Phuket Culture Information
Religion & Festivals
Thailand, according to some wisdom, is Buddhist in religion, Hindu in culture, Sanskrit in its classical literature, Brahminic in its rites, and -- given that Thai tribes migrated from southern China 1000 years ago -- Chinese in origin. It is also true that these are only half-truths, though they do point to the complex elements that have defined modern Thailand.
So far as religion goes, about 95 percent of the population is at least nominally Buddhist. There is also a sizeable Muslim minority, mostly resident in the southern provinces. Popular Buddhism, as well, has assimilated elements of both Brahminism and animistic beliefs that predate either of the former religions.
Sea Nomads
One distinctive feature of the Phuket, Krabi and Phang Nga area are the "longtails", wooden craft characterised by upswept prows and their "tails" -- big stern-mounted diesel engines mounted on swivel joints and trailing long propeller shafts.
The Chao Le, the so-called "Sea Gypsies", are traditionally a nomadic sea-faring people with a language and culture distinct from that of the mainstream Thai. A permanent settlement of Chao Le is found on Koh Sire, 4km east of Phuket Town.
Muslims
Where the longtail boats don't belong to Chao Le, they are operated by another distinct ethnic group, the Muslim villagers that inhabit islands such as Koh Raya Yai. Many of these people originally came up the coast from Malaysia, bringing with them a tradition of small-scale fishing.
But these people find other ways to supplement their incomes. Look for ropes and bits of bamboo scaffolding on cliff faces in the area, particularly round Koh Phi Phi. These have been left there by locals who brave dizzying heights and dark caves to collect swiflet nests to supply a lucrative Chinese market for birds' nest soup.
Chinese
Many of Phuket's ethnic Chinese families were first attracted to the island in the early part of this century by the tin-mining industry. Their influences colour everything from town architecture to the calendar of festivals. Whereas the Muslim settlers from the south, most of them fishing folk, tended to establish their own distinctive villages along the coast, the Chinese have been people of the interior of the island, of the towns.
Other Ethnicities
Arabs, Indians and Europeans are among those who have also left their influences. Early Portuguese traders and merchants settled here, for example, and vestiges of their presence is still to found in the charming Sino-Portuguese architecture of many of the local buildings, especially in Phuket Town. Today there is a thriving community of expats, complete with an international school and an English-language radio station.