Khon Kaen (, ) is the capital of Khon Kaen province and the fourth-largest city in

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

. It is one of the four major cities of

Isan Northeast Thailand or Isan (Isan language, Isan/, ; ; also written as Isaan, Isarn, Issarn, Issan, Esan, or Esarn; from Pāli ''isāna'' or Sanskrit ईशान्य ''īśānya'' "northeast") consists of 20 provinces in northeastern Thai ...

, Northeast Thailand, also known as the "big four of Isan", the others being

Udon Thani Udon Thani (, ) is a city in Isan ( Northeast Thailand), the capital of Udon Thani Province and the sixth largest city in Thailand. The city municipality (''thesaban nakhon'' / city proper) had a population of 130,531 people as of 2019, while Ud ...

Nakhon Ratchasima Nakhon Ratchasima (, ) is the capital of Nakhon Ratchasima province, the largest city in Isan, Northeastern Thailand and the List of municipalities in Thailand#Largest cities by urban population, third-largest city in Thailand. It is 250 km (1 ...

, and

Ubon Ratchathani Ubon Ratchathani (, ) is one of the four main cities in Thailand's Isan region, alongside Nakhon Ratchasima (Khorat), Udon Thani, and Khon Kaen, collectively known as the "big four of Isan." Located on the Mun River in the southeastern Isan, ...

. The city municipality of Khon Kaen (''

thesaban nakhon Thesaban (, , , Pali: desapāla (protector of region) 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'' ...

'') acts as the governmental seat of the

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

, as well as the

Mueang Khon Kaen district Mueang Khon Kaen (, ; , ) is the capital district ('' amphoe mueang'') of Khon Kaen province, northeastern Thailand. Geography Neighboring districts are (from the south clockwise) Ban Haet, Phra Yuen, Ban Fang, Ubolratana, Nam Phong, and ...

and lies northeast of Bangkok.

Geography and demography

Khon Kaen is on the

Khorat Plateau The Khorat Plateau (; ) is a plateau in the northeastern Thai region of Isan. The plateau forms a natural region, named after the short form of Nakhon Ratchasima, a historical barrier controlling access to and from the area. Geography The avera ...

, elevation 187 m, and is the center of the mid-northeastern provincial group of Thailand, according to the Thai government. Its coordinates are . The city municipality has a population of 114,459, while the

, forming the city's urban area, has a population of 416,988. Khon Kaen therefore ranks as the fourth-largest city in Thailand after

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, 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 estim ...

Chiang Mai Chiang Mai, sometimes written as Chiengmai or Chiangmai, is the largest city in northern Thailand, the capital of Chiang Mai province and the List of municipalities in Thailand#Largest cities by urban population, second largest city in Thailan ...

and

Korat The Korat cat (, ) is a silver-tipped blue-grey, short-haired Cat breed, breed of Cat, domestic cat with a small to medium build and a low percentage of Adipose tissue, body fat. Its body is semi-cobby, and unusually heavy for its size. It is an ...

Location

Khon Kaen is a city in the northeastern region of Thailand. The city is bisected by Mithraphap Road, also known as the "Friendship Highway", or "Highway 2", the road linking

to the Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge. Highway 230, a modern, multi-lane by-pass enables through-traffic to avoid the city center to the west, and connects to the airport, the new main bus station (BKS3).

Smart City

The province of Khon Kaen's 2017 population was 1.8 million with a

GDP Gross domestic product (GDP) is a monetary measure of the total market value of all the final goods and services produced and rendered in a specific time period by a country or countries. GDP is often used to measure the economic performance o ...

of 190 billion

baht The baht (; , ; currency sign, sign: ฿; ISO 4217, code: THB) is the official currency of Thailand. It is divided into 100 ''satang'' (, ). Prior to decimalisation, the baht was divided into eight ''fueang'' (, ), each of eight ''at'' (, ). The ...

. Its

Smart City A smart city is an urban area that uses digital technology to collect data and operate services. Data is collected from citizens, devices, buildings, or cameras. Applications include traffic and transportation systems, power plants, utilities ...

development plan aims to double its GDP per person to 394,000-493,000 baht by 2029 from an average of about 192,000 baht in 2016. Khon Kaen's plan has been incorporated into Thailand's 12th national social and economic plan (2017–2021). The plan has been driven largely by the Khon Kaen Think Tank (KKTT), a group of involved citizens. The Smart City's signature project is the Khon Kaen Transit System Co (KKTS), founded in 2017. Its plans for a 26 km light rail network from Samran to Tha Phra in the

Mueang Khon Kaen District Mueang Khon Kaen (, ; , ) is the capital district ('' amphoe mueang'') of Khon Kaen province, northeastern Thailand. Geography Neighboring districts are (from the south clockwise) Ban Haet, Phra Yuen, Ban Fang, Ubolratana, Nam Phong, and ...

are complete and awaiting Thai Cabinet approval before bidding on the project can begin. The light rail system will feature 18 to 21 stations, take two years to complete, and will cost 15 billion baht. The Land Traffic Management Commission (LTMC), a national think tank for transportation policy, has already blessed the plan.

Culture

Thailand's 2014 EU Film Festival included Khon Kaen, together with

and

, as host locations. A selection of six films were shown in the city, including the Spanish film '' The Pelayos'', and the Polish film ''Walesa, Man of Hope''.

Administration

The municipality of Khon Kaen was established on 20 August 1935, with an area of 4 square kilometers. It was later upgraded to a city municipality on 24 September 1995. The administration of the city is now responsible for an area that covers approximately 46 sq. km. and consists of 66,179 households. There are 95 communities divided into 4 zones, each with about 20-30 communities each.

Climate

Khon Kaen's climate is categorized as

tropical savanna Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands is a terrestrial biome defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature. The biome is dominated by grass and/or shrubs located in semi-arid to semi-humid climate regions of subtropical and t ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

''Aw''), with winters that are dry and very warm. Temperatures rise until April, a very hot month, with an average daily maximum of . The

monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in Atmosphere of Earth, atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annu ...

season runs from May until October, with heavy rain and somewhat cooler temperatures during the day, although nights remain warm.

Notable people

Kaoklai Kaennorsing Kaoklai Kaennorsing (; born September 13, 1983) is a former Thai light heavyweight Muay Thai fighter. Kaennorsing is the K-1 World Grand Prix 2004 in Seoul tournament winner, former two-division Rajadamnern Stadium champion, and former WBC Mua ...

- Muay Thai fighter *

Mindy Mindy is a feminine given name, thought to have originally been a diminutive of Melinda. No notable studies have been done documenting records or history of the name, so professionals are unsure of the exact origins of the name. The most notable the ...

Thaiboy Digital Thanapat Bunleang (born Khazitin G. Bonleunge; 11 October 1994), better known by his stage name Thaiboy Digital, is a Thai rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Khon Kaen, Thailand, Bunleang moved to Stockholm ...

- musician * Tee Ritson -

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby 13/XIII in non-Anglophone Europe, is a contact sport, full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular Rugby league playin ...

player * Tin Sritrai - racing driver *

Mimi Tao Mimi Tao is a Thai fashion model. She is best known for being the first transgender model to appear on the reality television show series, ''Project Runway''. Early life Tao was born and raised in Khon Kaen, Thailand. She is the middle child o ...

, fashion model

References

External links

*
Tourism Thailand official website
{{Authority control Isan Populated places in Khon Kaen province Cities and towns in Thailand Smart cities