Bangkok City Map Poster

About Bangkok

The origin of the name "Bangkok" (, ) is unclear. It is possibly derived from a word meaning "fortified city", or a combination of the Thai words for "mango" ("bàng") and either "-kak" (-กาก) or "-sia" (-เสี่), both meaning 'city, town'. Another theory suggests that it may be an abbreviated form of the Thai phrase "" (), which translates as 'a city with groves [of trees] surrounding it', referring to Bangkok's initial role as a village backwater in its early history. The official name was changed to reflect its status as Thailand's capital in 1948; previously, it had been known only officially by the royal title Rama (; ; , pronounced ).