Thai history,and what or who is Thai?
The official state narrative of Thailand, or Greater Siam/Ayutthaya history, focuses on race and the glorification of militaristic leaders whose love for “freedom”-a (re) interpretation of the word “Tai”-forced them to lead a somewhat passive peasantry southwards to an empty golden land (Suwannaphum). The idea of this southbound exodus is not unique to the Thai narrative. Keith Taylor writing about Vietnam had something very important to say about such myths: