ABSTRACT
The alluvial plains of central Thailand and their intricate network of natural and constructed waterways, have traditionally nurtured riverine villages or bang. These waterways not only facilitated everyday living, agricultural activities and cultural and spiritual beliefs, but also functioned as the main means of local and regional transportation, communication and trade. The amphibious habitats along the rivers evolved variously depending on geographical, social, economic and political factors, some becoming towns and cities. Over time, they experienced a dynamic process of prosperity and gradual decline due to modernization and changes in production, consumption and transportation modes. And more recently many have been revitalized largely through the influences of international and domestic tourism industries in search of authentic rural Thai lifestyles and culture. This chapter examines the evolution of the traditional bang settlements in central Thailand, observing their emergence, prosperity, decline and resurrection, analyzing the local–global nexus in shaping and reshaping their current condition. In so doing this chapter seeks to engage in a larger dialogue on the spatial practices and cultural (re)production of preserving the ‘tradition’ of local places in Asia today.
