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น่าน
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Nan
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11,4721
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13th
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458,041
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2000
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55th
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40
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73rd
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TH-55
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Parinya Panthong
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2005
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(
Thai น่าน) is one of the northern
Provinces (''changwat'') of
Thailand . Neighboring provinces are (from south clockwise)
Uttaradit ,
Phrae and
Phayao . To the north and east it borders
Laos .
The province is located in the remote valley of the
Nan River , surrounded by mountains covered with forests. The highest mountain is the 2079 meter high ''Phu Khe'' in the north-east near the border with Laos.
For centuries Nan was an independent kingdom but, due to its remoteness, had few connections to the other kingdoms. The first kingdom around the city Mueang Pua (also known as Varanagara) was created in the late
13th Century . Its rulers, the Phukha dynasty, were related to founders of
Vientiane , however it became associated with the
Sukhothai Kingdom as it was easier to reach from the south then from the east or west. In the
14th Century the capital was moved to its present location at Nan.
In the
15th Century , when Sukhothai declined in power, it became vassal of the kingdom of
Lannathai . In
1443 King Kaen Thao of Nan plotted to capture neighboring Phayao by asking King
Tilokaraj to help him fight against
Vietnam ese troops attacking Nan, even though there was no such threat. Kaen Thao could kill the king of Phayao, however then the troops of Tilokaraj attacked Nan itself, and captured it in
1449 .
When Lannathai was under Burmese rulership, Nan tried to liberate itself many times without success, which finally led to direct Burmese rulership of Nan in
1714 . In
1788 the Burmese rulers could be finally fought back, however Nan had then accept the new Siam rulers. In
1893 after the
Paknam Crisis Siam had to give a big part of eastern Nan to
French Indochina .
However Nan kept some degree of independence from the Siamese rulers, and it took until
1931 to become fully integrated into Thailand, and the province was then created.
Before the early
1980s bandits as well as
People's Liberation Army Of Thailand (PLAT) guerillas were a big problem in the province, usually destroying highway construction overnight. With the help of the army and the more stable political system the province improved significantly, but is still a very rural and remote one.
10.5% of the population belong to the
Hill Tribe s.
The province is subdivided in 14 districts (''
Amphoe '') and one minor district (''King Amphoe''). These are further subdivided into 99 communes (''
Tambon '') and 848 villages (''mubaan'').
¹
The district Chaloem Phra Kiat was created recently, but was elevated from King Amphoe status to Amphoe status before the other ones, hence the jump in numbering.
