Chiang Rai (, ; , ) is one of Thailand's seventy-six

provinces A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...

that lies in upper northern Thailand and is Thailand's northernmost province. It is bordered by the

Shan State Shan State (, ; , ) is a administrative divisions of Myanmar, state of Myanmar. Shan State borders China (Yunnan) to the north, Laos (Louang Namtha Province, Louang Namtha and Bokeo Provinces) to the east, and Thailand (Chiang Rai Province, Chia ...

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

to the north, Bokeo province of

Laos Laos, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR), is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by Myanmar and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the southeast, and Thailand to the west and ...

to the east, Phayao to the south, Lampang to the southwest, and

Chiang Mai Chiang Mai, sometimes written as Chiengmai or Chiangmai, is the largest city in northern Thailand, the capital of Chiang Mai province and the List of municipalities in Thailand#Largest cities by urban population, second largest city in Thailan ...

to the west. The province is linked to

Houayxay Houayxay (, ; , ) (also ''Huoeisay'', ''Huai Sai'', ''Houei Sai'', ''Huay Xay'' or ''Huay Xai'') is a district in Bokeo Province, Laos, on the border with Thailand. The town lies on the Mekong River opposite Chiang Khong in Thailand. The Four ...

, Laos by the Fourth Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge that spans the

Mekong The Mekong or Mekong River ( , ) is a transboundary river in East Asia and Southeast Asia. It is the world's twelfth-longest river and the third-longest in Asia with an estimated length of and a drainage area of , discharging of wat ...

Geography

The average elevation of the province is . The north of the province is part of the so-called '' Golden Triangle'', where the borders of Thailand, Laos and Burma converge, an area which prior to the rise of agricultural production of coffee, pineapple, coconuts, and banana plantations, was unsafe because of drug

smuggling Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. More broadly, soc ...

across the borders. The

River forms the boundary with Laos, the Mae Sai and

Ruak River The Ruak River (, , ; น้ำแม่ฮวก, ) is a right hand tributary of the Mekong. The mouth of the Ruak river is at the Thai-Burma border opposite Laos, a spot known as the " Golden Triangle", a popular tourist destination. Course Th ...

with Burma. Through the town of

Chiang Rai Chiang Rai (, ; , ) is the northernmost major city in Thailand, with a population of about 200,000 people. It is located in Mueang Chiang Rai District, Chiang Rai Province. Chiang Rai was established as a capital city in the reign of King Ma ...

itself, flows the "Mae Kok"

Kok River The Kok River (, , ; , ) is a tributary river of the Mekong that flows in Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai provinces in northern Thailand. Source The river originates in the Daen Lao Range, Shan State, Myanmar. It flows eastwards across the Myanmar ...

and south of it the Lao River, a tributary of the Kok. While the eastern part of the province is characterized by relatively flat river plains, the northern and western part consists of the hilly terrain of the Thai highlands with the Khun Tan Range and the

Phi Pan Nam Range The Phi Pan Nam Range, also Pee Pan Nam, (, ) is a long system of mountain ranges in the eastern half of the Thai highlands. The range lies mostly in Thailand, although a small section in the northeast is within Sainyabuli Province, Sainyabul ...

in the west and the

Daen Lao Range The Daen Lao Range (,
; ) is a mountain range of the Doi Tung (''Flag Hill'') is the most important terrain feature. Wat Phra That Doi Chom Thong

wat A wat (, ; , ; , ; ; , ) is a type of Buddhist and Hindu temple in Cambodia, Laos, East Shan State (Myanmar), Yunnan (China), the Southern Province of Sri Lanka, and Thailand. Etymology The word ''wat'' is borrowed from the Sanskrit ''v ...

on top of the hill, according to the chronicles, dates back to the year 911. Nearby is Doi Tung Royal Villa, former residence of the late princess mother Somdej Phra Srinagarindra (mother of King Rama IX). Thanks to her activities the hills were reforested, and the hill tribes diverted from growing opium poppies to other crops including coffee, bananas, coconuts, and pineapples. The total forest area is or 39.9 percent of provincial area.

