At the Wellspring of Visual Storytelling: The Art of Sukhothai and Its Legacy
The history of Thai art tends to begin at Sukhothai, in the 13th century, in what UNESCO presents as the first kingdom of Siam. Here we find brick…
Understand 12 min read
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Theravāda Buddhism
Articles
The Thai Sangha: the history and organisation of a monastic community
More than forty-four thousand registered temples, and several hundred thousand monks and novices depending on the period: the Thai Sangha is an…
Understand 14 min read
Mount Meru in the City: How Siam's Temples and Royal Pyres Reproduce the Hindu-Buddhist Universe
At the centre of the Buddhist universe rises a mountain, Meru, encircled by seven ranges, seven seas and four continents. In the 14th century the…
In depth 13 min read
'Thainess': the history of a national identity constructed, imposed and contested
In official speeches, at school and in public debate, *khwam pen thai*, 'Thainess', literally 'the fact of being Thai', is taken as self-evident. Yet…
Understand 14 min read
Lanna, Kingdom of the North: from Mangrai to Dara Rasmi, Chiang Mai between Ayutthaya, Burma and Bangkok
For nearly six centuries, the north of present-day Thailand answered to a capital other than Sukhothai, Ayutthaya or Bangkok. Founded in 1296 by…
Understand 13 min read
From Rain-Fed Rice to the World Market: How Rice Cultivation Shaped Thai Society
The flooded paddies that now make up the image of the Thai countryside are not a timeless backdrop. Archaeology shows that the first rice cultivated…
Understand 13 min read
Sak yant: the history of a sacred Thai tattoo, between protective magic and ancestral art
On backs and shoulders, grids of ancient characters, tigers and deities appear. Outside Thailand, sak yant often passes for an exotic fashion. It is…
Understand 13 min read
Sukhothai, ‘the dawn of happiness’: kings, rivals and the birth of a Tai kingdom
In the 13th century, Tai chiefs broke away from Khmer authority and established at Sukhothai a power that rose to prominence, then, in little more…
Understand 13 min read
Wai, kreng jai and the smile: understanding Thailand's non-verbal codes
A greeting with palms pressed together, a hesitation to ask, a smile that does not always express joy: in Thailand, much communication happens…
Discover 11 min read
Thailand's Festivals and Celebrations: The Year's Calendar, Month by Month
In Thailand, the year is not divided into months alone. It also follows the moon, the rice harvest, the rainy season and the rhythm of the…
Discover 26 min read
Dvaravati, the ‘First Mon Kingdom’ of the Central Plain: Rulers, Figures and Neighbours (6th–11th Century)
It left no certain capital, no king list and no chronicle of its own. Yet Dvaravati is the name engraved, in the 7th century, on silver medallions…
Understand 13 min read
Behind the Masks of Phi Ta Khon: What Dan Sai Really Celebrates
Every year, at the end of June or the beginning of July, Dan Sai, a small town in Loei province in north-eastern Thailand, fills with round-eyed…
Understand 13 min read