Geography

Neighboring district are (from the north clockwise) Non Sa-at

Amphoe Non Sa-at

Non Sa-at is a district in the southern part of Udon Thani Province, northeastern Thailand.-Geography:Neighboring districts are Nong Saeng and Kumphawapi of Udon Thani Province, Kranuan, Nam Phong and Khao Suan Kwang of Khon Kaen Province.-History:The minor district was established on January...

 of Udon Thani Province

Udon Thani Province

Udon Thani is one of the north-eastern provinces of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are Nong Khai, Sakon Nakhon, Kalasin, Khon Kaen, Nong Bua Lamphu and Loei.- Geography :...

, Kranuan

Amphoe Kranuan

Kranuan is a district of Khon Kaen Province, northeastern Thailand.-History:The minor district Kranuan was established on January 1 1948 by splitting it from Nam Phong district...

, Sam Sung, Mueang Khon Kaen

Amphoe Mueang Khon Kaen

Mueang Khon Kaen is the capital district of Khon Kaen Province, northeastern Thailand.-Geography:Neighboring districts are Ban Haet, Phra Yuen, Ban Fang, Ubolratana, Nam Phong, Sam Sung of Khon Kaen Province, Kosum Phisai and Chiang Yuen of Maha Sarakham Province.-History:In 1917, the district...

, Ubolratana

Amphoe Ubolratana

Ubolratana is a district of Khon Kaen Province, northeastern Thailand.The district is named after Princess Ubol Ratana, the eldest child of King Bhumibol Adulyadej.-History:...

 and Khao Suan Kwang

Amphoe Khao Suan Kwang

Khao Suan Kwang is a district of Khon Kaen Province, northeastern Thailand.-History:The minor district Khao Suan Kwang was established in 1978 by splitting it from Nam Phong district...

.

The district is located at Mittraphap Road (Thailand Route 2), as well as the northeastern railway. The district office and the train station are located about 7 km east of the main settlement, Ban Nam Phong.

Despite its name, the Nam Phong National Park does not cover any territory of the Nam Phong district, but is located southeast of the district. Both are named after the Nam Phong River, which originates within the national park, and after the Ubol Ratana dam

Ubol Ratana Dam

The Ubol Ratana Dam is a multi-purpose dam located in Tambon Kok-Soong, Ubol Ratana District, approximately north of Khon Kaen, Khon Kaen Province, Thailand. It was the first hydroelectric power project developed in the Thailand's northeastern area of Isan. The dam impounds the Nam Phong, a...

 flows through the district towards the Chi River

Chi River

The Chi River is the longest river in Thailand; it extends 765 km, but carries less water than the second longest river, the Mun. In the Isan dialect of this region, and also in the adjacent language Lao, the name of the river is actually pronounced "Nam Si" but the transliteration Chi...

.

An oil survey in 1979 found a natural gas reserve of estimated 1.5 trillion cubic feet (42 km³) was discovered. Since 1989 the gas field is exploited for the Nam Phong power plant operated by EGAT

Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand

The Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand , , is a state enterprise that owns and manages the majority of Thailand's electricity generation capacity, as well as the nation's transmission network.EGAT is managed by the Ministry of Energy....

. With a capacity of 710 MW it is the main source of electricity for the northeast of Thailand.

Economy

The district is mostly agricultural, main products are rice, sugar cane as well as husbandry. The two major factories are a sugar factory and a distillery for Lao Kao.

History

The district was created on February 10 1908, at first named Tha Wa (ท่าหว้า). In 1909 it was renamed to Nam Phong.

1972-73 the Royal Thai Air Base Nam Phong

Royal Thai Air Base Nam Phong

The Royal Thai Air Base Nam Phong in Nam Phong district, Khon Kaen Province, Thailand in June 1972 became a base of operations for United States Marine Corps air operations by Marine Aircraft Group 15, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing....

 was one of the bases of the US military used for the Vietnam war.

Attractions

Phrathat Kham Kaen is an ancient Buddhist monument. The stupa, located within Wat Chetiyaphum, is believed to mark the original location of Khon Kaen. According to the local legend, relics of Buddha were to be brought to Nakhon Phanom. The monks camped at a dead tamarind tree. When they arrived in Nakhon Phanom the Phrathat Phanom was already finished, thus they planned to return the relics. On the return way they found the dead tree flourished again, and built the stupa at the site of the miracle.

Ban Khok Sa-nga is famous as the King Cobra Village. In 1951 a local doctor started to conduct cobra shows to attract clients to the village. Nowadays the cobra shows are the main income of the villagers, who also travel around to perform the show and sell their herbal medicine.

Administration

The district is subdivided into 12 subdistricts (tambon

Tambon

Tambon is a local government unit in Thailand. Below district and province , they form the third administrative subdivision level. As of the 2009 there are 7255 tambon, not including the 169 khwaeng of Bangkok, which are set at the same administrative level, thus every district contains 8-10 tambon...

), which are further subdivided into 167 villages (muban

Muban

Muban is the lowest administrative subdivision of Thailand. Usually translated as village, they are the subdivision of tambon. As of 2008, there are 74944 administrative villages in Thailand. As of the 1990 census, the average village consisted of 144 households or 746 persons.A muban does not...

). There are two subdistrict municipalities (thesaban tambon) - Nam Phong covering parts of tambon Nam Phong, and Wang Chai covering parts of tambon Wang Chai and Nong Kung. Each of the tambon is administrated by a Tambon administrative organization (TAO).

No.	Name	Thai	Villages	Inh. Population A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
1.	Nam Phong	น้ำพอง	17	14,081
2.	Wang Chai	วังชัย	16	10,494
3.	Nong Kung	หนองกุง	10	9,915
4.	Bua Yai	บัวใหญ่	17	7,797
5.	Sa-at	สะอาด	14	9,657
6.	Muang Wan	ม่วงหวาน	14	9,385
7.	Ban Kham	บ้านขาม	16	9,281
8.	Bua Ngoen	บัวเงิน	17	12,095
9.	Sai Mun	ทรายมูล	13	7,333
10.	Tha Krasoem	ท่ากระเสริม	10	7,500
11.	Phang Thui	พังทุย	13	7,137
12.	Kut Nam Sai	กุดน้ำใส	10	7,739

External links

• amphoe.com (Thai)