National parks

There are seven national parks, along with one other national park, make up region 15 of Thailand's protected areas. * Doi Luang National Park, *

Lam Nam Kok National Park Lam Nam Kok National Park (, ) is a national park in upper northern Thailand's Chiang Rai province. The national park covers an area of and was planted in 2002, occupies an area of four districts of Chiang Rai including Mueang Chiang Rai, Mae ...

, * Mae Puem National Park, * Phu Sang National Park, *

Khun Chae National Park Khun Chae National Park () is a national park in Chiang Rai Province, Thailand. This rugged park is home to high mountains and waterfalls. Geography Khun Chae National Park is located about northeast of Chiang Mai in the Wiang Pa Pao district ...

, * Phu Chi Fa National Park, * Tham Luang–Khun Nam Nang Non National Park,

History

Chiang Rai was founded in 1262. Populations have dwelled in Chiang Rai since the 7th century and it became the center of the Lanna Kingdom during the 13th century. The region, rich in natural resources, was occupied by the Burmese until 1786. Chiang Rai province's golden triangle bordering Laos and Burma was once the hub of opium production. Chiang Rai became a province in 1910, after being part of the

Lanna The Lan Na kingdom or the Kingdom of Lanna (, , "Kingdom of a Million Rice Fields"; , , ), also known as Lannathai, was an Indianized state centered in present-day Northern Thailand from the 13th to the 18th centuries. The cultural developme ...

Kingdom for centuries. After Lanna was incorporated into Thailand, it remained an autonomous region and thus the Chiang Rai area was administered from Chiang Mai. Chiang Rai province is a transit point for Rohingya refugees from Myanmar (Burma) who are transported there from Sangkhlaburi district in

Kanchanaburi province Kanchanaburi (, ) is the largest of the western Provinces of Thailand, provinces (''changwat'') of Thailand. The neighboring provinces are (clockwise, from the north) Tak province, Tak, Uthai Thani province, Uthai Thani, Suphan Buri province, Sup ...

. In September 2024, there was a major flood in Chiang Rai province, affecting six districts. It was the most severe flood in 50 years.

Demographics

The majority of the population are ethnic Thai who speak Kham Muang among themselves, but 12.5% are of

hill tribes Hill people, also referred to as mountain people, is a general term for people who live in the hills and mountains. This includes all rugged land above and all land (including plateaus) above elevation. The climate is generally harsh, with s ...

origin, a sizeable minority in the north provinces. A smaller number are of Chinese descent, mainly descendants of the

Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT) is a major political party in the Republic of China (Taiwan). It was the one party state, sole ruling party of the country Republic of China (1912-1949), during its rule from 1927 to 1949 in Mainland China until Retreat ...

soldiers who settled in the region, notably in

Santikhiri Mae Salong (, ), officially known as Santikhiri (), is a village in the Thai highlands on Doi Mae Salong mountain of the Daen Lao Range, in Amphoe Mae Fa Luang, Mae Fa Luang District, Chiang Rai Province, the northernmost province of Thailand. Th ...

Ethnic groups

Khon Muang are the city folk who originally came from Chiang Mai, Lamphun, Lampang, and Phrae. Culturally, they design their houses having only one floor with wooden gable decorations called "ka-lae". They are known for their craftsmanship in wood carving, weaving, lacquer ware, and musical instruments. Tai Yai (ไทใหญ่) ( Shan) are a Tai ethnic group who primarily live in what is now

in Burma, and also in Mae Hong Son province in Thailand. They grow rice, farm, raise cattle, and trade. Their craftsmanship lies in weaving, pottery, wood carving, and bronze ware. Akha have the largest population of any hill tribe in the region. Originating from Tibet and southern China, they dwell on high ground around 1,200 meters above sea level. Within their villages they build spirit gateways to protect them from evil spirits. Lahu (Musor) are also from the Yunnanese area and live in high areas. They are known as hunters and planters. Karen live in various areas of the region which have valleys and riverbanks. Chin Haw in Chiang Rai consist primarily of the former

