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Kingdom of Thailand ราชอาณาจักรไทย (Thai) Ratcha-anachak Thai
Flag Emblem
Anthem: Phleng Chat Thai (Template:Lang-en) Royal anthem: Sansoen Phra Barami (Template:Lang-en)
Show globeShow map of ASEANLocation of Thailand (green) – in Asia (light green & dark grey) – in ASEAN (light green)
Capitaland largest city	Bangkok 13°45′N 100°29′E / 13.750°N 100.483°E / 13.750; 100.483
Official languages	Thai
Spoken languages	Isan Kam Mueang Pak Tai
Ethnic groups	86% Thais  ∟ 39% Central Thai  ∟ 28% Thai Lao (Isan)  ∟ 10% Khon Muang  ∟ 9% Southern Thai 3% Khmer 2% Malays 9% Other (68 minority ethnic groups)
Religion	94.50% Buddhism 4.29% Islam 1.17% Christianity 0.03% Hinduism 0.01% Unaffiliated
Demonym(s)	Thai Siamese (archaic)
Government	Unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy (de jure) Military junta (de facto)
• Monarch	Maha Vajiralongkorn
• Prime Minister	Prayut Chan-o-cha
Legislature	National Assembly
• Upper house	Senate
• Lower house	House of Representatives
Formation
• Rattanakosin Kingdom	6 April 1782
• Constitutional monarchy	24 June 1932
• Current constitution	6 April 2017
Area
• Total	513,120 km (198,120 sq mi) (50th)
• Water (%)	0.4 (2,230 km)
Population
• 2021 estimate	71,601,103 (20th)
• 2010 census	64,785,909
• Density	132.1/km (342.1/sq mi) (88th)
GDP (PPP)	2019 estimate
• Total	$1.390 trillion
• Per capita	$20,474
GDP (nominal)	2019 estimate
• Total	$516 billion
• Per capita	$7,607
Gini (2015)	36 medium inequality
HDI (2018)	0.765 high (77th)
Currency	Baht (฿) (THB)
Time zone	UTC+7 (ICT)
Drives on	left
Calling code	+66
ISO 3166 code	TH
Internet TLD	.th .ไทย

Template:Contains Thai text

Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and formerly known as Siam, is a country at the Southeast Asian Indochinese Peninsula composed of 76 provinces. Clockwise from northwest, Thailand is bordered by Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, the Gulf of Thailand, Malaysia and the Andaman Sea. Nominally a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy since 1932, the coup in 2014 established a de facto military dictatorship under a junta.

Tai migration from China was witnessed in the 11th century. Various kingdoms including Indianised ones rivalled each other for control of the region. Through a sequence of conflicts, the kingdoms of Ayutthaya, Thonburi and the Rattanakosin's Chakri dynasty had respectively in turn administrated most of the region. Facing pressure from France and the United Kingdom including forced concessions of territory, Siam remained the only state in Southeast Asia to avoid direct Western rule.

While it joined the Allies in World War I, Thailand was an Axis satellite in World War II. Thailand became a major ally of the United States, playing a key anti-communist role in the region as a SEATO member. Apart from a period of parliamentary democracy in the mid-1970s, Thailand has periodically alternated this with military rules. In 2013, Thailand endured a political crisis that culminated in two coups and the establishment of its current and 20th constitution by a military junta.

Despite comparatively sporadic changes in leadership, Thailand, a founding member of ASEAN, is considered a regional power in Southeast Asia and a middle power in global affairs. As the second-largest ASEAN economy and 20th-largest by PPP, Thailand is classified as a newly industrialized economy in which manufacturing, agriculture, and tourism are leading sectors.

Etymology

Thailand (/ˈtaɪlænd/ TY-land or /ˈtaɪlənd/ TY-lənd; Template:Lang-th, RTGS: Prathet Thai, pronounced [pratʰêːt tʰaj] ), officially the Kingdom of Thailand (Template:Lang-th, RTGS: Ratcha-anachak Thai [râːtt͡ɕʰaʔaːnaːt͡ɕàk tʰaj] , Chinese: 泰国), is formerly known as Siam (Template:Lang-th, RTGS: Sayam [sajǎːm]).

Thailand

According to George Cœdès, the word Thai (ไทย) means 'free man' in the Thai language, "differentiating the Thai from the natives encompassed in Thai society as serfs". A scholar argued that Thai (ไท) simply means 'people' or 'human being', since his investigation shows that in some rural areas the word "Thai" was used instead of the usual Thai word khon (คน) for people. According to Michel Ferlus, the ethnonyms Thai-Tai (or Thay-Tay) would have evolved from the etymon *k(ə)ri: 'human being' through the following chain: *kəri: > *kəli: > *kədi:/*kədaj > *di:/*daj > *daj (Proto-Southwestern Tai) > tʰaj (in Siamese and Lao) or > taj (in the other Southwestern and Central Tai languages classified by Li Fangkuei). Ferlus's work is based on some rules of phonetic change observable in the Sinosphere and studied for the most part by William H. Baxter (1992).

While the people refer to the country using the polite form prathet Thai (Template:Lang-th), they also use the more colloquial term mueang Thai (Template:Lang-th) or simply Thai; the word mueang, archaically referring to a city-state, is commonly used to refer to a city or town as the centre of a region. Ratcha Anachak Thai (Template:Lang-th) means 'kingdom of Thai'. Etymologically, its components are: ratcha (Template:Lang-sa, rājan, 'king, royal, realm'); -ana- (Pali āṇā 'authority, command, power', itself from the Sanskrit आज्ञा, ājñā, of the same meaning) -chak (from Sanskrit चक्र cakra- 'wheel', a symbol of power and rule).

Siam

By outsiders, prior to 1949 it was usually known by the exonym Siam (Template:Lang-th RTGS: sayam, pronounced [sajǎːm], also spelled Siem, Syâm, or Syâma). The word Siam may have originated from Pali (suvaṇṇabhūmi, 'land of gold') or Sanskrit श्याम (śyāma, 'dark') or Mon ရာမည(rhmañña, 'stranger'). The names Shan and A-hom seem to be variants of the same word. The word Śyâma is possibly not its origin, but a learned and artificial distortion. Another theory is the name derives from Chinese: "Ayutthaya emerged as a dominant centre in the late fourteenth century. The Chinese called this region Xian, which the Portuguese converted into Siam."

The signature of King Mongkut (r. 1851–1868) reads SPPM (Somdet Phra Poramenthra Maha) Mongkut Rex Siamensium (Mongkut King of the Siamese), giving the name Siam official status until 24 June 1939 when it was changed to "Thailand". Thailand was renamed Siam from 1946 to 1948, after which it again reverted to "Thailand".

History

Prehistory

There is evidence of human habitation in present-day Thailand from 20,000 years ago on. The earliest evidence of rice growing is dated at 2,000 BCE. Bronze appeared circa 1,250–1,000 BCE. The site of Ban Chiang in northeast Thailand currently ranks as the earliest known centre of copper and bronze production in Southeast Asia. Iron appeared around 500 BCE. Funan was the first Southeast Asian kingdom at the time (2nd century BCE). The Mons established the principalities of Dvaravati and Hariphunchai in the 6th century. The Khmers established an empire centred in Angkor, in the 9th century. Tambralinga, a Malay state controlling trade through the Malacca Strait, rose in the 10th century. The Indochina peninsula was influenced by the culture and religions of India from the time of Funan to that of the Khmer Empire.

