Thaitania

Thaitania
National Republic of Thaitania
สาธารณรัฐชาติไทย
Established	1934
Capital	Ayutthaya
Largest City	Ayutthaya
Government Type	Constitutional republic
Languages	Siamese (official) Lao Tai Yuan Tai Yai Chinese dialects Others

Thaitania, officially the National Republic of Thaitania (Thai: สาธารณรัฐชาติไทย), is a country in Southeast Asia bordered by Erawati to the northwest, Viet-Nam to the east, and Kampuchea to the southeast. It was historically known as Siam, or the Ayutthaya Kingdom, named after its capital. In 1934, the monarchy was overthrown and replaced by a National-Republican government. In 1952, the country officially adopted the name Thaitania.

Etymology

The name Thaitania or Taitania comes from Thai + tania (a suffix denoting a territory related to the Iberian peninsula), and first appeared in the late 18th century in Spanish records.

Prior to 1952, Thaitania was known by many names to outsiders, commonly Siam, Ayutthaya, or sometimes Ratcha'anachak Siam (Kingdom of Siam). Within Thaitania, Thais usually referred to the country as Prathet Thai or the colloquial Mueang Thai.

After the National Republican Party of Siam took over in 1934, the nation was commonly referred to as the Siamese National Republic, or the Republic of Siam. By the 1940s, there was a strong push to distance themselves from the name Siam and adopt a new official name to be used in official English contexts. There were several suggestions for the new name, including Pratet Thai, Mueang Thai, and simply just Thai. An ad-hoc committee for the selection of names was formed in 1950, and the name Thaitania was eventually selected and made official in 1952.

History

Kingdom of Siam

The land which is now Thaitania (historically called Siam by foreigners) was historically ruled by multiple Thai states, including the Sukhothai Kingdom, Chiang Mai, Lan Na. However, Thaitania was most known to be historically ruled by the Ayutthaya Kingdom, which lasted since its formation in 1351 up until its dissolution in 1934 by the Siamese National Republican movement. As the Ayutthaya kingdom, Siam had fought multiple conflicts against the Khmers, the Burmese, and the Vietnamese.

Anglo-Siamese Alliance (1953)

In 1849, the Burmese Empire annexed the Kingdom of Lannathai, which bordered Siam to the north. To deter further Burmese expansion into Thai territory, Siam sought an alliance with Great Britain. In 1953, Ramathibodi IV signed the Treaty of Alliance and Trade with Great Britain. In exchange, Great Britain is granted a 99-year lease on the Siamese port of Petbury. The latter half of the 19th century saw Siam's rise as a significant power in Indochina, eventually annexing the neighboring kingdom of Lan Xang in 1887.

Canal of Thaitania (1893)

The idea of a canal through the Kra Isthmus connecting the Andaman Sea to the Gulf of Thaitania was suggested as early as the 17th century. Numerous surveys had been done before the 19th century to assess the possibility of such a canal, but the idea was discarded as impractical with the technology at the time.

The idea resurfaced in the second half of the 19th century after the British took interest in the project. Such a canal would lead to ships completely bypassing the Strait of Malacca, which was dominated by their rival, the Netherlands, and would reduce the travel distance to the British holdings in China. The King of Siam allowed British engineers to survey the region, and the construction of the canal started in 1881. The Canal of Thaitania , finished in 1893, propelled Siam's status as a regional power, and diminished the strategic importance of the Strait of Malacca.