Official name: Kingdom of Thailand
Capital city: Bangkok
Internet country code: .th
Flag description: Five horizontal bands of red (top), white, blue (double width), white, and red
National animal: Elephant
National architecture: Sala Thai (Thai Pavilion)
National flower: Ratchaphruek (Cassia fistula Linn)
Geographical description: Southeastern Asia, bordering the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand, southeast of Burma
Total area: 198,114 sq. mi. (513,115 sq. km.)
Climate: Tropical; rainy, warm, cloudy southwest monsoon (mid-May to September); dry, cool northeast monsoon (November to mid-March); southern isthmus always hot and humid
Nationality: noun: Thai (singular and plural); adjective: Thai
Population: 65,068,149 (July 2007 CIA est.)
Ethnic groups: Thai 75%, Chinese 14%, other 11%
Languages spoken: Thai, English (secondary language of the elite), ethnic and regional dialects
Religions: Buddhist 94.6%, Muslim 4.6%, Christian 0.7%, other (including Hindu, Brahmin) 0.1%
| Chakri Day | Apr 6 |
| Chulalongkorn Day | Oct 23 |
| Constitution Day | Dec 10 |
| Coronation Day | May 5 |
| Her Majesty the Queen's Birthday | Aug 12 |
| His Majesty the King's Birthday | Dec 5 |
| New Year's Day | Jan 1 |
| New Year's Eve | Dec 31 |
Thailand is a state in Southeast Asia, situated primarily on the Indochina Peninsula and the peninsula’s southern extremity, the northern portion of the Malay Peninsula. It is bounded by the Gulf of Thailand of the South China Sea on the south and the Andaman Sea on the southwest. It borders on Burma to the west, Laos and Cambodia (Kampuchea) to the east, and Malaysia to the south. The country includes a number of small islands. Area, 514,000 sq km. Population, 42 million (1975). The capital is Bangkok. Administratively, Thailand is divided into provinces, or changwats.
Thailand is a constitutional monarchy. The head of state is the king. The highest legislative body, the National Legislative Assembly, consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The 225 senators are appointed by the prime minister for a six-year term. The House of Representatives consists of 301 deputies elected by the population for four-year terms.
Coastline. The coastline of Thailand is about 2,500 km long. The shores are primarily low-lying and frequently swampy; there are numerous rias and estuaries on the western coast of the Malay Peninsula.
Terrain. More than half of Thailand is occupied by low-lying plains, including the Chao Phraya Lowland. Mountains, including the Khun Tan and Tanen Taunggyi ranges, with elevations to 2,576 m, at Inthanon Peak, cover almost the entire remainder of the country, primarily in the north and west. The mountains extend meridionally, reaching the Malay Peninsula. In the southeast, the Kravanh mountains stretch along Thailand’s border with Cambodia. Eastern Thailand is occupied by the Khorat Plateau, which gradually rises toward the south, west, and north from 150 to 500 m and more, forming the Dang Raek upland and the low Dong Phraya Fai and Phu Phan mountains.
Geological structure and mineral resources. The mountain systems in northern, western, and southern Thailand are associated with the Paleozoic geosynclinal folded region of southern Asia, which was active in the Mesozoic period. The mountains are composed of Paleozoic and Triassic shales, sandstones, limestones, and effusive rocks, which enclose large bodies of granites. In the east, the Khorat Plateau is composed of Mesozoic sandstones with a gentle bedding angle. A tectonic basin filled with friable Cenozoic deposits up to 5–7 km thick is located under the Chao Phraya Lowland and on the shelf of the Gulf of Thailand.
Thailand is second (after Indonesia) among the capitalist and developing countries in terms of total reserves of tin (1.22 million tons). Deposits of tin are associated with Mesozoic granites, to which deposits of tungsten ores (20,000 tons) are also confined. Paleozoic structures include deposits of antimony, fluorite, lead, zinc, barite, and iron and manganese ores; there are also deposits of rubies and sapphires in the west, brown coal on the Malay Peninsula and in the north, common salt on the Malay Peninsula and in the Bangkok region, potassium chloride on the Khorat Plateau, and oil in the west and south. Oil has also been discovered on the shelf of the Gulf of Thailand.
Climate. Thailand has a subequatorial monsoonal climate. The average temperature on the plains and in the foothill regions ranges from 22° to 29°C (the warmest month is May); on the Malay Peninsula, monthly average temperatures are 27°–29°C, and in the mountains of the north, the winter temperature falls to 10°–15°C. Three seasons are distinguishable in northern and central Thailand—a warm, dry winter, a hot, dry spring, and a warm, moist summer and fall. There are two seasons on the Malay Peninsula—a more moist summer and a less moist winter. Typhoons occur in the summer and fall. Annual precipitation is more than 1,000 mm on the Chao Phraya Lowland, less than 900 mm in some places on the Khorat Plateau, and up to 3,000 mm (in places, even more) in the mountainous regions bordering on Burma, Laos, and Cambodia.
Rivers and lakes. The Chao Phraya River, which has a high water level, is—along with its tributaries—of the greatest importance to the economic life of Thailand. The rivers are used for irrigation and navigation. The Mekong River runs along the eastern and part of the northeastern border of Thailand; its right tributary, the Mun, crosses the Khorat Plateau. A short section of the Salween runs along the western border. The rivers are fed primarily by rain, and they carry large quantities of suspended matter. The river regimen is of the monsoonal type, with freshets 5–10 m high in September and October. At that time, heavy floods occur on the Chao Phraya Lowland and in the eastern section of the Khorat Plateau. There are large reservoirs on the Ping River and in the basin of the Mun. There are few lakes; the largest lake is Thale Luang, on the Malay Peninsula.
Soils and flora. Forests cover about 60 percent of Thailand. Dense multistratum subequatorial rain forests up to 50–60 m high are found on the Malay Peninsula and the outer slopes of the mountains surrounding the Khorat Plateau. They grow on lateritic red earths and yellow soils and are distinguished by their great diversity of species (about 10,000), including various dipterocarps, figs and banyans, mimosas, screw pines, palms, and bananas. There are numerous ferns, lianas, and epiphytes, as well as bamboo thickets. Tropical forests on red earths, with teak, sal tree, and mahogany, occupy large areas in the north. Monsoonal forests of oak and pine, which drop their leaves during the dry season, are prevalent on the leeward slopes in the northern and central regions, and also on the Khorat Plateau, on cinnamonic soils. Farther south, bamboo forests become common, and on the Khorat Plateau there are high-grass savannas and shrubs on reddish brown soils that are saline in places. Gallery forests are found on alluvial and meadow soils in the river valleys. There are mangrove forests and nipa plantings in places along the seashore.
