More on the Origin of Isan

[Bluesofa]

 

I made my first post about this back in August https://talk.thethaiger.com/topic/16789-the-origin-of-isan/

I’ve since been reading about the Kingdom of Champasak. In this image from wiki, showing it in 1828 [1], I’ve added a blue line to indicate the Mekhong River, showing the present-day Thai-Lao border:

I feel this shows more clearly how much of what was Champasak is now part of Thailand (as is the Kingdom of Vientiane). The Kingdom of Champasak was sited on the eastern or Left Bank of the Mekong. It was part of the Laos Kingdom.
There is very little information from the time known as the Post-Angkor Period.
The Khorat Plateau seems to have been largely depopulated, and Left Bank principalities began to repopulate the Right. [2]

In 1718, the first Lao muang in the Chi valley and indeed anywhere in the interior of the Khorat Plateau—was founded as Suwannaphum (in latter-day Roi Et Province) by an official in the service of King Nokasad of the Kingdom of Champasak, leading some 3,000 subjects. [3]

Then we find that in about 1766, a dignitary in the Kingdom of Vientiane, started a rebellion. His plan failed, but he submitted to the King of Champasak, which led to the conflict between Champasak and Vientiane.

Not long after that, in 1777, King Taksin of Siam sent an invading army to the Kingdom of Vientiane. The Thai army also attacked Champasak, and the kingdom was occupied without major resistance. In 1780, King Sayakumane of Champasak became a vassal of the Siamese king. [2]

Champasak has survived in name only, it is now the southern-most province of Laos [4]

Ubon Ratchathani was founded in the late 18th century by Thao Kham Phong, descendant of Phra Wo and Phra Ta, who escaped from King Siribunsan of Vientiane into the Siam Kingdom during the reign of King Taksin the Great.
Later, Thao Kham Phong was the first ruler of Ubon Ratchathani. [5]

The many Khmer ruins found in Sri Saket province show the area must have been important to the Khmer empire at least by the 12th century, although it was apparently sparsely populated. According to local tradition, it was known as Sri Nakorn Lamduan It was later called Khukhan, after a town built in the late-15th century CE during the reign of King Boromaratcha III of Ayutthaya.
Ethnic Laos began settling the northern portion of the province, and in 1786 the town Sisaket was formed, subject to Khukhan. [6]

in Buriram, including cultural evidence from the ancient Khmer Empire, which has both a brick castle and more than 60 stone castles, and have important archaeological sites, including kilns, pottery and pottery, earthenware called Khmer wares, which determines the age around the 15th-18th. After the period of ancient Khmer or Khmer culture, the historical evidence of Buriram began to appear again at the end of the Ayutthaya period, which appears to be an old city and later appeared in the Thonburi period to the Rattanakosin period that Buriram was a city. [7]

I have noticed from different accounts sometimes there is somewhat of a conflict describing what exactly happened. It still makes interesting reading though.

sources:

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lao_rebellion_(1826-1828)

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_of_Champasak

[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suwannaphum_district

[4] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Champasak_province

[5] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ubon_Ratchathani

[6] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sisaket_province

[7] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buriram_province