Phahurat

Phahurat or Pahurat (Thai: พาหุรัด, pronounced [pʰaː˧.hu˨˩.rat̚˦], lit. "gold upper arm bracelet"), sometimes described as Thailand's Little India, is an ethnic neighborhood surrounding Phahurat Road in Wang Burapha Phirom Subdistrict, Phra Nakhon District, Bangkok. The area that would become Phahurat was an enclave of Annamese (Vietnamese) immigrants who came to Siam during the reign of King Taksin (1768–1782). In 1898, a first broke out and paved way for a road^[1] which was named "Bahurada", commonly spelled today as Phahurat or Pahurat (as it is pronounced), by King Chulalongkorn in remembrance of his daughter Princess Bahurada Manimaya (RTGS: Phahurat Manimai) (Thai: สมเด็จพระเจ้าลูกเธอ เจ้าฟ้าพาหุรัดมณีมัย) who had died at young age.^[2]

Many of today's Phahurat residents are of South Asian descent. A Sikh community settled there more than a century ago and established a textile trading center that is still thriving. The golden-domed Siri Guru Singh Sabha temple is a landmark of Phahurat. The neighborhood is also home to some South Asian Hindus and Muslims.

For the road, Phahurat is a short street that is divided into two parts. The first is the road continues from Ban Mo Road at Ban Mo Intersection ended up at the point where it meet Tri Phet Road, known as Phahurat Intersection, while the second separates itself from the west side of Chak Phet Road in Saphan Han area to the termination at Phahurat Intersection, both parts are one-way roads. The settlement of people of South Asian descent and textile market are in the second part, it also extends to other nearby Chak Phet Road and Tri Phet Road. While both sides of the first part are lined with jewelry and gold shops as well as audio equipment shops, just like in the Ban Mo area. The opening of the Phra Pok Klao Bridge in 1984 parallel to the existing Memorial Bridge, made access to Phahurat more direct and easy, it resulted in the neighborhood becoming more lively as well.

The sprawling of Chinese shops from the nearby Chinatown are slowly encroaching on Phahurat, but South Asian restaurants and businesses still dominate the area. It is home to some of Bangkok's more unusual shopping sites, including the sprawling Sampheng Market (Saphan Han), The Old Siam Plaza, and Nightingale–Olympic, with the four-storey India Emporium.