E0%B8%AD%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%A5%E0%B8%95-%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%AD%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%97%E0%B8%B5%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%A3%E0%B9%8C-%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%9B%E0%B9%87%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%A8%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%A5%E0%B8%9B%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%AA%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%A5%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%95%E0%B9%87%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%95%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%A7%EF%BF%BD%C2%A6 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240910045850/https://hitz.teroradio.com/news/48967/universal-music-group-%E0%B8%94%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%99-%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%B4%E0%B9%82%E0%B8%AD%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%A5%E0%B8%95-%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%AD%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%97%E0%B8%B5%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%A3%E0%B9%8C-%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%9B%E0%B9%87%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%A8%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%A5%E0%B8%9B%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%AA%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%A5%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%95%E0%B9%87%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%95%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%A7%EF%BF%BD%C2%A6 |archive-date=10 September 2024 |access-date=2024-09-10 |website=hitz.teroradio.com}}] [[Jeff Satur]],[{{Cite web |last=Sirikul |first=Laura |date=12 March 2026 |title=Thai Superstar Jeff Satur Sets The Global Stage For T-Pop And Culture |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurasirikul/2026/03/12/thai-superstar-jeff-satur-sets-the-global-stage-for-t-pop-and-culture/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260314054231/https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurasirikul/2026/03/12/thai-superstar-jeff-satur-sets-the-global-stage-for-t-pop-and-culture/ |archive-date=14 March 2026 |access-date=17 April 2026 |website=Forbes}}] and [[Tata Young]].
=== Cuisine ===
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| footer = '''Clockwise from top left''': [[Massaman curry|Chicken massaman curry]]; [[mango sticky rice]]; [[pad Thai]]; and [[tom yum]]
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}}
[[Thai cuisine]] is one of the most popular in the world.[{{Cite web |date=20 December 2021 |title=A Brief History on Pad Thai {{!}} Rice Bowl Deluxe |url=https://ricebowldeluxe.com/a-brief-history-on-pad-thai/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240101210545/https://ricebowldeluxe.com/a-brief-history-on-pad-thai/ |archive-date=1 January 2024 |access-date=2024-01-02 |website=Rice Bowl Deluxe}}] Common ingredients include [[garlic]], [[lemongrass]], [[kaffir lime]], [[galangal]], [[turmeric]], [[coriander]], and [[coconut milk]].[{{Cite web |title=Phad Thai Diplomacy: Get To Know The Best Thai Restaurants Outside Thailand |url=https://guide.michelin.com/th/en/article/features/phad-thai-diplomacy-get-to-know-the-best-thai-restaurants-outside-thailand |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240101210546/https://guide.michelin.com/th/en/article/features/phad-thai-diplomacy-get-to-know-the-best-thai-restaurants-outside-thailand |archive-date=1 January 2024 |access-date=2024-01-01 |website=MICHELIN Guide}}][{{Cite web |date=2021-06-09 |title=Thai Lemongrass – What is it and how is it used in Thai food? |url=https://theunusualtrip.com/thai-lemongrass/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240101210546/https://theunusualtrip.com/thai-lemongrass/ |archive-date=1 January 2024 |access-date=2024-01-01}}][{{Cite web |title=Galangal as a Thai Food Ingredient |url=https://www.thaicookbook.tv/thai-food-ingredients/roots-and-rhizomes/galangal-thai-kha/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240101210545/https://www.thaicookbook.tv/thai-food-ingredients/roots-and-rhizomes/galangal-thai-kha/ |archive-date=1 January 2024 |access-date=2024-01-01 |website=thaicookbook.tv}}][{{Cite web |title=Turmeric as a Thai Food Ingredient |url=https://www.thaicookbook.tv/thai-food-ingredients/roots-and-rhizomes/turmeric-kha-min/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240101210545/https://www.thaicookbook.tv/thai-food-ingredients/roots-and-rhizomes/turmeric-kha-min/ |archive-date=1 January 2024 |access-date=2024-01-01 |website=thaicookbook.tv}}][{{Cite web |title=Coriander / Cilantro Leaves as a Thai Food Ingredient |url=https://www.thaicookbook.tv/thai-food-ingredients/fresh-herbs-and-spices/coriander-leaves-cilantro-thai-phak-chi/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240101210545/https://www.thaicookbook.tv/thai-food-ingredients/fresh-herbs-and-spices/coriander-leaves-cilantro-thai-phak-chi/ |archive-date=1 January 2024 |access-date=2024-01-01 |website=thaicookbook.tv}}] Each region of Thailand has its specialities: ''kaeng khiao wan'' ([[green curry]]) in the central region, ''som tam'' ([[green papaya salad]]) in the northeast, ''[[khao soi]]'' in the north, and [[Massaman curry|''massaman'' curry]] in the south.[{{cite web |date=2018-01-13 |title=Discover Thai Cuisine through its famous four regions |url=https://www.tatnews.org/2018/01/discover-thai-cuisine-famous-four-regions/ |access-date=2026-08-06 |publisher=Tourism Authority of Thailand Newsroom |language=en}}][{{cite web |author=Gomayu Team |date=2026-07-27 |title=Thai Food: A Real Guide to Thailand's Four Cuisines |url=https://www.gomayu.com/blogs/thai-food/ |access-date=2026-08-06 |website=Gomayu |language=en}}]
In 2017, seven Thai dishes appeared on a list of the "World's 50 Best Foods"—an online worldwide poll by [[CNN Travel]]—more than any other country. They were: ''[[Tom yum|tom yam]] goong'' (4th), ''[[pad thai]]'' (5th), ''som tam'' (6th), ''massaman'' curry (10th), green curry (19th), [[Thai fried rice]] (24th) and ''[[nam tok mu]]'' (36th).[{{Cite news |last=Tim Cheung |date=12 July 2017 |title=Your pick: World's 50 best foods |url=http://travel.cnn.com/explorations/eat/readers-choice-worlds-50-most-delicious-foods-012321/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170708091757/http://travel.cnn.com/explorations/eat/readers-choice-worlds-50-most-delicious-foods-012321/ |archive-date=8 July 2017 |access-date=5 May 2018 |publisher=CNN}}] Two desserts were [[mango sticky rice]] and [[Thapthim krop|tub tim krob]].[{{Cite news |date=27 December 2018 |title=Mango Sticky Rice & Tub Tim Krob Listed in CNN's 50 Best Desserts Around The World |url=http://www.buriramtimes.com/mango-sticky-rice-tub-tim-krob-listed-in-cnns-50-best-desserts-around-the-world/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190101080431/http://www.buriramtimes.com/mango-sticky-rice-tub-tim-krob-listed-in-cnns-50-best-desserts-around-the-world/ |archive-date=1 January 2019 |access-date=23 April 2022 |work=Buriram Times}}]
The staple food is rice, particularly [[jasmine rice]], which forms part of almost every meal. Thailand is a leading exporter of rice, and Thais consume over 100 kg of milled rice per person per year.[{{Cite web |year=2013 |title=World Rice Statistics Online Query Facility |url=http://ricestat.irri.org:8080/wrsv3/entrypoint.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160426121256/http://ricestat.irri.org:8080/wrsv3/entrypoint.htm |archive-date=26 April 2016 |access-date=30 January 2016 |website=International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) |publisher=FAO}}] Thailand is also the world leader in [[Insects as food|edible insect]] industry[{{Cite news |last=Board |first=Jack |date=18 August 2019 |title=Food of the future? Five-star edible insects served up as Thailand gets creative with bug business |url=https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/thailand-insect-farming-food-protein-source-11786032 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190819123158/https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/thailand-insect-farming-food-protein-source-11786032 |archive-date=19 August 2019 |access-date=19 August 2019 |work=Channel News Asia (CNA)}}] and well known for [[Street food of Thailand|its street food]]; Bangkok is sometimes called the street food capital of the world.