Fauna. Thailand is part of the Indo-Malayan zoogeographic region. Large animals include the elephant (mostly domesticated), anthropoid ape (gibbon), lemur, sun bear, tiger, leopard, tapir, and wild boar. The gaur and banteng inhabit the savannas, and deer and antelope live in the mountains of the north. The squirrel is the most common rodent. Birds include numerous pheasants, peacocks, parrots, and jungle fowl. Herons and saruses live in swampy areas. Bats, some of which are carnivorous, are encountered. There are about 100 species of snakes, including the python and king cobra, 75 species of lizards, and more than 500 species of butterflies. The rivers are rich in fish, mainly of the carp family, and are inhabited by crocodiles. The herring and mackerel of the coastal waters of the Gulf of Thailand are fished commercially.
Protected natural regions. Fauna and natural landscapes are protected (1969) in five national parks with a total area of about 8,000 sq km. Among the interesting natural sites included within the national parks are the Eravan waterfall, west of Bangkok, and Inthanon Peak, the highest mountain in Thailand, located in the northwest.
Thailand is a multiethnic country. About three-fourths of the population is made up of peoples of the Thai group. The Siamese, or Central Thai, who number about 19 million (1973, estimate), inhabit the central and southern portions of the country. The Lao, who number about 9.5 million, live in the mountains of the north and on the Khorat Plateau in the east. The Phuthai, Lu, Khun, and Shan, whose total population is about 350,000, live in the northwest.
Thailand has more than 6 million Chinese, who live on the delta of the Chao Phraya and in the cities, mainly Bangkok, along with the Siamese. Malays (about 1.2 million) inhabit the southern part of the country. The Karen (150,000) and Mon (120,000) live in the mountain regions of the west and southwest. Sizable areas in the southeast are occupied by Khmers and Highland Khmers (a total of 1 million). Various mountain regions of the north are inhabited by peoples of the Miao and Yao and Tibeto-Burman groups; among the latter are the Hani, Lisu, and Lahu. The most backward peoples of Thailand are the nomadic hunters and gatherers—the Semang, Senoi, Mawken (Chao Le), and Mrabri, or Yumbri (a total of about 5,000)—who inhabit the impenetrable tropical forests. Vietnamese and Indians also live in Thailand. Thai is the official language. Theravada Buddhism is the official religion; the Malay profess Islam, and the Chinese are Buddhists and Taoists. Catholics and Protestants number about 150,000. Ancient traditional beliefs are prevalent in the northern mountain regions. There are two calendar systems, the lunar-solar and the Gregorian.
A high rate of population growth is characteristic of Thailand: in the period 1963–73 it averaged 3 percent a year (the population was 22.1 million in 1954 and 26 million in 1960). The age and sex composition is typical of Eastern countries. There is a numerical predominance of men and a substantial proportion of young people, particularly the 15–24 age group (about 16 percent). The economically active population is 17.7 million (1970), 76.5 percent of whom are employed in agriculture and forestry (compared to 82 percent in 1960), and 20 percent in industry, transportation, and the service sphere. The average population density is about 80 persons per sq km; in certain areas, such as the Mekong delta, it reaches 1,000 persons per sq km. About 15 percent of the population is urban (1970). The largest cities are Bangkok and its suburbs (population 4.4 million in 1975) and Chiang Mai (66,000).
Primitive communal relations and the first state formations (to the 15th century). The first human habitation of what is now Thailand dates from the Paleolithic era. The Mon tribes occupied the southern portion of the Chao Phraya River valley and the coast of the Gulf of Thailand in the period immediately preceding and following the turn of the Common Era. The first small Mon states arose there in the first and second centuries. The first mention of the large Dvaravati state, which later came to be called Lavo, is found in seventh-century sources. During the seventh and eighth centuries, the Mon states extended their power over northern Thailand, founding the city of Lamphun, which became the capital of the second Mon state, Haripunjaya. By the early 11th century, the Lavo state had been subjugated by a Khmer empire, Kambuja.
The advanced culture of the Mon and Khmers greatly influenced the formation of the Thai culture. The predecessors of the Thai tribes occupied the Yünnan Plateau in the first millennium B.C. Some Thai tribes moved south early in the first millennium A.D., mixing with the local population. Large Thai principalities arose in the Chao Phraya River valley in the late 12th and early 13th centuries. Hinayana Buddhism became dominant in Thailand in the 13th century. After defeating the Khmers in 1238, the Thai principalities united, creating the Sukhothai state. The state flourished under King Rama Kamkhaeng, who reigned from 1275 to about 1317; it disintegrated shortly after his death. In 1350, U Thong, the sovereign of the principality, founded the city of Ayutthaya and, having moved his capital there, was crowned as Ramathibodi. He reigned from 1350 to 1369. The new state of Siam (or Ayutthaya, after its capital) gradually absorbed the remnants of Sukhothai.
Developed feudalism (15th to the late 18th century). A Siamese feudal monarchy arose in the 14th century and became established in the 15th century. The social base of the feudal monarchy was the service nobility, which was subdivided into civilian and military branches. Instead of salaries, state officials received rents from plots of land worked by peasants bound to the officials.
Wars between Siam and Burma began in the mid-16th century. Ayutthaya, the capital, fell to the Burmese on Aug. 30, 1569. However, an uprising against Burmese domination began in Siam in 1584 under the leadership of Naresuan, and it concluded with the liberation of the country.
Siam’s trade ties with other countries, particularly those of Europe, expanded considerably in the 17th century. The Dutch opened a trading station in Ayutthaya, and the English followed suit. Seeking to capture the Siamese market, the European powers carried out a policy of colonial expansion directed against Siam.
