Thai Chinese are Thai citizens of Chinese, primarily Han Chinese ancestry. Thailand is home to the largest overseas Chinese community in the world with a population of approximately nine million people, accounting for 14% of the Thai population as of 2012.[3] It is also the oldest, most prominent, and best integrated overseas Chinese community. The Thai Chinese have been deeply ingrained into all elements of Thai society for the past 400 years. The present Thai royal family, the Chakri Dynasty, was founded by King Rama I who himself was partly Chinese. His predecessor, King Taksin of the Thonburi dynastry, was the son of a Chinese immigrant from Guangdong Province and a Thai mother. Nearly all Thai Chinese identify themselves as Thai due to the highly successful integration of Chinese communities into Thai society.[4] Descendants of Chinese in Thailand are among the leading Thai families today.[5]
Modern day, Thai Chinese are regarded as ethnic Thais and viewed themselves as such. They are well represented in all levels of Thai society and play a major role in Thai business sector and politics.[6][7] They play a leading role in the Thai business and commerce sector.[8][9][10][11] The Thai Chinese business class is also dominant in the Thai finance sector.[12] Thai Chinese are also well represented in the Thai political scene and most of Thai Prime Ministers were at least of partial Chinese origin.[13]
Slightly more than half of the ethnic Chinese population in Thailand trace their ancestry to eastern Guangdong province. This is evidenced by the prevalence of the Minnan Chaozhou dialect among the Chinese in Thailand. A minority trace their ancestry to Hakka and Hainanese immigrants.[14]