Songkhla province

Songkhla (Thai: สงขลา, pronounced [sǒŋ.kʰlǎː], Malay: Singgora) is one of the southern provinces (changwat) of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are (from west clockwise) Satun, Phatthalung, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Pattani, and Yala. To the south it borders Kedah and Perlis of Malaysia.

In contrast to most other provinces, the capital Songkhla is not the largest city in the province. The much newer city of Hat Yai, with a population of 359,813, is considerably larger, with twice the population of Songkhla (163,072). This often leads to the misconception that Hat Yai is the provincial capital.

The province is on the Malay Peninsula, on the coast of the Gulf of Thailand. The highest elevation is Khao Mai Kaeo at 821 meters.

In the north of the province is Songkhla Lake, the largest natural lake in Thailand. This shallow lake covers an area of 1,040 km², and has a south–north extent of 78 kilometers. At its mouth on the Gulf of Thailand, near the city of Songkhla, the water becomes brackish. A small population of Irrawaddy dolphins live in the lake, but are in danger of extinction due to accidental capture by the nets of the local fishing industry.

Songkhla province hosts three national parks. San Kala Khiri covers 143 km² (55 sq mi) of mountain highlands on the Thai-Malay border.
Khao Nam Khang with an area of 212 km² (82 sq mi) is also in the boundary mountains. Namtok Sai Khao on the Pattani-Songkhla border occupies an area of 70 km² (27 sq mi). The total forest area is 866 km² (334 sq mi) or 11.2 percent of provincial area. Chinese Communist guerrillas inhabited this region until the 1980s.^{[citation needed]}

Within the boundaries of the city of Songkhla is Cape Samila Beach, the most popular beach in the province. The famous mermaid statue can be found here. The two islands Ko Nu and Ko Maew (Mouse and Cat Islands), not far from the beach, are also popular landmarks, and a preferred fishing ground. According to a local folk tale, a cat, mouse and dog were traveling on a Chinese ship, when they attempted to steal a crystal from a merchant. While trying to swim ashore, both the cat and the mouse drowned and became the two islands; the dog reached the beach, then died and become the hill Khao Tang Kuan. The crystal turned into the white sandy beach.

The name Songkhla is actually the Thai corruption of Singgora (Jawi: سيڠڬورا); its original name means "the city of lions" in Malay (not to be confused with Singapura). This refers to a lion-shaped mountain near the city of Songkhla.

Songkhla was the seat of an old Malay Kingdom with heavy Srivijayan influence. In ancient times (200–1400 CE), Songkhla formed the northern extremity of the Malay Kingdom of Langkasuka. The city-state then succeeded as the Sultanate of Singgora, it later became a tributary of Nakhon Si Thammarat, suffering damage during several attempts to gain independence.