ABSTRACT
Although established in the mid-fourteenth century, ailand (then Siam) was recognized as a nation in 1783. It began diplomatic exchanges with the United Kingdom in 1826 and with the United States in 1833, the time period when European colonization invaded most countries in Southeast Asia. However, ailand was the only country to avoid being colonized by a European power. is is reected in the name “ailand,” which means the land of freedom. e ocial language of ailand is ai, and Buddhism is its national religion, with approximately 93% of the people being Buddhist, 5% Muslim, and 2% other. Buddhist temples are commonplace in ailand, and they help serve several important purposes, including a place to hold social gatherings and spiritual and ceremonial occasions and, in the old days, for people’s education. ailand uses the Buddhist Era-based calendar, which is 543 years ahead of the standard Western calendar; therefore, the year AD 2013 is 2556 BE in ailand.