The Thais are of the Tai ethnic group, characterised by common linguistic roots. Chinese chronicles first mention the Tai peoples in 6th century BCE. While there are assumptions regarding their origin, David K. Wyatt, argued that their ancestors which at the present inhabit Laos, Thailand, Myanmar, India, and China came from Điện Biên Phủ between 5th and the 8th century. Thai people began migrating into present-day Thailand around the 11th century, which Mon and Khmer people occupied at the time. Thus Thai culture was influenced by Indian, Mon, and Khmer cultures.

According to 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-reliefs of Angkor Wat" where "a group of warriors" are described as Syam.

Early states

After the decline of the Khmer Empire and Pagan in early-13th century, various states thrived in their place. The Tai domains existed from the northeast of present-day India to the north of present-day Laos and to the Malay peninsula. During the 13th century, Tai people had already settled in the core land of Dvaravati and Lavo Kingdom to Nakhon Si Thammarat in the south. There are, however, no records detailing the arrival of the Tais.

Sukhothai Kingdom

Around 1240, Pho Khun, a local Tai ruler, rallied the people to rebel against the Khmer. He later crowned himself first king of Sukhothai in 1238. Sukhothai expanded furthest during the reign of Ram Khamhaeng (r. 1279–1298). However, it was mostly a network of local lords who swore fealty to Sukhothai, not directly controlled by it. He is believed to have invented Thai script and ceramics were an important export in his era. Sukhothai embraced Theravada Buddhism in the reign of Maha Thammaracha I (1347–1368).

To the north, Mangrai, who descended from a local ruler lineage of Ngoenyang, founded Lan Na in 1292, centered in Chiang Mai. He unified the surrounding area and his dynasty would rule the kingdom continuously for the next two centuries. He also created a network of states through political alliances to the east and north of the Mekong. While in the port in Lower Chao Phraya Basin, a federation around Phetchaburi, Suphan Buri, Lopburi, and Ayutthaya area was created in the 11th century.

Ayutthaya Kingdom

According to a version of its origin, the Ayutthaya Kingdom rose from the earlier, nearby Lavo and Suvarnabhumi with Uthong as its first king. Ayutthaya was a patchwork of self-governing principalities and tributary provinces owing allegiance to the King under the mandala system. 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. Ayutthaya then became a regional power in place of the Khmer. Constant interference of Sukhothai effectively made it a vassal state of Ayutthaya and it was finally incorporated into the kingdom. Borommatrailokkanat brought about bureaucratic reforms which lasted into the 20th century and created a system of social hierarchy called sakdina, where male commoners were conscripted as corvée labourers for six months a year. Ayutthaya was interested in the Malay peninsula, but failed to conquer the Malacca Sultanate which was supported by the Ming Dynasty.

European contact and trade started in early-16th century, with envoy of Portuguese duke Afonso de Albuquerque in 1511, followed 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 dynasty Taungoo starting in the 1540s in the reign of Tabinshwehti and Bayinnaung were ultimately ended with the capture of the capital in 1570. Then was a brief period of vassalage to Burma until Naresuan proclaimed independence in 1584.

Ayutthaya then sought to improve relations with European powers for successive reigns. The kingdom prospered during cosmopolitan Narai's reign (1656–1688) when some European travelers regarded Ayutthaya as an Asian great power, alongside China and India. However, growing French influence later in his reign was met with nationalist sentiment and led eventually to the Siamese revolution of 1688. However, overall relations remained stable, with French missionaries still active in preaching Christianity.

After that, there was a period of relative peace but the kingdom's influence gradually waned, partly due to bloody struggles over each succession.

Thonburi Kingdom

In 1767, Ayutthaya was destroyed. The royal palace and the city were burnt to the ground. The territory was occupied by the Burmese Alaungpaya army and local leaders declared themselves overlords including the lords of Sakwangburi, Pimai, Chanthaburi, and Nakhon Si Thammarat. Chao Tak, a military leader, proceeded to make himself a lord by right of conquest, began with the 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 seven months after the fall of the city.

Anarchy followed the destruction of the former capital. Taksin rose to power and proclaimed Thonburi as temporary capital in the same year. He also subdued the other warlords. His forces engaged in wars with Burma, Laos, and Cambodia, which successfully drove the Burmese out of Lan Na in 1775, captured Vientiane in 1778 and tried to install a pro-Thai king in Cambodia in the 1770s. In his final years there was a coup, caused supposedly by his "insanity", eventually Taksin and sons were executed by companion General Chao Phraya Chakri (Rama I), the first king of the ruling Chakri who founded Rattanakosin on 6 April 1782.

Modernisation and centralisation

Under Rama I (1782–1809), Rattanakosin successfully defended against and put an end to Burmese attacks and incursions. He also created suzerainty over portions of Laos and Cambodia. In 1821, Briton John Crawfurd was sent to negotiate a new trade agreement with Siam – the first sign of an issue which was to dominate 19th century Siamese politics. Bangkok signed the Burney Treaty in 1826, after the British victory in the First Anglo-Burmese War. Anouvong of Vientiane, who misunderstood that Britain was about to attack Bangkok, started the Lao rebellion in 1826 and was defeated. Vientiane was destroyed and a large number of Lao people was relocated to Khorat Plateau as a result. Bangkok waged several wars with Vietnam, wherein successfully regained influence over Cambodia.

From late-19th century, Siam tried to rule the ethnic groups in the realm as colonies. In the reign of Mongkut (1851–1868), who recognised the threat of Western powers, his court contacted the British government directly to defuse tensions. A British mission led by Sir John Bowring, led to the signing of the Bowring Treaty, the first of many unequal treaties with Western countries. This brought trade and economic development in Bangkok. The death of Mongkut from malaria led to the reign of Prince Chulalongkorn, with Somdet Chaophraya Sri Suriwongse acting as regent.

Chulalongkorn (r. 1868–1910) initiated centralisation, set up a privy council and abolished slavery and the corvée system. The Front Palace crisis of 1874 stalled attempts at reform. In the 1870s and 1880s, he incorporated the protectorate up north into the kingdom proper, which later expanded to the protectorate in the northeast and the south. He established twelve krom in 1888, which were equivalent to present-day ministries. The crisis of 1893 erupted, caused by French demands for Lao territory east of Mekong. Thailand is the only Southeast Asian nation not to have been colonised by a Western power, in part because Britain and France agreed in 1896 to make the Chao Phraya valley a buffer state. Not until the 20th century could Siam renegotiate every unequal treaty dating from the Bowring Treaty, including extraterritoriality, and it had to pay with territorial exchanges. The advent of the monthon system marked the creation of the modern Thai nation-state. In 1905, there were rebellions in the ancient Pattani area, Ubon Ratchathani, and Phrae in opposition to an attempt to blunt the power of local lords.

The Palace Revolt of 1912 was a failed attempt by Western-educated military officers to overthrow the absolute monarchy. Vajiravudh (r. 1910–1925) responded by propaganda for the entirety of his reign. He promoted the idea of the Thai nation. In 1917, Siam joined World War I on the side of the Allies as there were concerns that the Allies might punish neutral countries and refuse to amend past unequal treaties. In the aftermath Siam joined the Paris Peace Conference, and gained freedom of taxation and the revocation of extraterritoriality.