In 1664, after blockading the mouth of the Chao Phraya River, the Dutch fleet forced King Narai (ruled 1657–88) to conclude the first unequal treaty in Siam’s history. From 1686 to 1688, Great Britain waged an undeclared war against Siam. The first Franco-Siamese treaty, which granted significant privileges to the French East India Company and Catholic missionaries, was signed in December 1685. In 1687, Siam was forced to agree to the quartering of French garrisons in the most important strategic points of the country, Bangkok and Mergui (now in Burma), and to sign a new unequal treaty. Siamese patriots led by Phra Phetraja organized a conspiracy against King Narai, who had capitulated to the French. The conspirators arrested the king in the spring of 1688, and Phra Phetraja was proclaimed king (ruled 1688–1703). The movement to expel the French gained broad popular support. By the end of the 17th century, the French were forced to withdraw all their troops. Siam was closed to Europeans in the late 17th century, and the trading stations were wiped out.
Siam waged a struggle, with varying success, against Vietnam for dominance over Cambodia and Laos in the first third of the 18th century. Wars against Burma resumed in 1759. The Burmese destroyed the city of Ayutthaya in April 1767, and the king and courtiers were taken prisoner. The Siamese people’s resistance was led by Taksin. After a number of battles, the Burmese were driven out of Siam, and Taksin unified the country under his rule. The Laotian state of Chiang Mai, in northern Thailand, was definitively made part of Siam in 1775. The Laotian states of Vientiane and Luang Prabang recognized Siam’s sovereignty in 1778. The domestic policies of Taksin, who attempted to limit the wealth of the Buddhist religious leaders and protected the commercial caste, provoked the opposition of the Buddhist clergy and some secular feudal lords. Taksin was overthrown in 1782. General Chakri ascended the throne, taking the name of Rama I; he ruled until 1809.
Late feudalism (late 18th to the 19th century). The power of the Siamese feudal lords increased as a result of the expansion of Thailand’s territory through the annexation of the principalities of Khorat and Ligor, mass migrations from conquered areas to the central regions, and the growth of debt bondage. Commodity-money relations developed further in the first half of the 19th century: cash quitrent and cash taxes were introduced, and tax farming spread. The growth of exploitation gave rise to popular uprisings in the provinces of Chonburi (Bang Pla Soi), Chanthaburi, and Nakhon Chai Si in 1842 and 1847.
In 1855, Great Britain forced an unequal treaty on Siam. It provided for extraterritoriality for British subjects, for the abolition of the royal foreign trade monopoly, and for low import duties; in addition, it provided for the duty-free importation of opium into Siam and for the establishment of British mines in the south. Unequal treaties were also signed with the USA, France, and other countries. As Siam was drawn into the world capitalist economy and foreign trade expanded, the crisis of feudal relations was exacerbated. Handicrafts and manufactories went into decline, and commercial land cultivation, especially rice production, developed, primarily in the central regions. The sharpening of the social contradictions was expressed in the antifeudal actions of the peasantry, such as the “black flags” movement of 1870–87 and the uprising led by Phya Pap in 1889–90.
The system of feudal dependence was preserved de jure in Siam until the end of the 19th century, when the reforms of King Chulalongkorn, or Rama V (ruled 1868–1910), were carried out. In the course of these reforms, debt bondage (1874–1900), the state corvée, and the binding of peasants to the feudal lord (1899) were abolished. Reforms were also promulgated in the state administration, including the establishment of ministries, budgetary and monetary reform, and the centralization of the provincial administration. The reforms were halfway measures, however, and feudal vestiges remained.
Formation and development of capitalism (from the late 19th century),INTENSIFICATION OF IMPERIALIST ENSLAVEMENT OF SIAM; UPSURGE OF THE NATIONALIST MOVEMENT (LATE 19TH CENTURY TO 1932). The British and French colonialists began the struggle for the territorial division of Siam in the 1880’s. In 1893, 1902, and 1907, France carried out armed seizures of Siamese lands bordering on the French possessions in Indochina. In 1896, Siam was divided into British and French spheres of influence, separated by the Chao Phraya River.
The expansion of foreign capital continued in the early 20th century, with the establishment of forestry and tinmining concessions and the receipt of several substantial loans from Great Britain, France, and Germany in the period 1905–14 for railroad construction. The domination of foreign capital hindered the accumulation of domestic capital. The efforts of Russian diplomacy (diplomatic relations with Russia were established in 1897) objectively prevented the complete subjugation of Siam by the Western powers. Siam retained its political independence.
The process of national consolidation intensified in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The first newspapers appeared, book publishing developed, and secular schools were established. The aristocratic elite used the ideas of monarchistic nationalism in an attempt to strengthen its social base. In July 1917, during World War I, Siam came out on the side of the Entente. The decrease in foreign economic expansion during the war led to the growth of local industrial and commercial capital. In the context of the upsurge in the national liberation movement in Asia, which began under the influence of the October Revolution of 1917 in Russia, the imperialists were obliged to make concessions to Siam. Under treaties with Great Britain and France, consular jurisdiction over foreign citizens and subjects was abolished in 1925, and import duties were increased in 1927. In the 1920’s, the conflicts increased between the local petite bourgeoisie and the feudal lords, who held power and relied on an alliance with foreign capital. Antimonarchist groups of Siamese abroad adopted bourgeois-democratic slogans. The working class, which had been forming since the late 19th century, was small in number (about 2 percent of the economically active population) and was divided into ethnic groups. Marxist propaganda circles arose among the workers in 1928.
THE 1932 COUP AND THE STRUGGLE TO CONSOLIDATE STATE INDEPENDENCE (1932–39). With the sharp deterioration in the people’s standard of living because of the world economic crisis of 1929–33, the antimonarchists stepped up their activity, uniting to form the People’s Party. In addition to petit bourgeois democrats, such as Pridi Phanomyong, the party included liberal bourgeois elements linked to officers, civil servants, and large landowners. Relying on the support of army units, the People’s Party carried out a coup d’etat on June 24, 1932. Legislative authority was turned over to a parliament formed by the People’s Party, with the king remaining the nominal head of state; the high aristocracy was removed from power. The revolutionary coup, which was elitist in nature, thus broke only the highest link in the state apparatus. The permanent constitution, adopted on Dec. 10, 1932, provided for the election of half of the deputies to parliament, with the remainder to be appointed by the king. In 1933 the right-wing parliamentary deputies rejected a plan for socioeconomic reforms proposed by Pridi Phanomyong; the king dissolved the People’s Party and the parliament. The Anticommunist Act, which was directed against all democrats, was adopted on Apr. 2, 1933.
