Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spans 513,115 square kilometres (198,115 sq mi). Thailand is bordered to the northwest by Myanmar, to the northeast and east by Laos, to the southeast by Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the southwest by the Andaman Sea; it also shares maritime borders with Vietnam to the southeast and Indonesia and India to the southwest. Bangkok is the state capital and largest city.
Auto rickshaw in Sri Lanka An auto rickshaw is a motorized version of the pulled rickshaw or cycle rickshaw. Most have three wheels and do not tilt. They are known by many terms in various countries, including auto, auto rickshaw, baby taxi, mototaxi, pigeon, jonnybee, bajaj, chand gari, lapa, tuk-tuk, tum-tum, Keke-napep, Maruwa, Adaidaita Sahu, 3wheel, pragya, bao-bao, easy bike, and tukxi.
The auto rickshaw is a common form of transport around the world, both as a vehicle for hire and for private use. They are especially common in countries with tropical or subtropical climates since they are usually not fully enclosed, and they are found in many developing countries because they are relatively inexpensive to own and operate. There are many different auto rickshaw designs. The most common type is characterized by a sheet-metal body or open frame resting on three wheels; a canvas roof with drop-down side curtains; a small cabin at the front for the driver operating handlebar controls; and a cargo, passenger, or dual purpose space at the rear. Another type is a motorcycle that has an expanded sidecar or, less often, is pushing or pulling a passenger compartment. (Full article...)
Operating from its primary hub at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport, the airline currently serves 51 international and 10 domestic destinations using a fleet of 77 aircraft consisting of wide-body and narrow-body aircraft from both Boeing and Airbus with 81 aircraft on order as of August 2024. Currently Thai's route network is dominated by flights to cities in Europe, Asia and Oceania flying to 30 countries as of August 2024 including 9 domestic routes. Thai was the first Asia-Pacific airline to serve Heathrow Airport. Among Asia-Pacific carriers, the company has one of the largest passenger operations in Europe serving 11 airports. As of 2024, the longest route Thai operates is the Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK) to Heathrow Airport (LHR) (9,576 km [5,950 mi]). As of 2013, services between Bangkok and Los Angeles were served via Incheon International Airport near Seoul until the airline ended its flights to the United States on 25 October 2015. As of the end of 2019, 1,438 of its 22,054 employees were pilots. (Full article...)
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The Pheu Thai Party (PTP; Thai: พรรคเพื่อไทย, lit. 'For Thais Party', RTGS: Phak Phuea Thai, pronounced[pʰákpʰɯ̂atʰāj]) is a major Thai political party. It is the third incarnation of a Thai political party founded by former prime ministerThaksin Shinawatra, and like the previous incarnations, is the main political vehicle for the Shinawatra family. It is the current majority ruling party of Thailand, ruling along with other parties in a coalition.
The Pheu Thai Party was founded on 20 September 2007, as an anticipated replacement for the People's Power Party (PPP), which the Constitutional Court of Thailand dissolved less than three months later after finding party members guilty of electoral fraud. The People's Power Party was itself a replacement for Thaksin's original Thai Rak Thai Party (TRT), dissolved by the Court in May 2007 for violation of electoral laws. (Full article...)
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The history of Bangkok, the capital of Thailand, dates at least to the early 15th century, when it was under the rule of Ayutthaya. Due to its strategic location near the mouth of the Chao Phraya River, the town gradually increased in importance, and after the fall of Ayutthaya King Taksin established his new capital of Thonburi there, on the river's west bank. King Phutthayotfa Chulalok, who succeeded Taksin, moved the capital to the eastern bank in 1782, to which the city dates its foundation under its current Thai name, "Krung Thep Maha Nakhon". Bangkok has since undergone tremendous changes, growing rapidly, especially in the second half of the 20th century, to become the primate city of Thailand. It was the centre of Siam's modernization in the late 19th century, subjected to Allied bombing during the Second World War, and has long been the modern nation's central political stage, with numerous uprisings and coups d'état having taken place on its streets throughout the years. (Full article...)
The rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Thailand are regarded as some of the most comprehensive of those in Asia. Both male and female same-sex sexual activity are legal, and the law legalizing same sex marriage is pending the royal assent. Thailand was the first Asian UN member state to pass a comprehensive same-sex marriage law, as well as the first in Southeast Asia and the 37th in the world. About eight percent of the Thai population, five million people, are thought to be in the LGBT demographic.
In 2013, the Bangkok Post said that "while Thailand is viewed as a tourist haven for same-sex couples, the reality for locals is that the law, and often public sentiment, is not so liberal." A 2014 report by the United States Agency for International Development and the United Nations Development Programme said that LGBT people "still face discrimination affecting their social rights and job opportunities", and "face difficulty gaining acceptance for non-traditional sexuality, even though the tourism authority has been promoting Thailand as a gay-friendly country". (Full article...)