Constitutional monarchy, World War II and Cold War

A bloodless revolution took place in 1932, carried out by the Khana Ratsadon group of military and civilian officials, resulting in a transition of power, when Prajadhipok was forced to grant the people of Siam their first constitution, thereby ending centuries of absolute monarchy. Combined results of economic hardships brought on by the Great Depression, sharply falling rice prices, and a significant reduction in public spending caused discontent among aristocrats. In 1933, a counter-revolutionary rebellion occurred which aimed to reinstate absolute monarchy, but failed. Prajadhipok's conflict with the government eventually led to abdication. The government selected Ananda Mahidol, who was studying in Switzerland, to be the new king.

Later that decade, the military wing of Khana Ratsadon came to dominate Siamese politics. Plaek Phibunsongkhram who became premier in 1938, started political oppression and took an overt anti-royalist stance. His government adopted nationalism and Westernisation, anti-Chinese and anti-French policies. In 1940, there was a decree changing the name of the country from "Siam" to "Thailand". In 1941, a brief conflict with Vichy France resulting in Thailand gaining Lao and Cambodian territories. On 8 December 1941, the Empire of Japan launched an invasion, and fighting broke out shortly before Phibun ordered an armistice. Japan was granted free passage and on 21 December, Thailand and Japan signed a military alliance with a secret protocol, wherein Tokyo agreed to help Thailand regain territories lost to the British and French. The Thai government declared war on the United States and the United Kingdom. The Free Thai Movement was launched both internal and abroad to oppose the government and Japanese occupation. After the war ended in 1945, Thailand signed formal agreements to end the state of war with the Allies. Most Allied powers had not recognised Thailand's declaration of war.

In June 1946, King Ananda was found dead under mysterious circumstances. His younger brother Bhumibol Adulyadej ascended the throne. Thailand joined the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) to become an active ally of the United States in 1954. Field Marshal Sarit Thanarat launched a coup in 1957, which removed Khana Ratsadon from politics. His rule (premiership 1959–1963) was autocratic; he built his legitimacy around the god-like status of the monarch and by channelling the government's loyalty to the king. His government improved the country's infrastructure and education. After the US joined the Vietnam War in 1961, there was a secret agreement wherein the US promised to protect Thailand.

The period brought about increasing modernisation and Westernisation of society. Rapid urbanisation occurred when the rural populace sought work in growing cities. Rural farmers gained class consciousness and were sympathetic to the Communist Party. Economic development and education enabled the rise of a middle class in Bangkok and other cities. In October 1971, there was a large demonstration against the dictatorship of Thanom Kittikachorn (premiership 1963–1973), which led to civilian casualties. Bhumibol installed Sanya Dharmasakti (premiership 1973–1975) to replace him, making it the first time that the king intervened in Thai politics directly since 1932. The aftermath of the event marked a short-lived parliamentary democracy.

Contemporary history

Unrest and instability, as well as fear of a communist takeover after the fall of Saigon, made some ultra-right groups brand leftist students as communists. This culminated in the Thammasat University massacre in October 1976. A coup d'état on that day brought Thailand a new ultra-right government, which cracked down on media outlets, officials, and intellectuals, and fuelled the communist insurgency. Another coup the following year installed a more moderate government, which offered amnesty to communist fighters in 1978. The communists abandoned the insurgency by 1983. Thailand had its first elected prime minister in 1988.

The 1997 Asian financial crisis originated in Thailand ended the country's 40 years of uninterrupted economic growth. Chuan Leekpai's government took an IMF loan with unpopular provisions. The populist Thai Rak Thai party, led by prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, governed from 2001 until 2006. His policies were successful in reducing rural poverty and initiated universal healthcare in the country.

After 2011 election, the populist Pheu Thai Party won a majority and Yingluck Shinawatra, Thaksin's younger sister, became prime minister. The People's Democratic Reform Committee organised another anti-Shinawatra protest after the ruling party proposed an amnesty bill which would benefit Thaksin. Yingluck dissolved parliament and a general election was scheduled, but was invalidated by the Constitution Court. The crisis ended with another coup d'état in 2014, the second in a decade. The National Council for Peace and Order, a military junta led by General Prayut Chan-o-cha, has led the country since. Civil and political rights were restricted, and the country saw a surge in lèse-majesté cases. Political opponents and dissenters were sent to "attitude adjustment" camps. Bhumibol, the longest-reigning Thai king, 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. In 2019, the junta agreed to schedule a general election in March. Prayut continued his premiership with the support of Palang Pracharath Party-coalition in the House and junta-appointed Senate, amid allegations of election fraud.

Politics

This section needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (August 2019)

Prior to 1932, there were absolute monarchs. In Sukhothai, the king was seen as a Dharmaraja or '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 decentralized protectorate system into a unitary state. 24 June 1932 marked the beginning of constitutional monarchy.

Thailand has had 20 constitutions and charters since 1932, including the latest and current 2017 Constitution. Throughout this time, the form of government has ranged from military dictatorship to electoral democracy. Thailand has had the fourth-most coups in the world. "Uniformed or ex-military men have led Thailand for 55 of the 83 years" between 1932 and 2009. Since May 2014, Thailand has been ruled by the junta National Council for Peace and Order.

The politics is conducted within the framework of a constitutional monarchy, whereby a hereditary monarch is head of state. The powers of the king are limited by the constitution and he is primarily a symbolic figurehead. The monarch is head of the armed forces and is required to be Buddhist as well as the Defender of the Faith. He has the power to appoint heirs, to grant pardons, and the royal assent. The king has duties aided by the Privy Council. However, the monarch still occasionally intervenes in politics, as all constitutions pave the way for customary royal rulings.

Government is separated into three branches:

• Legislative: the traditional National Assembly was nullified by the current junta. It was replaced by a rubber stamp, unicameral National Legislative Assembly. In the current 2017 Constitution the new National Assembly, which is scheduled to meet after the 2019 general election, will be composed of the Senate, the 150-member fully appointed upper house, and House of Representatives, the 350-member lower house.
• Executive: consisting of the Prime Minister elected by the National Assembly and other cabinet members of up to 35 people. The cabinet was appointed by the king on the advice of the prime minister.
• 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.

Military and bureaucratic aristocrats fully controlled political parties between 1946 and 1980s. Most parties in Thailand are short-lived. Between 1992 and 2006, Thailand had a two-party system. Since 2000, two political parties dominated general elections: one was the Pheu Thai Party (which was a successor of People's Power Party and the Thai Rak Thai Party), and the other was the Democrat Party. The political parties which support Thaksin Shinawatra won the most representatives every general election since 2001. Later constitutions created a multi-party system where a single party cannot gain a majority in the house.

The 2007 constitution was partially abrogated by the military dictatorship that came to power in May 2014.

Thailand's kings are protected by lèse-majesté laws which allow critics to be jailed for three to fifteen years. After the 2014 Thai coup d'état, Thailand had the highest number of lèse-majesté prisoners in the nation's history. In 2017, the military court in Thailand sentenced a man to 35 years in prison for violating the country's lèse-majesté law. Thailand has been rated not free on the Freedom House Index since 2014. Thai activist and magazine editor Somyot Prueksakasemsuk, who was sentenced to eleven years' imprisonment for lèse-majesté in 2013, is a designated prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International.