The threat of the restoration of absolutism prompted a group of officers led by Phahon Phonphayuhasena to carry out another coup d’etat on June 20, 1933. An attempted monarchist rebellion was suppressed in October 1933; King Rama VII Pajadhipok renounced the throne in 1935. A political compromise was reached by the petite bourgeoisie and large landowners as a result of the events of 1932–33. Its instability was manifested in frequent governmental crises.
In the 1930’s, the policy of the ruling bloc was directed toward the strengthening of domestic capital. The abrogation of unequal treaties with foreign powers in 1936 and the reestablishment of customs independence were important, as were the nationalization of certain foreign companies in 1938–39 and the creation of mixed companies in industry and trade for the purpose of limiting foreign influence. When the military-bureaucratic elite came to power in December 1938 (the Pibul Songgram government, 1938–44), progressive forms of nationalism were replaced by chauvinistic forms in Thailand (Siam was renamed in 1939). The slogan of the pan-Thai movement was the unification of all the Thai peoples under the rule of the Thai king.
WORLD WAR II (1939–45). In 1940, Thailand presented territorial claims for the portion of Laos and Cambodia and began military operations on the border with Indochina that continued until January 1941. In June 1940, Thailand signed a treaty of friendship with imperialist Japan. In May 1941, under Japanese pressure, the Vichy government ceded Laos and two Cambodian provinces to Thailand. Japanese troops landed in Thailand in December 1941, and a Japanese-Thai agreement on military cooperation was signed on December 21. Thailand declared war on Great Britain and the USA on Jan. 25, 1942. On Aug. 20, 1943, Japan turned over four northern Malayan and two Shan principalities to Thailand. The country was under de facto Japanese occupation. A liberation struggle began in Thailand. The mass underground Free Thai Movement was organized. The Communist Party of Thailand (CPT) was established in November 1942. The growth of anti-Japanese sentiment resulted in the fall of the Pibul Song-gram cabinet. On Aug. 19, 1945, Thailand addressed a request for peace to the member countries of the anti-Japanese coalition.
POSTWAR PERIOD. Under the terms of the peace treaty of Jan. 1, 1946, Siam (as the country was known from September 1945 to August 1948) renounced its territorial acquisitions of 1941–43 and paid compensation to British companies. The end of the war was marked by an upsurge in the democratic movement. The growth of trade unions led to the establishment in April 1947 of the Central Labor Union. The new constitution of May 1946 made both chambers of parliament elective. The democratic Constitutional Front received a majority in the 1946 elections. The Anticommunist Act of 1933 was repealed in December 1946. The CPT expanded the struggle for a single national democratic front. In December 1946, Siam and the USSR reached agreement on the exchange of envoys (diplomatic relations had been established on Mar. 12, 1941).
In November 1947 a group of reactionary officers carried out a military coup, accompanied by antidemocratic repression. The CPT went underground. Pibul Songgram headed the government from 1948 to 1957.
With the completion of the postwar restoration of the economy, the position of the big bourgeoisie, which was primarily of Chinese origin, was strengthened. The bourgeoisie increasingly closed ranks with the ruling Thai bureaucracy, and together they directed their attention toward an alliance with the imperialist powers. Agreements with the USA on economic and technical cooperation and military aid were signed in 1950. In 1951 the government banned trade with the socialist countries. In 1954, Thailand joined the SEATO bloc.
The government’s reactionary foreign and domestic policies, including the dissolution of all political parties in 1951 and the adoption of the Anticommunist Activities Act in 1952, aroused discontent in the country. In the mid-1950’s, the government undertook some liberalization of the regime; 1955–57 was the “period of democracy.” The conclusion of the Geneva Agreements of 1954 on Indochina helped to strengthen the neutralist mood. Mass demonstrations under democratic anti-imperialist slogans took place in Thailand from February to May 1957. Under these circumstances, the army command carried out another coup in September 1957. Sarit Thanarat, who became head of the ruling Revolutionary Committee in October 1958, acquired emergency powers as the head of the government (1959–63) under the interim constitution of January 1959. All public organizations were banned, and mass arrests of supporters of democracy were carried out.
After an American-Thai declaration on the defense of Thailand was signed in March 1962, American bases were established on Thai territory, and the number of American troops grew. American aircraft, flying from bases in Thailand, carried out raids on the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, parts of South Vietnam, and Laos and Cambodia. Thai units participated in military operations in Vietnam from 1966 to 1972. After the death of Sarit Thanarat in 1963, Thanom Kittikachorn headed a civilian government. A return to limited political freedom lasted from June 1968 to November 1971 but gave way to another coup by the military clique. A new military government headed by Thanom Kittikachorn came to power and ruled until 1973. Martial law was instituted, the 1968 constitution was suspended, parliament was disbanded, and political parties were banned.
An interim constitution was proclaimed in December 1972, but two-thirds of the National Assembly’s membership came from the military. Lawlessness, terror, and inflation increasingly aggravated the situation. Despite the official prohibition, workers’ strikes and student demonstrations became more frequent. Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators took to the streets in October 1973, demanding democratization of the regime and the end of the military dictatorship. Thanom Kittikachorn’s military government was forced to yield to a civilian cabinet headed by Sanya Dharmasakti.
The events of October 1973 marked the beginning of a new upsurge in the democratic movement. More than 200,000 people took part in strikes by industrial and transportation workers in late 1973, and demonstrations by peasants demanding improved living conditions became more frequent. The Dharmasakti government declared its intention to change the country’s one-sided foreign-policy orientation and to strengthen friendly relations with all countries. Work on a permanent constitution began in the newly formed National Assembly in December 1973, and the constitution was adopted in 1974.
The coalition government of Kukrit Pramoj was formed after the general parliamentary elections in January 1975. The government demanded the complete withdrawal of all American forces from Thailand. It proclaimed a program of democratic reforms and declared its aspirations for the establishment of a stable peace and friendly relations with all countries. The program, however, was not realized. In January 1976, in the face of attacks from the right-wing parliamentary opposition on the one hand and mass demonstrations by students and workers on the other, the government dissolved parliament. The coalition cabinet of Seni Pramoj, which represented the interests of the right and center parties, was formed in April 1976. Under pressure from forces favoring a neutralist policy, the new government put forth a program for the withdrawal of all American troops. On July 20, 1976, the American armed forces left the country. The American bases were handed over to the control of the local authorities.
