Thai Americans (; formerly referred to as Siamese Americans) are

Americans Americans are the Citizenship of the United States, citizens and United States nationality law, nationals of the United States, United States of America.; ; Law of the United States, U.S. federal law does not equate nationality with Race (hu ...

of Thai ancestry. The Thai American population is racially and ethnically diverse, consisting of many Thais who identify as mixed race.

History in the United States

Siamese people were named as one of the many Asian groups excluded from immigrating to the United States by the

Immigration Act of 1917 The Immigration Act of 1917 (also known as the Literacy Act or the Burnett Act and less often as the Asiatic Barred Zone Act) was a United States Act that aimed to restrict immigration by imposing literacy tests on immigrants, creating new cate ...

. The law was one of many provisions restricting Asian immigration to the United States in the early 20th century. The 1930 Census recorded just 18 Siamese Americans. According to the MPI Data Hub, there have been a total of 253,585 Thai people who have immigrated to the United States as of 2016. That year, they were 0.0057% of all immigrants. In comparing data from the MPI Data Hub to the U.S. Census Bureau, there are significant inconsistencies of total current population. According to the U.S. Census, there are currently 300,319 Thai people living in the United States today, with an error margin of +/- 14,326. Thai-US Citizen Population over time

Thai immigration to the United States proceeded very slowly. It began in earnest during and after the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

, in which Thailand was an ally of the United States and South Vietnam. Records show that, in the decade between 1960 and 1970, some 5,000 Thais immigrated to the United States. In the following decade, the number increased to 44,000. From 1981 to 1990, approximately 64,400 Thai citizens moved to the United States. The general trend of Thai immigration can be stated at a relatively steady rising pace save for the peak in 2006, which marks the dissolution of the Thai Parliament in February and a subsequent coup in the following September. From 2007 to 2008, numbers dip back down to regular rate until 2009, which proceeded a year of military and political turmoil due to the disconnect between the monarchic Royal Army and the relatively newly established democratic government in 2006. According to the 2000 census there were 150,093 Thais in the United States. In 2009, 304,160 U.S. residents listed themselves as Thais.

Demographics

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, has the largest Thai population outside of Asia. It is home to the world's first Thai Town. In 2002, it was estimated that over 80,000 Thais and Thai Americans live in Los Angeles. Other large or sizeable Thai communities are in Clark County,

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;

Cook County Cook County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Illinois and the second-most-populous county in the United States, after Los Angeles County, California. More than 40 percent of all residents of Illinois live within Cook County. ...

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;

Tarrant County, Texas Tarrant County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas with a 2020 U.S. census population of 2,110,640, making it the third-most populous county in Texas and the 15th-most populous in the United States. Its county seat is Fort Worth. ...

;

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;

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;

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;

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;

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;

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;

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;

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;

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; Albuquerque, NM;

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;

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;

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; and

Montgomery County, Maryland Montgomery County is the most populous County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 United States census, the county's population was 1,062,061, increasing by 9.3% from 2010. The county seat is Rockville, Maryland ...

. The 2010 U.S. census counted 237,629 Thai Americans in the country, of whom 67,707 live in California.

Statistics

: Data from Migration Policy Institute : Data from Pew Research Center Thai-born population: New legal permanent residents: Thais who acquire US citizenship:

Cultural influence on America

Thai Americans are famous for bringing Thai cooking to the United States.

Thai cuisine Thai cuisine (, , ) is the national cuisine of Thailand. Thai cooking places emphasis on lightly prepared dishes with aromatics and spicy heat. The Australian chef David Thompson (chef), David Thompson, an expert on Thai food, observes that ...

is popular across the country. Even non-Thai restaurants may include Thai-influenced dishes on their menu like Pad Thai and Thai tea.

Thai culture Thai or THAI may refer to: * Of or from Thailand, a country in Southeast Asia. ** Thai people, Siamese people, Central/Southern Thai people or Thai noi people, an ethnic group from Central and Southern Thailand. ** , Thai minority in southern Myan ...

's prominence in the United States is disproportionate to their numbers. The stationing of American troops in Thailand during the

exposed the GIs to Thai culture and cuisine, and many of them came home with Thai wives.

Political involvement

In 2003, two Thai Americans ran in municipal elections, one in

Anaheim, California Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, United States, part of the Greater Los Angeles area. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orang ...

