The Nan River : One Of The Most Important Tributaries of Thailand

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The Nan is a river in Thailand. One of the most important tributaries of the Chao Phraya River, where it empties in Nakhon Sawan, after 627 km course. Its watershed has an area of 57,947 sq. km.

Born in the province of Nan, Nan flows south, running along or across the province of Uttaradit, Phitsanulok province and the province of Phichit. In Chum Saeng district, province of Nakhon Sawan it receives the waters of the Yom, then joined the Ping Pak Nam Pho in the city of Nakhon Sawan, so the two rivers form the Chao Phraya River.

The principal is the Yom almost as long as she, who joined in the province of Nakhon Sawan. Other tributaries of the lower basin are Butsabong and Wang Pong. The Wat Ta Yom and Wang Thong join further north in the province of Phichit, the Khwae Noi in the province of Phitsanulok, the Tron and Pat in the province of Uttaradit. The Wa, the Hat, the Yao and Hao are tributaries closest to the source, in the province of Nan.

The basin is occupied Nan from a very early date, as shown by the tools of Stone Age discovered near Phitsanulok. These early hunter gatherers are not the ancestors of the Thais who now occupy the area. The population of the basin of the Chao Phraya long remained sparse.

The establishment of larger populations is related to the beginning of rice cultivation during the Bronze Age, and continued during the Iron Age . Archaeologists suspect that the tribes speaking Mon-Khmer settled in the region, where they introduced rice cultivation, metallurgy and domestication. The main migration route at that time was probably along the coast of Thailand, but these people also went up the rivers, up the Chao Phraya Basin Nan and other areas where it was relatively easy to establish .

The next wave of migration came in contrast to the mountainous regions of northern Thailand: It was the Thais . They probably came from southern Blue River. As Hans spread through this region (around the sixth century BCE), the ancestors of the Thais retreated into the high valleys, and over the centuries migrated westward along an arc from Guangxi to the Brahmaputra valley.

Thais brought their knowledge of rice cultivation in mountainous regions of northern Thailand, then in the basin of Nan and other lowland areas of the country. Some Mon-Khmer withdrew into the hills, while the other adopting the culture and dialects of the Tai-Kadai newcomers . Thai spoken in the region was heavily influenced by Khmer culture, and is moving today to give the Thai majority, which differs greatly from other languages pillowcases.

Even after the Thai migration, the population remained insignificant in the basin of Nan . Predators, malaria, tropical temperatures and other obstacles prevented from developing away from rivers, despite the extremely fertile soil . She gradually urbanized along the Nan.

The first cities were organized on the model of Angkor, which was already advanced when the basin of Nan acquired a population to urban development . One of the first urban areas emerging during the Khmer Empire was Khwae Song, which became the modern city of Phitsanulok. Despite the urbanization at the turn of the twentieth century, most of the basin was still composed of primary forests.

Phitsanulok is the only town in Thailand where houseboats are legal, and they have always played an important role in local culture. Some people will still lead a traditional life on boats and rafts housing along the banks of the Nan. There is even a floating house museum, which allows tourists to discover directly this aspect of the culture of Nah.

Naresuan Dam, named after King Naresuan (r. 1590-1605), was built on the Nan between 1976 and 1985 in Phitsanulok Province, north of the city of Phitsanulok is a part of the Project Irrigation of Phitsanulok.