Assignment One, Part Three

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The History Of Thailand

Thailand is the only country in Southeast Asia to be able to claim that they have never been a European colony or have been divided by a serious civil war. But the beginning of Thailand is still debated. The traditional story of how Thailand came to be is that the first people fled to Thailand from China to escape Kublai Khan's attacks from Mongolia. Other theories include that the Thais originated in Thailand a millenium or two ago and the Thai's found in China today migrated there about 1,000 years ago.

Either way, it can be proven that the first principality of Thailand was Sukhothai, "the dawn of happiness" in 1238. Chiang Mai was established in 1296 and became the ruler over the northern region. By the 13th century the Thais became the dominant ruler of the region, overtaking the once powerful Khmers and Mons. Sukhothai, according to early inscriptions, let it's people enjoy the freedom to pursue their livelihoods. It is the "golden era" of Thai history. The founding of the city is attributed to a mythological hero, Phra Ruang, who saved the Thais from having to pay tribute to the Khmer god-king. The actual founding of the city is unknown from the believed mythological one.

Ayutthaya was founded by the ruler Phaya U-Thong whose people were forced out of their old city due to a cholera outbreak. They relocated to Ayodhya (Ayutthaya), an old Indianised settlement. The location of Ayutthaya was very advantageous due to numerous reasons. It was situated on the place where three rivers came together and had many fertile rice plains, making it the "ideal center of administration and communications" (Thailand, 34). Due to a strong government Ayutthaya survived as the capital of the kingdom for 417 years. King Ramesuen captured Chiang Mai in 1390 and three years later took Angkor.

The first arrival of Europeans was in the 16th century. The Portuguese arrived shortly after 1511 and the King of Aytthaya granted the Portuguese permission to live and trade within the country in return for arms and ammunition. They taught the Thais about cannon foundry and musketry. Even with the Portuguese help, Ayutthaya fell in 1569 to Burmese forces. Most of the population was moved to Burma; The king died before they made it to the new country.

The son of Ayutthaya's former king's leading deputy, Naresuen, would eventually reclaim Ayutthaya as independent, in 1584. The Burmese made many attempts to reclaim Ayutthaya but Naresuen, while captive in Burma, had learned much about Burmese fighting tactics which allowed him to prevent another takeover. Naresuen reconsolidated the kingdom and then attacked Burma which contributed to the fall of the Burmese empire.

In 1767, the Burmese attacked Ayutthaya again, this time succeeding in taking the city. But they didn't gain control of Thailand. A general led a group of Thais through the Burmese invasion and succeeded in taking them out of the city. Seven months after the fall of Ayutthaya, the general and his followers expelled the Burmese occupiers. He immediately moved the capital to a site near the sea to facilitate trade, Bangkok.

They liberated the rest of the country from Burmese rule and brought Cambodia and Laos under Thai rule. This is the period in which they obtained the famous emerald Buddha.

(all information obtained from Insight Guides: Thailand)

The Social Issues of Thailand

Thailand is a rapidly developing country. The life expectancy at birth is 70.3 years which is not too low compared with other countries. Sitting at number one is Japan with a life expectancy of 82.2 years. The literacy rate of Thailand is 92.6%!w(MISSING)hich puts it at number 44 of 177 countries. Number one is Georgia at 100%! (MISSING)

The Human Poverty index is a way to rank countries against each other as to levels of poverty. Thailand ranks number 19, relatively high out of the 177 countries listed. Most Thais have access to clean water. Only one percent of Thai people do not have access to it.

Drugs and drug trafficking remain an issue in Thailand. Thai government combats this by giving strict penalties for the possession of, use of, or trafficking of illegal drugs in Thailand. Offenders can expect long prison sentences under harsh conditions and serious drug offenders can get the death penalty. The Thai police also raid discos, bars, or nightclubs and look for drug users. They typically test everyone at the place and then takes all positive tests to jail.

Thailand has also been experiencing an HIV epidemic. This stems from drug use, and the huge sex trafficking problem in Thailand. Women and Children are affected from this disease as sex without condoms goes for a higher rate. Many children are left orphaned from this disease as their parents die off from it leaving them to fend for themselves.

(All information is taken from the UN website, http://hdr.undp.org/hdr2006/statistics/, and the US department of State's travel site, http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1040.html.)

Cross-Cultural Interactions in Thailand

Thailand is very influenced by its Buddhist religion. It influences the arts, the cuisine, and the customs of Thais. The literature of Thailand is influenced by Indian culture.

95%!o(MISSING)f the Thais are Theravada Buddhist with the minorities being Muslim and Christian. The Theravada Buddhist religion is supported by the government with the monks receiving many government benefits. Before the rise of Theravada Buddhism, Indian Brahmanic religion was present and its influences can still be seen today. It plays an important role in Thai folk traditions.

A very distinct Thai custom is the wai, a gesture to show greeting, farewell, or acknowledgment. Depending on the status of those involved it changes forms, but basically involves a prayer like hand gesture and a bow of the head.

Physical demonstrations between Thai couples in public is unheard of and is not seen. In some of the more westernized areas it is a little more common, but many Thais take offense to public displays of affection.

Many other things are different in Thai culture than from American culture. The head is viewed as the most clean place of the body and the feet are the least. That is why is is considered rude and offensive to place your feet above anyones head. Also, Thai households are arranged so that feet are never pointed towards shrines, such as placing them above the head of the bed, etc. It is also rude to step on the Thai coin because the face of the King appears on it.

Thailand is often referred to as the "Land of Smiles." This is not due to the people being unusually happy, but more so to the Thai's having, "a much broader range of uses for smiling." The Thai's view a smile as an appropriate gesture for almost any situation, not just happy ones.

Appropriate dress for females is longer skirts or dresses and in temples especially, all shoulders covered and feet covered. Thailand is a relatively modest country for women and although you won't get in trouble for not wearing enough, you will be able to tell if it was appropriate by how local Thai's treat you. The level of dress you wear establishes the level of respect they will give you. This goes for everywhere except the beach. Once you reach the beach, many women are dressed a lot less conservative and it is no longer taboo to do so.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_Thailand
http://www.into-asia.com/thailand/culture/smile.php

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