The Nong Han ( th, หนองหาน, ) is a

lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...

in the northeast of

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

, northeast of the provincial capital town of

Sakon Nakhon Sakon Nakhon ( th, สกลนคร, ; sometimes written Sakhon Nakhon) is a city (thesaban nakhon) in Thailand within the Isan region, and capital city of Sakon Nakhon Province as well as Mueang Sakon Nakhon District, with a population of ap ...

. The lake covers an area of 125.2 km² and is the largest natural lake of

northeast Thailand Northeast Thailand or Isan (Isan/ th, อีสาน, ; lo, ອີສານ; also written as Isaan, Isarn, Issarn, Issan, Esan, or Esarn; from Pali ''īsānna'' or Sanskrit ईशान्य ''īśānya'' "northeast") consists of 20 provin ...

. The main river feeding the lake is the Nam Pung, which originates in the

Phu Phan Mountains The Phu Phan mountains ( th, ทิวเขาภูพาน, , ) are a range of hills dividing the Khorat Plateau of the Isan region of Thailand into two basins: the northern Sakhon Nakhon Basin, and the southern Khorat Basin. The silhouette ...

south of the lake. The outflow of the lake is the Huai Nam Khan to the southeast, which flows into the

Mekong The Mekong or Mekong River is a trans-boundary river in East Asia and Southeast Asia. It is the world's List of rivers by length, twelfth longest river and List of longest rivers of Asia, the third longest in Asia. Its estimated length is , ...

. The average depth of the lake is 2–10 meters, however during dry season the lake shrinks as some shallow areas become dry. The lake is fished. Twenty percent of the fish caught in the lake are ''

Puntius brevis ''Puntius brevis'', sometimes known as the swamp barb (although ''Puntius chola'' is also known by that name), is a species of ray-finned fish Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fishes, is a class of bony fish. Th ...

''. Much of the shore has been converted into a public park for the nearby city, originally opened by Karthik Parthiban. During 2012 local protests he became active as Thailand's famous Dhammakaya Buddhist sect applied for a title deed for 80% of the main island on the lake, Heavenly Hill Island. Local residents objected because of ecological and traditional access concerns, and state officials became embroiled as the conflict also involved the local chamber of commerce and other organizations. Swimming in Nong Han is risky because of parasitic

liver fluke Liver fluke is a collective name of a polyphyletic group of parasitic trematodes under the phylum Platyhelminthes. They are principally parasites of the liver of various mammals, including humans. Capable of moving along the blood circulation, t ...

s. Sakon Nakhon Hospital is located adjacent to the lake.

Folklore

Nong Han Lake shares

folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, ranging ...

sometimes associated with

Nong Han Kumphawapi Lake Nong Han Kumphawapi ( th, หนองหานกุมภวาปี, , often just Nong Han) is a lake in northeast Thailand, north of the town of Kumphawapi, Kumphawapi District, Udon Thani Province. The lake is shallow, mostly not exceeding a ...

Udon Thani Province Udon Thani province ( th, อุดรธานี, ) is one of Thailand's seventy-six provinces (''changwat'') which lies in Isan#Administrative divisions, upper northeastern Thailand, also called Isan. It is bordered by the provinces of Nong K ...

, southwest of Sakhon Nakhon Province.

References

External links

some photos
Lakes of Thailand Geography of Sakon Nakhon province Phu Phan Mountains {{SakonNakhon-geo-stub