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|religion = {{ublist |item_style=white-space:nowrap; |94.50% [[Buddhism in Thailand|Buddhism]] |4.29% [[Islam in Thailand|Islam]] |1.17% [[Christianity in Thailand|Christianity]] |0.03% [[Hinduism in Southeast Asia|Hinduism]] |0.01% [[Irreligion|Unaffiliated]]<ref name="auto">{{cite web|url=http://web.nso.go.th/en/survey/popchan/data/2015-2016-Statistical%20tables%20PDF.pdf|title=Population by religion, region and area, 2015|website=|publisher=NSO|accessdate=2017-10-12|deadurl=yes|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20171210020110/http://web.nso.go.th/en/survey/popchan/data/2015-2016-Statistical%20tables%20PDF.pdf|archivedate=10 December 2017|df=dmy-all}}</ref>}}
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{{contains Thai text|compact=yes}}
'''Thailand''' ({{lang-th|ประเทศไทย}}) ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|t|aɪ|l|æ|n|d|,_|-|l|ən|d}} {{respell|TY|land|,_-|lənd}}), officially the '''Kingdom of Thailand''' and formerly known as '''Siam''' ({{lang-th|สยาม}}), is a country at the center of the [[Southeast Asia]]n [[Mainland Southeast Asia|Indochinese peninsula]] composed of 76 [[Provinces of Thailand|provinces]]. At {{convert|513,120|km2|abbr=on}} and over 68 million people, Thailand is the world's [[List of countries and dependencies by area|50th largest country by total area]] and the [[List of countries and dependencies by population|21st-most-populous country]]. The capital and largest city is [[Bangkok]], a special administrative area. Thailand is bordered to the north by [[Myanmar]] and [[Laos]], to the east by Laos and [[Cambodia]], to the south by the [[Gulf of Thailand]] and [[Malaysia]], and to the west by the [[Andaman Sea]] and the southern extremity of Myanmar. Its maritime boundaries include [[Vietnam]] in the Gulf of Thailand to the southeast, and [[Indonesia]] and [[India]] on the Andaman Sea to the southwest. Although nominally a [[constitutional monarchy]] and [[Parliamentary system|parliamentary democracy]], the most recent [[2014 Thai coup d'état|coup in 2014]] established a [[de facto]] [[military dictatorship]].
[[Tai peoples]] migrated from southwestern China to mainland [[Southeast Asia]] from the 11th century; the oldest known mention of their presence in the region by the [[Exonym and endonym|exonym]] ''Siamese'' dates to the 12th century. Various [[Indianised kingdoms]] such as the [[Mon kingdoms|Mon]], the [[Khmer Empire]] and [[Monarchies of Malaysia|Malay states]] ruled the region, competing with Thai states such as [[Ngoenyang]], the [[Sukhothai Kingdom]], [[Lan Na]] and the [[Ayutthaya Kingdom]], which rivaled each other. European contact began in 1511 with a Portuguese diplomatic mission to Ayutthaya, one of the great powers in the region. Ayutthaya reached its peak during cosmopolitan [[Narai]]'s reign (1656–88), gradually declining thereafter until being ultimately destroyed in 1767 [[Burmese–Siamese War (1765–67)|in a war with Burma]]. [[Taksin]] quickly reunified the fragmented territory and established the short-lived [[Thonburi Kingdom]]. He was succeeded in 1782 by [[Buddha Yodfa Chulaloke]], the first monarch of the [[Chakri dynasty]] and founder of the [[Rattanakosin Kingdom]], which lasted into the early 20th century.
Through the 18th and 19th centuries, Siam faced pressure from France and the United Kingdom, including forced concessions of territory, but nevertheless it remained the only Southeast Asian country to avoid direct Western rule. Following a bloodless [[Siamese revolution of 1932|revolution in 1932]], Siam became a constitutional monarchy and changed its official name to "Thailand". While it joined the [[Allies (World War I)|Allies in World War I]], Thailand was an [[Thailand in World War II|Axis satellite]] in [[World War II]]. In the late 1950s, [[Sarit Thanarat|a military coup]] revived the monarchy's historically influential role in politics. Thailand became a [[Major non-NATO ally|major ally]] of the United States and played a [[Southeast Asia Treaty Organization|key anti-communist role in the region]]. Apart from a [[1973 Thai popular uprising|brief period of parliamentary democracy]] in the mid-1970s, Thailand has periodically alternated between democracy and military rule. In the 21st century, Thailand endured a political crisis that culminated in two coups and the establishment of its [[Constitution of Thailand#2017 Constitution|current and 20th constitution]] by the military junta.
Thailand is a [[Unitary state|unitary]] [[Parliamentary system|parliamentary]] [[constitutional monarchy]] under a [[Military dictatorship|military junta]]. Thailand is a founding member of [[Association of Southeast Asian Nations]] and remains a major ally of the US.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/usmu003.asp|title=American foreign policy. 1950-1955; basic documents|website=avalon.law.yale.edu}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/22/2321k|title=22 U.S. Code § 2321k - Designation of major non-NATO allies|website=LII / Legal Information Institute}}</ref> Despite its comparatively sporadic changes in leadership, it is considered a [[regional power]] in Southeast Asia and a [[middle power]] in global affairs.<ref>Jonathan H. Ping [https://books.google.com/books?id=FGM1zEdCOmAC&pg=PA103&lpg=PA103&dq=middle+power+philippines&source=bl&ots=vrzASjVnf_&sig=YBVVPgRkVxzcg-VOOB5V97EwIYE&hl=en&ei=OBq0SbegJcnWkAW31sC5BA&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=1&ct=result#PPA104,M1 Middle Power Statecraft] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150905184300/https://books.google.com/books?id=FGM1zEdCOmAC&pg=PA103&lpg=PA103&dq=middle+power+philippines&source=bl&ots=vrzASjVnf_&sig=YBVVPgRkVxzcg-VOOB5V97EwIYE&hl=en&ei=OBq0SbegJcnWkAW31sC5BA&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=1&ct=result |date=5 September 2015 }} (p 104)</ref> With a high level of [[Human Development Index|human development]], the [[Economy of Thailand|second largest economy]] in Southeast Asia, and the [[List of countries by GDP (PPP)|20th largest by PPP]], Thailand is classified as a [[newly industrialized economy]]; manufacturing, agriculture, and [[Tourism in Thailand|tourism]] are leading sectors of the economy.<ref name="middleIncomeCountry">[http://www.worldbank.or.th/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/EASTASIAPACIFICEXT/THAILANDEXTN/0,,menuPK:333304~pagePK:141132~piPK:141121~theSitePK:333296,00.html Thailand and the World Bank] {{webarchive|url=http://archive.wikiwix.com/cache/20110609024025/http://www.worldbank.or.th/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/EASTASIAPACIFICEXT/THAILANDEXTN/0,,menuPK:333304~pagePK:141132~piPK:141121~theSitePK:333296,00.html |date=9 June 2011 }}, World Bank on Thailand country overview.</ref><ref name="GuardianThailandOverview">The Guardian, [https://www.theguardian.com/country-profile/thailand Country profile: Thailand], 25 April 2009.</ref>
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