Most of the Kingdom of Thailand faces south onto the Gulf of Thailand, an arm of the South China Sea. The country also includes much of the long and narrow Malay Peninsula, which faces both east on the Gulf of Thailand and west on the Andaman Sea, an arm of the Indian Ocean. Thailand is unique among southeast Asian nations in having maintained its independence throughout the colonial period. As a result the country's lighthouse history is also independent from all of the European traditions. Most of the country's historic lighthouses were built during or shortly after the reign of King Chulalongkorn (1868-1910), who was successful in modernizing the country while avoiding European penetration. Thailand is divided into 76 provinces (changwat). This page includes the lighthouses of the six provinces on the Malay Peninsula's west coast. The Andaman Sea coast of Thailand has become a popular resort area in recent years. Some of the beach resorts were heavily damaged by the great tsunami of 26 December 2004, but the area has recovered well. A number of attractive new lighthouses have been built recently in tourist areas. As far as I know these are faux lighthouses or unofficial lights. In the Thai language the word for a lighthouse is prap̣hākhār (ประภาคาร), ko is an island, hin is a rock or reef, laem is a cape, ao is a bay, paknam is an estuary, and maenam is a river. Coastal lighthouses in Thailand are operated and maintained by the Hydrographic Department of the Royal Thai Navy. ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. Admiralty numbers are from volume F of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. U.S. NGA List numbers are from Publication 112.
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![]() Khlong Palian Range Rear Light , Trang, February 2023 photo copyright Andreas Köhler; used by permission |
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![]() Khao Lak Light, Khao Lak, March 2018 ex-Google Plus photo by Jonny T |
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Information available on lost lighthouses:
Notable faux lighthouses:
Adjoining pages: North: Myanmar (Burma) | East: Southern Thailand: East Coast | South: West Malaysia Northwest Coast
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Posted February 28, 2006. Checked and revised June 3, 2024. Lighthouses: 43. Site copyright 2024 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.