City municipality in Thailand
About Nakhon Ratchasima
Nakhon Ratchasima is the capital of Nakhon Ratchasima province, the largest city in Northeastern Thailand and the third-largest city in Thailand. It is 250 kilometres (160 mi) northeast of Bangkok, one of the four major cities of Isan, known as the "big four of Isan", and has a population of 466,098 people as of 2021. The city is commonly known as Korat, a shortened form of its name.
Toponymy
Archaeological evidence suggests that in Sung Noen District 32 km west of present-day Nakhon Ratchasima (Korat) there were two ancient towns called Sema ("Bai sema" (ใบเสมา) are notable artifacts of the Korat plateau) and Khorakapura. (Pali púra becomes Sanskrit puri, hence Thai (buri), all connoting the same as Thai mueang: "city with defensive wall".) N The latter name was shortened to Nakhon Raj. (Nakhon (นคร) derives from Sanskrit nagara (नगर), "city"; Raj (ราช), from Sanskrit Raj, "sovereign.") The present city name is a portmanteau of Nakhon Raj and Sema. The city is commonly known as "Korat" (Thai: โคราช), which is a short version of the ancient Khmer name "ankor raj".
History
Prior to the 14th century, the area of Nakhon Ratchasima was under Khmer empire suzerainty and known in Khmer as Angkor raj, Nokor Reach Seyma, or Nokor Reach Borei, and Koreach. Phimai, to the north, was probably more important. King Narai of Ayutthaya in the 17th century, ordered a new city built on the site to serve as a stronghold on Ayutthaya's northeastern frontier. Nakhon Ratchasima was thereafter mentioned in Siamese chronicles and legal documents as a "second-class" city of the Ayutthaya Kingdom. A royal governor ruled the city in a hereditary position. After the final phase of the Ayutthaya kingdom ended with its complete destruction by the Burmese in 1767, a son of King Boromakot attempted to set himself up ruler in Phimai, holding sway over Korat and other eastern provinces. …
Climate
Nakhon Ratchasima has a tropical savanna climate (Aw in the Köppen climate classification), with the large majority of its rain falling between May and October.
Economy
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