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Thailand The South Asians
In 1979 the Ministry of Interior estimated that there were
60,000 Hindus and Sikhs in Thailand (0.13 percent of the total
population). Small South Asian trading communities in southern
Thailand were noted in a ninth-century Tamil inscription. In
addition to being trade centers, these early Indian communities
served as a conduit for Indian culture and political theory,
especially during the Ayutthayan period. The modern South Asian
community, however, was largely apolitical and attempted to blend
into Thai society, its members working as tailors, night
watchmen, and textile merchants.
Data as of September 1987
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