Chiang Dao ( th, เชียงดาว, ) is a district ('' amphoe'') of

Chiang Mai province Chiang Mai ( th, เชียงใหม่, ; nod, , ) is the largest Province (''changwat'') of Thailand. It lies in upper northern Thailand and has a population of 1.78 million people. It is bordered by Chiang Rai to the northeast, Lam ...

in northern

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 b ...

. It is nicknamed "little Tuscany" and several wines are produced in the area.

Geography

Neighboring districts are (from the northeast clockwise) Fang, Chai Prakan, Phrao, and Mae Taeng of Chiang Mai Province; Pai of

Mae Hong Son province Mae Hong Son province ( Burmese: မဲဟောင်ဆောင်; th, แม่ฮ่องสอน, ; Northern Thai: ; Shan: ; formerly called ''Mae Rong Son''), also spelled ''Maehongson'', ''Mae Hong Sorn'' or ''Maehongsorn'', is one of ...

; and Wiang Haeng of Chiang Mai. To the north is the

Shan State Shan State ( my, ရှမ်းပြည်နယ်, ; shn, မိူင်းတႆး, italics=no) also known by the endonyms Shanland, Muang Tai, and Tailong, is a state of Myanmar. Shan State borders China (Yunnan) to the north, Laos ( ...

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...

. Chiang Dao is the only district in Thailand that has all twelve

hill tribe Hill people, also referred to as mountain people, is a general term for people who live in the hills and mountains. This includes all rugged land above and all land (including plateaus) above elevation. The climate is generally harsh, with s ...

s in residence. The Chiang Dao Wildlife Sanctuary, with over 300 species of birds, surrounds the mountain of

Doi Chiang Dao Doi Chiang Dao ( th, ดอยเชียงดาว, ), also known as Doi Luang Chiang Dao (, ), is a high mountain in Chiang Dao District of Chiang Mai Province, Thailand. It is one of the highest peaks of the Daen Lao Range on the Thai sid ...

. Pha Daeng National Park is another nature reserve located within the district. The

Ping River The Ping River ( th, แม่น้ำปิง, , ), along with the Nan River, is one of the two main tributaries of the Chao Phraya River. It originates at Doi Thuai in the Daen Lao Range, in Chiang Dao district, Chiang Mai province. After p ...

, one of the main tributaries to the Chao Phraya River, originates at Doi Thuai, in the mountains of the

Daen Lao Range The Daen Lao Range ( th, ทิวเขาแดนลาว,
; my, Loi La) is a mountain range of t ...

in Chiang Dao District. The Taeng River, a river that has its source in the mountains of the Daen Lao Range in neighbouring Wiang Haeng District, also flows through Chiang Dao District on its way to its confluence with the

in Mae Taeng District.

History

Chiang Dao was a smaller city state (''

mueang Mueang ( th, เมือง ''mɯ̄ang'', ), Muang ( lo, ເມືອງ ''mɯ́ang'', ; Tai Nuea: ᥛᥫᥒᥰ ''muang''), Mong ( shn, ''mə́ŋ'', ), Meng () or Mường (Vietnamese), were pre-modern semi-independent city-states or principal ...

'') in the northern Thai Lan Na Kingdom. As part of the ''Thesaphiban'' administrative reforms at the end of the 19th century it was made a district of Chiang Mai Province. Originally a minor district (''

king 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 counti ...

''), it was upgraded to a full district in 1908.

Administration

The district is divided into seven 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 '' khwaen ...

''), which are further subdivided into 83 villages ('' muban''). Both Chiang Dao and Mueang Ngai are 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 ...

''), which cover parts of the same-named ''tambon''s. The sub-district municipality Phra That Pu Kam (พระธาตุปู่ก่ำ) covers the remaining parts of sub-district Mueang Ngai. Mueang Na, Ping Khong, and Thung Khao Phuang are sub-district municipalities which cover the whole of the same-named sub-districts. There are a further three

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' ...

s (TAO): Mae Na and Mueang Khong covering the same-named sub-districts, and Chiang Dao the non-municipal parts of the sub-district.

References

External links

*
amphoe.com
(Thai)
Pha Daeng National Park
Chiang Dao Populated places in Chiang Mai province {{ChiangMai-geo-stub