Foreign relations

The foreign relations of the Kingdom are handled by the Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Thailand is a major non-NATO ally and Priority Watch List Special 301 Report of the United States. The country remains an active member of ASEAN and has developed increasingly close ties with other members, whose foreign and economic ministers hold annual meetings. In 2003, Thailand served as APEC host. Dr. Supachai Panitchpakdi, former Deputy Prime Minister, currently serves as Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). In 2005 Thailand attended the inaugural East Asia Summit.

Thailand has taken an increasingly active role on the international stage. When East Timor gained independence from Indonesia, Thailand, for the first time, contributed troops to the international peacekeeping effort. Its troops remain there today as part of a UN peacekeeping force. As part of its effort to increase international ties, Thailand has reached out to such regional organisations as the Organization of American States (OAS) and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). Thailand has contributed troops to reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Thaksin initiated negotiations for several free trade agreements with China, Australia, Bahrain, India, and the US. The latter was criticised, with claims that uncompetitive Thai industries could be wiped out.

Thaksin also announced that Thailand would forsake foreign aid, and work with donor countries to assist in the development of neighbours in the Greater Mekong Sub-region. Thaksin sought to position Thailand as a regional leader, initiating various development projects in poorer neighbouring countries like Laos. He also established close, friendly ties with the Burmese dictatorship.

Military

The Royal Thai Armed Forces (กองทัพไทย; RTGS: Kong Thap Thai) constitute the military of the Kingdom of Thailand. It consists of the Army (กองทัพบก), Navy (กองทัพเรือ), Air Force (กองทัพอากาศ) and also incorporates various paramilitary forces.

The Armed Forces have a combined manpower of 306,000 active duty personnel and another 245,000 active reserve personnel. The head of the Armed Forces (จอมทัพไทย, Chom Thap Thai) is the king, although this position is only nominal. The armed forces are managed by the Ministry of Defence and commanded by the Royal Armed Forces Headquarters. In 2011, Thailand's known military expenditure totalled approximately US$5.1 billion. Thailand ranked 16th worldwide in the Military Strength Index based on the Credit Suisse report in September 2015.

According to the constitution, serving in the armed forces is a duty of all citizens. However, only males over the age of 21, who have not gone through reserve training of the Territorial Defence Student, are given the option of volunteering for the armed forces, or participating in the random draft.

In 2017, Thailand signed the UN treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.

Geography

Totalling 513,120 square kilometres (198,120 sq mi), Thailand is 50th-largest country, smaller than Yemen and larger than Spain.

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

Southern region consists of the narrow Kra Isthmus that widens into the Malay Peninsula. Politically, there are six geographical regions which differ from the others in population, basic resources, natural features, and level of social and economic development.

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

The Andaman Sea hosts popular and luxurious resorts. Phuket, Krabi, Ranong, Phang Nga and Trang, and their islands, all lay along the coasts and, despite the 2004 tsunami, remain a tourist magnet.

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

Climate

The climate is influenced by monsoon winds that have a seasonal character. The southwest monsoon, which starts from May until October is characterised by movement of warm, moist air from the Indian Ocean, causing abundant rain. The northeast monsoon, starting from October until February brings cold and dry air from China. In southern Thailand, the northeast one brings mild weather and abundant rainfall on the eastern coast. Most of Thailand has a tropical savanna climate. The majority of the south as well as the eastern tip of the east have a tropical monsoon climate. Parts of the south also have a tropical rainforest climate.

There are three seasons. The first is the rainy or southwest monsoon season (May to October) characterised by abundant rain with August and September being the wettest period of the year that may occasionally lead to floods. In addition, the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) and cyclones also contribute to producing rainfall during the rainy season. Dry spells occur for 1 to 2 weeks from June to July due to the northward movement of the ITCZ to southern China. Winter or the northeast monsoon starts from October until February with dry weather and mild temperatures. The exception is the southern parts with abundant rainfall, particularly during October to November. Summer or the pre–monsoon season runs from February until May and is characterised by warmer weather.

Due to inland nature and latitude, the north, central and east experience a warm period. During the hottest time of the year (March to May), temperatures reach up to 40 °C (104 °F) or more with the exception of coastal areas where sea breezes moderate afternoon temperatures. Outbreaks of cold air from China can bring colder temperatures; in some cases close to or below 0 °C (32 °F). Southern Thailand is characterised by mild weather year-round with less diurnal and seasonal variations in temperatures due to maritime influences.

Most of the country receives a mean annual rainfall of 1,200 to 1,600 mm (47 to 63 in). Certain areas on the windward sides of mountains such as Ranong in the west coast and eastern parts of Trat receive more than 4,500 mm (180 in) of rainfall per year. The driest areas are on the leeward side in the central valleys and northernmost portion of the south where mean annual rainfall is less than 1,200 mm (47 in). Most of the northeast, central and east is characterised by dry weather during the northeast monsoon and abundant rainfall during the southwest monsoon. In the south, rainfall occurs in both the northeast and southwest monsoon seasons with a peak in September for the western coast and a peak in November–January on the eastern coast.

Thailand is among 10 countries that are most exposed to climate change; in particular, it is vulnerable to rising sea levels and extreme weather events.

Environment

In the 2016 Environmental Performance Index (EPI), Thailand ranks 91 out of 180 countries. Environmental areas where it 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 the CO2 emission per KWh produced. Thailand performs best (i.e., lowest ranking) in water resource management (66), with some improvements expected for the future, and sanitation (68).

The population of elephants, a Thailand's national symbol, has dropped from 100,000 domesticated in 1850 to an estimated 2,000. Poachers have hunted elephants for ivory and hides, now increasingly for meat. Some elephants are captured for use in tourist attractions or as work animals, although their use has declined since the government banned logging in 1989. There are more elephants in captivity than in the wild, and environmental activists claim that elephants in captivity are often mistreated.

Hunters have also decimated the populations of tigers, leopards, and other large cats for their pelts. Animals (including tigers, bears, crocodiles, and king cobras) are farmed or hunted for their meat and supposed medicinal properties. Although such trade is illegal, the Bangkok market Chatuchak is still known for the sale of endangered species.

The practice of keeping wild animals as pets threatens several species. Baby animals are typically captured and sold, which often requires killing the mother. Once in captivity and out of their natural habitat, many pets die or fail to reproduce. Affected populations include the Asiatic black bear, Malayan sun bear, white-handed lar, pileated gibbon, and binturong.

Administrative divisions

76 provinces (จังหวัด, changwat) are gathered into five groups of provinces by location. There are also two specially governed districts: the capital Bangkok and Pattaya. Bangkok is at provincial level and thus often counted as a province.

Each province is divided into districts and the districts are further divided into sub-districts (tambons). As of 2017 there were 878 districts (อำเภอ, amphoe) and the 50 districts of Bangkok (เขต, khet), which is further divided into 7,255 subdistricts (ตำบล, tambon) in the 76 provinces or Bangkok's subdistricts (แขวง, khwaeng). Some parts of the provinces bordering Bangkok are also referred to as Greater Bangkok (ปริมณฑล, pari monthon). These provinces include Nonthaburi, Pathum Thani, Samut Prakan, Nakhon Pathom and Samut Sakhon. The name of each province's capital city (เมือง, mueang) is the same as that of the province.

