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Krabi has perhaps the country's oldest history of continued
settlement. After dating stone tools, ancient coloured pictures,
beads, pottery and skeletal remains found in the province's many
cliffs and caves, it is thought that Krabi has been home to homo
sapiens since the period 25,000-35,000 B.C. in recorded times
it was called the 'Ban Thai Samor', and was one of twelve towns
that used, before people were widely literate, the monkey for
their standard, At that time, c. 1,200 A.D., Krabi was tributary
to the kingdom of Ligor, a city on the Kra Peninsula's east coast
better known today as Nakorn Sri Thammarat.
At the start of the Rattanakorsin period, about 200 years ago,
When the capital was finally settled at Bangkok, an elephant kraal
was established in Krabi by order of Chao Phraya Nakorn (Noi),
the governor of Nakhon Sri Thammarat, which was by then apart
of the Thai kingdom. He sent his vizier,the Phra Palad, to oversee
this task, which was to ensure a regular supply of elephants for
the larger town so followers many emigrated in the step of the
Phra Palad that soon Krabi had a large community inthree different
borouhs : Pakasai, khlong Poh, and Pak Lao.
In 1872, King Chulalongkorn graciously elevated these to town
status, called Krabi, a word that preserves in its. meaning the
monkey symbolism of the old standard. The town's first governor
was Luang Thep Sena, though it continued a while as a dependency
of Nakhon Sri Thammarat. This was changed in 1875, when Krabi
was raised to a fourth-level town in the old system of Thai government
Adminictrators then reported directly to the central government
in Bangkok, and Krabi's history as a unique entiry, separate from
the other provinces, had begun.
During the present reign. the corps of civil servants, the merchants,
and the poputation of Krabi and nearby provinces together organized
construction of a royal residence at Laem Hang Nak Cape for presentation
to her Majesty the Queen. This lies thirty kilometers to the west
of Krabi Town on the Andaman coast.
Boundaries
| North : |
Connects with Phang-nga and Surat Thani Provinces. |
| South : |
Connects with Trang Provinces and the Andaman
sea. |
| East : |
Connects with Trang and Nakhon Sri
Thammarat Provinces. |
|
West :
|
Connects with Phang-nga Provinces and the Andaman
sea. |
| From
Krabi city to nearby provinces |
| -Phang Nga |
86 Kms. |
| -Phuket |
176 Kms. |
| -Trang |
131 Kms. |
| -Phattalung |
193 Kms. |
| -Surat Thani |
211 Kms. |
| -Nakhon Sri Thammarat |
233 Kms. |
| -Satun |
276 Kms. |
| From
Krabi city to nearby provinces |
|
-Ao Luk
|
43 Kms. |
| -Plai Phraya |
66 Kms. |
| -Khao Panom |
39 Kms. |
| -Khlong Thom |
42 Kms. |
| -Ko Lanta |
103 Kms. |
| -Lam Thap |
67 Kms. |
| -Nua Khlong |
17 Kms. |
Geography
Krabi's mountainous physical geography is broken by nighlands
and plains on the mainland; the provincial administration also
covers more than 130 islands big and mangrove and Cassia trees.
Krabi's sandy clay soil conditions are perfect. For a variety
of agricultural product, including : Rubber trees, palms, oranges,
coconuts, and coffee.
Krabi's mountainous physical geography is broken by highlands
and plains on the mainland; the provincial administration also
covers more than 130 islands big and mangrove and Cassia trees.
Krabi's sandy clay soil conditions are perfect for a variety of
agricultural products, including : Rubber trees, palms, oranges,
coconuts, and coffee.
The Krabi River flows 5 kilometers through the city
and falls into the Andaman at Tambon Pak Nam. There
are other streams as well: The Klong Pakasai ; the klong Krabi
Yai ; and the Klong Krabi Noy ; these have
their source in the province's highest range of mountains, the
Kao Panom Benja.
Administration
Krabi is divided into eight districts : Amphoe Muang (Krabi town),
Kho Panom, Khlong Thom, Plai Phraya, Ko Lanta, Ao Luk, and Lam
Thap and, Nhua Khlong.
Population
Krabi's estimated poputation, as of 31 March 2001, was 366,919.
Weather
Weather in Krabi is typically that of the tropical monsoon, providing
the province with just two seasons, the hot season from November
to April, and the rainy season from May to October. Monsoon winds,
which change according to season, blow from the southeast, the
southwest, and the northeast. Temperatures for the year range
between 16.9 and 37.3 degrees Celsius; yearly rainfall averages
2,586.5 millimeters.
Local Festivals
Krabi Berk Fah Andaman
This festival takes place in November and celebrates the opening
of the tourist season in Krabi. Watersport competitions, caltural
shows, and good-natured fun are the schedule.
The Setting Adrift of the Chao Ley Boats
Takes place on Lanta Island during full moon of the sixth and
eleventh months in the lunar calender. This is a religious rite
performed by sea gypsies who gather on the beach near Ban Saladan
Village.
They dance their famous Rong Geng round the boats to be set adrift
Ceremonies feature singing and dancing; the reason for the fest
it to bring prosperity and happiness to the participants, it is
something hard to find elsewhere.
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