A military coup took place in Thailand in October 1976, bringing to power the high command of the country’s armed forces. All political parties were disbanded. The government of Thanin Kraivichien, noted for a conservative course, was replaced by a cabinet headed by General Kriangsak Chamanand. The new government proclaimed a policy of partial democratization, permitted trade unions and other public organizations to function, and declared its intention to expand friendly relations and cooperation with all countries.
As of early 1976, there were 58 registered political parties in Thailand. The main right-wing parties are the Thai Nation Party, the Social Justice Party, the National Socialist Party and the Social Agriculture Party, which represent the interests of the high ranks of the army and police, bankers, and large landowners. Prominent among centrist parties are the Democracy Party, the Social Action Party, and the New Force Party, which represent the liberal big and middle bourgeoisie, the aristocracy, and the monarchist intelligentsia. In 1978 the Democracy Party, the Thai Nation Party, and the New Force Party remained influential.
The Communist Party of Thailand, founded in 1942, has operated clandestinely since the 1947 coup d’etat.
General characteristics. Thailand is a developing agrarian-industrial country whose economy is highly dependent on foreign capital. The main branches of the economy are oriented toward exports. Although Thailand has retained its political independence, it has been unable to protect its economy from the expansionist aspirations of the developed capitalist countries, which exploited its natural resources and cheap labor force in their own interests. During the postwar period, the greater part of capital investment, especially in industry, came from the private sector, primarily local capitalist entrepreneurs. At the same time, while attempting to strengthen its position and its control over economic activity in accordance with programs for economic development, the government took steps to expand the public sector, using domestic and foreign sources—for example, loans, credit, and subsidies from foreign states and international organizations—to finance its measures. The state undertook capital investments for the development of agriculture (irrigation), transportation, power engineering, and industry.
Japanese capital accounts for the largest foreign investments in Thailand. Loans and credit have been suplied by the USA, Japan, France, and West Germany, as well as by the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the Asian Development Bank.
The value of the gross domestic product rose considerably during the postwar years, reaching 187.7 billion bahts in 1973, and the number of employees in the economy rose. Although the role of agriculture decreased somewhat, there were no fundamental changes in the structure of the economy. This was due less to the growth of industrial production than to the expansion of the service sphere as a result of the increased activity of foreign firms in the country, the increase in foreign trade operations, and the prolonged presence of foreign armed forces on Thai territory.
In 1973, agriculture and forestry accounted for 31 percent of the gross domestic product, as against 40 percent in 1960; industry and construction accounted for 25 percent, trade 21 percent, and transportation 6 percent. (The 1960 figures were 19 percent, 18 percent, and 7 percent, respectively.) Thailand is an important producer of rice and bast crops, and it is third, after Malaysia and Indonesia, in production of natural rubber. It is fourth (1973), after Malaysia, Bolivia, and Indonesia, in the production of tin concentrate and second, after Malaysia (since 1965), in the smelting of raw tin. Thailand is a major supplier of valuable wood for the world market.
Agriculture. Much of the land in Thailand is the property of feudal landlords, whereas the bulk of the peasants are landless or land-starved. Leasing is widespread. There are capitalist plantations. In accordance with the economic-geographic features of various parts of Thailand, which are mainly associated with agricultural specialization, four regions may be distinguished—the North, Central Thailand, the Northeast, and the South. The main suppliers of agricultural commodities for export are the tenant farms of Central Thailand and the plantations of the South. Small-scale farms on which crops are grown for personal consumption are mainly characteristic of the North and Northeast. In 1971, according to UN data, agricultural lands totaled 15.9 million hectares (ha), of which about 3 million ha were irrigated. Plowlands totaled 12.4 million ha, 1.5 million ha were under perennial crops, and 2 million were meadows and pasturelands.
Land cultivation is the main branch of agriculture. The main crop is rice, with a harvested area of 7.7 million ha and a yield of 13.2 million tons (1974). Rice is cultivated primarily in Central Thailand and in the delta of the Chao Phraya River, which is called the rice bowl of the country. A substantial portion of the region’s output of rice is exported. More than 1 million ha are under corn, which produces a harvest of 2.5 million tons. Other crops include millet, sorghum, legumes, sweet potatoes, cassava, peanuts, castor-oil plants, sesame, sugarcane (14.5 million tons), coconut palms, tea, coffee, kenaf, cotton, tobacco, and spices (pepper and cardamom). Subtropical and tropical fruits, such as mango, pineapple, and citrus fruits, are grown. Hevea cultivation is important, and there are rubber plantations in the South. Production of natural rubber was 380,000 tons in 1974, as against 170,000 tons in 1960. Sericulture is also practiced. The livestock population (1974) includes 4.8 million head of cattle, 5.7 million buffalo, 4.7 million hogs, and 10,000 elephants; there are more than 55 million fowl.
FISHING. Fish, along with rice, makes up the daily diet of the people of Thailand. The catch of carp and other fish in inland waters and of mackerel, herring, barracuda, and bluefin in the sea, primarily in coastal waters, is growing rapidly (1.6 million tons in 1974 compared to 400,000 tons in 1963).
FORESTRY. Forestry is a traditional export branch of the country’s economy. Thailand’s forests have considerable reserves of valuable woods, such as teak, ebonv, sandalwood, sal tree, and mahogany. Logging is carried on primarily in the North, where the lumber is then floated downriver to the processing and export center, Bangkok. The total volume of logging is 2.2 million cu m (1974).
Industry. Definite shifts in the structure of industry occurred from the 1950’s to the 1970’s: branches new to Thailand, such as tin smelting, electrical engineering, and oil refining, appeared alongside such traditional branches as woodworking and the food industry. The output of electric power also rose considerably.
EXTRACTIVE INDUSTRY AND POWER ENGINEERING. The mining of tin ore (cassiterite) is of the greatest importance in Thailand’s extractive industry. Tin is mined in the southern part of the country, on the Malay Peninsula and the island of Phuket, and on the shelf of the Gulf of Thailand (the output of tin concentrates was 20,300 tons in 1974, as against 15,800 tons in 1963). Tungsten ore is recovered as a by-product of tin extraction (2,700 tons in 1973; 124 tons in 1963). The Mae Klong River basin is the most important area for the mining of iron ore (36,000 tons in 1973), antimony (3,500 tons), manganese (12,000 tons), lead and zinc, fluorite (417,000 tons), barite (113,000 tons), asbestos, salt, and precious stones (sapphires and rubies). Coal—mostly brown coal and lignite—is mined in Krabi, Mae Mo, and Li (361,000 tons in 1973), and oil is drilled (6,000 tons) in the vicinity of Fang.