(KMT army) who took refuge in the area, mainly in

(formerly Mae Salong). Hmong from southern China, inhabit high ground. They raise livestock and grow rice, corn, tobacco, and cabbage. They are also known for their embroidery and silver. Tai Lue ( Dai) live in dwellings of usually only a single room wooden house built on high poles. They are skilled in weaving. Lisu from southern China and Tibet are renowned for their colorful dress and also build their dwellings on high stilts. They harvest rice and corn and their men are skilled in hunting. Yao (Mien) reside along mountain sides and grow corn and other crops. They are skilled blacksmiths, silversmiths, and embroiders.

Symbols

The seal of the province shows a

white elephant A white elephant is a possession that its owner cannot dispose of without extreme difficulty, and whose cost, particularly that of maintenance, is out of proportion to its usefulness. In modern usage, it is a metaphor used to describe an object, ...

, the royal symbol, recalling that Chiang Rai was founded by King Mengrai, according to legend because his elephant liked the place. The provincial tree is the tree jasmine ('' Radermachera ignea''), and the provincial flower is the orange trumpet ('' Pyrostegia venusta''). The giant catfish (''Pangasianodon gigas'') is the provincial aquatic life. The former provincial slogan was "เหนือสุดในสยาม อร่ามดอยตุง ผดุงวัฒนธรรม รสล้ำข้าวสาร หอมหวานลิ้นจี่ สตรีโสภา ชาเลิศรส สัปปะรดนางแล", 'Northernmost of Siam, beautiful Doi Tung, repository of culture, most delicious rice, sweet and fragrant

lychee Lychee ( , ; ''Litchi chinensis''; ) is a monotypic taxon and the sole member in the genus ''Litchi'' in the soapberry family, Sapindaceae. There are three distinct subspecies of lychee. The most common is the Indochinese lychee found in So ...

, beautiful women, the finest flavoured tea, pineapple from Nang Lae, source of the giant catfish". The current slogan is "เหนือสุดในสยาม ชายแดนสามแผ่นดิน ถิ่นวัฒนธรรมล้านนา ล้ำค่าพระธาตุดอยตุง", 'Northernmost of Siam, frontier of three lands, the home of

Lan Na The Lan Na kingdom or the Kingdom of Lanna (, , "Kingdom of a Million Rice Fields"; , , ), also known as Lannathai, was an Indianized state centered in present-day Northern Thailand from the 13th to the 18th centuries. The cultural developmen ...

culture and Doi Tung Temple'.

Hospitals

* Kasemrad Sriburin General Hospital, Private hospital. *

Chiangrai Prachanukroh Hospital Chiangrai Prachanukroh Hospital (; ; ) is the main hospital of Chiang Rai Province, Thailand, and is classified under the Ministry of Public Health (Thailand), Ministry of Public Health as a regional hospital. It has a CPIRD Medical Education C ...

, Public hospital.

Transport

Air

Chiang Rai International Airport has domestic flights to both Bangkok airports, which connect to regional and international flights.

Boat

There is daily boat service between Chiang Rai and Tha Ton.

Rail

There is no railway system in Chiang Rai. The nearest station is Chiang Mai Railway Station.

Road

Chiang Rai province is intersected by Asian Highway 2, which runs for over from

Denpasar Denpasar (; Balinese script, Balinese: ᬤᬾᬦ᭄ᬧᬲᬃ, ''Dénpasar'') is the capital city of the province of Bali, Indonesia. Denpasar is the largest city in the Lesser Sunda Islands and the second largest city in Eastern Indonesia after ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

to Kosravi in

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

, and by Asian Highway 3, which runs for over from Kentung in Myanmar to

Ulan-Ude Ulan-Ude (; , ; , ) is the capital city of Buryatia, Russia, located about southeast of Lake Baikal on the Uda River, Buryatia, Uda River at its confluence with the Selenga River, Selenga. According to the Russian Census (2021), 2021 Census, 43 ...

in Russia. Decent bus services are available in the province. In more remote areas, songthaews are the norm.

