Yala Province

Yala (Thai: ยะลา) is the southernmost province (changwat) of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are (from northwest clockwise) Songkhla, Pattani and Narathiwat. Yala is the only landlocked province in the south of Thailand and its southern part borders Kedah and Perak of Malaysia.

Etymology

The name "Yala" is the Thai transliteration of Jala (Jawi: جال) and the original Malay name means "net". The province is also known as Jolor (Jawi: جولور) in Patani Malay language.

Geography

Yala Province is in south Thailand. The highest point of the Sankalakhiri Range (Northern Titiwangsa Mountains), the 1,533 metres (5,030 ft)-high Ulu Titi Basah (ยูลูติติ บาซาห์), is on the Thai/Malaysian border between Yala Province and Perak.

History

Historically, Pattani Province was the centre of the Sultanate of Patani, a semi-independent Malay kingdom that paid tribute to the Thai kingdoms of Sukhothai and Ayutthaya. After Ayutthaya fell under Burmese control in 1767, the Sultanate of Patani gained full independence, but under King Rama I (reigned from 1782 to 1809), the area was again placed under Siam's control in 1785 and made a Mueang. (See the main entry on the Sultanate of Patani.) In 1808, the Mueang Pattani was split into seven smaller Mueang including Yala.