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Samut Songkhram สมุทรสงคราม | |
|---|---|
| Other transcription(s) | |
| • Teochew | 夜功 |
 .jpg) _-_img_20.jpg) .jpg) .jpg)  From top:Bang Noi Floating Market [th];Don Hoi Lot;Nativity of Our Lady Cathedral, Bang Nok Khwaek;Wat Ban Laem;Amphawa Floating Market;Maeklong Railway Market, also known locally asTalat Rom Hup, is famous for the train that passes through it | |
 Flag  Seal | |
| Nickname: Mae Klong | |
| Motto: เมืองหอยหลอด ยอดลิ้นจี่ มีอุทยาน ร.2 แม่กลองไหลผ่าน นมัสการหลวงพ่อบ้านแหลม ("City of razor shells. Tops of the lychee trees. King Rama II Park. Passage of the Maeklong river. Worship the Buddhist image of Luang Pho Ban Laem.") | |
 Map of Thailand highlighting Samut Songkhram province | |
| Country | Thailand |
| Capital | Samut Songkhram |
| Government | |
| • Governor | Nisakorn Wisitsora-at |
| Area | |
• Total | 414 km2 (160 sq mi) |
| • Rank | 77th |
| Population (2024)[2] | |
• Total |  186,784 |
| • Rank | 77th |
| • Density | 452/km2 (1,170/sq mi) |
| • Rank | 7th |
| Human Achievement Index | |
| • HAI (2022) | 0.6552 "somewhat high" Ranked 18th |
| GDP | |
| • Total | baht 22 billion (US$0.8 billion) (2019) |
| Time zone | UTC+7 (ICT) |
| Postal code | 75xxx |
| Calling code | 034 |
| ISO 3166 code | TH-75 |
| Website | samutsongkhram |
Samut Songkhram Provincial Administrative Organization องค์การบริหารส่วนจังหวัดสมุทรสงคราม | |
|---|---|
 Interactive map of Samut Songkhram Provincial Administrative Organization | |
| Government | |
| • Type | Local administrative divisions |
| • Body | Samut Songkhram Provincial Administrative Organization |
| • President | Jesada Yanpraphasiri |
| Website | skm-pao |
Samut Songkhram (Thai:สมุทรสงคราม,pronounced[sā.mùtsǒŋ.kʰrāːm]) is one of the centralprovinces (changwat) ofThailand.
Neighbouring provinces are (from the south clockwise)Phetchaburi,Ratchaburi andSamut Sakhon. Local people call Samut SongkhramMae Klong. The province is the smallest in area of all Thai provinces.Chang and Eng Bunker, the famousSiamese twins were born here on 11 May 1811.[5]
The word "samut" originates from theSanskrit word समुद्रsamudra meaning 'ocean', and the word "songkhram" from Sanskrit संग्रामsaṃgrāma meaning 'war'.[6] Hence the name of the province literally means 'war ocean'.[7]However, this province is colloquially known as "Mae Klong" after the name of the main river that flows past the area.
.jpg)
Samut Songkhram is at the mouth of the Mae Klong River to theBay of Bangkok (upperGulf of Thailand). With several canals (khlong) the water of the river is spread through the province for irrigation. At the coast are many lakes for producingsea salt. The sandbarDon Hoi Lot at the mouth of the river is famous for its endemic shell population ofSolen regularis.
It covers a total area of 416.7 km2 (about 160.9 sq mi). It can be considered the smallest province in Thailand. The total forest area is 30 km2 (12 sq mi) or 7.3 percent of provincial area.[8]
This province is home toplaces of worship of the three major religions. There are 110Buddhist temples, two Christian churches and one mosque. Additionally, Samut Songkhram is also home to the oldestChinese joss house and almshouse in Thailand, which is over 215 years old.[9]
Samut Songkhram or Mae Klong or Suan Nok (outside garden) was a part of Mueang Ratchaburi in the past. The old name of Mae Klong is Bang Chang which was centered at Tambon Amphawa, Samut Songkhram (from the district at present). During the transition from the Ayutthaya to the Thon Buri periods, it was separated from Ratchaburi and named Mueang Mae Klong.
Samut Songkhram was historically important during the establishment of Thon Buri as the kingdom's capital by KingTaksin the Great. When the Burmese led an army to Tambon Bang Kung, the king gathered the people to build a fort and prevent the city from capture by the Burmese troops. This was an important act against the Burmese invaders at that time.
