Thailand is a unitary state that is subdivided into 76 provinces and one
special administrative area representing the capital Bangkok. The provinces are
part of the provincial government, while Bangkok is part of the local government.
The provinces Governance
Thailand's national government organisation is divided into three
types: central government, provincial government and local government.
A province, as part of the provincial government, is administered by a
governor who is appointed by the Minister of Interior. Bangkok, as part
of the local government, is administered by a corporation called Bangkok
Metropolitan Administration. The corporation is led by the Governor of
Bangkok who is directly elected by the citizens of Bangkok.
The provinces are named by their original main city, which is not
necessarily still the most populous city within the province today. Also, in
several provinces the administration was moved into a new building outside the
city. History
= Before 1892= Many provinces date back to
semi-independent local chiefdoms or kingdoms, which made up the Ayutthaya
kingdom. As today, the provinces were created around a capital city, and
included surrounding villages or satellite towns. The provinces were
administered either by a governor, who was appointed by the king; or by a local
ruling family, who were descendants of the old local kings and princes of that
area and had been given this privilege by the central king. De facto the king
did not have much choice but to choose someone from the local nobility or an
economically strong man, as against these local power groups the
administration would have become impossible. The governor was not paid by
the king, but instead financed himself and his administration by imposing taxes
by himself, thus effectively a kleptocracy. Every province was required
to send an annual tribute to Bangkok. The provinces were divided into four
different classes. The first class were the border provinces. The second class
were those that once had their own princely house. Third class were
provinces that were created recently by splitting them from other provinces.
Fourth class were provinces near the capital. Additionally tributary states
like the principalities of Lannathai, the Laotian kingdoms of Vientiane and
Luang Prabang, Cambodia, or the Malay sultanate Kedah were also part of the
country, but with an even higher autonomy than the provinces. In this
Mandala system the semi-independent countries sometimes were tributary to
more than one country. New provinces were created when the
population of an area outgrew the administration, but also for political
reasons if a governor became too dominant in a region former satellite
cities were elevated to provincial status, as in the founding of the Maha
Sarakham Province. Reforms of the provincial administration
started in the 1870s under increased pressure from the colonial states of the
United Kingdom and France. Especially to the areas near the borders
commissionaries were sent to have a stronger control on the provinces or
tributary states. = Administrative reform of 1892=
At the end of the 19th century King Chulalongkorn reformed the central
government drastically. In 1892 the ministry, which previously had many
overlapping responsibilities, was reorganized with clear areas as in
western administrations. Prince Damrong Rajanubhab became minister of the
Ministry of the North, originally responsible for the northern
administration. When the Ministry of the South was dissolved in 1894, Prince
Damrong became Minister of the Interior, responsible for the provincial
administration of the whole country. Starting in 1893 the already existing
commissionarships in some parts of the country were renamed to superintendent
commissioner, and their area of responsibility was called monthon. In
strategically important areas the monthon were created first, while in
other areas the provinces kept their independence a bit longer. Several
smaller provinces were reduced in status to a amphoe or even lower to a tambon
and included in a neighboring province, sometimes for administrative reasons,
but sometimes also to remove an uncooperative governor.
In some regions rebellions broke out against the new administrative system,
usually induced by the local nobility fearing their loss of power. The most
notable was the Holy Man rebellion in 1902 in Isan, which even though it was
at first a messianic doomsday sect, it also attacked government representative
in the North-East. The provincial town Khemarat was even burned by the rebels.
After a few months the rebellion fought back.
After 1916 the word changwat became common to use for the provinces, partly
to distinguish them from the provincial capital city, but also to stress the new
administrative structure of the provinces.
When Prince Damrong resigned in 1915, the whole country was subdivided into 19
monthon, with 72 provinces. In December 1915 King Vajiravudh
announced the creation of regions, each administered by a viceroy, to cover
several monthon. Until 1922 four regions were established, however in 1925 they
were dissolved again. At the same time several monthon were merged, in an
attempt to streamline the administration and reduce the costs.
= Since 1932= The monthon were finally dissolved when
Thailand transformed from an absolute monarchy into a constitutional monarchy
in 1932, making the provinces the top level administrative division again.
Several smaller provinces were also abolished at that time. During World War
II, several provinces around Bangkok were merged, which was however undone
after the war. Also the occupied area from French Indochina was organized into
four provinces - Phra Tabong, Phibunsongkhram, Nakhon Champasak and
Lan Chang. The current province of Sukhothai was at first known as
Sawankhalok; it was renamed to Sukhothai in 1939. Also the province Kalasin was
reestablished in 1947, after being dissolved in 1932.
In 1972 the two provinces Phra Nakhon and Thonburi were merged to form the
special administrative area of Bangkok, which combines the tasks of the
provinces with that of a municipality, including having an elected governor.
Starting in the second half of the 20th century some provinces were newly
created by splitting them off from bigger provinces. In 1975, Yasothon
province was split off from Ubon Ratchathani. In 1977, Phayao province
was created from districts formerly part of Chiang Rai. In 1982, Mukdahan was
split off from Nakhon Phanom. In 1993 three provinces were created: Sa Kaeo,
Nongbua Lamphu, and Amnat Charoen. The newest province is Bueng Kan, which was
split off from Nong Khai effective March 23, 2011.
See also Seals of the provinces of Thailand
List of districts of Thailand References
Further reading Tej Bunnag. The provincial
administration of Siam, 1892-1915: the Ministry of the Interior under Prince
Damrong Rajanubhab. Kuala Lumpur; New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN
0-19-580343-4. External links
Department of Provincial Administration Pronunciation of provinces in Thailand
at www.forvo.com