Songkhla

This article is about the town Songkhla. For other uses, see Songkhla (disambiguation).
"Singgora" redirects here. For the historical city, see Sultanate of Singgora.
Songkhla
สงขลา
City

City of Songkhla
Songkhla
Coordinates: 7°12′22″N 100°35′48″E / 7.20611°N 100.59667°E / 7.20611; 100.59667
Country  Thailand
Provinces Songkhla Province
Amphoe Mueang Songkhla District
Elevation 11 m (36 ft)
Population (2006) 75,048
Time zone ICT (UTC+7)
Laem Samila beach

Songkhla (Thai: สงขลา, pronounced [sǒŋ.kʰlǎː]), also known as Singgora or Singora (Pattani Malay: ซิงกอรา), is a city (thesaban nakhon) in Songkhla Province of southern Thailand, near the border with Malaysia. As of 2006 it had a population of 75,048. Songkhla lies 968 km south of Bangkok.[1]

Despite being smaller than the neighboring city Hat Yai, Songkhla is the capital of Songkhla Province as well as the Mueang Songkhla district (Songkhla town district).

Due to its location at the opening of Songkhla Lake to the Gulf of Thailand, Songkhla is a fishing town and also an important harbour. It is the major seaport on the east side of the Isthmus of Kra.

Naga Head at Song Thale Park, Laem Son On, Songkhla City

History

French hydrographic / topographic map of Songkhla, during the reign of King Narai the Great, 1687.
Songkhla looking west from Khao Tangkuan, c. 1930.
Songkhla's Nakhon Nok Rd., c. 1932.

On 8 December 1941 local time, hours before the 7 December (Hawaii time) attack on Pearl Harbor, the Imperial Japanese army landed here, invading Thailand. It then moved south towards Perlis and Penang as part of the Malayan campaign which culminated in the capture of Singapore.[2]

Since 2003 Songhkla has been affected by the Muslim insurgency in neighboring Narathiwat, Pattani, and Yala.[3]

The municipality's mayor, Peera Tantiserane, was murdered there in 2012.[4]

Climate

Songkhla has a tropical monsoon climate (Köppen climate classification Am). Temperatures are very warm to hot throughout the year with only minor variation. There is a short dry season in February and March; the rest of the year is wet, with especially heavy rainfall from October to December.

Climate data for Songkhla (1981–2010)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) 29.6
(85.3)
30.3
(86.5)
31.4
(88.5)
32.5
(90.5)
33.0
(91.4)
33.1
(91.6)
32.9
(91.2)
33.0
(91.4)
32.3
(90.1)
31.4
(88.5)
29.8
(85.6)
29.2
(84.6)
31.54
(88.77)
Average low °C (°F) 24.7
(76.5)
24.7
(76.5)
25.0
(77)
25.4
(77.7)
25.4
(77.7)
24.1
(75.4)
24.8
(76.6)
24.7
(76.5)
24.5
(76.1)
24.3
(75.7)
24.3
(75.7)
24.4
(75.9)
24.69
(76.44)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 74.8
(2.945)
48.6
(1.913)
59.7
(2.35)
75.1
(2.957)
119.6
(4.709)
99.9
(3.933)
95.0
(3.74)
109.4
(4.307)
136.9
(5.39)
257.1
(10.122)
545.9
(21.492)
444.7
(17.508)
2,066.7
(81.366)
Average rainy days (≥ 1 mm) 9 4 5 7 14 12 12 13 14 21 22 20 153
Average relative humidity (%) 78 77 78 78 78 77 77 76 79 82 84 82 78.8
Source: Thai Meteorological Department (Normal 1981-2010), (Avg. rainy days 1961-1990)

Population

The majority of the population is Buddhist with a large proportion of Muslims, especially in the rural areas fringing the Malaysian border. These Muslims speak Yawi language, a Malay-related language which has some Thai influence especially loan words borrowed from the Thai language.[5]

Songkhla's district (amphoe) has five Tambon Administrative Organizations (องค์การบริหารส่วนตำบล). Songkhla town takes up the whole of Bo Yang division.

No. Name Thai Villages Inhab.
1.Bo Yangบ่อยาง-74,875
2.Khao Rup Changเขารูปช้าง1038,662
3.Ko Taeoเกาะแต้ว910,608
4.Phawongพะวง824,130
5.Thung Wangทุ่งหวัง1010,343
6.Ko Yoเกาะยอ94,454

Gallery

See also

References

  1. "Distance: Bangkok to Songkhla". Google Maps. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
  2. Parfitt, Allen. "Bicycle Blitzkreig The Japanese Conquest of Malaya and Singapore 1941-1942". MilitaryHistoryOnline.com. Retrieved 9 Aug 2012.
  3. Saritdet Marukatat, Signs of new hope in South
  4. "'Hitman' sought in Peera murder". Bangkokpost.com. 2012-11-13. Retrieved 2013-02-20.
  5. Moshe Yegar, ''Between Integration and Secession''. Books.google.co.th. Retrieved 2013-02-20.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Songkhla.


Coordinates: 7°12′22″N 100°35′48″E / 7.20611°N 100.59667°E / 7.20611; 100.59667

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Sunday, March 06, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.