Mueang Mae Klong (actually pronounced "Mae Glawng"), changed its name into Samut Songkhram but the actual year is not known. It is assumed it occurred in 1752 to 1756 because the name of the province first appeared in the evidence from the first Thai enacted law: Later, a decree was found,issued from the reign of KingBorommakot in 1756 and was identified as ordered to The Lord Rattanathibet, the Grand marshal of the Court. Apparently Kun Wisetvanish (Chean Ar Pan Teck), Kun Thip, and Meun Rukka Auksorn were daring ask to establish casinos in Samut Songkhram, Ratchaburi and Samut Prakan.
Samut Songkhram is the birthplace of many famous Thai people whetherKing Rama II who was born in 1767 inAmphawa District orChang and Eng Bunker who were born in 1811.
Theprovincial seal shows a drum over a river. The Thai word for drum isklong, thus refers to the Mae Klong River, as well as the old name of the province, Mae Klong. On both sides of the rivercoconut trees are displayed as one of the main products of the province.
Theprovincial tree isCasuarina equisetifolia.Siamese giant carp (Catlocarpio siamensis) is the provincial fish.[10]
The provincial slogan is "City of razor shells. Tops of the lychee trees. King Rama II Park. Passage of the Maeklong river. Worship the Buddhist image of Luang Pho Ban Laem."[11]
The province is divided into three districts (amphoe). The districts are further divided into 36 subdistricts (tambons) and 284 villages (mubans).[12]
| No. | District | Thai | Pop. | Subdistricts | Villages |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Mueang Samut Songkhram | เมืองสมุทรสงคราม | 104,028 | 11 | 87 |
| 2. | Bang Khonthi | บางคนที | 30,389 | 13 | 101 |
| 3. | Amphawa | อัมพวา | 53,576 | 12 | 96 |
| Total | 187,993 | 36 | 284 |
As of December 2023 there are: one Samut Songkhram provincial administrative organization - PAO (ongkan borihan suan changwat - o bo toh) and nine municipal (thesaban) areas in the province. The capital Samut Songkhram has town (thesaban mueang) status and eight are subdistrict municipalities (thesaban tambon).[12]
| Town municipality | people | ||
| 1 | Samut Songkhram[13] | 25,623 |
| Subdistrict mun. | people | ||||
| 1 | Suan Luang[14] | 4,982 | 5 | Bang Krabue[15] | 1,960 |
| 2 | Amphawa[16] | 4,435 | 6 | Mueang Mai[17] | 1,865 |
| 3 | Bang Chakreng[18] | 4,389 | 7 | Bang Nok Khwaek[19] | 1,706 |
| 4 | Kradangnga[20] | 2,103 | 8 | Bang Yi Rong[21] | 1,663 |
The non-municipal areas are administered by 26 subdistrict administrative organizations (SAO) (ongkan borihan suan tambon).[22]
| Municipalities | Communities | |
| Samut Songkhram[23] | 14 | |
| Amphawa[24] | 10 | |
| Kradangnga[25] | 4 | |
| Bang Nok Khwaek[26] | 5 |
There are three hospitals in the province:
There are total forty-ninehealth-promoting hospitals in the district, of which;
Population history of Samut Songkhram province is as follows:[27][28]
| 1947 | 1960 | 1970 | 1980 | 1990 | 2000 | 2011 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 124,894 | 162,000 | 159,000 | 196,659 | 206,506 | 204,177 | 194,086 | 192,052 |
There are one hundred and twentyTheravada Buddhist temples in the province.
Samut Songkhram province has atropical savanna climate (Köppen climate classificationAw). Winters are dry and very warm. Temperatures rise until April, which is very hot with the average daily maximum at 35.0 °C (95.0 °F). Themonsoon season runs from May through October, with heavy rain and somewhat cooler temperatures during the day, although nights remain warm.
