Thon Nhae Noy - Thon Nhae Luang Community

Location: Moo 1, 7, Tumbon Tha Wang Praow, Amphur San Pha Thong, Chiang Mai Province

Ban Thon Nhae Noy  - Thon Nhae Luang community is a Thai-Khoen or Thai – Kheun village. The people were originally from Muang Chiang Tung in Shan State and in Sipsong Panna in Myanmar near the border of China and Thailand. Myanmar near the border of China and Thailand. “Khoen” has become the name to these people because they used to live along the bank of the “Khoen River”. According to legend, a hermit, Tungka Ruesi, found a wide lake. With his foresight, he knew that the lake one day would become an important town. So he used his walking stick drawing down the ground. The water suddenly flowed back northwards. However, the name “Khoen’ or “Kheun” has been used as a name for the river and the people themselves.

The Khoen people moved to Chiang Mai in 1262. At that time. Muang Chiang Tung was occupied by Chiang Mai as a dependent state. Later in 1782, in the reign of King Kawila of Chiang Mai, the emptied town was restored by a gathering of people. The King sent out Phra Upparachadharm to persuade people to return to their homeland. He also led the army to battle with other towns and gathered prisoners of war in Chiang Mai. The communities in his reign were divided by skills, such as blacksmiths, papermakers, artists, goldsmiths, gong specialist or Khoen specialists etc.

Some of Thai Khoen people later moved south of Chiang Mai. Some of them set down in a village around the basin of the Khan River, which was full of the Nhae trees and teak woods. The people then cleaned up the area for their houses and agriculture on the bank of the river. The village was named “Ban Thon Nhae Luang” because a lot of the Nhae trees wrer found around the village. Later, the village extended to the western side of the Khan River, and the name “Ban Thon Nhae Noy” was given to this new location.

Today Ban Thon Nhae Noy – Thon Nhae Luang has in total 206 households with approximately 680 villagers. Most of them are Buddhist. Wat Don Chai is the heart of their community. There are various traditions which have been inherited from generation to generation. They believe in “phi” or spirits, for example, “hor seu ban” or the village guard spirit believed to keeppeace in the village, “phi pu ya” a family guard spirit believed to protect the family, and “teveda hieun” a house guard spirit believed to help people who live in the guard spirit for fields, farms and land. Besides this there are other interesting traditions such as “phi pha” worship, “Sorn kwan” or “Riak Kwan” and “aaew haab” (a tradition for a bride), etc.

The main occupations of the people are to make traditional vessels called “khoen” together with agricultural farming. The people in the community have a very close relationship with each other and their extended families. Their houses aare made of wood in the Lanna style, and the ancient tile roofs are still well-preserved.