Administrative divisions

Provincial government

Chiang Rai is divided into 18 districts (''

amphoe An amphoe (sometimes also ''amphur'', , )—usually translated as "district"—is the second level administrative subdivision of Thailand. Groups of ''amphoe'' or districts make up the Provinces of Thailand, provinces, and are analogous to count ...

s''). The districts are further divided into 124 sub-districts (''

tambon ''Tambon'' (, ) is a local governmental unit in Thailand. Below district (''amphoe'') and province ('' changwat''), they form the third administrative subdivision level. there were 7,255 tambons, not including the 180 ''khwaeng'' of Bangkok, whi ...

s'') and 1,751 villages (''

muban Muban (; , ) is the lowest Administrative divisions of Thailand, administrative sub-division of Thailand. Usually translated as 'village' and sometimes as 'hamlet (place), hamlet', they are a subdivision of a tambon (subdistrict). , there were 74 ...

s'').

Local government

As of 26 November 2019 there are: one Chiang Rai Provincial Administration Organisation (') and 73 municipal (''thesaban'') areas in the province. Chiang Rai has city (''

thesaban nakhon Thesaban (, , , Pali: desapāla (protector of region) are the municipalities of Thailand. There are three levels of municipalities: city, town, and sub-district. Bangkok and Pattaya are special municipal entities not included in the ''thesaban'' ...

'') status. Further 72 subdistrict municipalities (''

thesaban tambon Thesaban (, , , Pali, Pali: desapāla (protector of region) are the municipalities of Thailand. There are three levels of municipalities: city, town, and sub-district. Bangkok and Pattaya are special municipal entities not included in the ''thesa ...

''). The non-municipal areas are administered by 70 Subdistrict Administrative Organisations - SAO (''ongkan borihan suan tambon'').

Human achievement index 2022

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

Gallery

File:Sunrise at Pu Chi Fah 03.jpg, Phu Chi Fa File:Pu-Kang Water Fall.jpg, Pu Kaeng Waterfall, Doi Luang National Park File:Huai mak liam hot spring.jpg, Huai Mak Liam Hot Spring,

File:Thai art tunnel Chiang Rai.jpg, A road tunnel decorated with Thai style art Elephants, Kok River, Chiang Rai, Thailand.jpg, Elephants, Kok River Elephants, Kok River, Thailand.jpg, Kok River Chiang Saen, Mekong River, Thailand.jpg, Chiang Saen, Mekong River Chiang Saen, Sunset, Thailand.jpg, Chiang Saen

References

External links

*
Provincial Website
Thai)
Chiang Rai page from the Tourist Authority of Thailand

Religion

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Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

, value1 = 90.81 , color1 = Yellow , label3 =

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

, value3 = 0.27 , color3 = DarkGreen , label2 =

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

, value2 = 8.82 , color2 = DodgerBlue , label4 =

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...

, value4 = 0.04 , color4 = Orange , label5 =

Confucianism Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China, and is variously described as a tradition, philosophy, Religious Confucianism, religion, theory of government, or way of li ...

, value5 = 0.02 , color5 = Red , label6 =

Sikhism Sikhism is an Indian religion and Indian philosophy, philosophy that originated in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent around the end of the 15th century CE. It is one of the most recently founded major religious groups, major religio ...

, value6 = 0.1 , color6 = White , label7 = Not Religious , value7 = 0.2 , color7 = Black , label8 = Unknown , value8 = 0.01 , color8 = Pink , label9 = Other , value9 = 0.01 , color9 = Cream Provinces of Thailand Populated places on the Mekong River