ABSTRACT
The meanings of the “Thai nation” and “Thainess” were constructed to deal with social and power relationships at the end of the 19th century. Since then, intellectuals affiliated with the state’s artistic and cultural institutions have modified the meanings of the Thai nation and Thainess, partly to respond to problems and the changing political context. However, the basic conceptual framework, which inculcates that the monarchy and Buddhism are the heart of Thainess, has been preserved and remains influential in the media. To them, the monarchy and Buddhism are the sources of Thainess in different dimensions, such as Thai-style governance, Thai morals or ethics, the Thai language, Thai art, and so on. The intense reproduction of this meaning created a Thai identity and a collective consciousness among the people that the Thai nation is a nation of people who love and adhere to Thainess. The nationalist ideology of the Thais is therefore both a “royalist nationalism” and “Buddhist nationalism”. Both dimensions of nationalism are closely interrelated and have the effect of convincing Thais that Thainess makes Thailand good, together with the feeling of cherishing the Thai territory which encompasses the revered monarch and Buddhism as well as Thai art and culture.
