Nam Phong District

Nam Phong น้ำพอง
Amphoe
Amphoe location in Khon Kaen Province
Coordinates: 16°42′7″N 102°51′24″E / 16.70194°N 102.85667°ECoordinates: 16°42′7″N 102°51′24″E / 16.70194°N 102.85667°E
Country	Thailand
Province	Khon Kaen
Seat	Wang Chai
Area
• Total	828.7 km^2 (320.0 sq mi)
Population (2008)
• Total	112,414
• Density	136.8/km^2 (354/sq mi)
Time zone	THA (UTC+7)
Postal code	40140
Geocode	4007

Nam Phong (Thai: น้ำพอง, pronounced [náːm pʰɔ̄ːŋ]) is a district (Amphoe) of Khon Kaen Province.

Geography

Neighboring districts are (from the north clockwise) Non Sa-at of Udon Thani Province, Kranuan, Sam Sung, Mueang Khon Kaen, Ubolratana and Khao Suan Kwang.

The district is located on the Mittraphap Road (Thailand Route 2) and the northeastern railway. The district office and the train station are located about 7 km east of the main settlement, Ban Nam Phong.

Despite its name, Nam Phong National Park does not cover any territory of Nam Phong district, but is located southeast of the district. Both are named after the Nam Phong River, which originates within the national park, and after the Ubol Ratana Dam flows through the district towards the Chi River.

An oil survey in 1979 found a natural gas reserve of an estimated 1.5 trillion cubic feet (42 km³) was discovered. Since 1989 the gas field has been exploited for the Nam Phong power plant operated by EGAT. With a capacity of 710 MW, it is the main source of electricity for the northeast of Thailand.^[1]

Economy

The district is mostly agricultural, its main activities being rice and sugar cane growing and animal husbandry. The two major factories are a sugar factory and a distillery for lao kao (white spirit).

History

The district was created on February 10 1908, at first named Tha Wa (ท่าหว้า). In 1909 it was renamed to Nam Phong.^[2]

1972-73 the Royal Thai Air Base Nam Phong was one of the bases of the US military used for the Vietnam war.

Attractions

Phrathat Kham Kaen is an ancient Buddhist monument. The stupa, located within Wat Chetiyaphum, is believed to mark the original location of Khon Kaen. According to the local legend, relics of Buddha were to be brought to Nakhon Phanom. The monks camped at a dead tamarind tree. When they arrived in Nakhon Phanom the Phrathat Phanom was already finished, thus they planned to return the relics. On the return way they found the dead tree flourished again, and built the stupa at the site of the miracle.^[3]

Ban Khok Sa-nga is famous as the King Cobra Village. In 1951 a local doctor started to conduct cobra shows to attract clients to the village. Nowadays the cobra shows are the main income of the villagers, who also travel around to perform the show and sell their herbal medicine.^[4][5]

Administration

The district is subdivided into 12 subdistricts (tambon), which are further subdivided into 167 villages (muban). There are two subdistrict municipalities (thesaban tambon) - Nam Phong covering parts of tambon Nam Phong, and Wang Chai covering parts of tambon Wang Chai and Nong Kung. Each of the tambon is administrated by a Tambon administrative organization (TAO).

No.	Name	Thai	Villages	Inh.[6]
01.	Nam Phong	น้ำพอง	17	14,081
02.	Wang Chai	วังชัย	16	10,494
03.	Nong Kung	หนองกุง	10	09,915
04.	Bua Yai	บัวใหญ่	17	07,797
05.	Sa-at	สะอาด	14	09,657
06.	Muang Wan	ม่วงหวาน	14	09,385
07.	Ban Kham	บ้านขาม	16	09,281
08.	Bua Ngoen	บัวเงิน	17	12,095
09.	Sai Mun	ทรายมูล	13	07,333
10.	Tha Krasoem	ท่ากระเสริม	10	07,500
11.	Phang Thui	พังทุย	13	07,137
12.	Kut Nam Sai	กุดน้ำใส	10	07,739

References

1. Nam Phong power plant website
2. Amphoe information at the Ramkamhaeng University, Khon Kaen campus
3. Tourism authority of Thailand
4. "Ban Khok Sanga-King Cobras Village" on the Bangkok Post website – retrieved October 2013
5. "King Cobras in Thailand" from a journalist's website – retrieved October 2013
6. "Population statistics 2008". Department of Provincial Administration.

External links

• amphoe.com (Thai)