Mukdahan, Thailand

🇹🇭 Mukdahan is a town and capital of Mukdahan Province, which became Thailand's 73rd province in 1982. In the northern region of the country, on the right bank Mekong River, it was formerly a district of Nakhon Phanom Province. Mukdahan is 645 km north-east of Bangkok.

Etymology The city was established at the mouth of Muk Creek and named Mukdahan from Kaeo Mukdahan, derived from the following: • Kaeo แก้ว noun or adjective: glass other than sheet glass; a glass, a tumbler; gem-like, precious, exquisite. • Muk มุก noun: mother-of pearl; nacre. • Da ดา verb intransitive: to advance along a wide front • Han หาร verb intransitive or transitive: to divide; to be divided.

History Prehistoric paintings and other archaeological discoveries show that the area of Mukdahan was the site of ancient communities. The modern history of the city begins late in the Ayutthaya Era (1350-1767). In the years 1767–1770, Prince Kinnari, son of Prince Suriwong, ruler in Ban Luang Phonsim of Savannakhét, established a settlement at the mouth of Muk Creek, across the Mekong from Savannakhét. In the reign of King Taksin, 1768–1782, Prince Kinnari received appointment as Phraya Chandara Sri Surat with a rank equivalent to viceroy. In 1893, Savannakhét District of Mukdahan was ceded to France.

Second Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge The Second Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge, across the Mekong to Savannakhet, Laos was completed in December 2006.

Ho Kaeo Mukdahan Ho Kaeo Mukdahan, or Mukdahan Tower, is an observation tower 65.5 metres in height, constructed in 1996 to honor the 50th anniversary of the king's accession to the throne. • 1st Floor—Art and Culture Museum • 2nd Floor—History and Culture of eight ethnic tribes of Mukdahan • Tai Kha; • Tai Kha Soe; • Tai Kha Lerng; • Isan Peoples; • Tai Yor; • Tai Saek; • Tai Kula; • Phu Tai; • 3rd-5th Floors—Pillar of the tower; • 6th Floor—360° Observation deck; • 7th Floor—A silver Buddha image in the meditation position called Phra Buddhanavamingmongkol, and the Buddha image for each day of the week