Bangkok is the capital city of Thailand. It is known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon (กรุงเทพมหานคร, pronounced or simplyKrung Thep. The city is by far the largest in Thailand in terms of population, with over eight million inhabitants, or 12.6 percent of the country's population. Over fourteen million people (22.2%) live within the surrounding Bangkok Metropolitan Region, making Bangkok an extreme primate city, surpassing by over tenfold the populations of Thailand's next-largest cities.
Bangkok was a small trading post near the mouth of the Chao Phraya River during theAyutthaya Kingdom in the 15th century. It eventually grew in size and became the site of two capital cities: Thonburi in 1768 and Rattanakosin in 1782. Due to its strategic location in Southeast Asia, Siam (later Thailand) acted as a buffer state between French and British colonial powers. Bangkok gained a reputation as an independent, dynamic, and influential city. Today, Bangkok is not only the political, social, andeconomic centre of Thailand, but plays a leading role in trade, commerce, culture, the arts, education, healthcare and transport for the Indochina region.
The Asian investment boom in the 1980s and 1990s led many multinational corporations to locate their regional headquarters in Bangkok. The city is a now a major regional force in finance and business. Its growing influence on global politics, culture, fashion and entertainment underlines its status as an Alpha global city. The city's many cultural landmarks and attractions in addition to its notorious red light districts has made it synonymous with exoticism. The historic Grand Palace and Buddhist temples including Wat Arun and Wat Pho stand in contrast with other tourist attractions such as the night life scenes of Khaosan Road and Soi Cowboy. In combination with being the major gateway to Laos, Burma, and Cambodia, it is second worldwide only to London in terms of tourist visits per year.