Provinces are administrated by regions according to the four-region division system. It divides the country into the four regions: Northern, Northeastern, Central and Southern, all have distinct historical background, culture, language and people.

In contrast to the administrative divisions of the provinces, Thailand is a unitary state, the provincial Governors, district chiefs, and district clerks are appointed by the central government. The regions themselves do not have an administrative character, but are used for geographical, statistical, geological, meteorological or touristic purposes.

Economy

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Thailand is an emerging economy and is considered a newly industrialised country. Thailand had a 2017 GDP of US$1.236 trillion (on a purchasing power parity basis).

Thailand experienced the world's highest economic growth rate from 1985 to 1996 (12%). Increased pressure on the baht in 1997 when the economy contracted by 1.9% led to a crisis that uncovered financial sector weaknesses and forced the Chavalit Yongchaiyudh administration to float the currency. The baht was pegged at 25 to the US dollar from 1978 to 1997 and reached its lowest point of 56 to the US dollar in January 1998. The economy contracted by 10.8% triggering the Asian financial crisis.

Thailand's economy started to recover in 1999, expanding 4.2–4.4% in 2000, thanks largely to strong exports. Growth (2.2%) was dampened by the softening of the global economy in 2001, but picked up in subsequent years, a relatively weak baht encouraging exports, and increased domestic spending as a result of several mega projects and incentives of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, known as Thaksinomics. Growth in 2002, 2003, and 2004 was 5–7% annually.

Growth in 2005, 2006, and 2007 hovered around 4–5% due both to weakening of US dollars and a strengthened Thai currency, by March 2008 the dollar was hovering around the 33 baht mark. While Thaksinomics has received criticism, official economic data reveals that between 2001 and 2011, Isan's GDP per capita more than doubled to US$1,475, while, over the same period, GDP in the Bangkok area increased from US$7,900 to nearly US$13,000.

With the instability surrounding major 2010 protests, the GDP growth of Thailand settled at around 4–5%, from highs of 5–7% under the previous civilian administration. Political uncertainty was identified as the primary cause of a decline in investor and consumer confidence. The IMF predicted that the Thai economy would rebound strongly from the low 0.1% GDP growth in 2011, to 5.5% in 2012 and then 7.5% in 2013, due to the monetary policy of the Bank of Thailand, as well as a package of fiscal stimulus measures introduced by the former Yingluck Shinawatra government.

Following the military coup of 22 May 2014, the AFP global news agency published an article that claimed that the nation was on the verge of recession. The article focused on the departure of nearly 180,000 Cambodians from Thailand due to fears of an immigration clampdown, but concluded with information on Thai economy's contraction of 2.1% quarter-on-quarter, from January to March 2014.

Income, poverty and wealth

Thais have median wealth per one adult person of $1,469 in 2016, increasing from $605 in 2010. In 2016, Thailand was ranked 87th in Human Development Index, and 70th in the inequality-adjusted HDI.

In 2017, Thailand's median household income was ฿26,946 per month. Top quintile households had a 45.0% share of all income, while bottom quintile households had 7.1%. There were 26.9 million persons who had the bottom 40% of income earning less than ฿5,344 per person per month. During 2013–2014 Thai political crisis, a survey found that anti-government PDRC mostly (32%) had a monthly income of more than ฿50,000, while pro-government UDD mostly (27%) had between ฿10,000 and ฿20,000.

In 2014, Credit Suisse reported that Thailand was the world's third most unequal country, behind Russia and India. Top 10% richest held 79% of the country's asset. Top 1% richest held 58% worth of the economy. Thai 50 richest families had a total net worth accounting to 30% of GDP.

In 2016, 5.81 million people lived in poverty, or 11.6 million people (17.2% of population) if "near poor" is included. 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. In 2017, there were 14 million people who applied for social welfare (yearly income of less than ฿100,000 was required). At the end of 2017, Thailand's total household debt was ฿11.76 trillion. In 2010, 3% of all household were bankrupt. In 2016, there were estimated 30,000 homeless persons in the country.

Exports and manufacturing

The economy 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. Major exports include cars, computers, electrical appliances, rice, textiles and footwear, fishery products, rubber, and jewellery.

Substantial industries include electric appliances, components, computer components, and vehicles. Thailand's recovery from the 1997–1998 Asian financial crisis depended mainly on exports, among various other factors. As of 2012, the Thai automotive industry was the largest in Southeast Asia and the 9th largest in the world. The Thailand industry has an annual output of near 1.5 million vehicles, mostly commercial vehicles.

Most of the vehicles built in Thailand are developed and licensed by foreign producers, mainly Japanese and South Korean. The Thai car industry takes advantage of the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) to find a market for many of its products. Eight manufacturers, five Japanese, two US, and Tata of India, produce pick-up trucks in Thailand. As of 2012, Thailand was the second largest consumer of pick-up trucks in the world, after the US. In 2014, pick-ups accounted for 42% of all new vehicle sales in Thailand.

Transportation

The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) operates all of Thailand's national rail lines. Bangkok Railway Station (Hua Lamphong Station) is the main terminus of all routes. Phahonyothin and ICD Lat Krabang are the main freight terminals.

As of 2017 SRT had 4,507 km (2,801 mi) of track, all of it meter gauge except the Airport Link. Nearly all is single-track (4,097 km), although some important sections around Bangkok are double (303 km or 188 mi) or triple-tracked (107 km or 66 mi) and there are plans to extend this. By comparison, Thailand has 390,000 km (242,335 miles) of highways.

Rail transport in Bangkok includes long-distance services, and some daily commuter trains running from and to the outskirts of the city during the rush hour, but passenger numbers have remained low. There are also three rapid transit rail systems in the capital.

As of 2012, Thailand had 103 airports with 63 paved runways, in addition to 6 heliports. The busiest airport in the county is Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport.

Thailand has 390,000 km (242,335 miles) of highways. According to the BBC Thailand has 462,133 roads and many multi-lane highways. As of 2017 Thailand has 37 million registered vehicles, 20 million of them motorbikes.

A number of undivided two-lane highways have been converted into divided four-lane highways. A Bangkok – Chon Buri motorway (Route 7) now links to the new airport and Eastern Seaboard.

Other forms of road transport includes tuk-tuks, taxis—as of November 2018, Thailand has 80,647 registered taxis nationwide—vans (minibus), motorbike taxis and songthaews.

There are 4,125 public vans operating on 114 routes from Bangkok to the provinces alone. They are classed as Category 2 public transport vehicles (routes within 300 kilometres). Until 2016, most operated from a Bangkok terminus at Victory Monument. They are being moved from there to the Department of Land Transport's three Bangkok bus terminals.

Tourism

Estimates of tourism receipts directly contributing to the Thai GDP of 12 trillion baht range from 9 percent (1 trillion baht) (2013) to 16 percent. When including the indirect effects of tourism, it is said to account for 20.2 percent (2.4 trillion baht) of GDP.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) uses the slogan "Amazing Thailand" to promote Thailand internationally. In 2015, this was supplemented by a "Discover Thainess" campaign.

