Ethnic groups in Thailand

Ethnolinguistic groups of Thailand in 1974.

Thailand is a country of some 70 ethnic groups, including 24 groups of Tai peoples. According to the Royal Thai Government's 2011 Country Report to the UN Committee responsible for the International Convention for the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, available from the Department of Rights and Liberties Promotion of the Thai Ministry of Justice,[1]:3 62 ethnic communities are officially recognised in Thailand. Twenty million Central Thai (together with approximately 650,000 Khorat Thai) make up approximately 20,650,000 million (34.1 percent) of the nation's population of 60,544,937[2] at the time of completion of the Mahidol University Ethnolinguistic Maps of Thailand data (1997).[3]

The 2011 Thailand Country Report provides population numbers for mountain peoples ('hill tribes') and ethnic communities in the Northeast and is explicit about its main reliance on the Mahidol University Ethnolinguistic Maps of Thailand data.[3] Thus, though over 3.288 million people in the Northeast alone could not be categorised, the population and percentages of other ethnic communities circa 1997 are known and constitute minimum populations. In descending order, the largest (equal to or greater than 400,000) are a) 15,080,000 Lao (24.9 percent) consisting of the Thai Lao[4] (14 million) and other smaller Lao groups, namely the Thai Loei (400-500,000), Lao Lom (350,000), Lao Wiang/Klang (200,000), Lao Khrang (90,000), Lao Ngaew (30,000), and Lao Ti (10,000; b) six million Khon Muang (9.9 percent, also called Northern Thais); c) 4.5 million Pak Tai (7.5 percent, also called Southern Thais); d) 1.4 million Khmer Leu (2.3 percent, also called Northern Khmer); e) 900,000 Malay (1.5%); f) 500,000 Ngaw (0.8 percent); g) 470,000 Phu Thai (0.8 percent); h) 400,000 Kuy/Kuay (also known as Suay) (0.7 percent), and i) 350,000 Karen (0.6 percent).[1]:7-13 Khmer and Mon-Khmer make up approximately 6%, the Malays of southern Thailand make up around 3%. Among the groups categorized as hill tribes in the northern provinces, Hmong (Mien), Karen and other small hill tribes make up over 1%.

In official Thai documents the term "hill tribe" (chao khao) began to appear in the 1960s. This term highlights a "hill and valley" dichotomy that is based on an ancient social relationship existing in most of northern and western Thailand, as well as in Sipsongpanna and northern Vietnam. For the most part the Dai/Tai/Thai occupied the more fertile intermontane basins and valleys, while the less powerful groups lived at the less rich higher elevations. This dichotomy was often accompanied by a master/serf relationship.[5]

Alphabetical list

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.
  1. Akha
  2. Bru
  3. Cham
  4. Chinese (primarily Teochew and Hakka)
  5. Chong
  6. Hmong
  7. Isan
  8. Karen
  9. KhmerKhmu
  10. Khun（Thai Khun）
  11. Kuy
  12. Lahu
  13. Lao
  14. Lao
  15. Lao Nyaw
  16. Lawa
  17. Lisu
  18. Lolo (Yi)
  19. Lua
  20. Lue (Thai Lü)
  21. Malay
  22. Mani (Negrito)
  23. Mlabri
  24. Moken
  25. Mon
  26. Nyahkur (Nyah Kur, Chao-bon)
  27. Palaung (De'ang)
  28. Pear
  29. Phai
  30. Phu Thai
  31. Phuan
  32. Saek
  33. Sa'och
  34. Shan（Thai Yai）
  35. So
  36. Tai Dam (Black Tai)
  37. Tai Ya
  38. Thai (central Thai; Siamese)
  39. Urak Lawoi
  40. Vietnamese
  41. Yao
  42. Yuan（Thai Yuan; Lanna）
  43. Japanese people
  44. Korean

Listed by language group

Further information: Languages of Thailand

The following table comprises all the ethnic groups recognised by the Royal Thai Government in the 2011 Country Report to the UN Committee responsible for the International Convention for the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, available from the Department of Rights and Liberties Promotion of the Thai Ministry of Justice[1]

Five ethnolinguistic families of Thailand recognised by the Royal Thai Government[1]

TaiAustroasiaticSino-TibetanAustronesianHmong-Mien
24 Groups22 groups11 Groups3 Groups2 Groups
KaleungKasongGuong (Ugong)Malay (Malayu / Nayu / YawiHmong (Meo)
Kammuang / Yuan (Northern Thai)Kuy / KuayKaren (7 subfamilies) Moken / MoklenMien (Yao)
Tai DamKhmu- Sgaw KarenUrak Lawoi
NyawThailand Khmer, Northern Khmer- Pwo Karen
Tai KhunChong- Kaya Karen
Central ThaiSa-oc- Bwe Karen
Thai KoratSakai (Kensiw / Manique)- Pa-O Karen
Thai TakbaiSamre- Padaung Karen
Thai LoeiSo (Thavuang)- Kayo Karen
Tai LuSoJingpaw / Kachin
Tai YaNyah Kur (Chaobon)Chinese
Tai Yai, ShanNyeuYunnanese Chinese
Southern ThaiBru (Kha)Bisu
Phu ThaiPlang (Samtao)Burmese
PhuanPalaung (Dala-ang)Lahu (Muzur)
YongMonLisu
YoyMal-Pray (Lua / Tin)Akha
Lao KhrangMlabri (Tongluang)Mpi
Lao NgaewLamet (Lua)
Lao TiLavua (Lawa / Lua)
Lao Wiang/Lao KlangWa
Lao LomVietnamese
Lao Isan
Saek

The above table has not yet been harmonised with the alphabetical listing of languages below and is more comprehensive.

The following table shows all the ethnic groups of Northeast Thailand, as recognised in the same report.

Ethnic groups of Northeast Thailand by language family[1]

Tai Language FamilyPersonsAustroasiatic Language FamilyPersons
Lao Esan / Thai Lao13,000,000Thailand Khmer / Northern Khmer1,400,000
Central Thai800,000Kuy / Kuay (Suay)400,000
Thai Khorat / Tai Beung / Tai Deung600,000So70,000
Thai-LoeiBrucombined
Phu Thai500,000Vietnamese20,000
Ngaw500,000Ngeu10,000
Kaleung200,000 forNgah Kur / Chao Bon / Khon Dong7,000
Yoy Kaleung, Yoy and Phuan So (Thavaung)1,500
PhuancombinedMon1,000
Tai-dam (Song)(not specified)
Total16,103,000Total1,909,000
Cannot specify ethnicity and amount32,888,000
21,300,000

Note that population numbers are for the Northeast region only. Languages may have additional speakers outside the Northeast.

Incomplete alphabetical listing of groups:

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination; Reports submitted by States parties under article 9 of the Convention: Thailand (PDF) (in English with appended Thai government translation). United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. 28 July 2011. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
  2. ↑ World Bank Group. (n.d.). Population, total [Thailand]. Washington, DC: Author. http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.POP.TOTL?locations=TH
  3. 1 2 Ethnolinguistic Maps of Thailand (PDF) (in Thai). Office of the National Culture Commission. 2004. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
  4. ↑ Draper, John; Kamnuansilpa, Peerasit (2016). "The Thai Lao Question: The Reappearance of Thailand's Ethnic Lao Community and Related Policy Questions". Asian Ethnicity. doi:10.1080/14631369.2016.1258300. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
  5. ↑ Kusuma Snitwongse & W Scott Thompson eds. Ethnic Conflicts in Southeast Asia, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (14 October 2005) ISBN 978-9812303370, pg. 157

External links

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