Tak Province

Bhumibol Dam

The Bhumibol Dam (named after King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the old name was Yanhee Dam) is in Khao Kaew Tambon (sub-district), Sam Ngao District of Tak and was built from 1958 to 1964.[5] It stops the river Ping, one of the two sources of the Chao Phraya River.[6][7][8] The artificial lake created covers an area of 300 km² and is the largest in Thailand. Taksin Maharat National Park, Namtok Pha Charoen National Park, Lan Sang National Park, and Khun Phawo National Parks are all in the province. Thungyai Naresuan Wildlife Sanctuary shares half of the lake front with Kanchanaburi and Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary at the border with Uthai Thani and are World Heritage Sites.[9][10]

On the western side of Tak Province the Tenasserim Hills meet the Dawna Range. One of the few transnational roads and cross-border points into Myanmar is at Mae Sot. Northwest of Mae Sot the main road on the Thai side skirts the border until it turns straight north towards Mae Hong Son.

Tak Province occupies 16,406 km² and lies 426 km north of Bangkok.[11]

Tak was a historical kingdom built over 2,000 years ago, even before the Sukhothai period. The ancient kingdom had its peak around the 1st century. By the 5th century the capital of this kingdom was moved south to Lavo (present day Lopburi Province). A city named Ban Tak was established by Jamadevi (พระนางจามเทวี), princess of the Lavo kingdom, around 663 CE. It became part of the Sukhothai kingdom through battles led by Ramkhamhaeng the Great and formed the main fortress on the western front. The city was moved further west and renamed Mueang Rahang when the Ayuthaya kingdom was lost to Burma during King Maha Thammaracha's reign. The city was moved back to the east side of the Ping River during the early Bangkok period.[12]

King Taksin was vice-governor of Tak before the Ayutthaya kingdom fell during the war with Burma. As his name was Sin, he became called Tak-Sin during his time in Tak.[13]

About a quarter of the population belongs to one of Thailand's hill tribes: Yao, Karen (Thai Kariang), Akha (Thai Akha), Lahu (Thai Musoe), Hmong (Thai Mong), and Lisu (Thai Lisaw).[14] The largest tribe in Tak is Karen.[15]

According to the UNHCR data of 2008, nearly 95,000 of Thailand's 121,000 registered refugees from Burma are housed in several refugee camps in Tak province of which Mae La camp is the largest with around 45,000 Karen refugees.[16]

The provincial seal shows King Naresuan on the royal elephant.[11] Sometimes below the elephant a garuda is depicted, as the garuda is the state symbol of Thailand. King Naresuan is shown pouring consecrated water on the ground, a symbolic act to declare independence. This refers to the war of 1584 with Burma, when Tak was the first border town to be liberated from Burmese control.

The provincial slogan is, "A town of wonderful nature, huge Bhumiphol Dam, King Taksin The Great and beautiful forests".[11]

The provincial tree is the Asian Jatoba (Xylia kerrii), the provincial flower is the Orchid tree (Bauhinia sp.).

There are two main public hospitals in Tak: Somdejphrajaotaksin Maharaj Hospital and Mae Sot Hospital, both operated by the Ministry of Public Health.

Cornfields and the mountains of Burma south of Mae Sot

Agriculture is a major part of the Tak economy. The province of Tak produces rice, corn, vegetables, fruits, beef, tilapia, and other foods. Industries in Tak include granite quarrying and jewelry. Zinc mining was formerly conducted in Mae Sot District.[18]

Handicrafts and Myanmar products are also important for trade. The Bhumibol Dam in the northern part of Tak is its most popular tourist attraction. Tourism, especially ecotourism, in the southern part is seasonal with popular destinations such as the Thi Lo Su Waterfall, Thi Lo Le Waterfall, hiking and white water rafting in its various forest reserves. Tak is also known for its Loi Krathong festival where krathong sai (กระทงสาย) consisting of many krathongs are floated in a long line down the river.[19] The Loi Krathong festival is held on the Ping River in Mueang Tak District on Loi Krathong night.

Health	Education	Employment	Income
7	73	17	66
Housing	Family	Transport	Participation
51	17	67	42
Province Tak, with an HAI 2017 value of 0.5631 is "low", occupies place 61 in the ranking.

Since 2003, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Thailand has tracked progress on human development at sub-national level using the Human achievement index (HAI), a composite index covering all the eight key areas of human development. National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB) has taken over this task since 2017.[4]

Map with provinces and HAI 2017 rankings

Reports (data) from Thai government are "not copyrightable" (Public Domain), Copyright Act 2537 (1994), section 7.

• Tak travel guide from Wikivoyage

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tak Province.

• Provincial website