Asian tourists primarily visit Thailand for Bangkok and the historical, natural, and cultural sights in its vicinity. Western tourists not only visit Bangkok and surroundings, but in addition travel to the southern beaches and islands. The north is the chief destination for trekking and adventure travel with diverse ethnic minority groups and forested mountains. The region hosting fewest tourists is Isan in the northeast. To accommodate foreign visitors, the Thai government established a separate tourism police with offices in the major tourist areas and its own central emergency telephone number.

Thailand's attractions include diving, sandy beaches, hundreds of tropical islands, nightlife, various types of shopping malls and markets, archaeological sites, museums, hill tribes, flora and bird life, palaces, Buddhist temples and several World Heritage sites. Tourists may follow courses during their stay with classes in cooking, Buddhism and massage. Thai national festivals range from Thai New Year Songkran to Loy Krathong. Some localities also have their own festivals.

Prostitution in Thailand and sex tourism also form a de facto part of the economy. Campaigns promote Thailand as exotic to attract tourists. Cultural milieu combined with poverty and the lure of money have caused prostitution and sex tourism in particular to flourish in Thailand. One estimate published in 2003 placed the trade at US$4.3 billion per year or about 3% of the Thai economy. According to research by Chulalongkorn University on the Thai illegal economy, prostitution in Thailand in the period between 1993 and 1995, made up around 2.7% of the GDP. It is believed that at least 10% of tourist dollars are spent on the sex trade.

Thailand is at the forefront of the growing practice of sex-reassignment surgery (SRS). Statistic taken from 2014, illustrated the country's medical tourism industry attracting over 2.5 million visitors per year. In 2017 and 2018 Thailand saw 2.4 million and 2.5 million medical tourists, respectively, with data showing more modern forms of cosmetic surgery growing in popularity. In 1985–1990, only 5% of foreign transsexual patients visited Thailand for sex-reassignment surgery. In more recent years, 2010–2012, more than 90% of the visitors travelled to Thailand for SRS.

Agriculture and natural resources

49% of the labour force is employed in agriculture. This is down from 70% in 1980. Rice is the most important crop in the country and Thailand had long been the world's leading exporter of rice, until recently falling behind both India and Vietnam. Thailand has the highest percentage of arable land, 27.25%, of any nation in the Greater Mekong Subregion. About 55% of the arable land area is used for rice production.

Agriculture has been experiencing a transition from labour-intensive and transitional methods to a more industrialised and competitive sector. 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. The relative contribution of agriculture to GDP has declined while exports of goods and services have increased.

Furthermore, access to biocapacity in Thailand is lower than world average. In 2016, Thailand had 1.2 global hectares of biocapacity per person within its territory, a little less than world average of 1.6 global hectares per person. In contrast, in 2016, they used 2.5 global hectares of biocapacity – their ecological footprint of consumption. This means they use about twice as much biocapacity as Thailand contains. As a result, Thailand is running a biocapacity deficit.

75% of Thailand's electrical generation is powered by natural gas in 2014. Coal-fired power plants produce an additional 20% of electricity, with the remainder coming from biomass, hydro, and biogas.

Science and technology

In Bangkok, there are free public Wi-Fi Internet hotspots.

The Internet is censored by the government, making some sites unreachable. The censorship organisations responsible are the National Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission (NBTC), and the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society (MDES).

Informal sector

Thailand has an diverse and robust informal labour sector—in 2012, it was estimated that informal workers comprised 62.6% of the Thai workforce. The Ministry of Labour defines informal workers to be individuals who work in informal economies and do not have employee status under a given country's Labour Protection Act (LPA). The informal sector in Thailand has grown significantly over the past 60 years over the course of Thailand's gradual transition from an agriculture-based economy to becoming more industrialised and service-oriented. Between 1993 and 1995, ten percent of the Thai 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 in the country doubled from two to four million, as Thailand's GDP tripled. While the Asian Financial Crisis that followed in 1997 hit the Thai 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 in the country, and decreased federal subsidisation of public goods and utilities, agricultural price supports, and regulations on fair wages and labour conditions. These changes put further pressure on the agricultural sector, and prompted continued migration from the rural countryside to the growing cities. Many migrant farmers found work in Thailand's growing manufacturing industry, and took jobs in sweatshops and factories with few labour regulations and often exploitative conditions.

Those that could not find formal factory work, including illegal migrants and the families of rural Thai migrants that followed their relatives to the urban centres, turned to the informal sector to provide the extra support needed for survival—under the widespread regulation imposed by the structural adjustment programs, one family member working in a factory or sweatshop made very little. 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. This can be described as the "externalisation of market risk", meaning that as the country's labour market became increasingly deregulated, the burden and responsibility of providing an adequate livelihood shifted from employers and the state to the workers themselves, whose families had to find jobs in the informal sector to make up for the losses and subsidise the wages being made by their relatives in the formal sector. The weight of these economic changes hit migrants and the urban poor especially hard, and the informal sector expanded rapidly as a result.

Today, informal labour in Thailand is typically broken down into three main groups: subcontracted/self employed/home-based workers, service workers (including those that are employed in restaurants, as street vendors, masseuses, taxi drivers, and as domestic workers), and agricultural workers. Not included in these categories are those that work in entertainment, nightlife, and the sex industry. Individuals employed in these facets of the informal labour sector face additional vulnerabilities, including recruitment into circles of sexual exploitation and human trafficking.

In general, education levels are low in the informal sector. A 2012 study found that 64% of informal workers had not completed education beyond primary school. Many informal workers are also migrants, only some of which have legal status in the country. Education and citizenship are two main barriers to entry for those looking to work in formal industries, and enjoy the labour protections and social security benefits that come along with formal employment. Because the informal labour sector is not recognised under the Labour Protection Act (LPA), informal workers are much more vulnerable labour to exploitation and unsafe working conditions than those employed in more formal and federally recognised industries. While some Thai labour laws provide minimal protections to domestic and agricultural workers, they are often weak and difficult to enforce. Furthermore, Thai social security policies fail to protect against the risks many informal workers face, including workplace accidents and compensation as well as unemployment and retirement insurance. Many informal workers are not legally contracted for their employment, and many do not make a living wage. As a result, labour trafficking is common in the region, affecting children and adults, men and women, and migrants and Thai citizens alike.

Demographics

The population is largely rural, concentrated in the rice-growing areas of the central, northeastern and northern regions. About 45.7% lived in urban areas as of 2010, concentrated in and around the Bangkok Metropolitan Area.

Government-sponsored family planning program resulted in a 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 household. At the time of the 2010 census, the average household size was 3.2 people.

Ethnic groups

Thai nationals make up the majority of population, 95.9% in 2010. The remaining 4.1% of the population are Burmese (2.0%), others 1.3%, and unspecified 0.9%.

According to the Royal Government's 2011 Country Report to the UN Committee responsible for ICERD, available from the Department of Rights and Liberties Promotion of the Thai Ministry of Justice, 62 ethnic communities are officially recognised in Thailand. Twenty million Central Thai (together with approximately 650,000 Khorat Thai) make up approximately 20,650,000 (34.1 percent) of the nation's population of 60,544,937 at the time of completion of the Mahidol University Ethnolinguistic Maps of Thailand data (1997).

