Sakon Nakhon (, ; , ) 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 ...

(''changwat''). It lies in upper northeastern Thailand. Neighboring provinces are (from north clockwise) Nong Khai,

Bueng Kan Bueng Kan (, ) is a town municipality ('' thesaban mueang'') in Mueang Bueng Kan district, in Bueng Kan province, Isan (northeastern Thailand). It is the district capital and is on the Mekong River, opposite the Laotian town of Pakxan of Bol ...

, Nakhon Phanom, Mukdahan, Kalasin, and Udon Thani. Its capital is Sakon Nakhon.

Toponymy

The word ''sakon'' originates from the

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

word ''sakala'' (

Devanagari Devanagari ( ; in script: , , ) is an Indic script used in the Indian subcontinent. It is a left-to-right abugida (a type of segmental Writing systems#Segmental systems: alphabets, writing system), based on the ancient ''Brāhmī script, Brā ...

: सकल) meaning 'entire', 'whole', or 'total', and the word ''nakhon'' from Sanskrit ''nagara'' (

: नगर) meaning 'town' or 'city'. Hence the name of the province literally means "city of cities".

Geography

The province is on the

Khorat Plateau The Khorat Plateau (; ) is a plateau in the northeastern Thai region of Isan. The plateau forms a natural region, named after the short form of Nakhon Ratchasima, a historical barrier controlling access to and from the area. Geography The avera ...

, not far from 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 ...

. The Nong Han lake, the biggest natural lake of northeast Thailand, near the city of Sakon Nakhon, is a popular resort. The Phu Phan Mountains delimit the province to the south. The total forest area is or 17.7 percent of provincial area.

National parks

There are three national parks, along with four other national parks, make up region 10 (Udon Thani) of Thailand's protected areas. * Phu Pha Yon National Park, * Phu Phan National Park, * Phu Pha Lek National Park,

History

The history of Sakon Nakhon dates back to about three thousand years. Local legend says that Mueang Nong Han Luang, or presently Sakhon Nakhon, was built in the 11th century when the Khmer ruled this region. When the Khmer lost its power, the town was under the rule of

Lan Xang Lan Xang () or Lancang was a Lao people, Lao kingdom that held the area of present-day Laos from 1353 to 1707. For three and a half centuries, Lan Xang was one of the largest kingdoms in Southeast Asia. The kingdom is the basis for Laos's nat ...

or Lao Kingdom. It was renamed into "Mueang Chiang Mai Nong Han". When the town was under Siam, it was renamed again into "Sakhon Thawapi" in 1830, during King Rama III's reign, it was renamed "Sakon Nakhon". Phu Phan Mountains in the area of Sakon Nakhon, especially Sawang Daen Din district, formerly a stronghold of the Communist Party of Thailand.

Ethnic group

The Ethnic group of Sakon Nakhon are Chinese and Vietnamese with Tai Dam as well as Nyaw.

Symbols

The provincial seal shows the Phrathat Choeng Chum, a Lao-style chedi built during the

Ayutthaya Ayutthaya, Ayudhya, or Ayuthia may refer to: * Ayutthaya Kingdom, a Thai kingdom that existed from 1350 to 1767 ** Ayutthaya Historical Park, the ruins of the old capital city of the Ayutthaya Kingdom * Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province (locall ...

period over a Khmer-style prang. The provincial tree is the banaba or Queen's Crape Myrtle ('' Lagerstroemia speciosa''). Black sharkminnow (''Labeo chrysophekadion'') is the provincial fish.

Economy

Fish and rice are two of the major products of the region. Kho Khun Pon Yang Kham is branded as Thailand's best-quality beef, produced by Pon Yang Kham Breeding Cooperatives, which was incorporated in 1980 in Ban Pon Yang Kham in Mueang Sankhon Nakhon. It has created a great reputation for the province. Kho Khun Pon Yang Kham is regarded as "Thai

Kobe beef Kobe ( ; , ), officially , is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. With a population of around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Tokyo and Yokohama. It is located in the Kansai re ...

Transportation

Rail

Sakon Nakhon does not have a train service yet. People who want to travel to Sakon Nakhon by train can get off at Udon Thani Railway Station in neighboring province Udon Thani. Then take a local bus to Sakon Nakhon, the distance is approximately 156 km.

Roads

Route 22 leads north to Udon Thani, 160 km distant, and east to Nakhon Phanom (91 km) and the border with

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 ...

. Route 223 leads south to That Phanom (76 km). Route 213 leads west to Kalasin (131 km).

Air

There is a regional airport, Sakon Nakhon Airport, on the north side of the city.

Health

Sakon Nakhon's main hospital is Sakon Nakhon Hospital, operated by the Ministry of Public Health.

Administrative divisions

Provincial government

The province 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 125 subdistricts (''

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 1,323 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 Sakon Nakhon Provincial Administration Organisation (') and 66 municipal (''thesaban'') areas in the province. Sakon Nakhon 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 65 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 74 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.

Important places

Sakon Nakhon is a location of many important places, apart from Nong Han and Phu Phan Mountains, include * Phu Phan National Park * Phu Pha Yon National Park * Phu Pha Lek National Park * Nam Un Dam * Wat Phra That Choeng Chum * Phu Phan Rajanivet Palace

Events and festivals

*Prasat Pueng Procession: held during the 12th-15th day of waxing moon in October to mark the end of Buddhist Lent. On the night of 13thday, people will join hands in decoration ''Prasat Pueng'' (wax castle) at Ming Mueang Field. The 14thday, wax castel from various temples will join the procession, roaming the municipality to Wat Phra That Choeng Chum.

Isan people The Isan people (, , ; , ; , ; ) or literally Northeastern people are an ethnic group native to Isan, Northeastern Thailand with an estimated population of about 22 million. Alternative terms for this group are ''T(h)ai Isan'', ''Thai-La ...

believe that the wax will welcome Buddha who comes back from the heaven to help all creatures on earth. *Regatta: held synchronically with the Prasat Pueng Procession, the ancient regatta will be held at Phang Thong Pond or Tha Nang Ap, Ban Tha Wat. *Tha Rae Star Procession: is a tradition unique to the world and has been held annually during

Christmas Eve Christmas Eve is the evening or entire day before Christmas, the festival commemorating nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus. Christmas Day is observance of Christmas by country, observed around the world, and Christma ...

since 1982, the celebrations and procession will take place at Ban Tha Rae, home to Thailand's largest Roman Catholic community, in Mueang Sakhon Nakhon.

Notable people

Born in Sakhon Nakhon

* Dusit Chalermsan: professional footballer, football coach * Suree Sukha: professional footballer * Surat Sukha: professional footballer * Sinthaweechai Hathairattanakool: professional footballer * Poonsawat Kratingdaenggym: a world-class professional boxer

Gallery

File:Phu Pha Yon National Park.jpg, 3,000-year-old petroglyphs at Phu Pha Yon National Park File:สกลนคร.jpg, Sakon Nakhon City Gate file:SNRU7.jpg, Faculty of Agricultural Technology, Sakon Nakhon Rajabhat University file:ปราสาทผึ้ง.jpg, Wax Castle Procession

References

External links

*
Provincial page from the Tourist Authority of Thailand
Golden Jubilee Network province guide
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Website of province
(Thai only) {{coord, 17, 9, 15, N, 104, 8, 10, E, type:adm1st_region:TH, display=title Provinces of Thailand