- Thailand is a country in Southeast Asia. It is located in an area known as the Indochinese peninsular or mainland Southeast Asia.
- The earliest known inhabitants of Thailand arrived here around 20,000 years ago. Tai people arrived here from Taiwan around 1,000 years ago.
- Thailand is officially known as the Kingdom of Thailand. The king of Thailand is the head of state. The current monarchy was established in 1782.
- Thailand was the only country in Southeast Asia that remained independent during the western imperialism of Asia from the 15th to the 20th Century.
- The absolute monarchy was replaced by constitutional monarchy after the Siamese Revolution of 1932.
- The country’s name was changed from Siam to Thailand on 23rd June 1939.
- ASEAN was established in the Thai capital Bangkok on 8th August 1967. Thailand was one of the founding members of ASEAN.
- Thailand has the 2nd largest economy in Southeast Asia after Indonesia. (Source)
- Since 1932, Thailand has been mostly ruled by military dictators.
- Thailand has five types of geographical features. There are folded mountains in the north and west, a plateau in the northeast, a river basin in the center, a maritime corner, and peninsular in the southwest.
- Office machine parts and cars are the top exports of Thailand. This Southeast Asian country is the world’s biggest exporter of rubber and also the biggest importer of steel bars in the world. (Source)
- The Thai economy remained one of the fastest in the world between 1963 and 1997. It was the result of the shifting of the economy from agriculture to industry.
- Thailand is one of the world’s best destinations for transgender surgery. More than 2 million medical tourists visit Thailand every year to undertake sex-reassignment surgery. The reasons behind this popularity are low cost, professional experience, and hospitality in Thailand. (Source)
- More than 94% of people in Thailand follow Buddhism. Around 5% are Muslims.
- Thailand has the second largest number of Buddhists in the world after China. Thailand also has the second-highest percentage of Buddhists population after Cambodia with 97%.
- The rank of Thailand is the best in Asia and the 6th best in the world for the Global Health Security Index (GHS). The overall score of Thailand for the GHS Index is 73.2. (Source)
- The Lopburi monkey banquet festival is held every year in Thailand on the last Sunday of November. The purpose of this festival is to feed wild monkeys.
- Insulting the royal family is a punishable crime in Thailand. The offenders, even foreigners, can face lengthy prison time.
- The full ceremonial name of Bangkok is the longest city name in the world. It has 163 letters. (Source)
- In 2016, scientists discovered a strange fish in the caves of Thailand that can walk on land like salamanders. Several features of this blind cavefish are completely different from other fish that walk out of water. (Source)
- Thailand is the world’s largest producer and exporter of tropical orchids. There are more than 1,000 species of orchids in this Asian country. (Source)
- The famous energy drink “red bull” was launched in 1984 in Austria. The founder of “red bull” got inspiration from a Thai drink that was introduced in 1976. (Source)
- Bhumibol Adulyadej is the 4th longest-reigning monarch in the world and the longest in Asia. He remained the King of Thailand for 70 years (1946 to 2016). (Source)
- Touching someone’s head or hair is considered disrespectful in Thailand.
- There are around 1,430 islands in Thailand. Phuket and Koh Chang are the two largest islands in the country.
- The Siam-Burma Railway Bridge, commonly known as the “death railway”, was constructed between 1942 and 1947 to connect Bang Pong in Siam (now Thailand) to Thanbyuzayat in Burma (now Myanmar). Out of 415 km (258 mi) total length, 304 km (189 mi) is in Thailand.
- Thailand imposed a logging ban in 1989 to prevent deforestation. The initiative was taken after a massive loss of life and property in 1989 due to landslides. But this step has negatively impacted trade balances. (Source)
- The world’s largest solid gold structure is the Golden Buddha located in the Thai capital Bangkok. The length of this statue is 9.8 ft (3 m) with a gold covering of 5.5 metric tons. (Source)
- The Thai national anthem is played daily at the time of raising and lowering of the national flag (8 am and 6 pm). Apart from that, the Thai royal anthem is played before every movie, play, and state event. It is necessary to stand and stay silent during both these anthems. (Source)
- Thai people celebrate the Buddhist’s New Year with water fights, known as the Songkran festival, from 13th to 15th April. This is known as the world’s largest water fight. (Source)
- A woman in Thailand, known as “Scorpion Queen”, lived for 33 days in a glass room with 5,000 venomous scorpions in 2009. She remained alive and healthy despite being bitten by scorpions 13 times on various body parts. Her previous record was staying with 3,400 scorpions for 32 days in 2002. (Source)
- Most of the people in Thailand have nicknames as cultural traditions. These nicknames are given by parents at birth. The official name of a person is only used in formal situations. (Source)
- Various insects, bugs, and worms are easily available in Thailand to eat. These insects are mostly deep-fried for crispiness. Commonly available edible insects in Thailand are grasshoppers, crickets, silkworms, giant water bugs, etc. (Source)
- Maha Vajiralongkorn, the current Thai king, is the world’s richest monarch. He holds up to $43 billion worth of assets. (Source)
- The Phuket vegetarian festival is held every year in Thailand during September or October. This festival is known for dangerous acts like body piercing and firewalking. (Source)
- Thailand has one of the highest HIV prevalence rates in Asia and the Pacific region. 9% of HIV patients in Asia-Pacific are in Thailand. (Source)
- Thailand is a favorite location for Hollywood due to its scenery. Famous Hollywood filmsshot in Thailand include Rambo (1985, 1988, and 2008), Kickboxer (1989), Fast & Furious 9 (2021), No Escape (2015), The Beach (2000), Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), and others. (Source)
- The most expensive pet wedding was held in Thailand in 1996. The wedding cost of two ‘diamond-eyed cats’ was US$16241. (Source)
- There are 6 UNESCO world heritage sites in Thailand. 3 of these are cultural while the other 3 are natural sites. (Source)
- Thai capital Bangkok is the world’s most visited city. The city received around 22.8 million tourists in 2018. This was the 4th consecutive year for the city to hold this top place. (Source)
40 INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT THAILAND
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