The 2011 Thailand Country Report provides population numbers for mountain peoples and ethnic communities in the Northeast and is explicit about its main reliance on the Mahidol University Ethnolinguistic Maps of Thailand data. Thus, though over 3.288 million people in the Northeast alone could not be categorised, the population and percentages of other ethnic communities circa 1997 are known for all of Thailand and constitute minimum populations. In descending order, the largest (equal to or greater than 400,000) are a) 15,080,000 Lao (24.9%) consisting of the Thai Lao (14 million) and other smaller Lao groups, b) six million Khon Muang (9.9%); c) 4.5 million Pak Tai (7.5%); d) 1.4 million Khmer Leu (2.3%); e) 900,000 Malay (1.5%); f) 500,000 Nyaw (0.8%); g) 470,000 Phu Thai (0.8%); h) 400,000 Kuay (0.7%), and i) 350,000 Karen (0.6%). Thai Chinese, those of significant Chinese heritage, are 14% of population, while Thais with partial Chinese ancestry comprise up to 40%. Thai Malays represent 3% of population, with remainder consisting of Mons, Khmers and various "hill tribes".

Increasing numbers of migrants from neighbouring Myanmar, Laos, and Cambodia, as well as Nepal and India, have pushed the total number of non-national residents to around 3.5 million as of 2009, up from an estimated 2 million in 2008, and about 1.3 million in 2000. Some 41,000 Britons and 20,000 Australians live in Thailand.

Population centres

Template:Largest cities of Thailand

Language

The principal language of education and governance is Thai, and numerous smaller languages spoken in an arc from Hainan and Yunnan. 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.

62 languages were recognised by the Royal Government in the 2011 Country Report to the UN Committee responsible for ICERD, which employed an ethnolinguistic approach and is available from the Department of Rights and Liberties Promotion of the Thai Ministry of Justice. Southern Thai is spoken in the southern provinces, and Northern Thai is spoken in the provinces that were formerly part of Lan Na. For the purposes of the national census, four dialects of Thai exist; these partly coincide with regional designations.

The largest of minority languages is the Lao dialect of Isan spoken in the northeastern provinces. In the south, Kelantan-Pattani Malay is the primary language of Malay Muslims. Varieties of Chinese are also spoken by the large Thai Chinese population, with the Teochew dialect best-represented.

Numerous tribal languages are also spoken, including Austroasiatic languages such as Mon, Khmer, Viet, Mlabri and Orang Asli; Austronesian languages such as Cham and Moken; Sino-Tibetan languages like Lawa, Akha, and Karen; and other Tai languages such as Tai Yo, Phu Thai, and Saek. Hmong is a member of the Hmong–Mien languages, which is now regarded as a language family of its own.

Religion

Thailand's prevalent religion is Theravada Buddhism, an integral part of Thai identity and culture. Active participation in Buddhism is among the highest in the world. According to the 2000 census, 94.6% and 93.58% of the country's population self-identified as Buddhists of the Theravada tradition. Muslims constitute the second largest religious group, comprising 4.29% of the population in 2015.

Islam is concentrated mostly in the southernmost provinces: Pattani, Yala, Satun, Narathiwat, and part of Songkhla Chumphon, which are predominantly Malay, most of whom are Sunni Muslims. Christians represented 1.17% of the population in 2015, with the remaining population consisting of Hindus and Sikhs, who live mostly in the cities. There is also a Jewish community dating back to the 17th century.

There is no official state religion in the constitution, which guarantees religious freedom for all citizens. The law provides for freedom of religion, and the government generally respects this right in practice. It does not, however, register new religious groups that have not been accepted into one of the existing religious governing bodies on doctrinal or other grounds. In practice, unregistered religious organisations operate freely, and the government's practice of not recognising any new religious groups does not restrict the activities of unregistered religious groups. The government officially limits the number of foreign missionaries that may work in the country, although unregistered missionaries are present in large numbers and are allowed to live and work freely. There have been no widespread reports of societal abuses or discrimination based on religious belief or practice.

Education

The literacy rate was 93.5% (2014). Education is provided by a school system of kindergartens, primary, lower secondary and upper secondary schools, numerous vocational colleges and universities. The private sector is also developed and contributes to the overall provision of education which the government would not be able to meet with public establishments. Education is compulsory up to and including age 14, with the government providing free education through to age 17.

Teaching relies more on rote learning rather than on student-centred methodology. The establishment of reliable and coherent curricula for its primary and secondary schools is subject to such rapid changes that schools and their teachers are not always sure what they are supposed to be teaching, and authors and publishers of textbooks are unable to write and print new editions quickly enough to keep up with the volatility. Issues concerning university entrance has been in constant upheaval for a number of years.

Most of the present generation of students are computer literate. Thailand was ranked 54th out of 56 countries globally for English proficiency, the second-lowest in Asia. Students in ethnic minority areas score consistently lower in standardised national and international tests. This is likely due to unequal allocation of educational resources, weak teacher training, poverty, and low Thai language skill, the language of the tests.

Extensive nationwide IQ tests were administered to 72,780 Thai students from December 2010 to January 2011. The average IQ was found to be 98.59, higher than what previous studies found. IQ levels were found to be inconsistent throughout the country, with the lowest average of 88.07 found in the southern region of Narathiwat and the highest average of 108.91 reported in Nonthaburi. The Ministry of Public Health blames the discrepancies on iodine deficiency, and as of 2011 steps were being taken to require that iodine be added to table salt, a practice common in many Western countries.

In 2013, the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology announced that 27,231 schools would receive classroom-level access to high-speed internet.

Health

Health and medical care is overseen by the Ministry of Public Health (MOPH), along several other non-ministerial government agencies, with total national expenditures on health amounting to 4.3% of GDP in 2009. Non-communicable diseases form the burden of morbidity and mortality, while infectious diseases including malaria and tuberculosis, as well as traffic accidents, are other public health issues.

The current Minister for Public Health is Prof. Emeritus Piyasakol Sakolsatayadorn, M.D. and the Permanent Secretary of Ministry of Public Health is Jedsada Chokdamrongsuk, M.D. Somsak Chunharas, MD, MPH, was once Deputy Minister for Public Health and is currently a Senior Leadership Fellow at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston.

In December 2018 the interim parliament voted to legalise the use of cannabis for medical reasons. Recreational use remained unlawful. The National Legislative Assembly had 166 votes in favour of the amendment to the Narcotics Bill, while there were no nay votes and 13 abstentions. The vote makes Thailand the first Southeast Asian country to allow the use of medical marijuana.

Culture

The culture has been shaped by neighboring influences from India, Burma, Cambodia, and China.

Thailand's national religion, Theravada Buddhism, is central to modern Thai identity. Thai Buddhism has evolved over time to include regional beliefs originating from Hinduism, animism, as well as ancestor worship. The official calendar in Thailand is based on the Eastern version of the Buddhist Era (BE), which is 543 years ahead of the Gregorian (Western) calendar. Thus the year 2015 is 2558 BE in Thailand.

Several different ethnic groups, many of which are marginalised, populate Thailand. Overseas Chinese also form a part of society, particularly in and around Bangkok. Their integration has enabled themselves to hold economic and political positions. Thai Chinese businesses prosper as part of the larger bamboo network.