Most of the energy consumed in Thailand comes from imported oil. Production of electric power rose sharply in the 1960’s and 1970’s, as a number of hydroelectric, thermal, and diesel electric power plants were put into operation. Electric power production was 900 million kilowatt-hours (kW-hr) in 1963, and by 1972 it had risen to 6.2 billion kW-hr, with about 2 billion kW-hr coming from hydroelectric power plants. The largest thermal power plants are South Bangkok (400 MW) and North Bangkok; the major hydroelectric plants are Bhumibol (420 MW), near the city of Chainat, and Sirikit (375 MW) on the Nan River.
The traditional branches of the manufacturing industry use local raw materials and are represented mostly by small enterprises. Prominent among this group are the food and condiment industry (rice hulling and milling, fish processing, sugar refining, and production of coconut oil, canned fruit, and tobacco articles), sawmilling, and primary processing of rubber. The textile industry has developed; its main areas are the production of cotton and synthetic fabrics and jute articles.
The 1950’s to the 1970’s were characterized by the appearance of various comparatively large enterprises owned mainly by foreign or mixed capital and relying on imported raw materials and semifinished products. This group includes the petrochemical, chemical, and pharmaceutical industries, paper-making, metal-working, and machine building (assembly of automobiles, tractors, radio and television sets, and transformers). Developing branches of industry include the production of metal articles and tools, the repair of railroad rolling stock and ships, nonferrous metallurgy (smelting of tin, the manufacture of copper and aluminum wire), ferrous metallurgy, and the production of building materials (3.85 million tons of cement in 1974). Handicraft production of foods, domestic articles, agricultural implements, and objets d’art is widespread (see below: Art and architecture).
Transportation. Thailand has 3,850 km of railroads (1974) and 18,500 km of highways. The country has 300,000 passenger cars and buses and 177,000 trucks. Inland waterways—for example, the Chao Phraya River system and canals—are also used. The country’s foreign trade is conducted mainly by sea. The tonnage of the national merchant fleet is 96,800 (1974). Bangkok is the main seaport; others include Phuket, Satthahip, Songkhla, and Kantang. Thailand’s international airports are at Don Muang (near Bangkok) and Hat Yai (in the south).
Foreign trade. The value of Thailand’s imports somewhat exceeds that of its exports. The main export articles are rice and corn, rubber, tin, tapioca, kenaf, precious stones, and lumber; other export articles include paper and electronic items. The main import articles are machines, industrial equipment, petroleum and petroleum products, ferrous metals, chemicals, and various consumer goods. Thailand’s main trading partners are Japan, the USA, the Federal Republic of Germany, the Netherlands, and Great Britain. Thailand is starting to develop trade relations with socialist countries. The permanent deficit in the trade balance is covered primarily by foreign “aid,” loans, and income from foreign tourism (1.1 million tourists visited Thailand in 1974). The monetary unit is the baht.
L. I. EVSTAFEVA
Thailand’s armed forces consist of land troops, an air force, and a navy. The commander in chief is the king. The total strength of the armed forces is about 204,000 (1975); in addition, the volunteer local defense corps and border patrol number about 60,000. Recruitment is based on compulsory military service, and the term of active service is two years. The land forces (135,000 men) consist of five infantry divisions, two regimental combat teams, and a number of individual special units and sub-units. Armaments are Americanmade. The air force (about 42,000 men) has 105 obsolete fighters and 50 helicopters. The navy (about 27,000 men, including 9,000 marines) has seven frigates, 14 antisubmarine destroyers, one seagoing and four coastal minesweepers, two minelayers, 24 patrol boats, 38 landing craft, and seven landing ships. The main naval base is Bangkok.
According to data from the World Health Organization (WHO; 1972), the birthrate in Thailand is 32.8 per thousand, and the death rate is 7.7 per thousand; infant mortality is 24.4 per thousand live births. Infectious and parasitic diseases predominate; they are the main cause of death. Malaria, tuberculosis, gastroenteritic infections, dengue, yaws, venereal diseases, and leprosy are the most widespread. Most common among noninfectious diseases are cardiovascular and oncological disorders and nutritive deficiencies. There are no significant differences in regional pathology. With WHO support, the country’s public health service is conducting programs to wipe out malaria, tuberculosis, yaws, and leprosy.
In 1972, Thailand had 533 hospitals, with 43,000 beds (1.2 beds per 1,000 inhabitants), 40,500 of which were in the 438 state institutions. Outpatient care was provided (1971) in polyclinics at 130 hospitals and in 3,800 public health centers and 5,900 medical aid stations, which are primarily in rural localities, and by 92 mobile units.
In 1971 there were 4,800 physicians (one per 7,200 inhabitants), 663 stomatologists, 1,900 pharmacists, and 7,100 nurses. Bangkok, with 5 percent of the country’s population, had 60 percent of the doctors, 79 percent of the stomatologists, and 67 percent of the nurses. Doctors are trained in four higher medical schools; there are schools to train secondary medical personnel. Expenditures for public health amounted to 3 percent of the state budget in 1973. According to estimates, three-fourths of the per capita expenditures for public health went for payments by the population for private medical services.
A. A. ROZOV
Veterinary services. Provision of veterinary services in Thailand is better than that of the other countries of Southeast Asia. However, foot-and-mouth disease, hemorrhagic septicemia, and Newcastle disease present significant problems. Swine plague, glanders, mycotic lymphangitis, strangles, leptospirosis, coccidiosis, anthrax, blackleg, salmonellosis, tuberculosis, brucellosis, rabies, carnivores’ plague, anaplasmosis, piroplasmosis, liver rot, and trichinosis are also recorded. Veterinary services are administered by the Ministry of Agriculture. Diagnostic work is performed at provincial laboratories. Veterinarians are trained at the faculties of veterinary medicine of Chulalongkorn and Kasetsart universities in Bangkok. Thailand has 951 veterinarians (1974). Research is conducted at the country’s universities and at the foot-and-mouth disease center in Nong Sarai.
