Aree Cheunwattana and Wutdichai Moolsilpa

Historical Dictionary of Thailand. By May Kyi Win and Harold E. Smith. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow, 1995. 345 p. ISBN 0–810–83064–7.

The Historical Dictionary of Thailand is a revised, updated, and expanded volume of Smith’s Historical and Cultural Dictionary of Thailand (Scarecrow, 1976, 213 p.). The volume is a contribution to the growing number of English publications about Thailand.

The introductory part of the dictionary is well laid out. It includes abbreviations, maps, a list of provinces, chronology of events, and an introduction to Thailand. It identifies landmarks in Thai history, and provides an informative overview of social, economic, political, and cultural development of the country.

The dictionary itself (196 p.), as mentioned in the editor’s foreword, covers various aspects of the country: history, culture, religion, politics, economy society, people, and places. Cross references are provided for related entries. Transliteration of Thai words is used at the authors’ discretion, as main entries and also as equivalents to English entries. Since the dictionary was written for the general reader, an extensive bibliography (86 p.) is prepared for more serious readers and scholars. The bibliography covers the following areas:

1. General (Bibliographies, Statistics, Description and Travel Guidebooks and Directories, Biographies);
2. History;
3. Politics and Government (General, Government and Administration, Constitution and Law, Armed Forces, International Relations, Insurgency, Refugees);
4. Economy (General, Agriculture and Land Policy, Finance and Banking, Industry and Trade, Development);
5. Society (Population, Anthropology and Archaeology, Chinese, Muslims, Ethnic Groups, Education, Philosophy and Religion, Sociology and Social Conditions, Women, Drugs and Public Health);
6. Culture (Art and Architecture, Customs and Festivals Music and Dance, Language and Literature);
7. Journals and Newspapers.

Although the bibliography contains only work published in English, its wide coverage and recency is useful for further, in–depth study. Appendices include names of kings and their reigns, population of Thailand, expenditure on Gross Domestic Product, Gross Domestic Product by industrial origin, politica! parties and number of seats gained in the elections, elections, a chronology of coups d’état, and a list of prime ministers.

In general, the Historical Dictionary of Thailand is a useful basic reference source for Thai and foreign historians, and those interested in Thailand. Contents are well organized. The description of entries is concise and historically informative. An exhaustive number of issues are covered, offering a more well–rounded perspective of Thailand than the book title implies. The bibliography is well selected and compiled. Nevertheless, there are flaws that need to be brought to the attention of the authors:

1. The omission of some important entries, e.g., distinguished historians such as Kajorn Sookapanich and Rong Sayamanont; prominent social critics such as Sulak Sivalaksa, Praves Vasee, and Rabhi Sakarik; and the important Thai historical source, the Royal Thai History (Phra Ratchapongsawadan).
2. Contradictory information, e.g., the reign of Ramkamhaeng is 1279–1317 (on p. xlv), but the reign of the same king appears differently on p. 144 and 285 (as 1279–1298). The latter figures are the acceptable ones.
3. Inaccurate information, e.g., the accurate date of the Anglo–French Convention is 1896, not 1986 (p. xxv); the beginning date of the Kingdom of Bangkok is 1782, not 1967, though it could be 1767 if King of Thonburi is included (p. 157).
4. Too brief descriptions might lead to a misunderstanding. The accurate account of politics during the years 1957–1963 is that Sarit Thanarat did not become prime minister right away after the coup in 1957; there were two prime ministers who preceded him (p. xxx, 296).
5. Inaccurate and inconsistent transliteration of Thai words, e.g., Ban Rom (p. xxxiii) should be Ban Rom Klao; Santo Asoke (p. xxxiv) should be Santi Asoke; Sathira Kose (p. 6) should be Sathira Koses; Bungbangfai (p. 24 and 148) should be Bunbangfai; Prachathipat (p. 134) is also written as prachatiphat (p. 156); ratchasap (p. 8) is also represented as rachasap (p. 141,149).
6. Cross references are required for Saowabha Pongsri, Queen (p. 154) and Siphatcharinthra (p. 159): two different names for the same queen. Dates mentioned in both entries need to be verified.
7. Some information needs to be updated, e.g., Sanam Luang (p. 152) is no longer used as a weekend open air market.

In spite of its flaws, the Dictionary is an admirable presentation that gives a tangible picture of Thailand.

 About the Reviewers

Aree Cheunwattana is a Lecturer in the Department of Library Science, Srinakharinwirot University, Bangkok. She has an M.A.L.A. from Chulalongkorn University, and is at present studying for her Ph.D. at Indiana University. Her interests include library education, rural library development, library management, and educational policy. Ms. Cheunwattana is a member of the Advisory Board of Third World Libraries.

Wutdichai Moolsilpa is Associate Professor, Department of History, Srinakharinwirot University, Bangkok. He is currently a Visiting Professor at the Department of Thai Studies, Tenri University, Nara, Japan.

© 1996 Aree Cheunwattana and Wutdichai Moolsilpa.

Citation

Cheunwattana, Aree and Wutdichai Moolsilpa, “Review of Historical Dictionary of Thailand, edited by May Kyi Win and Harold E. Smith Lanham,” Third World Libraries, Volume 6, Number 2 (Spring 1996).