| Climate data for Samut Songkhram (2022–2023) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 34.1 (93.4) | 34.0 (93.2) | 36.6 (97.9) | 37.0 (98.6) | 39.5 (103.1) | 37.9 (100.2) | 36.4 (97.5) | 37.4 (99.3) | 36.3 (97.3) | 34.5 (94.1) | 34.6 (94.3) | 35.2 (95.4) | 39.5 (103.1) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 31.3 (88.3) | 31.1 (88.0) | 32.1 (89.8) | 33.7 (92.7) | 35.0 (95.0) | 34.0 (93.2) | 33.6 (92.5) | 33.7 (92.7) | 33.0 (91.4) | 32.2 (90.0) | 32.2 (90.0) | 32.1 (89.8) | 32.8 (91.1) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 27.3 (81.1) | 27.9 (82.2) | 29.5 (85.1) | 30.6 (87.1) | 31.2 (88.2) | 30.4 (86.7) | 29.9 (85.8) | 29.8 (85.6) | 29.1 (84.4) | 28.6 (83.5) | 28.1 (82.6) | 27.8 (82.0) | 29.2 (84.5) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 20.9 (69.6) | 23.1 (73.6) | 24.5 (76.1) | 25.7 (78.3) | 25.5 (77.9) | 25.7 (78.3) | 25.3 (77.5) | 24.6 (76.3) | 24.0 (75.2) | 24.1 (75.4) | 23.8 (74.8) | 21.3 (70.3) | 24.0 (75.3) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 16.7 (62.1) | 19.0 (66.2) | 21.0 (69.8) | 18.6 (65.5) | 22.1 (71.8) | 23.4 (74.1) | 23.5 (74.3) | 22.6 (72.7) | 21.4 (70.5) | 22.0 (71.6) | 20.9 (69.6) | 17.5 (63.5) | 16.7 (62.1) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 2.3 (0.09) | 27.7 (1.09) | 45.3 (1.78) | 92.2 (3.63) | 116.7 (4.59) | 66.3 (2.61) | 93.8 (3.69) | 236.9 (9.33) | 271.2 (10.68) | 313.2 (12.33) | 77.3 (3.04) | 7.2 (0.28) | 1,201.1 (47.29) |
| Average rainy days | 2 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 15 | 12 | 17 | 19 | 22 | 20 | 12 | 3 | 121 |
| Averagerelative humidity (%) | 72.5 | 79.3 | 79.9 | 74.7 | 78.6 | 76.4 | 77.2 | 80.4 | 81.6 | 81.9 | 78.9 | 84.3 | 77.3 |
| Source:[29] | |||||||||||||
In 2022, Samut Songkhram province had an economic output of 29.2 billion baht (US$853 million). This amounts to per capita gross provincial product (GPP) of 165,279 baht (US$4,830).[30] In 2024 the total workforce was 147,210 of which 104,056 persons were employed in economic activity. Inagriculture andfishing 18,918 persons (18.2%) were employed and in the non-agricultural sector 85,138 persons (81.8%).[31]
| Activities | Baht | Percent | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manufacturing | 6,691,000,000 | 22.9 |
| 2 | Agriculture and Fishery | 6,309,000,000 | 21.6 |
| 3 | Trade | 4,624,000,000 | 15.8 |
| 4 | Transportation | 2,279,000,000 | 7.8 |
| 5 | Financial | 1,888,000,000 | 6.5 |
| 6 | Construction | 1,155,000,000 | 4.0 |
| 7 | Defence / publ.admin. | 1,125,000,000 | 3.9 |
| 8 | Human health | 1,105,000,000 | 3.8 |
| 9 | Education | 1,044,000,000 | 3.6 |
| 10 | Real estate | 893,000,000 | 3.0 |
| 11 | Hotel and restaurant | 519,000,000 | 1.8 |
| 12 | Energy | 501,000,000 | 1.7 |
| 13 | Informatica | 280,000,000 | 1.0 |
| 14 | Pastime | 246,000,000 | 0.8 |
| 15 | Other service activity | 213,000,000 | 0.7 |
| 16 | Water supply | 143,000,000 | 0.5 |
| 17 | Administration | 100,000,000 | 0.3 |
| 18 | Mining | 85,000,000 | 0.3 |
| Total | 29,200,000,000 | 100 |
| Activities | Workforce | Percent | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manufacturing | 25,302 | 24.3 |
| 2 | Agriculture and fishing | 18,918 | 18.2 |
| 3 | Trade | 18,775 | 18.0 |
| 4 | Hotel and restaurant | 11,667 | 11.2 |
| 5 | Construction | 6,690 | 6.4 |
| 6 | Other serv. activity | 5,029 | 4.9 |
| 7 | Defence / publ.admin. | 4,459 | 4.3 |
| 8 | Education | 3,775 | 3.6 |
| 9 | Human health | 2,308 | 2.2 |
| 10 | Transportation | 2,223 | 2.1 |
| 11 | Financial | 1,389 | 1.3 |
| 12 | Administration | 1,291 | 1.2 |
| 13 | Energy | 499 | 0.5 |
| 14 | Informatica | 470 | 0.5 |
| 15 | Household enterprise | 413 | 0.4 |
| 16 | Scientific activity | 406 | 0.4 |
| 17 | Pastime | 281 | 0.3 |
| 18 | Real estate | 161 | 0.2 |
| Total | 104,056 | 100 |
Samut Songkhram is a leader in Thai salt production, with 4,535rai worked in 2011 by 111 households to produce salt.[32]
Aside from salt Samut Songkhram is also known for the variety of fruits, especiallylychee,pomelo and coconut.
