Thailand (/ˈtaɪlænd, -lənd/ TY-land, -lənd),[b][9] officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (/saɪˈæm, ˈsaɪæm/),[c][10][11] is a country in Southeast Asia on the Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 70 million,[12] it spans 513,120 square kilometres (198,120 sq mi). Thailand is bordered to the north by Myanmar and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the west by the Andaman Sea; it also shares maritime borders with Vietnam to the southeast, and Indonesia and India to the southwest. Bangkok is the nation's capital and largest city.
Tai peoples migrated from southwestern China to mainland Southeast Asia from the 6th to 11th century. Indianised kingdoms such as the Mon, Khmer Empire and Malay states ruled the region, competing with Thai states such as the Kingdoms of Ngoenyang, Sukhothai, Lan Na and Ayutthaya, which also rivalled each other. European contact began in 1511 with a Portuguese diplomatic mission to Ayutthaya, which became a regional power by the end of the 15th century.