[{{Cite news |title=The 10 best street food cities in the world, per VirtualTourist.com, Frommer's |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/eats/10-best-street-food-cities-world-virtualtourist-frommer-article-1.1125775 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201034522/http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/eats/10-best-street-food-cities-world-virtualtourist-frommer-article-1.1125775 |archive-date=1 December 2017 |access-date=17 July 2022 |work=Daily News |location=New York |agency=Agence France-Presse}}][{{Cite web |title=The Hairy Bikers' Asian Adventure, Thailand – Bangkok and the Central Plains |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03wc3zr |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171204150257/http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03wc3zr |archive-date=4 December 2017 |access-date=17 July 2022 |publisher=BBC |type=Video}}]
=== Units of measurement ===
{{Further|Thai units of measurement}}
Thailand generally uses the [[metric system]], but [[Thai units of measurement|traditional units of measurement]] for land area are used, and [[imperial units]] of measurement are occasionally used for building materials. Years are numbered as B.E. (Buddhist Era) in educational settings, civil service, government, contracts, and newspaper datelines. However, in banking, and increasingly in industry and commerce, standard Western year (Christian or [[Common Era]]) counting is the standard practice.[{{Cite web |date=17 December 1923 |title=Weights and measures in Thailand |url=http://www.cockatoo.com/english/thailand/thailand-weights-measures.htm |archive-url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20171010141820/http://asiatour.com/thailand-regions-2009/ |archive-date=10 October 2017 |access-date=25 April 2010 |publisher=Cockatoo.com}}]
=== Sports ===
{{Main|Sport in Thailand}}
{{See also|Thailand at the Olympics|Rugby union in Thailand|Golf in Thailand|Football in Thailand|List of sporting events held in Thailand}}
[[File:Muay Thai Fight Us Vs Burma (80668065).jpeg|thumb|[[Muay Thai]], Thailand's signature sport]]
[[Muay Thai]] ({{Lit.|Thai boxing}}) is a [[combat sport]] that uses stand-up striking along with various [[clinch fighting|clinching]] techniques. Muay Thai became widespread internationally in the late-20th to 21st centuries. Famous practitioners include [[Buakaw Banchamek]], [[Samart Payakaroon]], and [[Apidej Sit-Hirun]].[{{Cite web |date=5 July 2017 |title=Top 10 Muay Thai Fighters You Should Know |url=http://www.muaythaicitizen.com/top-10-muay-thai-fighters/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200507133329/http://www.muaythaicitizen.com/top-10-muay-thai-fighters/ |archive-date=7 May 2020 |access-date=11 May 2020 |publisher=muaythaicitizen}}] [[Association football]] has overtaken Muay Thai as the most widely followed sport in Thailand. The [[Thailand national football team]] has played the [[AFC Asian Cup]] six times and reached the semifinals in 1972. The country has hosted the Asian Cup twice, in [[1972 AFC Asian Cup|1972]][{{Cite web |last1=Panahi |first1=Majeed |last2=Veroeveren |first2=Pieter |date=12 June 2009 |title=Asian Nations Cup 1972 |url=https://www.rsssf.org/tables/72asch.html |access-date=2024-10-20 |website=www.rsssf.org}}] and in [[2007 AFC Asian Cup|2007]] (along with Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam for the 2007).
[[Volleyball]] is rapidly growing as one of the most popular sports. The [[Thailand women's national volleyball team|women's team]] has often participated in the [[FIVB Volleyball Women's World Championship|World Championship]], [[FIVB Volleyball Women's World Cup|World Cup]], and [[FIVB Volleyball World Grand Prix|World Grand Prix]] [[Asian Championship]]. They have won the [[Asian Women's Volleyball Championship|Asian Championship]] twice and the [[AVC Cup for Women|Asian Cup]] once. [[Takraw]] is a sport native to Thailand in which the players hit a rattan ball and are only allowed to use their feet, knees, chest, and head to touch the ball. [[Sepak takraw]] is a form of this sport which is similar to volleyball. A rather similar game but played only with the feet is [[buka ball]].
