Thung Kula Ronghai (, ) is a

natural region A natural region (landscape unit) is a basic geographic unit. Usually, it is a region which is distinguished by its common natural features of geography, geology, and climate. From the ecological point of view, the naturally occurring flora and ...

in northeastern

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

. Its area is around 2.1 million rai (or 3,200 km²). It lies in the provinces of Surin, Maha Sarakham, Yasothon,

Sisaket Sisaket (, , ; Northern Khmer dialect, Northern Khmer: ) is a Thesaban#Town municipality, town municipality in Isan, northeast Thailand, incorporating Mueang Nuea and Mueang Tai Subdistricts and parts of Cham, Nong Khrok, Pho, Phon kha, and Ya P ...

, and Roi Et.

History and legend

Its name translates to 'fields of the crying Kula'. Legend has it that the Kula, from

Mottama Mottama (, ; Muttama , ; formerly Martaban) is a town in the Thaton District of Mon State, Myanmar. Located on the west bank of the Thanlwin river (Salween), on the opposite side of Mawlamyaing, Mottama was the capital of the Martaban Kingdo ...

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 ...

, traveled through this plateau. The Kula were known for their endurance and toughness. They spent several days traveling the region without passing any villages or finding water. The surroundings had no trees to provide shade. It was only arid land. Trekking through this area was very difficult. The dry land and scarceness of water supply exhausted the Kula and made them weep. Historically, Thung Kula Ronghai had suffered desert-like conditions during dry season and flooding during rainy season. Soils were plagued by

salinity Salinity () is the saltiness or amount of salt (chemistry), salt dissolved in a body of water, called saline water (see also soil salinity). It is usually measured in g/L or g/kg (grams of salt per liter/kilogram of water; the latter is dimensio ...

. The area has since been reclaimed and today the region has become a well-known Hom Mali rice producing area of Thailand.

References

{{coord missing, Thailand Geography of Thailand Agriculture in Thailand Isan