Mae Chai ( th, แม่ใจ, ) is a district (''
amphoe'') of
Phayao province 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 ...
.
History
The District Mae Chai was abolished on 23 December 1917 and was incorporated into
Mueang Phan district. It was recreated as 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 ...
'') on 24 January 1963. It was upgraded to a full district on 28 July 1965.
In 1977 the district was reassigned from Chiang Rai Province to the newly established Phayao Province.
Geography
The district is in the upper valley of the
Ing River
The Ing River (, , ) is a tributary of the Mekong River in the northern part of Thailand. It has its source in Doi Luang, Phi Pan Nam Range, in Mae Chai District, Phayao Province. The Ing flows through the plain area of Thoeng District.
The Ing ...
. West of the town Mae Chai is the 1,426 m high
Doi Luang mountain of the
Phi Pan Nam Range
The Phi Pan Nam Range, also Pee Pan Nam, ( th, ทิวเขาผีปันน้ำ) is a long system of mountain ranges in the eastern half of the Thai highlands. It is mostly in Thailand, although a small section in the northeast is w ...
. It rises within a
protected area in the
Doi Luang National Park
Doi Luang National Park ( th, อุทยานแห่งชาติดอยหลวง) is one of the biggest national parks in Northern Thailand
Northern Thailand, or more specifically Lanna, is geographically characterised by several m ...
. To the east is the Nong Liang Sai Reservoir, and at the boundary to the Mueang District the Mae Pim Reservoir.
Mae Puem National Park protects the Mae Puem National Conserved Forest and Dong Pradu Forest.
Neighboring districts are (from the north clockwise):
Phan and
Pa Daet of
Chiang Rai province;
Mueang Phayao of Phayao Province; and
Wang Nuea of
Lampang province
Lampang ( th, ลำปาง, ; Northern Thai: ) is one of Thailand's seventy-six provinces (''changwat''), lies in upper northern Thailand. The old name of Lampang was ''Khelang Nakhon''.
Geography
Lampang is in the broad river valley of the ...
.
Administration
The district is divided into six 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 ...
s''), which are further subdivided into 65 villages (''
mubans''). The township (''
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 ...
'') Mae Chai covers parts of ''tambons'' Mae Chai and Si Thoi. There are a further six tambon administrative organizations (TAO).
References
External links
amphoe.comMae Puem National Park
Mae Chai
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