[[Rugby football|Rugby]] is also a growing sport in Thailand with the [[Thailand national rugby union team]] rising to be ranked 61st in the world.[{{Cite web |title=International Rugby Board – THAILAND |url=http://www.irb.com/unions/union=11000019/index.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928002735/http://www.irb.com/unions/union%3D11000019/index.html |archive-date=28 September 2011 |access-date=25 April 2010 |publisher=World Rugby}}] Thailand became the first country in the world to host an international 80 welterweight rugby tournament in 2005.[[http://nationmultimedia.com/2005/07/19/sport/index.php?news=sport_18070310.html The Nation] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110425010652/http://nationmultimedia.com/2005/07/19/sport/index.php?news=sport_18070310.html |date=25 April 2011}}, 19 July 2005.] Thailand has also attracts golfers from Japan, Korea, and Western countries.[{{Cite news |last=Nualkhair |first=Chawadee |date=10 July 2009 |title=Thailand woos foreign golfers with sun, sand traps |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/lifestyleMolt/idUSTRE56913I20090710 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090715051308/http://www.reuters.com/article/lifestyleMolt/idUSTRE56913I20090710 |archive-date=15 July 2009 |access-date=25 April 2010 |work=Reuters}}] There are more than 200 world-class golf courses nationwide.[{{Cite web |title=Why to book with golf2thailand.com: Thailand Golf Courses Thailand Golf Packages |url=http://www.golf2thailand.com/golf_course_thailand.asp |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060615203517/http://www.golf2thailand.com/golf_course_thailand.asp |archive-date=15 June 2006 |access-date=25 April 2010 |publisher=Golf2thailand.com}}] For basketball, the Chang Thailand Slammers won the 2011 [[ASEAN Basketball League]] Championship.[{{Cite web |title=Chang Thailand Slammers – AirAsia ASEAN Basketball League |url=http://www.aseanbasketballleague.com/teams/view/6/chang-thailand-slammers |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120605045404/http://www.aseanbasketballleague.com/teams/view/6/chang-thailand-slammers |archive-date=5 June 2012 |access-date=2 June 2012 |publisher=aseanbasketballleague.com}}] The [[Thailand national basketball team]] had its most successful year at the [[Basketball at the 1966 Asian Games|1966 Asian Games]] where it won the silver medal.[{{Cite web |date=18 May 2012 |title=Thailand Basketball |url=http://www.best-basketball-tips.com/thailand-basketball.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120501100255/http://www.best-basketball-tips.com/thailand-basketball.html |archive-date=1 May 2012 |access-date=2 June 2012 |publisher=best-basketball-tips.com}}]
[[File:Bangkok Lumpinee Boxing Stadium 1.jpg|thumb|[[Lumpinee Boxing Stadium]]]]
The [[Lumpinee Boxing Stadium]] originally sited at [[Rama IV Road]] near [[Lumphini Park]] hosted its final Muay Thai boxing matches on 8 February 2014 after the venue first opened in December 1956. On 11 February 2014, the stadium was relocated to Ram Intra Road due to the new venue's capacity.[{{Cite news |date=6 February 2014 |title=End of an era for Muay Thai at Lumpini |url=http://www.bangkokpost.com/breakingnews/393517/end-of-an-era-as-lumpini-boxing-stadium-closes-its-doors-on-friday |archive-url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20171010141109/https://www.bangkokpost.com/archive/end-of-an-era-as-lumpini-boxing-stadium-closes-its-doors-on-friday/393517 |archive-date=10 October 2017 |access-date=6 February 2014 |work=Bangkok Post}}] [[Thammasat Stadium]] in Bangkok was built for the [[1998 Asian Games]]. [[Rajamangala National Stadium]] is the biggest sporting arena in Thailand, with a capacity of around 50,000.[{{Cite web |title=Rajamangala Stadium – Bangkok |url=https://www.stadiumguide.com/rajamangala-stadium/ |access-date=2024-10-20 |website=The Stadium Guide}}]
== See also ==
{{portal|Thailand|Asia}}
