About Thailand

People:

Population:

60,609,046 (July 1999 est.)

Age structure:

0-14 years: 24% (male 7,364,411; female 7,095,428)
15-64 years: 70% (male 20,878,602; female 21,493,735)
65 years and over: 6% (male 1,664,113; female 2,112,757) (1999 est.)

Population growth rate: 

0.93% (1999 est.)

Birth rate: 

16.46 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Death rate: 

7.16 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Net migration rate: 

0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Sex ratio:

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female
total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (1999 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 

29.54 deaths/1,000 live births (1999 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:

total population: 69.21 years
male: 65.58 years
female: 73.01 years (1999 est.)

Total fertility rate: 

1.82 children born/woman (1999 est.)

Nationality:

noun: Thai (singular and plural)
adjective: Thai

Ethnic groups: 

Thai 75%, Chinese 14%, other 11%

Religions: 

Buddhism 95%, Muslim 3.8%, Christianity 0.5%, Hinduism 0.1%, other 0.6% (1991)

Languages: 

Thai, English (secondary language of the elite), ethnic and regional dialects

Literacy:

definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93.8%
male: 96%
female: 91.6% (1995 est.)

Country

Location: 

Southeastern Asia, bordering the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand, southeast of Burma

Geographic coordinates

15 00 N, 100 00 E

Map references:

Southeast Asia

Area:

total: 514,000 sq km
land: 511,770 sq km
water: 2,230 sq km

Area—comparative:

slightly more than twice the size of Wyoming

Land boundaries:

total: 4,863 km
border countries: Burma 1,800 km, Cambodia 803 km, Laos 1,754 km, Malaysia 506 km
Coastline: 3,219 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: 

tropical; rainy, warm, cloudy southwest monsoon (mid-May to September); dry, cool northeast monsoon (November to mid-March); southern isthmus always hot and humid

Terrain: 

central plain; Khorat Plateau in the east; mountains elsewhere

Elevation extremes:

lowest point: Gulf of Thailand 0 m
highest point: Doi Inthanon 2,576 m

Natural resources: 

tin, rubber, natural gas, tungsten, tantalum, timber, lead, fish, gypsum, lignite, fluorite

Land use:

arable land: 34%
permanent crops: 6%
permanent pastures: 2%
forests and woodland: 26%
other: 32% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 

44,000 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: 

land subsidence in Bangkok area resulting from the depletion of the water table; droughts

Environment—current issues: 

air pollution from vehicle emissions; water pollution from organic and factory wastes; deforestation; soil erosion; wildlife populations threatened by illegal hunting

Environment—international agreements:

party to: Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea
Geography—note: controls only land route from Asia to Malaysia and Singapore