Makkasan ( th, มักกะสัน, ) is the name of an intersection and the surrounding neighbourhood in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...

Ratchathewi district Ratchathewi ( th, ราชเทวี, ) is a district in central Bangkok, Thailand. Clockwise from the north, its neighboring districts are Phaya Thai, Din Daeng, Huai Khwang, Watthana, Pathum Wan and Dusit. History The district was part ...

. It is one of the 180 sub-districts in Bangkok. Makkasan Intersection is divided into two closely located intersections. One is the meeting point of Ratchaprarop Road, Chaturathit Road,

Si Ayutthaya Road Si Ayutthaya Road ( th, ถนนศรีอยุธยา, , ) is a road in inner Bangkok. It starting from Ratchaprarop road at Makkasan intersection in the area of Ratchathewi district to eastward where cuts Phaya Thai road, then cuts Rama ...

, and

Soi ''Soi'' ( th, ซอย ) is the term used in Thailand for a side-street branching off a major street (''thanon'', th, ถนน). An alley is called a ''trok'' ( th, ตรอก). Overview Sois are usually numbered, and are referred to by th ...

Ratchaprarop 10 or Soi Mo Leng, and is known variously as Makkasan, Mo Leng or Ratchaprarop Intersection. The other is the intersection of Ratchaprarop Road and Nikhom Makkasan Road, named Nikhom Makkasan intersection. The area is considered one of the most prone to traffic jams in Bangkok, especially during rush hour. Makkasan is not far from major shopping districts and Bangkok's traffic centers, such as Pratunam or Victory Monument.

Naming and history

The name of the intersection refers to the Makkasan people, who historically lived in the area. The Makkasan people are

Muslims Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

that migrated from Sulawesi,

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

Siam 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 ...

in the Ayutthaya period towards the end of King

Narai King Narai the Great ( th, สมเด็จพระนารายณ์มหาราช, , ) or Ramathibodi III ( th, รามาธิบดีที่ ๓ ) was the 27th monarch of Ayutthaya Kingdom, the 4th and last monarch of the P ...

's reign, with the name "Makkasan" coming from the city of Makassar, now the provincial capital of South Sulawesi. The Makkasan were known by the Siamese of the time as ''Khaek Makkasan'' (แขกมักกะสัน); the Thai word ''khaek'' literally means guest and generally refers to non-

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

foreigners (the term ''

farang Farang ( fa, فرنگ) is a Persian (and Southeast Asian) word that originally referred to the Franks (the major Germanic tribe) and later came to refer to White Europeans in general. The word "Farang" is a cognate and originates from O ...

'' is used for Westerners), mostly Muslims, Hindus or

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

s from the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (Europ ...

and the Malay Peninsula. The records of

Claude de Forbin Claude, chevalier, then count de Forbin-Gardanne (6 August 1656 – 4 March 1733) was a French naval commander. In 1685–1688 he was on a diplomatic mission to Siam. He became governor of Bangkok and a general in the Siamese army, and left Siam ...

, a French naval admiral who lived in Ayutthaya at the time, states that the Makkasan rebelled on July 14th, 1686 and were suppressed with harsh measures by the Ayutthaya rulers with the aid of foreign aristocrats such as

Constantine Phaulkon Constantine Phaulkon (Greek: Κωνσταντῖνος Γεράκης, ''Konstantinos Gerakis''; γεράκι is the Greek word for "falcon"; 1647 – 5 June 1688, also known as Costantin Gerachi, ''Capitão Falcão'' in Portuguese and simply as ' ...

. The incident was called " Makkasan Rebellion" (กบฏมักกะสัน, ขบถมักกะสัน). The appearance of the Makkasan was compared to

Yakshas The yakshas ( sa, यक्ष ; pi, yakkha, i=yes) are a broad class of nature-spirits, usually benevolent, but sometimes mischievous or capricious, connected with water, fertility, trees, the forest, treasure and wilderness. They appear in ...

by the Siamese, giving rise to the Thai term ''yak makkasan'' ( ยักษ์มักกะสัน), meaning a cruel person. When King

Phutthayotfa Chulalok Phra Phutthayotfa Chulalok Maharaj (, 20 March 1737 – 7 September 1809), personal name Thongduang (), also known as Rama I, was the founder of the Rattanakosin Kingdom and the first monarch of the reigning Chakri dynasty of Siam (now Thai ...

(Rama I) established the Rattanakosin Kingdom in today's Bangkok in 1782, he allowed Makkasan people from Ayutthaya to settle in this area, leading to the area being named after them. Many places in the area also bear the name, such as Makkasan Station, the biggest rapid transit station on the

Airport Rail Link An airport rail link is a service providing passenger rail transport from an airport to a nearby city by mainline or commuter trains, rapid transit, people mover, or light rail. Direct links operate straight to the airport terminal, while ...

Makkasan railway station Makkasan railway station is a railway station in Makkasan Subdistrict, Ratchathewi District, Bangkok. It is a class 1 railway station from Bangkok railway station. The station opened in January 1908 as part of the Eastern Line Bangkok– Cha ...

, a class 1 railway station which also includes a

depot Depot ( or ) may refer to: Places * Depot, Poland, a village * Depot Island, Kemp Land, Antarctica * Depot Island, Victoria Land, Antarctica * Depot Island Formation, Greenland Brands and enterprises * Maxwell Street Depot, a restaurant in ...

of the same name, Bueng Makkasan, a large

artificial lake A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation. Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...

in the center of Bangkok built in 1931 by the State Railway of Thailand (SRT), and the Makkasan Interchange, a part of the Chaloem Maha Nakhon Expressway and the Sirat Expressway.

Places

Tourism Authority of Thailand The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) ( th, การท่องเที่ยวแห่งประเทศไทย) is an organization of Thailand under the Ministry of Tourism and Sports. Its mandate is to promote Thailand's tourism in ...

(TAT) * Bangkok Doll Museum *Soi Ratchataphan (also known as Soi Mo Leng)

References

{{coord, 13, 45, 21.57, N, 100, 32, 32.64, E, display=title Neighbourhoods of Bangkok Ratchathewi district Road junctions in Bangkok Subdistricts of Bangkok