Bangkok turns 240 years old
Exactly 240 years ago on April 21, 1782, King Rama I inaugurated his new capital’s city pillar, moving from Thonburi on the eastern bank of the Chao Phraya River to Bangkok on the western bank.
He named his new capital Krung Thep Maha Nakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahinthara Ayutthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom Udomratchaniwet Mahasathan Amon Piman Awatan Sathit Sakkathattiya Witsanukam Prasit.
The 168-letter-long name has broken the Guinness World Record as the longest name for a place.
Though Krung Thep Maha Nakhon is better known as Bangkok, the origin of the world-famous moniker is still unclear.
Etymologists believe the city’s name may have been derived from Bang, the Thai word for “village” and Koh “island”, stemming from the city’s watery landscape.
Another theory suggests it may have been shortened from Bang Makok, a village abundant with makok or Elaeocarpus hygrophilous trees that bear olive-like fruit.
Officially, Bang Makok was known as Thonburi Si Mahasamut, according to the Ayutthaya Chronicles.
Bangkok was likely a colloquial name, albeit one widely adopted by foreign visitors, who continued to use it to refer to the city even after the new capital’s establishment.
The history of Bangkok dates at least back to the early 15th century when it was a village under the rule of Ayutthaya. Bangkok initially served as a customs outpost with forts on both sides of the river and was the site of a siege in 1688 in which the French were expelled from Siam. After the fall of Ayutthaya to the Burmese in 1767, the newly crowned King Taksin established his capital in the town, which became the base of the Thonburi Kingdom.
In 1782, King Phutthayotfa Chulalok (Rama I) succeeded Taksin and moved the capital to the western bank's Rattanakosin Island, thus founding the Rattanakosin Kingdom. The City Pillar was erected on April 21, 1782, which is regarded as the date of the foundation of Bangkok as the capital.
To celebrate the city’s anniversary, the Culture Ministry has been hosting the “240th Anniversary Bangkok Festival” on Rattanakosin Island in Bangkok’s Phra Nakhon district. The five-day festival wraps up on Sunday.
