There are conflicting opinions
as to the origins
of the Thais. Three decades ago it could be said with presumed
certainty that the Thais originated in Northwestern Szechuan in China
about 4,500 years ago and later migrated down to their present
homeland. However, this theory has been altered by the discovery of
remarkable prehistoric artifacts in the village of Ban Chiang in the
Nong Han District of Udon Thani Province in the Northeast. These
include evidence of bronze metallurgy going back 3,500 years, as well
as other indications of a far more sophisticated culture than any
previously suspected by archaeologists. It now appears that the a
Thais might have originated here in Thailand and later scattered to
various parts of Asia, including some parts of China. Siam is the name
by which the country was known to the world until 1939 and again
between 1945 and 1949. On May 11, 1949, an official proclamation
changed the name of the country to "Prathet Thai", or "Thailand", by
which it has since been known. The word "Thai" means "free", and
therefore "Thailand" means "Land of the Free."