Nam Phong ( th, น้ำพอง, ) is a district (''

amphoe An amphoe (sometimes also ''amphur'', th, อำเภอ, )—usually translated as "district"—is the second level administrative subdivision of Thailand. Groups of ''amphoe'' or districts make up the provinces, and are analogous to countie ...

'') of Khon Kaen province.

Geography

The Nam Phong district is surrounded by

Non Sa-at Non Sa-at ( th, โนนสะอาด, ) is a district (''amphoe'') in the southern part of Udon Thani province, northeastern Thailand. Geography Neighboring districts are (from the north clockwise) Nong Saeng and Kumphawapi of Udon Thani Pro ...

(in the

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 ...

), Kranuan, Sam Sung, Mueang Khon Kaen, Ubolratana, and Khao Suan Kwang. The district is located along

Mittraphap Road Mittraphap Road (, , ) or Highway 2 (, ) is one of the four primary highways in Thailand, along with Phahonyothin Road (Highway 1), Sukhumvit Road (Highway 3), and Phetkasem Road (Highway 4). It runs from Saraburi to Nong Khai. The road was origi ...

(Thailand Route 2) and the Northeastern Railway. The district office and the train station are about 7 km east of the main settlement, Ban Nam Phong. Despite its name,

Nam Phong National Park Nam Phong National Park ( th, อุทยานแห่งชาติน้ำพอง) is a national park in Thailand's Khon Kaen and Chaiyaphum provinces. This mountainous park, in two separate sections, encompasses part of the Ubol Ratana ...

does not occupy any of Nam Phong District, but is located farther southeast. Both are named after the Nam Phong River, which originates in the national park (and after the

Ubol Ratana Dam The Ubol Ratana Dam (pronounced: ''Ubon Rat''), formerly known as the "Phong Neeb Dam", is a multi-purpose dam in tambon Khok Sung, Ubolratana district, approximately north of Khon Kaen, Khon Kaen province, Thailand. It was the first hydroelec ...

flows through the district towards the

Chi River The Chi River (, , ) is the longest river flowing wholly within Thailand. It is long but carries less water than the second longest river, the Mun. The name of the river is "Mae Si" () in the Isan and Lao languages of the region, being translite ...

Economy

The district is mostly agricultural, its main activities being rice and sugar cane growing and animal husbandry. The two major factories are a sugar factory and a distillery for ''lao kao'' (white spirits). An oil survey in 1979 found a natural gas reserve of an estimated 1.5

trillion cubic feet ''Trillion'' is a number with two distinct definitions: *1,000,000,000,000, i.e. one million million, or (ten to the twelfth power), as defined on the short scale. This is now the meaning in both American and British English. * 1,000,000,000, ...

(42 km³). Since 1989 the gas field has been exploited for the Nam Phong power plant operated by

EGAT The Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) ( th, การไฟฟ้าฝ่ายผลิตแห่งประเทศไทย; ) is a state enterprise, managed by the Ministry of Energy, responsible for electric power ge ...

. With a capacity of 710 MW, it is the main source of electricity for northeast Thailand.

History

The district was created on 10 February 1908, at first named ''Tha Wa'' (ท่าหว้า). In 1909 it was renamed to ''Nam Phong''. From 1972 to 1973, the

Royal Thai Air Base Nam Phong The Royal Thai Air Base Nam Phong in Nam Phong District, Khon Kaen Province, Thailand was constructed in 1966-1967 during the Vietnam War by Utah Mining Company, originally to support EC-121 aircraft and potentially three tactical aircraft squadr ...

was a U.S. military facility used in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

Attractions

Phrathat Kham Kaen is an ancient Buddhist monument. The stupa at Wat Chetiyaphum is believed to mark the original site of Khon Kaen. According to local legend, relics of Buddha were to be brought to Nakhon Phanom. The monks camped at a dead tamarind tree. When they arrived in Nakhon Phanom the Phrathat Phanom was already finished, thus they planned to return the relics. On the return way they found the dead tree flourishing again, and built the stupa at the site of the miracle. Ban Khok Sa-nga is famous as the ''King Cobra Village''. In 1951 a local doctor started to conduct cobra shows to attract clients to the village. Now the cobra shows are the main income of the villagers, who also travel around to perform the show and sell herbal medicine.

Administration

The district is divided into 12 sub-districts (''

tambon ''Tambon'' ( th, ตำบล, ) is a local governmental unit in Thailand. Below district (''amphoe'') and province (''changwat''), they form the third administrative subdivision level. there were 7,255 tambons, not including the 180 ''khwaeng'' ...

s''), which are further subdivided into 167 villages (''

muban Muban ( th, หมู่บ้าน; , ) is the lowest administrative sub-division of Thailand. Usually translated as 'village' and sometimes as 'hamlet', they are a subdivision of a tambon (subdistrict). , there were 74,944 administrative mu ...

s''). There are two sub-district municipalities (''

thesaban tambon Thesaban ( th, เทศบาล, , ) are the municipalities of Thailand. There are three levels of municipalities: city, town, and sub-district. Bangkok and Pattaya are special municipal entities not included in the ''thesaban'' system. The mu ...

s''): Nam Phong covering parts of ''tambon'' Nam Phong, and Wang Chai covering parts of ''tambons'' Wang Chai and Nong Kung. Each of the ''tambons'' is administered by a

tambon administrative organization ''Tambon'' ( th, ตำบล, ) is a local governmental unit in Thailand. Below district (''amphoe'') and province (''changwat''), they form the third administrative subdivision level. there were 7,255 tambons, not including the 180 ''khwaeng'' ...

(TAO).

References

External links

amphoe.com
(Thai) {{Authority control Nam Phong