S. I. KARTUSHIN
The Thai educational system includes preschool, elementary, secondary, and postsecondary levels.
Children aged 4 to 7 attend preschool institutions, where enrollment exceeds 176,000 (1974). Children are admitted to elementary schools at the age of 7. The course of study in the elementary schools is seven years (four years in the lower level and three in the upper level). Elementary school is considered compulsory; in 1970, however, elementary education extended to 79.42 percent of children between the ages of 7 and 14. There were 6,506,000 pupils in elementary schools in the 1974–75 school year.
The course of study in the secondary general education academic schools is five years, with three-year and two-year stages. Secondary school enrollment in the 1974–75 school year was 842,800. There are many private schools. The language of instruction is literary Thai. Students enter the lower level of the secondary vocational-technical school (one to three years) from elementary school, and they enter the higher level (one to three years) from incomplete secondary school or the three-year lower-level secondary vocational-technical school. In the 1974–75 school year there were 75,500 students in higher-level secondary vocational-technical schools. Teachers for the elementary schools go through a two-year course of study after incomplete secondary school. Secondary school teachers are trained at pedagogical institutes and universities. In the 1974–75 academic year there were 60,400 students in the teaching-training system.
There are five universities in Bangkok, the largest of which are Chulalongkorn University (founded 1917) and Thammasat University (1933). There are also universities in the cities of Chiang Mai (1964), Khon Kaen (1964), and Songkhla (1964). In 1974–75, there were about 58,400 students in the universities and 19,500 in the technical institutes. The National Library (founded 1905; more than 724,000 volumes and 144,000 manuscripts) and the National Museum (1926) are located in Bangkok.
V. Z. KLEPIKOV
The system of scientific and scholarly institutions of Thailand took shape after World War II (1939–45). The government coordinates scientific activity through the Applied Scientific Research Corporation of Thailand (founded 1963), under which are the Environmental and Ecological Research Institute and the Thai National Documentation Center, and the National Research Council. Most scientific and scholarly organizations are under the jurisdiction of the ministries. For example, the Ministry of Agriculture has a laboratory for sea fishing, and the Ministry of National Development has a division concerned with the use of natural resources. There are research centers under the auspices of the universities in Bangkok (Kasetsart University) and Chiang Mai, and under the regional Asian Institute of Technology. The main research concerns are the national economy and problems of agriculture, forestry, and fishing. The Siam Society (founded 1904), which conducts research on history, ethnography, and archaeology, is the country’s largest scholarly society. Scientific and scholarly work is funded mainly by the state budget; some of it is funded by foreign and international sources.
Thailand has (1977) several dozen newspapers, most of them published in Bangkok. The total circulation of the daily newspapers is as much as 1 million. The largest Thai-language papers are Thai Rath (circulation, 500,000), the Daily News (230,000), Siam Rath (100,000), the Thai Daily (38,000), and Prachathipathai (84,000). Prior to October 1976, there were 30 Chinese-language newspapers, the largest of which were Hsing Hsien Jih Pao (circulation, 67,000), Ching Hua Jih Pao (65,000), Chung Hua JihPao (52,000), and Shih Chieh Jih Pao (32,000). After the 1976 coup d’état these newspapers were closed down. The largest English-language paper is the Bangkok Post (more than 17,000).
Radio broadcasting in Thailand began in 1938. There are more than 200 radio stations, most of which are small. The largest, the Voice of Free Asia, is state-owned. Television broadcasting began in 1955. There are seven television stations.
V. I. ISKOLDSKII
The first works of Thai literature date from the late 13th and early 14th centuries and consist of inscriptions on stone, primarily in the nature of annals. The earliest epigraphic work is the stela of Rama Khamhaeng (1292). Until the late 19th century, because of the decisive role of Buddhism in the cultural and social life of the country, the formation and development of Thai literature were strongly influenced by Indian literature.
Medieval classical literature, especially that of the early period, consisted mainly of religious apologia and found its expression almost exclusively in verse. Examples of this literature include the epic poem The Great Reincarnation (1482), which became a permanent part of the Thai religious liturgy, and the anonymous 15th-century historical naarrative poem Defeat of the Yuan. Lyricism developed greatly against the background of the official literature. The earliest and best known work of the kind was the lyric epic poem Pra Lo (15th—16th centuries). The poets Siprat and Phra Maharachakhru (both from the second half of the 17th century) and Thammathibet (1732–55) were endowed with great skill in the lyric genres. A prominent place in literature was occupied by frame stories—for example, the collections Fifty Jatakas, The Book of the Birds, and The Twelve Sides —and by the Ramayana (in the Thai version, the Ramakien).
A gradual turn from religious to secular themes began in the late 18th century. The democratization of the literary language became evident. The first prose works appeared, among them the translated historical novels Rachatirat (1785) and The Three Kingdoms (1802). The greatest works of 19th-century literature were the lyric epic poem Khun Chang Khun Phaen and the verse fantasy Phra Ahpaimani (c. 1850) by Sunthorn Phu (1786–1855), the dramatic narrative poem Inao by King Rama II (ruled 1809–24), and the satiric poem Prince Landai (second quarter of the 19th century) by Phra Maha Montri.
After the coup d’etat of 1932, realism became the predominant method in Thai literature. Prose, in the form of the short story, the novella, and the novel, assumed the dominant position. Two main trends, naturalism and social realism, appeared in literature. The exponents of the first trend were typified by their passion for psychological conflict and their idealization of reality. Members of this group were the women writers Dokmai Sot, author of a series of novels and stories about the “model” Thai (The Respectable Man, 1947; The Nobles, Three Men, and This Is Our World), and Ko Surangkhanang (born 1911), author of novels drawn mainly from the life of high society (The Golden Sand House, 1950; The Prostitute, 1937; and Reflection). The naturalistic trend was also represented by authors writing about society and everyday life, such as Sot Kuramarohit (born 1908), author of Our Land and Raya, and Malai Chuphinit (1906–63), author of The Great Field and Her Name Is Woman.
