Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Ethnic Make-up
Some 75% of the citizens of Thailand are ethnic Thais, providing a super-ficial view of
sameness. But subtle regional differences exist. In the central plains (Chao Phraya delta),
Siamese Thais united the country through its historic kingdoms and promulgated its culture
and language. Today the central Thai dialect is the national standard and Bangkok exports
unify culture through popular media and standardised education.
The northeast (Isan) has always stood apart from the rest of the country, sharing closer
ethnic and cultural ties with Laos and the Thai Lao people. In the northeastern provinces
that border Cambodia, there is a distinct Khmer influence as many families migrated across
the border during historical tumult. A minority tribe, known as Suay, lives near Surin and
Khorat (Nakhon Ratchasima) and are traditional elephant mahouts.
Thai Pak Tai people define the characteristics of the south. The dialect is a little faster
than standard Thai and there is more mixing of Muslim folk beliefs into the regional cul-
ture thanks to the geographic proximity to Malaysia and the historic Muslim population.
If you were to redraw Thailand's borders according to ethnicity, northern Thailand
would be united with parts of southern China and northern Myanmar. The traditional home-
land of the Tai people was believed to be the Yunnan region of China. There are also many
sub-groups, including the Shan (an ethnic cousin to the Thais who settled in the highlands
of Burma) and the Tai Lü (who settled in Nan and Chiang Rai Provinces as well as the Vi-
etnamese highlands).
People of Chinese ancestry - second- or third-generation Hakka, Teochew, Hainanese or
Cantonese - make up 14% of the population. Bangkok and the nearby coastal areas have a
large population of immigrants from China who came for economic opportunities in the
early to mid-20th century. In northern Thailand there is also a substantial number of
Chinese Muslims who emigrated from Yunnan in the late 19th century. Historically
wealthy Chinese introduced their daughters to the royal court as consorts, developing royal
connections and adding a Chinese bloodline that extends to the current king.
Thais are fastidious in their personal appearance, often bathing twice a day, and are confused that seem-
ingly wealthy foreigners are so unkempt.
The second-largest ethnic minority are the Malays (4.6%), most of whom reside in the
provinces of the Deep South. The remaining minority groups include smaller percentages