, the other in

Houston, Texas Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

. Both lost. However, on November 7, 2006, Gorpat Henry Charoen became the first U.S. official of Thai origin when he was elected to the

La Palma La Palma (, ), also known as ''La isla bonita'' () and historically San Miguel de La Palma, is the most northwesterly island of the Canary Islands, a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in Macaronesia in the North Atlantic Ocean. La Pa ...

City Council in California. On December 18, 2007, he became the first Thai-American mayor of a U.S. city. In 2010, Charles Djou became the first Thai American elected to Congress; he had previously served in the Hawaii State House and Honolulu City Council.

Tammy Duckworth Ladda Tammy Duckworth (born March 12, 1968) is an American politician and retired Army National Guard Lieutenant colonel (United States), lieutenant colonel serving since 2017 as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States ...

, a Thai-American Iraq War veteran, ran for Congress as a Democrat in Illinois's 6th district in the 2006 mid-term election. She was narrowly defeated, and served for two years as Assistant Secretary of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs for the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. She was previously the director of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs. She was considered a likely nominee for appointment to the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

to fill the vacancy caused by

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

's election to the Presidency of the United States; however, Roland Burris was appointed instead. On November 6, 2012 Duckworth was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives to represent the 8th District of Illinois. On November 8, 2016, she was elected as the junior U.S. senator from Illinois, the seat previously held by Barack Obama.

Bhumibol Adulyadej Bhumibol Adulyadej (5 December 192713 October 2016), titled Rama IX, was King of Thailand from 1946 until Death and funeral of Bhumibol Adulyadej, his death in 2016. His reign of 70 years and 126 days is the longest of any List of Thai mo ...

, the previous

King of Thailand The monarchy of Thailand is the constitutional monarchy, constitutional form of government of Thailand (formerly ''Siam''). The king of Thailand (, historically, ''king of Siam''; ) is the head of state and head of the ruling Chakri dynasty. ...

, was born at the Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on December 5, 1927. At the time, his father was studying at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

. He is the only American-born monarch in history. In 2017, Ekamon "Ek" Venin was appointed and later elected to the Borough Council in Pompton Lakes, New Jersey. In 2020, he served as Council President and was re-elected to another 3-year term.

Notable Thai Buddhist temples in the United States

Abhayagiri Buddhist Monastery Abhayagiri is a Theravadin Buddhist monastery of the Thai Forest Tradition in Redwood Valley, California, Redwood Valley, California. Its chief priorities are the teaching of Śīla, Buddhist ethics, together with traditional anapanasati, con ...

, Redwood Valley, California * San Fran Dhammaram Temple, San Francisco * Vajiradhammapadip Temple, Centereach and Mount Vernon in New York * Wat Boston Buddha Vararam, Bedford, Massachusetts * Wat Buddhananachat of Austin, Del Valle, Texas * Wat Buddhasamakeevanaram, Bossier City, Louisiana * Wat Buddhanusorn, Fremont, California * Wat Carolina Buddhajakra Vanaram, Bolivia, North Carolina * Wat Florida Dhammaram, Kissimmee, Florida * Wat Mettāvarānaṁ, Valley Center, California * Wat Mongkolratanaram, Berkeley, California * Wat Dhammakaya, Azusa, California * Wat Mongkolratanaram, Tampa, Florida * Wat Nawamintararachutis, Raynham, Massachusetts * Wat Pasantidhamma, Carrollton, Virginia * Wat Thai DC, Silver Spring, Maryland

Notable people

* Miranda Nild, professional soccer player * Pornthip Nakhirunkanok Simon, Miss Universe 1988 * Allison Sansom, Miss Universe Thailand 2014 * Anthony Ampaipitakwong, professional soccer player *

Todd Angkasuwan Todd Angkasuwan is a Thai American, Thai-American music video director, music video and documentary film Film director, director. Biography Angkasuwan grew up in Riverside, California and has been making films since he was 9 years old.

, music video and documentary film director *

Chang and Eng Bunker Chang Bunker (จัน บังเกอร์) and Eng Bunker (อิน บังเกอร์) (May 11, 1811 – January 17, 1874) were Siamese (Thai)-American conjoined twins, conjoined twin brothers whose fame propelled the expression " ...

, Siamese twins * Anthony Burch, writer of video game '' Borderlands 2'' * Amanda Mildred Carr, BMX racer * Lisa Changadveja, political strategist and author * Michael Chaturantabut, actor and martial artist * Cherry Chevapravatdumrong, producer and story editor on ''

Family Guy ''Family Guy'' is an American animated sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series premiered on January 31, 1999, following Super Bowl XXXIII, with the rest of the first season airing from April 11, 1999. Th ...

