Bangkok

Bangkok (Thai กรุงเทพมหานคร, Krung Thep Maha Nakhon, [kruŋ tʰêːp máʔhǎː náʔkʰɔːn], listen^{? /i}; short กรุงเทพฯ, Krung Thep, [kruŋ tʰêːp]; historical spelling partly Bankok) has been the capital of the Kingdom of Thailand since 1782. It has special administrative status and is governed by a governor. The capital has a population of 8.249 million (2010 census) and is by far the largest city in the country. The Bangkok Metropolitan Region (BMR), the largest metropolitan region in Thailand, has a total population of 14.566 million (2010 census).

The city is the political, economic and cultural centre of Thailand with universities, colleges, palaces and over 400 wats (Buddhist temples and monasteries) as well as the country's most important transport hub. Bangkok is also home to the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP). With more than 17 million foreign tourists, Bangkok was the most visited city in the world in 2013, before being overtaken by London again in 2014 and has since ranked second. Since 2016, Bangkok has been the world's number one most visited city with over 20 million tourists annually.

The time to UTC is +7 hours. The time difference to Central Europe is +6 hours in winter and +5 hours in summer, as there is no daylight saving time in Thailand.

City name

The ceremonial name of the city of Bangkok in Thai is Krung Thep Maha Nakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahinthara Yutthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom Udom Ratchaniwet Maha Sathan Amon Phiman Awatan Sathit Sakkathattiya Witsanukam Prasit ( listen^{? /i}) in transcribed form. It is the old Thai name of the city and with 169 Latin letters the longest place name of a capital city in the world.

In Thai script the name is (139 characters without spaces):

Devas (Thai Thep) are a category of 33 divine beings in Hindu mythology who, together with the god Indra, inhabit the sky at the top of Mount Meru. Because the devas are depicted as winged beings, Krung Thep is often translated as "City of Angels" in Western texts.

Before the town was elevated to the status of capital in 1782, its name was simply Bang Kok (บางกอก, listen^{? /i}). Bang refers to a place on a waterway, Kok possibly derives from Makok, the Thai name for the fruit of Spondias pinnata ("yellow balsam plum") or Elaeocarpus hygrophilus. According to other theories, it comes from Ko 'island' or Khok 'hill'. This name first appeared in Europe on a Portuguese map of 1511.

Even after it became the capital and was given a much more resonant name in keeping with its importance as the royal, religious and cosmological centre of the empire (Mandala), the city continued to be referred to as Bangkok in European languages.

Thais, on the other hand, usually use the short form Krung Thep. The official name, for example on car license plates, is Krung Thep Maha Nakhon.

In 1989, the Thai rock group Asanee-Wasan set the song Krung Thep Mahanakhon to music in their album Fak tong ("Pumpkin"), the lyrics of which consist entirely of the full ceremonial name of Bangkok. Many Thais have since used this song to help them remember the long name.

The official name of Bangkok in Thai and Latin script

Seal and motto

The seal of Bangkok shows the deity Indra on Erawan, the mythological elephant, which in some images may also have three heads. In his hand Indra holds a thunderbolt. The seal is based on a drawing by Prince Narisara Nuwattiwong.

Bangkok's motto is: