Culture

            Culture can be defined as a society that has its own beliefs and they have their own way of interacting with the environment. Cultural identity involves a vast array of entities, including : language, religion, food and social habits, music, and art. Culture is what makes and creates a a group of people, or even a nation. Culture is very dynamic and is always changing, it is very static. Culture has both abstract and material dimensions. This includes things like speech, religion, ideology, livelihood, and value systems. But, this blog entry will focus on technology, housing, foods, and music.

            Thailand has a lot of new advances with their technology. Technology also deals with industries. There is a very diverse mix between industries and other businesses.Also included are electronics, automobile manufacturing, food processing, and logistics. Thailand’s original housing units were called Isaan homes and they were created with raised wooden post. They built them this way so that animals and insects could not get into the homes. They usually kept their cattle underneath the houses. The way that they live and the way they build their housing can be described as livelihood. One could relate the countries speech and religion into this category. Buddhism is the primary religion in Thailand. More than 90% of its population is Buddhist. But, Christianity, Islam, and Hindu can also be found in Thailand. They speak the Thai language as a majority, but also included are  Siamese or Central Thai.

            The main staple of food in Thailand is rice.  Rice is introduced into the diet at an early stage in life. Their food is also known for being very hot and spicy. Something that I noticed is that they do not usually sit down to have a family meal they just eat whenever they are hungry. Thailand was never colonized by a colonial power, so the European influences did not have a dramatic effect on the culture such as pop music, but today modern american influences can be seen , as well as Asian, and European  A couple of the instruments that the people have used are called the klong thap which is of Persian origin and the jakhe which is from India.  All four of these types of culture are very important in keeping the original Thai beliefs in place.   

This is an example of what housing looks like in Thailand.

"Houses in Thailand." Houses in Thailand. Web. 4 Dec. 2014. <http://resources.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/thaihouses.html>.

"Thai Food - Thailand Life." Thai Food - Thailand Life. Web. 4 Dec. 2014. <http://www.thailandlife.com/thai-food/index.php>.

"Thailand Rides Technology, Investment Tide on 'new Wave' Supply Chain - Area Development." Area Development. Web. 4 Dec. 2014. <http://www.areadevelopment.com/InternationalLocationReports/Q2-2013/Thailand-econdev-global-supplychain-destination-2262214.shtml>.