Aspects of the Place and Role of the Chinese in Late Nineteenth Century Bangkok

Abstract

This paper uses the Postal Census of 1883 to examine certain aspects of the place and role of the Chinese in Bangkok. The Census breaks down house occupation by ethnic origin, social status, and also by the various types of materials used in construction. Very clear, at a surprisingly early date, is the existence of a market for rented shop-houses (nearly all were brick houses), with the royal family and members of the Thai nobility prominent among those providing capital for shop house construction. And it was largely the Chinese commercial groups who were the tenants.