Thailand

Author: None
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-01-01
Features: Siam, the former name of Thailand, is a combination of the ancient states of Sukhothai and Lanna. In 1939, the country's name was changed to Thailand, meaning the land of the Thais or the land of freedom. Among Southeast Asian countries, Thailand is the only one that was never colonized by Europeans. The Thai people are one of the oldest ethnic groups in the world. Around 650 AD, they gradually migrated from the Sichuan, Guizhou, Yunnan, and Guangxi regions of China to the Indochinese Peninsula, establishing several small kingdoms. Those who settled in the Mekong River basin were called "Little Thais," who are the ancestors of modern Thais. To this day, Thailand's history has primarily gone through four major dynasties: the Sukhothai Dynasty (1238–1350), the Ayutthaya Dynasty (1350–1767), the Thonburi Dynasty (1767–1782), and the Rattanakosin Dynasty (the current reign), which are known as the Four Great Dynasties in Thai history.