Ethnic divisions: Thai 75%, Chinese 14%, other 11%
Principal languages: Thai; also Chinese, English, Malay, tribal
Principal religions: Buddhism 94%, Muslim 4%, Hindu 1%, Christian 1%
Rank of affluence among U.N. members: 87/183
Formerly known as Siam, Thailand is about the size of Spain, and occupies the western half of the Indochinese peninsula and the northern two-thirds of the Malayan peninsula in Southeast Asia. Though Bangkok, the capital and largest city, has become polluted and slum-ridden, most of the country remains rural, with rice paddies in the central plains and mountains and rain forests to the south.
Thailand retains a hereditary monarchy that is largely controlled by the army, though the current government is civilian. Chuan Leekpai (elected in 1992) is Prime Minister. The relatively stable military governments have pushed literacy up, while birth and infant mortality rates have both gone down over the past two decades. Its economy has traditionally been based on abundant natural resources (forests, fishing, rice, and tin) but deforestation and over-fishing in the Gulf of Thailand have forced the country to expand into manufacturing (electronics, shoes, toys, textiles) and tourism.