'' * Johnny Damon, MLB player *

Timothy DeLaGhetto Tim Chantarangsu (born March 6, 1986), formerly known as Timothy DeLaGhetto (was also previously known by his musical name Traphik), is an American internet and television personality and rapper. He is best known from the improv comedy show '' W ...

, internet and television personality and rapper * Charles Djou, politician *

, politician and military officer * Myra Molloy, singer and actress * Lada Engchawadechasilp, beauty pageant queen * Kevin Kaesviharn, football player *

Sanit Khewhok Sanit Khewhok (;born 1944) is a painter, sculptor, curator, and conservator. Early life and education He was born in Trang, Thailand, in 1944, and, in 1969, graduated from Silpakorn University in Bangkok with a diploma in fine art. He then stu ...

, artist * Eric Koston, professional skater * Lynn Kriengkrairut, ice dancer * Nicolene Limsnukan, Miss Thailand World 2018 *

Nichkhun Nichkhun Buck Horvejkul (; ; born June 24, 1988), better known mononymously as Nichkhun (), is a Thai and American rapper, singer, songwriter, actor, and model who is currently based in South Korea as a member of the South Korean boy band 2PM ...

, singer * Thakoon Panichgul, fashion designer * Utt Panichkul, actor, model and VJ * Ben Parr, author * John Pippy, politician * Stacy Prammanasudh, golfer * Jocelyn Seagrave, television actress * Alex Sink, former Chief Financial Officer for the state of Florida * Prim Siripipat, sportscaster * Brenda Song, actress *

Ashly Burch Ashly Burch (born June 19, 1990) is an American actress, writer, director, and singer. She is known for her roles as Aloy in the ''Horizon (video game series), Horizon'' series, Chloe Price in the ''Life Is Strange (video game), Life Is Strange ...

, actress * Tamarine Tanasugarn, professional tennis player * Kevin Tancharoen, dancer, choreographer, television producer and film director * Maurissa Tancharoen, actress, singer, dancer, television producer/writer and lyricist *

Chrissy Teigen Christine Diane Teigen (born November 30, 1985) is an American model, television personality, and author. She made her professional modeling debut in the annual Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, ''Sports Illustrated'' Swimsuit Issue, in 2010, ...

, model, TV host, food blogger * Traphik or

, rapper, comedian, and videographer on YouTube * David Wagner (soccer),

United States men's national soccer team The United States men's national soccer team (USMNT), officially recognized as USA by FIFA, represents the United States in men's international Association football, soccer. The team is governed by the United States Soccer Federation, which is ...

striker of Thai descent. *

Tiger Woods Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods (born December 30, 1975) is an American professional golfer. He is tied for first in List of golfers with most PGA Tour wins, PGA Tour wins, ranks second in List of men's major championships winning golfers, men's m ...

, professional golfer * Tata Young, singer, actress and former model who lives in Bangkok * Janie Tienphosuwan, actress * Prince Gomolvilas, playwright * Pop Mhan, comic book writer * Dan Santat, author and winner of the 2015 Caldecott Medal. * Jet Tila, celebrity chef and restaurateur * Matt Braly, creator of '' Amphibia'' * Vicha Ratanapakdee, Thai-American man who was murdered in San Francisco * Tera Patrick, pornstar * Tony Jaa, Muay Thai fighter, martial artist, actor, action choreographer, stuntman, and film director * Alex Aust, lacrosse player

Thai Americans in popular culture

* Anne Boonchuy and her parents from the animated TV series '' Amphibia'' are Thai-Americans. * Molly McGee, Darryl McGee, Sharon McGee, Grandma Nin Suksai, David Suksai and Emmie Suksai from the animated TV series '' The Ghost and Molly McGee'' are Thai-Americans. * Stonecutter (Utama Somchart) and Avenger X (Cressida) from

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...

are Thai-Americans.

Sources

We the People Asians in the United States Census 2000 Special ReportsVong, Pueng. Unrest in the Homeland Awakens the Thai Community IMDiversity March 29, 2006Asian American Action Fund 2006 endorsed candidates

References

External links

ThaiNewYork.comThaitown USA NewsAsian Pacific NewspaperSiam Media NewspaperSereechai Newspaper
*

', Thailand Law Forum, June 30, 2010 {{Authority control Asian diaspora in the United States Southeast Asian diaspora in the United States Thai diaspora in North America