The traditional Thai greeting, the wai, is generally offered first by the younger of the two people meeting, with hands pressed together, fingertips pointing upwards as the head is bowed to touch face to fingertips, usually coinciding with the spoken words "sawatdi khrap" for male speakers, and "sawatdi kha" for females. The elder may respond in the same way. Social status and position, such as in government, will also have an influence on who performs the wai first. When children leave, they are taught to wai their parents to indicate their respect. The wai is a sign of respect and reverence for another, similar to the namaste greeting of India and Nepal.

As with other Asian cultures, respect towards ancestors is an essential part of Thai spiritual practice. Thais have a sense of hospitality and generosity, but also a sense of social hierarchy. Seniority is paramount in Thai culture. Elders have by tradition ruled in family decisions or ceremonies. Older siblings have duties to younger ones.

Taboos in Thailand 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.

Art

The origins of Thai art were influenced by Buddhist art and by scenes from the Indian epics. Traditional sculpture almost exclusively depicts images of the Buddha, being similar with 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 others. By the Sukothai and Ayutthaya period, had developed into its own unique style and was later further influenced by the other Asian styles, mostly by Sri Lankan and Chinese. Thai sculpture and painting, and the royal courts provided patronage, erecting temples and other religious shrines as acts of merit or to commemorate important events.

Traditional Thai paintings showed subjects in two dimensions without perspective. The size of each element in the picture reflected its degree of importance. The primary technique of 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 influence in mid-19th century. Monk artist Khrua In Khong is known as the first to introduce linear perspective to Thai traditional art.

The most frequent narrative subjects for paintings were or are: the Jataka stories, episodes from the life of the Buddha, the Buddhist heavens and hells, themes derived from the Thai versions of the Ramayana and Mahabharata, not to mention scenes of daily life. Some of the scenes are influenced by Thai folklore instead of following strict Buddhist iconography.

Architecture

Architecture is the preeminent medium of the country's cultural legacy and reflects both the challenges of living in Thailand's sometimes extreme climate as well as, historically, the importance of architecture to the people's sense of community and religious beliefs. Influenced by the architectural traditions of Thailand's neighbours, it has also developed regional variation within its vernacular and religious buildings.

The Ayutthaya movement, which went from approximately 1350 to 1767, was one of the most fruitful and creative periods in architecture. The identity of architecture in this period is designed to display might and riches so it has great size and appearance. The temples in Ayutthaya seldom built eaves stretching from the masterhead. The dominant feature of this style is sunlight shining into buildings. During the latter part of the Ayutthaya period, architecture was regarded as a peak achievement that responded to the requirements of people and expressed the gracefulness of Thainess.

Buddhist temples in Thailand are known as "wats", from the Pāḷi vāṭa, meaning an enclosure. A temple has an enclosing wall that divides it from the secular world. Wat architecture has seen changes in the course of history. Although there are differences in layout and style, they all adhere to the same principles.

Cuisine

Thai cuisine blends five fundamental tastes: sweet, spicy, sour, bitter, and salty. Common ingredients used include garlic, chillies, lime juice, lemon grass, coriander, galangal, palm sugar, and fish sauce (nam pla). The staple food in Thailand is rice, particularly jasmine variety rice (also known as "hom Mali" rice) which forms a part of almost every meal. Thailand was for some time the world's largest exporter of rice, and Thais domestically consume over 100 kg of milled rice per person per year. Over 5,000 varieties of rice from Thailand are preserved in the rice gene bank of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), based in the Philippines. The king of Thailand is the official patron of IRRI.

Measurement

Thailand generally uses the metric system, but traditional units of measurement for land area are used, and imperial units of measurement are occasionally used for building materials, such as wood and plumbing fixtures. 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.

Sports

Muay Thai (Template:Lang-th) is a native form of kickboxing that incorporates kicks, punches, knees and elbow strikes in a ring with gloves similar to those used in Western boxing. Thailand has gained medals at the Olympic Games in boxing.

Takraw (Thai: ตะกร้อ) is a sport native to Thailand, in which the players hit a rattan ball not using arms. 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.

Snooker has enjoyed increasing popularity in recent years, with interest in the game being stimulated by the success of player James Wattana in the 1990s. Other notable players include Ratchayothin, Noppon and Dechawat.

Rugby is also growing with the Thailand rugby union team rising to 61st rank. Thailand became the first country in the world to host an international 80 welterweight rugby tournament in 2005. The domestic Thailand Rugby Union (TRU) competition includes several universities such as Chulalongkor, Mahasarakham, Kasetsart, Prince of Songkla, Thammasat, Rangsit along with services teams from the Thai Police and Armed Forces. Local sports clubs which also compete in the TRU include the Southerners Sports Club, the British and Royal Sports Clubs of Bangkok.

Thailand has been called the golf capital of Asia that attracts golfers from Japan, Korea, Singapore, South Africa and Western countries every year. The growing popularity of golf, especially among the middle classes and immigrants, is evident as there are more than 200 world-class golf courses nationwide, and some of them are chosen to host PGA and LPGA tournaments, such as Amata Spring Country, Alpine Golf, Thai Country, and Black Mountain.

Basketball is a growing sport, especially on professional sports club level. The Chang Slammers won the 2011 ASEAN Basketball League Championship. The Thailand basketball team won the silver medal at the 1966 Asian Games.

See also

• Index of Thailand-related articles
• Outline of Thailand
• International rankings of Thailand

Notes

1. Template:Lang-th (/ˈtaɪlænd, ˈtaɪlənd/ TY-land, TY-lənd)
2. Template:Lang-th (/saɪˈæm, ˈsaɪæm/)
3. One of the stated goals of the protest was to remove "Thaksin regime." See "Thai protest leader explains demand for 'people's council'". China.org.cn. 4 December 2013. Retrieved 31 May 2014.
4. The latest coup prior to the 2014 coup was the 2007 coup.
5. The 2016 Thai constitutional referendum was held on 7 August 2016. Its ratification was held on 6 April 2017.

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Further reading

• Yuko, Elizabeth (29 August 2019). "Pictures of the Thai King's Consort Broke the Internet – But What's a Consort?". Rolling Stone.
• Beech, Hannah (7 November 2019). "'Extremely Evil Misconduct': Thailand's Palace Intrigue Spills into View". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 10 November 2019. Retrieved 10 November 2019.

External links

Government

• Thaigov.go.th – Government of Thailand
• Chief of State and Cabinet Members
• Mfa.go.th – Ministry of Foreign Affairs
• Thailand Internet information – National Electronics and Computer Technology Center
• Ministry of Culture

General information

• "Thailand". The World Factbook (2025 ed.). Central Intelligence Agency.
• Thailand entry in Library of Congress Country Studies. 1987
• Thailand from UCB Libraries GovPubs
• Template:Curlie
• Thailand from the BBC News
• Thailand Encyclopædia Britannica entry
• Wikimedia Atlas of Thailand
• Longdo Map – Thailand maps in English and Thai
• Key Development Forecasts for Thailand from International Futures
• 2010 Thailand population census by Economic and Social statistics Bureau

Travel

• Tourism Authority of Thailand – official tourism website

Other

• Thailand Country Fact Sheet from the Common Language Project
• Southeast Asia Visions. "Browse the Southeast Asia Visions Collection". Cornell University Library. Retrieved 2 October 2011.

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