Lat Krabang

Lat Krabang (, ) is one of the eastern districts of Bangkok.

Geography & history

Lat Krabang (literally: "slope of shield") is the second largest district of Bangkok (the first one is neighbouring Nong Chok). No one's really sure what it means. One hypothesis suggests that it translates to "field of krabang". For the word ''Krabang'', it can also be translated another way as a fishing device used by locals in the past.

Neighbouring districts are (from the south clockwise): Bang Bo, Bang Sao Thong and Bang Phli (Samut Prakan province); Prawet, Saphan Sung, Min Buri and Nong Chok (Bangkok) and Mueang Chachoengsao ( Chachoengsao province).

Two-thirds of the district is farmland. Another part is the industrial park and residential area. Therefore, it is filled with ditches and canals, Khlong Prawet Burirom is a main waterway. The identity of the district is that of a local culture and the way of life is based on canal culture, since there is no road access in certain areas. Some people use boats and walkways along the canal's bank.

At present, Lat Krabang is still considered one of the areas of Bangkok that still has rice cultivation as well as nearby districts like Min Buri and Nong Chok. In the past, some people traded rice by boat, they manually used big baskets for loading rice to their boats and unloaded it at the rice mill. They had workers and can only plant rice once a year. The harvest season is late November or December. It took a long time to manually harvest as there was no machinery back then. After harvesting, farmers had to carry them back so it would take six, seven or ten days of hard work. They worked so hard with some help from their buffaloes. Lat Krabang's rice fields consist of a wide of rice varieties.

The rowboat was an important local vehicle before 1992. Before that, anytime when someone died, those boats would be used to carry the coffin to the temple. It is also used as an important vehicle for other important religious ceremonies, such as ordaining monks.

In October 2005, the plan to create the special administrative area Nakhon Suvarnabhumi around Suvarnabhumi Airport became public. Lat Krabang was among the five districts that were to be included in this new administrative area.

Administration

250px, A bridge crossing Hua Takhe
The district is divided into six sub-districts (''khwaeng'').

Places

* King Mongkut's Institute of Technology Lat Krabang (KMITL)
* Phra Nakhon Park
*Protpittayapayat School
* Lat Krabang Industrial Estate
* Hua Takhe

References

External links

District office

{{Khet Bangkok

Districts of Bangkok