* [[International rankings of Thailand]]
* [[Outline of Thailand]]
== Notes ==
{{notelist-lr}}
== References ==
{{reflist}}
== Further reading ==
* {{cite book |title=Routledge Handbook of Contemporary Thailand |publisher=Routledge |year=2020 |isbn=978-1-138-55841-0 |editor-last=Chachavalpongpun |editor-first=Pavin |oclc=1110657073}}
* {{cite book |last=Cooper |first=Robert George |title=Culture Shock! Thailand: A Survival Guide to Customs and Etiquette |publisher=Marshall Cavendish Editions |year=2008 |isbn=978-981-4828-77-2 |oclc=1101343921}}
* {{cite book |last=London |first=Ellen |title=Thailand Condensed: 2000 Years of History & Culture |publisher=Marshall Cavendish Editions |year=2008 |isbn=978-981-261-520-6}}
* {{cite book |title=Lonely Planet's Best of Thailand |publisher=Lonely Planet |year=2020 |series=Lonely Planet guidebooks |location=Footscray, Vic. |oclc=1312080896}}
* {{cite book |last=Mishra |first=Patit Paban |title=The History of Thailand |publisher=Greenwood |year=2010 |oclc=548555562}}
* {{cite book |title=Thailand: Its People, Its Society, Its Culture |publisher=HRAF Press |year=1974 |editor-last=Moore |editor-first=Frank J. |oclc=722730}}
* {{cite book |last=Zawacki |first=Benjamin |title=Thailand: Shifting Ground Between the US and a Rising China |publisher=Bloomsbury |year=2021 |edition=2nd |oclc=1232148433}}
== External links ==
{{Sister project links|Thailand|commonscat=yes|voy=Thailand}}
'''Government'''
* [http://www.thaigov.go.th/ Thaigov.go.th] – Government of Thailand
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20081210073951/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/world-leaders-1/world-leaders-t/thailand.html Chief of State and Cabinet Members] (archived 10 December 2008)
* [http://www.mfa.go.th/ Mfa.go.th] – Ministry of Foreign Affairs
* [http://internet.nectec.or.th/webstats/internetmap.current.iir?Sec=internetmap_current Thailand Internet information] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080918094705/http://internet.nectec.or.th/webstats/internetmap.current.iir?Sec=internetmap_current |date=18 September 2008 }} – National Electronics and Computer Technology Center
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20150428064708/http://www.m-culture.go.th/english/ Ministry of Culture] (archived 28 April 2015)
'''General information'''
* {{Cite CIA World Factbook|country=Thailand}}
* [http://countrystudies.us/thailand/ Thailand] entry in [[Library of Congress Country Studies]]. 1987
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090207001737/http://ucblibraries.colorado.edu/govpubs/for/thailand.htm Thailand] from ''UCB Libraries GovPubs'' (archived 7 February 2009)
* [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-15581957 Thailand] from the [[BBC News]]
* [http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/589625/Thailand Thailand] ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' entry
* {{wikiatlas|Thailand}}
* [http://map.longdo.com/en Longdo Map] – Thailand maps in English and Thai
* [http://www.ifs.du.edu/ifs/frm_CountryProfile.aspx?Country=TH Key Development Forecasts for Thailand] from [[International Futures]]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20130116235916/http://popcensus.nso.go.th/file/popcensus-20-12-54.pdf 2010 Thailand population census by Economic and Social statistics Bureau] (archived 16 January 2013)
'''Travel'''
* [http://www.tourismthailand.org/ Tourism Authority of Thailand] – official tourism website
'''Other'''
* [http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20140731093617/http://www.commonlanguageproject.net/?page_id%3D41#Thailand Thailand Country Fact Sheet] from the Common Language Project (archived 31 July 2014)
* {{cite web |last=Southeast Asia Visions |title=Browse the Southeast Asia Visions Collection |url=https://dlxs.library.cornell.edu/s/sea/browse_image/date/1900.php |publisher=Cornell University Library}}
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