The life of the people was reflected in the work of the social realist writers. Sibunrapha (1905–74) was the author of the socially oriented novel Facing the Future (1955), and Lao Kamkhom (born 1930) wrote a series of short stories devoted to the peasants (the collection God Cannot Help, 1955). Achin Panchaphan (born 1927) is the author of the collections of short stories In the Mines and The Call From the Mines (both 1965), the central characters of which are workers. Seni Sawvaphong (born 1918) produced the pointed social novel The Devil (1957), and Manat Tiyanrayong (born 1907) is the author of collections of short stories drawn from the life of the lower strata of society (A Simple Mortal, The Tramp, and The Thickets). Itsara Amantakun (1920–69) wrote The Yellow Tiger and The Tiger Sheathes His Claws, which depict contemporary society from a critical standpoint, and the woman writer Thomyanti exposed the vices of high society in the novels Filth and The Concubine.
Monuments of the artistic culture of Thailand, including pottery from burials in the valley of the Kwai River and rock paintings in northwestern Thailand, date from the Neolithic period and the Bronze Age. The art of the Mon from the state of Dvaravati and the Khmers of the Khmer empire developed in what is now Thailand in the first centuries of the Common Era and served as the foundation for the Thai artistic culture (temples in Lamphun and Chiang Mai; massive statues of the Buddha with details as fine as jewelry).
The shaping of a national art under the aegis of Buddhism began in the 13th century with the formation of the Sukhothai state. The wat, a characteristically Thai religious complex, became a distinctive architectural form. The wats contained prang or phra prang sanctuaries, with a tower-like rounded peak; chedi or phra chedi, with a bell-shaped roof and steeple; and temples (vihans). Examples of this type of architecture are the wats of Chang Lom in Sawankhalok (late 13th century) and Mahadhat in Sukhothai (Sukhothai, 1345). In sculpture, the graphic, elongated forms characteristic of Thailand were developed.
In the 14th to 19th centuries, during the flowering of the Siamese state, the traditions of Sukhothai were further developed. Cities with grid patterns appeared; they were enclosed by brick walls with indentations of an original type, in the shape of lily pads. In Ayutthaya, Bangkok, and other centers, many complex wats and palaces were constructed and were richly decorated with multicolored mosaics, paintings, and carvings. Numerous works of sculpture were created, but their graceful expressiveness was gradually lost because of excessive decor. Tempera wall painting was known from the 14th century. Examples of this genre include paintings on themes from the life of Buddha in the temples of Ayutthaya (15th century) and scenes from the Tosachata and Ramayana in the temples of Bangkok (18th–19th centuries).
Western European and American artistic traditions were introduced into Thailand in the late 19th century. Intensive construction on European and American models was carried on in Bangkok, where numerous banks, office buildings, and hotels were built in the spirit of contemporary “international” architecture and residential areas with a regular, planned layout were developed. In the second half of the 20th century, such progressive artists as the painters Fua Harabhitak and Tawee Nandakhwang, the sculptor-Kien Yimsiri, and the graphic artist Manit Poo-aree sought to maintain the traditional features of the national art, while following European realism.
The most prominent areas in Thai decorative and applied folk art are lacquer painting (since the 17th century), the manufacture of articles made from lacquer and buffalo hide, wood carving, silver stamping, weaving, and wickerwork.
Since ancient times, the observance of every religious ritual, village holiday, marriage, and birth has been accompanied by singing and music. The absence of semitones is characteristic of Thai music. Musical works usually have a simple rhythm, with slight variations, and are most frequently performed in a rapid tempo. The musicians learn the basic melody by ear and vary it by improvisation during performance. A Thai orchestra has no conductor; this function is fulfilled by a person performing on the ching (small cymbals).
Instrumentation in Thai music is diversified, with percussion instruments predominating. One of the oldest instruments, the pi nai, is similar to the Scottish bagpipes. The most common string instruments include the ku saw sam sai, which is made of coconut shells, with an ivory fingerboard and three silk strings, and the thakau, which is similar to a large guitar and is played primarily by women. The orchestra usually consists of the Indian timbrel, called the taphon in Thailand, and two Chinese drums, the klong thad. Small ensembles are popular. A typical ensemble consists of a gong wong yai (16 gongs suspended from a circular frame) and a ranat ek (a xylophone in the form of a riverboat). Large orchestras include string instruments, such as the saw sam say, one of the renowned masters of which was the early 19th-century king Rama II, and Chinese violins, the sa dueng and sa u, whose sad sounds the Thais love to hear in solo performances.
European musical instruments—and, with them, European music—were introduced into Thailand in the late 19th century. The composers of Thailand have sought to master the methods of European musical technique. There are European-style orchestras in Bangkok and other large cities.
V. I. KORNEV
The classical theater of Thailand originated with the Indian epic, the Ramayana, which was known in the country in its Thai version, the Ramakien, in the 15th century. Themes from the Ramakien were the basis for the formation of three types of classical presentations: the khon, the nang, and the lakon. The khon and nang are mentioned in chronicles from the mid-15th century.
The khon is a pantomime theater with masks, in which all roles are performed by men. The masks, of which there are more than 100, define the character and functions of the heroes: the bright green is Rama, the gold is Laksmana, the white is Hanuman, and the red is Sugriva. The actors do not recite the text; it is read behind the stage. Episodes from the Ramakien are performed, and the actor’s every gesture and movement have symbolic meaning. The presentation is accompanied by a folk orchestra and chorus.
The nang is a shadow theater. The figures of the characters, which are cut out of buffalo hide, are black or colored. The black figures are manipulated behind a lighted screen in evening performances, and the colored figures are manipulated in front of the screen during the day. The show is accompanied by declamation by the actors, who explain the actions of the heroes. Episodes from daily life are often performed.
The lakon is the Thai classic drama. The themes are drawn from Buddhist jatakas (stories). The lakon staged in the palace in the second half of the 15th century was known as the lakon nai, and the roles were performed by women; shows outside the palace—the lakon nok —were performed by men and women. The text was declaimed by actors. A small chorus played an auxiliary role, explaining the action and providing characterization of the heroes. The main element of the lakon was the dance (known as the Siamese dance), in which the graceful movement of the fingers was brought to perfection. The lakon performances combined traditional classic episodes with folk comedy, close to farce. The likay and nora; contemporary folk spectacles, are varieties of lakon.
There is no permanent theater in Thailand. There is an amateur troupe with 100–150 members under the Fine Arts Department of the Ministry of Education (1975).
V. I. KORNEV