Thai Chinese

This article is about people of Chinese origin in Thailand. For people of Chinese origin in Phuket and the Chinese minority in Northern Thailand, see Peranakans and Chin Haw.

Thai Chinese
泰国华人 / 华裔泰国人 or 泰國華人 / 華裔泰國人
ชาวไทยเชื้อสายจีน
Wat Mangkon Kamalawat, a Chinese Buddhist temple in Thailand
Total population
c. 7–10 million[1][2]
Regions with significant populations
Thailand Thailand
9.5 million (2013)[3]
country-wide, with significant diaspora in:
 Australia
 United States
 New Zealand
 Canada
 Taiwan
 Malaysia
 United Kingdom
 Singapore
Languages
Central Thai (native by majority), Isan, Malay, Northern Thai, English, Southern Thai
Chinese languages:
Hockchew, Hokkien, Hakka, Hainanese, Teochew, Cantonese, Mandarin (Putonghua and Yunnanese)
Religion
Predominantly
Theravada Buddhism
Minorities
Agnostic, Taoism, Confucianism, Chinese folk religion, Mahayana Buddhism (Chinese Buddhism), Christianity, Sunni Islam
Related ethnic groups
Thais
Peranakans
Overseas Chinese
Han Chinese
Thai Chinese
Traditional Chinese泰國華人 / 華裔泰國人
Simplified Chinese泰国华人 / 华裔泰国人
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinHuáyì Tàiguórén
Yue: Cantonese
JyutpingWaa4 Jeoi6 Taai3 Gwok3 Jan4
Southern Min
Hokkien POJHôa-è Thài-kok-lâng
Tâi-lôHuâ-è Thài-kok-lâng
Teochew Peng'imHuê 1 i6 tai3 gog4 nang5

Thai Chinese (also known as Chinese Thais, Sino-Thais) are Chinese descendants in Thailand. Thai Chinese are the largest minority group in the country and the largest overseas Chinese community in the world with a population of approximately 7–10 million people, accounting for 11–14 percent of the total population of the country as of 2012.[4][5][6] It is also the oldest and most prominently integrated overseas Chinese community, with a history dating back to the 1100s. Slightly more than half of the ethnic Chinese population in Thailand trace their ancestry to Chaoshan. This is evidenced by the prevalence of the Teochew dialect among the Chinese community in Thailand as well as other Chinese languages.[7]: 93  The term as commonly understood signifies those whose ancestors immigrated to Thailand before 1949.

The Thai Chinese have been deeply ingrained into all elements of Thai society over the past 200 years. The present Thai royal family, the Chakri dynasty, was founded by King Rama I who himself was partly Chinese.[8] His predecessor, King Taksin of the Thonburi Kingdom, was the son of a Chinese father from Chaoshan.[9] With the successful integration of historic Chinese immigrant communities in Thailand, a significant number of Thai Chinese are the descendants of intermarriages between ethnic Chinese and native Thais. Many of these descendants have assimilated into Thai society and self-identify solely as Thai.[10][11][12]

The Thai Chinese are well-established in the middle class and upper classes of Thai society and are well represented at all levels of Thai society.[13][14][15]: 3, 43 [16][17] They play a leading role in Thailand's business sector and dominate the Thai economy today.[18]: 22 [15]: 179 [19][20] In addition, Thai Chinese elites of Thailand have a strong presence in Thailand's political scene with most of Thailand's former Prime Ministers and the majority of parliament having at least some Chinese ancestry.[21][22][18]: 58 [23] Thai Chinese elites of Thailand are well represented among Thailand's rulers and other sectors.[24][25]

