Thai

The majority ethnic group living in Thailand and northern Myanmar (Burma). Thai peoples also live in southwestern China, Laos, and North Vietnam. They speak Tai languages, all of which belong to the Sino-Tibetan language family. There are over 60 million speakers, the majority of whom live in Thailand. Most Thais are Buddhists, but the traditional belief in spirits, phi, remains.

Thai culture is thought to have originated approximately 3,000 years ago in the area south of the Yangzi River. During the 13th century, Tai peoples under pressure from the Mongolian Empire migrated southwards. In many areas they either supplanted or fused with the indigenous Mon Khmer peoples. The Tais also become involved in military struggles with the Burmese. The majority of Tais are Hīanyāna (Lesser Vehicle) Buddhists, the exceptions being the Black and White Tai of Vietnam. Although most Tai peoples, such as the Shan, Lao, and Siamese (Thai), use forms of writing based on Indian scripts, some use Chinese-derived characters. The Roman script has become popular, especially in Thailand. Most Tais live in rural villages where they cultivate rice, mainly glutinous varieties, in irrigated fields. Thailand also has large urban centres and a developing industrial economy.