Nakhon Si Thammarat Province


Nakhon Si Thammarat, is one of the southern provinces of Thailand, on the western shore of the Gulf of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are Songkhla, Phatthalung, Trang, Krabi, and Surat Thani.
The name of the province derives from its Pali–Sanskrit name Nagara Sri Dhammaraja, which in Thai pronunciation becomes "Nakhon Si Thammarat".
, the population of the province was 1,560,433 persons.

Geography

The province is on the Gulf of Thailand on the east side of the Malay Peninsula. The terrain is mostly rugged hilly forest. The province is home to south Thailand's highest peak, Khao Luang, at, now protected in Khao Luang National Park.

Environment

Forested peat swamp forests cover more than 9,900 hectares on the borders of Nakhon Si Thammarat, Phatthalung, and Songkhla Provinces. About 800 hectares of the peat swamp were destroyed by 88 fires in the first half of 2019. The Royal Forest Department says that most of the fires in the Khuan Khreng peat swamp forest were man-made. Criminals clear the forest for the illegal expansion of rubber and oil palm plantations. Honey collectors and fishermen were also complicit as they burn grass to catch fish or to collect wild honey. Khuan Khreng peat swamp was hit by drought in what is normally the rainy season making it susceptible to arson. The forest is surrounded by oil palm plantations and surface water in the forest has been drained out to feed the plantations.
The province is home to Khao Luang National Park and Hat Khanom–Mu Ko Thale Tai National Park.

Economy

Tourism has become a first-tier tourist province, as defined by the central government, joining 22 other first-tier provinces. In 2019, it is projected to receive four million tourists—80% of them domestic—largely attracted by religious sites. They contributed more than 11 billion baht to the provincial economy. The Airports Department plans to expand Nakhon Si Thammarat airport runways and terminal by 2022 to deal with an anticipated increase in international flights to support foreign visitor arrivals. The province has 320 hotels with 8,800 rooms, up from 310 hotels and 7,000 rooms in 2018.

Symbols

The provincial seal shows the Phra Baromathat chedi of Wat Phra Mahathat Voramahavihan, one of the most important historical sites in southern Thailand. According to the city chronicle it was already built in 311, but archaeology dates it to the 13th century. The chedi was built by the ruler of Malay Buddha Kingdom of Tambralinga, named Chandrabhanu Sridhamaraja of The Patama Vamsa. The chedi is surrounded by the animals of the Chinese zodiac in the seal. The twelve animals represent the twelve Naksat cities or city-states which were tributary to the Nakhon Si Thammarat kingdom: the Rat of Saiburi; the Ox of Pattani; the Tiger of Kelantan; the Rabbit of Pahang ; the Dragon of Kedah; the Snake of Phatthalung; the Horse of Trang; the Goat of Chumphon; the Monkey of Bantaysamer ; the Rooster of Sa-ulau ; the Dog of Takua Pa and a Pig of Kraburi.
The provincial flower is the Golden Shower Tree, and the provincial tree is Millettia atropurpurea.
The provincial slogan is เมืองประวัติศาสตร์ พระธาตุทองคำ ชื่นฉ่ำธรรมชาติ แร่ธาตุอุดม เครื่องถมสามกษัตริย์ มากวัดมากศิลป์ ครบสิ้นกุ้งปู, which translates to "A historical town, the golden Phra That, plentiful minerals, three-metal nielloware, numerous temples, abundant shellfish."

Administrative divisions

Provincial government

Nakhon Si Thammarat is divided into 23 districts. The districts are further divided into 165 subdistricts and 1428 villages.

Local government

As of 26 November 2019 there are: one Nakhon Si Thammarat Provincial Administration Organisation and 54 municipal areas in the province. Nakhon Si Thammarat has status. Pak Phun, Thung Son and Pak Panang have town status. Further 50 subdistrict municipalities. The non-municipal areas are administered by 130 Subdistrict Administrative Organisations - SAO.

Transport

Nakhon Si Thammarat is served by Nakhon Si Thammarat Airport and the Nakhon Si Thammarat Railway Station.

Education

Universities

Public universities

Public vocational colleges

Since 2003, United Nations Development Programme in Thailand has tracked progress on human development at sub-national level using the Human achievement index, a composite index covering all the eight key areas of human development. National Economic and Social Development Board has taken over this task since 2017.

Sports

Football

Volleyball clubs