Narathiwat Province

Narathiwat Province is on the Gulf of Thailand, on the Malay Peninsula. The Bang Nara is the main river and enters the Gulf of Thailand at the town of Narathiwat. Narathat Beach, the most popular in the province, is near the estuary.

Budo–Su-ngai Padi National Park is in the Sankalakhiri mountain range. Established in 1974, the park covers an area of 294 km² (114 sq mi), extending into neighbouring Yala and Pattani Provinces. The main attraction is Pacho Waterfall.[5]

The former name of Narathiwat was Menara (Jawi: منارا), meaning a 'minaret' in Malay, the pre-Islamic name is unknown. This became Bang Nara (Thai: บางนรา) or Bang Nak (Thai: บางนาค) in Thai,[6] but was changed to Narathiwat by King Rama VI in 1915.[7] "Narathiwat", from the Sanskrit (Nara+adhivāsa), means the residence of wise people. Today, traffic signs in Malaysia still use Menara.

Historically, Narathiwat was the part of the semi-independent Malay Sultanate of Patani, paying tribute to the Thai kingdoms of Sukhothai and Siamese Ayutthaya Kingdom. After Ayutthaya fell in 1767, the Sultanate of Patani gained full independence, but under King Rama I it again came under Thai control 18 years later and in the early–1800s was divided into seven smaller kingdoms.

In 1909, Narathiwat was fully integrated into Siam as part of Anglo-Siamese Treaty of 1909 negotiated with the British Empire. Along with Yala, Narathiwat was then part of Monthon Pattani.

Narathiwat is one of four Thai provinces (along with Yala, Pattani, and Satun) with a predominantly Muslim population; 82% are Muslim and 17.9% are Buddhist. Also 80.4% speak the Patani Malay as their first language.[4] Narathiwat Malays are very similar in ethnicity and culture to the Malays of Kelantan, Malaysia.

In 1963, the Thai government launched the Nikhom Sang Ton Eng Pak Tai ('self-development community in the south') program to move families from Thailand's northeastern and central provinces to the Sukhirin and Chanae Districts of Narathiwat. A total of 5,633 families were relocated to Narathiwat, where each family was rewarded with 18 rai of land. In Phukhao Thong Subdistrict as of 2019, most inhabitants migrated from the northeast. They speak Isan and are 90% Buddhist in what is a predominantly Muslim province.[8]

The inhabitants of Narathiwat are largely farmers and fishermen.[9] Narathiwat is an area with various religious places of historical significance.

The provincial seal shows a sailing boat with a white elephant on the sail. A white elephant is a royal symbol, and was put on the seal to commemorate the white elephant Phra Sri Nararat Rajakarini which was caught here and presented to the king.

The provincial symbol is the longkong fruit (Lansium parasiticum). The provincial tree is the Chengal (Neobalanocarpus heimii), and the provincial flower is the Odontadenia macrantha.

Narathiwat is mostly served by public hospitals. Its main hospital is Naradhiwas Rajanagarindra Hospital and the province has one university hospital which is Galyanivadhanakarun Hospital of the Faculty of Medicine, Princess of Naradhiwas University.

Health	Education	Employment	Income
68	77	53	77
Housing	Family	Transport	Participation
38	32	75	35
Province Narathiwat, with an HAI 2017 value of 0.4800 is "low", occupies place 76 in the ranking.

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 covering all the eight key areas of human development. National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB) has taken over this task since 2017.[3]

Map with provinces and HAI 2017 rankings

There has been growing violence in southern Thailand since 4 January 2004, especially in the majority Muslim provinces of Narathiwat, Yala, and Pattani. Most of the inhabitants of these provinces are ethnic Malays, though the cities are mainly Thai, Thai Chinese, and Indian. Violent mujahideen activity has happened since the 1980s, but this lessened when Thaksin Shinawatra became prime minister in 2001.

Most of the violence has been directed towards the minority Buddhist population in the province.

The government has been suspected of organising violent attacks on Muslims. On 8 June 2009, at least 10 died in a shooting during Muslim evening prayers. Five or six gunmen disguised by ski masks attacked a mosque. The army denied involvement.[12]

• Attachai Anantameak, actor and political activist

Reports (data) from Thai government are "not copyrightable" (Public Domain), Copyright Act 2537 (1994), section 7.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Narathiwat Province.

• http://www.narathiwat.go.th/ Website of province (Thai)
• Province page from the Tourist Authority of Thailand
• Southern Comforts; Narathiwat Province (article in The Nation)