Central Thai

Asiaintensive agriculturalists
Map
expand_more Description

The Central Thai live in central and southern Thailand and speak a dialect of the Thai language of the Tai-Kadai family. The original home of the Thai people was in the Chinese province of Yunnan from where they migrated south in successive waves, beginning about AD 1050. Wet-rice agriculture dominates the economy with about four-fifths of the population living in rural communities. The kingdom of Thailand was never colonized by a Western nation. Practicing Theravada Buddhism, most of Thai men have been ordained as priests, although only a small minority makes the priesthood their life work.

Identifier
Region
  • Asia
Subregion
  • Southeast Asia
Subsistence Type
  • intensive agriculturalists
Samples
Countries
  • Thailand