Lamphun Province

Lamphun ลำพูน
Province
Flag Seal
Map of Thailand highlighting Lamphun Province
Country	Thailand
Capital	Lamphun town
Government
• Governor	Pongrat Piromrat (since October 2019)[1]
Area
• Total	4,506 km2 (1,740 sq mi)
Area rank	Ranked 48th
Population  (2017)
• Total	405,918[2]
• Rank	Ranked 63rd
• Density rank	Ranked 52nd
Human Achievement Index[3]
• HAI (2014)	0.6497 "somewhat high" ranking 16th
Time zone	UTC+7 (ICT)
Area code(s)	053
ISO 3166 code	TH-51
Vehicle registration	ลำพูน

Lamphun (Thai: ลำพูน, pronounced [lām.pʰūːn]) is one of the northern provinces (changwat) of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are (from north clockwise) Chiang Mai, Lampang, and Tak.

Geography

Lamphun is in the Ping River valley. It is surrounded by mountain chains, with the Thanon Thong Chai Range in the west and the Khun Tan Range in the east of the province. It is some 670 kilometres from Bangkok and 26 kilometres from Chiang Mai.

History

Under its old name of Haripunchai, Lamphun was the northernmost city of the Mon kingdom of the Dvaravati period,^[4] and also the last to fall to the Thai. In the late-12th century it came under siege from the Khmer, but did not fall. However, in 1281 King Mengrai of Lan Na finally seized the city, and made it part of his kingdom. After Burmese expansion in the 16th century, Lamphun was under Burmese rule for two centuries. In the 18th century, with the rise of Thonburi and Bangkok against Burmese rule, local leaders from Lampang agreed to be their allies. Lamphun was finally freed from the Burmese and ruled by relatives of Lampang's leader, gaining vassal status from Bangkok. Eventually, after the administrative reform of Bangkok government in the late-19th century, Lamphun became part, as a province, of Siam.^[5]

Symbols

The viharn and golden chedi of Wat Phra That Hariphunchai

The provincial seal shows the temple Wat Phra That Haripunchai, which was already the main temple of the city Lamphun during Mon times. The gold-covered chedi is said to contain a relic of Buddha.

The provincial flower is the Flame of the Forest (Butea monosperma), and the provincial tree is the Rain Tree (Samanea saman).

Administrative divisions

The province is divided into eight districts (amphoes). These are further subdivided into 51 sub-districts (tambons) and 551 villages (mubans).

Municipal (thesaban) areas in the province are the town (thesaban mueang) Lamphun and 12 townships (thesaban tambon). The non-municipal area is administered by 45 tambon administrative organizations (TAO) and two tambon councils.

For national elections the province is divided into three constituencies. Constituency 1 covers the Mueang District except Tambon Makhuea Chae; Constituency 2 the districts Pa Sang, Mae Tha, and Tambon Makhuea Chae of Mueang District; and Constituency 3 the districts Ban Hong, Thung Hua Chang, and Li.

The Dvaravati-style chedi of Wat Phra That Hariphunchai

Human Achievement Index 2014

Since 2003, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Thailand has tracked progress on human development at sub-national level using the Human Achievement Index (HAI), a composite index assessing eight measures of human development.^[3]
Lamphun Province, with an HAI value of 0.6497 takes 16th place in the ranking. This is ranked as "somewhat high".

Transport

• Air: Lamphun is served by Lamphun Airport.
• Rail: Lamphun's main station is Lamphun Railway Station.

Foods

• Kaeng khae, a spicy curry consisting mainly of vegetables with chicken, frog, fish or snails.^[6]
• Kuaitiao lamyai, stewed pork noodles soup with dried longan, originated in Lamphun.^[7]

References

External links

• Lamphun travel guide from Wikivoyage
• Provincial website
• Lamphun Province, Tourism Authority of Thailand

Coordinates: 18°34′45″N 99°0′23″E / 18.57917°N 99.00639°E / 18.57917; 99.00639