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Luang Por Dattajivo (Thai: ทตฺตชีโว, RTGS: Thattachiwo; Pali: Dattajīvo; born 21 December 1940), also known by his birth name Phadet Phongsawat (Thai: เผด็จ ผ่องสวัสดิ์) and former ecclesiastical titlePhrarajbhavanajahn (Thai: พระราชภาวนาจารย์, RTGS: Phra Rat Phawanachan), is a Thai Buddhist monk. He is the former deputy-abbot of Wat Phra Dhammakaya and the vice-president of the Dhammakaya Foundation, and was the observing abbot of the temple from 1999 until 2006, and again from 2011 until 2016. As of December 2016,[update] he was still widely considered the de facto abbot. He met Mae chi (nun) Chandra Khonnokyoong and Luang Por Dhammajayo in his student years, and they have been his teachers throughout his life.
Luang Por Dattajivo was ordained in 1971, and quickly became a prolific author. He also took on a significant role in managing Wat Phra Dhammakaya. It was for this position that he was charged by the Thai military junta in 2017, when he refused to deliver Luang Por Dhammajayo to the authorities. This happened during the lockdown by the Thai junta, when abbot Luang Por Dhammajayo was sought for charges of receiving ill-gotten gains, charges which have been widely described as politically motivated. (Full article...)
Born to a family of farmers in Ayutthaya province, he received a good education, becoming one of the nation's youngest barristers in 1919, at the age of nineteen. In 1920, he won a royal scholarship granted by the King of Siam to study in France, where he graduated from the University of Caen with a master's degree, and received a doctorate from the University of Paris in 1927. In the same year, he co-founded Khana Ratsadon with like-minded Siamese overseas royal-sponsored students. After returning to Thailand, still called Siam at the time, he worked as a judge, judicial secretariat, and professor. In the aftermath of 1932 Siamese Revolution, he played an important role in drafting two of the country's first constitutions and proposing a socialist economic plan influenced by communism scheme, principles and conducts. His plan was ill-received, and Pridi went into a short period of political exile as aftermath of the fight-for-power with his fellow revolutionists. On his return, he took many ministerial posts in Khana Ratsadon governments. His contributions include modernizing Thai legal codes, laying the foundation for Thailand's local government system, negotiating the cancellation of unequal treaties with the West, and tax reform. (Full article...)
The UDD in 2007 The United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD) (Thai: แนวร่วมประชาธิปไตยต่อต้านเผด็จการแห่งชาติ; นปช., alternatively translated as National Democratic Alliance against Dictatorship), whose supporters are commonly called Red Shirts, is a political pressure group opposed to the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), the 2006 Thai coup d'état, and supporters of the coup. Notable UDD leaders include Jatuporn Prompan, Nattawut Saikua, Veera Musikapong, Jaran Ditapichai, and Weng Tojirakarn. The UDD allies itself with the Pheu Thai Party, which was deposed by the 2014 military coup. Before the July 2011 national elections, the UDD claimed that Abhisit Vejjajiva's government took power illegitimately, backed by the Thai Army and the judiciary. The UDD called for the Thai Parliament to be dissolved so that a general election could be held. UDD accused the country's extra-democratic elite—the military, judiciary, certain members of the privy council, and other unelected officials—of undermining democracy by interfering in politics. The UDD is composed of mostly rural citizens from northeast (Isan) and north Thailand, of urban lower classes from Bangkok, and of intellectuals. Although the movement seems to receive support from former prime minister-in-exile Thaksin Shinawatra, not all UDD members support the deposed prime minister. (Full article...)
Image 12Display of respect of the younger towards the elder is a cornerstone value in Thailand. A family during the Buddhist ceremony for young men who are to be ordained as monks. (from Culture of Thailand)
Image 18Map showing linguistic family tree overlaid on a geographic distribution map of Tai-Kadai family. This map only shows general pattern of the migration of Tai-speaking tribes, not specific routes, which would have snaked along the rivers and over the lower passes. (from History of Thailand)
Image 43Ananta Samakhom Throne Hall, the royal reception hall built in European architectural style. Construction was started by Rama V, but was completed in 1915. (from History of Thailand)
Image 54Wat Arun, the most prominent temple of the Thonburi period, derives its name from the Hindu god Aruṇa. Its main prang was constructed later in the Rattanakosin period. (from History of Thailand)
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Mom Luang Pin Malakul (Thai: หม่อมหลวงปิ่น มาลากุล; 24 October 1903 – 5 October 1995) was a Thai professor, educator and writer. His contributions to education in Thailand include the establishment of various institutions of higher education, the introduction of fixed class schedules, and the implementation of teacher-training programmes. In his career he served as Director-General of the Department of General Education, later becoming Permanent Secretary, and Minister, of Education. He was also a member of the Executive Board of UNESCO. His writings earned him the title of National Artist in 1987, and the 100th anniversary of his birth was celebrated by the UNESCO in 2003 as recognition of his contribution to the advancement of education in Thailand and Southeast Asia. (Full article...)
Credit:User:Hdamm
The roof of Wat Makut Kasat (วัดมกุฎกษัตริยาราม), Bangkok, shows the victory crown as the royal emblem of King Mongkut (Rama IV), flanked by two five-tiered umbrellas.