  1. ^ "China: Countries with the largest number of overseas Chinese 2021".
  2. ^ ":: Overseas Compatriot Affairs Commission, R.o.c. ::". Archived from the original on 4 January 2011. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  3. ^ "Thailand - World Directory of Minorities & Indigenous Peoples". Minority Rights Group. 19 June 2015.
  4. ^ John Draper; Joel Sawat Selway (January 2019). "A New Dataset on Horizontal Structural Ethnic Inequalities in Thailand in Order to Address Sustainable Development Goal 10". Social Indicators Research. 141 (4): 280. doi:10.1007/s11205-019-02065-4. S2CID 149845432. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
  5. ^ Luangthongkum, Theraphan (2007). "The Position of Non-Thai Languages in Thailand". In Guan, Lee Hock; Suryadinata, Leo Suryadinata (eds.). Language, Nation and Development in Southeast Asia. ISEAS Publishing. p. 191. ISBN 9789812304827 – via Google Books.
  6. ^ Barbara A. West (2009), Encyclopedia of the Peoples of Asia and Oceania, Facts on File, p. 794, ISBN 978-1438119137 – via Google Books
  7. ^ Baker, Chris; Phongpaichit, Pasuk (2009). A History of Thailand (2nd, paper ed.). Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521759151.
  8. ^ Reid, Anthony (2015). A History of Southeast Asia: Critical Crossroads. John Wiley & Sons. p. 215. ISBN 9780631179610.
  9. ^ Woodside 1971, p. 8.
  10. ^ Jiangtao, Shi (16 October 2016). "Time of uncertainty lies ahead for Bangkok's ethnic Chinese". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference Gambe-2000 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ Chaloemtiarana, Thak (25 December 2014). "Are We Them? Textual and Literary Representations of the Chinese in Twentieth-Century Thailand". Southeast Asian Studies. 3 (3). Retrieved 28 April 2020.
  13. ^ Susanto, A. B.; Susa, Patricia (2013). The Dragon Network: Inside Stories of the Most Successful Chinese Family. Wiley. ISBN 9781118339404. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  14. ^ Choosing Coalition Partners: The Politics of Central Bank Independence in ... - Young Hark Byun, The University of Texas at Austin. Government - Google Books. 2006. ISBN 9780549392392. Retrieved 23 April 2012.[dead link‍]
  15. ^ a b Chua, Amy (2003). World on Fire: How Exporting Free Market Democracy Breeds Ethnic Hatred and Global Instability (Paperback). Doubleday. ISBN 978-0-385-72186-8. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  16. ^ Vatikiotis, Michael; Daorueng, Prangtip (12 February 1998). "Entrepreneurs" (PDF). Far Eastern Economic Review. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  17. ^ "High technology and globalization challenges facing overseas Chinese entrepreneurs | SAM Advanced Management Journal". Find Articles. Retrieved 23 April 2012.[not specific enough to verify]
  18. ^ a b Chua, Amy L. (January 1998). "Markets, Democracy, and Ethnicity: Toward A New Paradigm For Law and Development". The Yale Law Journal. 108 (1): 58. doi:10.2307/797471. JSTOR 797471.
  19. ^ Yeung, Henry Wai-Chung (2005). Chinese Capitalism in a Global Era: Towards a Hybrid Capitalism. Routledge. ISBN 978-0415309899.
  20. ^ World and Its Peoples: Eastern and Southern Asia - Marshall Cavendish Corporation, Not Available (NA) - Google Books. Marshall Cavendish. 1 September 2007. ISBN 9780761476313. Retrieved 23 April 2012.[not specific enough to verify]
  21. ^ Kolodko, Grzegorz W. (2005). Globalization And Social Stress. Hauppauge NY: Nova Science Publishers. p. 171. ISBN 9781594541940. Retrieved 29 April 2020.
  22. ^ Marshall, Tyler (17 June 2006). "Southeast Asia's new best friend". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 6 March 2016. Retrieved 8 November 2015.
  23. ^ Songkünnatham, Peera (30 June 2018). "Betraying my heritage: the riddles of Chinese and Lao". The Isaan Record. Retrieved 29 April 2020.
  24. ^ Smith, Anthony (1 February 2005). "Thailand's Security and the Sino-Thai Relationship". China Brief. 5 (3). Retrieved 29 April 2020.
  25. ^ Jiangtao, Shi (14 October 2016). "In Bangkok's Chinatown, grief and gratitude following Thai king's death". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 29 April 2020.