Pla thu (ปลาทู, 'short mackerel') is regarded as an important commercial fish and the most famous product of the province. Mackerel from Samut Songkhram is well known as "Pla thu Mae Klong." Because the province borders the Bay of Bangkok, which is rich inplankton, the staple food of this fish species, Samut Songkhram's pla thu have a distinctive characteristic locally called"na ngo kor hak" (หน้างอ คอหัก, "curved face, broken neck"). This unique trait contributes to their large body size and delicious meat.[33]
They can be cooked into avariety of dishes such asPla thu tom madan (ปลาทูต้มมะดัน, 'pla thu in spicy and sour soup'),Chu chee pla thu (ฉู่ฉี่ปลาทู, 'pla thu in red curry sauce'),Pla thu sa tia (ปลาทูซาเตี๊ยะ, 'pla thu in sweet black soup'), and even pla thuburgers made from their meat, a specialty that can only be found in Samut Songkhram.[33]
One exclusive dish isKhao tom sam kasat (ข้าวต้มสามกษัตริย์, "three kings porridge"), acongee featuring pla thu, prawn, and fresh squid. This menu is said to have originated from KingRama V's visit to the people at Mae Klong. He personally prepared this dish based on his own original ideas, and it has since become a legendary food. It is even recorded that PrinceDamrong Rajanubhab remarked he had never tasted congee as delicious anywhere else.[34]
Samut Songkhram's main station,Maeklong railway station, is on theMaeklong Railway. The railway is known for its route through the Maeklong Railway Market, nicknamed (Thai:ตลาดร่มหุบ;RTGS: talat rom hup), meaning the 'umbrella pulldown market'.[36] It is one of the largest seafood markets in Thailand, and is centred on the Maeklong Railway's track.[37] Whenever a train approaches, the awnings and shop fronts are moved back from the rails, to be replaced once the train has passed.[38]
Rama II Road is a main road of Samut Songkhram, it is a road that leads to south as well asPetchkasem Road, starting from Bangkok'sThonburi side. Its named in honour to King Rama II. Samut Songkhram is about 63 km (39 mi) from Bangkok by this road.[11]
The famous floating market,Talat Nam Amphawa can be reached by this road.[11]
| Health | Education | Employment | Income |
 |  |  |  |
| 9 | 7 | 7 | 12 |
| Housing | Family | Transport | Participation |
 |  |  | .png) |
| 61 | 72 | 10 | 70 |
| Province Samut Songkhram, with an HAI 2022 value of 0.9552 is "somewhat high", occupies place 18 in the ranking. | |||
Since 2003, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Thailand has tracked progress on human development at sub-national level using theHuman 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]
| Rank | Classification |
| 1 - 13 | "high" |
| 14 - 29 | "somewhat high" |
| 30 - 45 | "average" |
| 46 - 61 | "somewhat low" |
| 62 - 77 | "low" |
| Map with provinces and HAI 2022 rankings |
 |
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link){{cite web}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link){{cite web}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link){{cite web}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)Suan Luang SAO was established and transformed into Suan Luang subdistrict municipality in the year 2003.
Bang Krabue subdistrict municipality established on 12 October 2009.
Became Amphawa subdistrict municipality on 16 October 1940.
No.3.135 Established Bang Chakreng Subdistrict Administrative Organization (SAO), Mueang district, Samut Songkhram province is Bang Chakreng subdistrict municipality, effectively 31 August 2012.
Change the status of sanitation district to subdistrict municipality, effective from 25 May 1999.
Kradangnga subdistrict municipality has been changed from sanitation district on 25 May 1999.
No.3.23 Established Bang Yi Rong Subdistrict Administrative Organization (SAO), Bang Khonthi district, Samut Songkhram province is Bang Yi Rong subdistrict municipality.
14 communities.
10 communities.
4 communities.
5 communities.
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Samut Songkhram travel guide from Wikivoyage13°24′46″N100°0′6″E / 13.41278°N 100.00167°E /13.41278; 100.00167
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