Hua Hin and Koh Kong: The Story of Siam's Coastal Twin Towns

Two Shores, Two Very Different Histories

Hua Hin's beaches, royal connections and busy tourism scene have made it one of Thailand's best known seaside destinations. Across the Gulf of Thailand, Koh Kong in southwestern Cambodia carries a less familiar history: it was once Prachanta Khiri Khet, a settlement linked by name and royal ambition to Prachuap Khiri Khan, the Thai province where Hua Hin stands.

The connection began during the reign of King Rama IV, also known as King Mongkut, in the middle of the 19th century. Siam, the country now called Thailand, sought to strengthen its position along vulnerable coastal borders. Two settlements on opposite shores received rhyming names, Prachuap Khiri Khan in the west and Prachanta Khiri Khet in the east, expressing a vision of unity across the gulf.

French colonial expansion later broke that connection. Confrontations and territorial agreements in 1893 and 1904 reshaped Siam's borders, while people in the affected communities faced displacement and changes to their cultural lives. Koh Kong became part of Cambodia, and Hua Hin followed a different course, growing from a fishing village into a royal retreat and major holiday destination.

The story brings together more than a pair of similar names. It connects royal plans, colonial pressure, families moving across borders and the survival of language and customs. Hua Hin's familiar resort history sits alongside a much less widely remembered account of the eastern shore.

A Royal Vision Across the Gulf

King Mongkut's plan gave the two coastal settlements names that echoed one another: Khiri Khan and Khiri Khet. Their pairing reflected Siam's ambition to create order and balance along its maritime frontier, the coastal edge of the kingdom.

Prachuap Khiri Khan, meaning "city of mountains with clusters," was formed by merging smaller towns, including Bang Nang Rom, Kui Buri and Khlong Wan. Prachanta Khiri Khet, meaning "city of mountains with clusters of gems," was established on what is now Koh Kong Island.

Both settlements were intended to serve as strategic outposts. Their position on opposite sides of the gulf gave a geographical shape to the king's vision: two coastal anchors supporting Siam's presence across the water.

Hua Hin belongs to this history through its location in Prachuap Khiri Khan province. The royal naming scheme paired Prachuap Khiri Khan with Prachanta Khiri Khet, while Hua Hin's later fame as a seaside resort made it the more familiar place through which to tell their connected story.

French Expansion Reaches Siam

France's growing influence in Vietnam and Cambodia challenged Siam's coastal ambitions in the late 19th century. French expansion reached territories claimed by Siam, turning competing claims into confrontations and, eventually, agreements that changed the region's borders.

In 1893, French gunboats forced their way up the Chao Phraya River and anchored in Bangkok. Their arrival placed direct pressure on the Siamese government to surrender territory. A dispute over land had reached the kingdom's capital by river.

The Franco-Siamese Treaty, signed on October 3, 1893, required Siam to relinquish large areas east of the Mekong River, including parts of present day Laos and Cambodia. The agreement established new boundaries, but French territorial ambitions continued.

For Siam, these confrontations made the task of defending its claims increasingly difficult. The royal vision of linked coastal settlements now faced a colonial power whose influence was expanding across neighboring territories.

The Territorial Choice of 1904

France proposed a further territorial exchange in 1904. Siam was offered the return of Trat province, an important area on the eastern shore of the Gulf of Thailand, in exchange for giving up additional territories, including Battambang, Siem Reap and Sisophon.

Prachanta Khiri Khet was also lost. Siam had to abandon the settlement now known as Koh Kong, severing the symbolic connection between the two coastal towns. The arrangement weakened the vision of balanced Siamese settlements facing one another across the gulf.

Trat and Koh Kong were part of the same difficult calculation: regaining one valuable coastal area came alongside territorial concessions elsewhere. For the communities involved, decisions made between governments changed which country controlled the places where they lived.

The principal stages unfolded over several decades:

• In the middle of the 19th century, King Rama IV gave Prachuap Khiri Khan and Prachanta Khiri Khet their paired names as part of Siam's coastal strategy.
• In 1893, French gunboats reached Bangkok, and the treaty signed on October 3 required Siam to relinquish territory east of the Mekong.
• In 1904, a further proposed exchange involved the return of Trat and concessions including Battambang, Siem Reap and Sisophon, while Siam also abandoned Prachanta Khiri Khet.

Families Move as Borders Change

Thai residents of Prachanta Khiri Khet faced consequences that went far beyond the settlement's name or its place on a map. They were compelled to leave their homes and resettle in areas that remained under Siamese control, including Ko Kut and Chanthaburi.

Cambodians replaced departing Thai residents over time, changing the region's population. Ethnic Thais now constitute about 25% of Koh Kong's population, leaving the community a minority in a place with a substantial Siamese past.

Family histories preserve connections that political borders disrupted. For descendants of those who lived in Prachanta Khiri Khet, the link with Thailand remains personal, carried through ancestry, memories and cultural practices.

Many Thai descendants in Koh Kong continue to speak a dialect identical to that of Trat province. Surnames and local customs also carry traces of the settlement's earlier identity. Together, these details connect people on the Cambodian side of the border with places and communities in Thailand.

A Language Under Pressure

Cambodian authorities imposed a strict ban on speaking Thai in 1963, with harsh penalties for those caught using the language. The policy formed part of a broader effort to erase Thai cultural influence from the region.

For the Thai community, language was one of the ways its connection to the past survived. A dialect shared with Trat linked everyday speech in Koh Kong to the coast across the border, while family names and inherited stories preserved other parts of that history.

Fragments of Thai heritage endured despite the restrictions. Dialects, surnames and stories passed from one generation to the next continued to hold memories of Prachanta Khiri Khet, even as the community's surroundings and political identity changed.

Koh Kong's experience shows the human reach of territorial decisions. Families faced changes to where they could live and pressure on the language through which they expressed their identity. The survival of customs and memories became part of the settlement's continuing connection with its past.

Hua Hin Becomes a Royal Retreat

Hua Hin developed along a different route. Originally a quiet fishing village, it began its transformation in the early 20th century when members of the Thai royal family discovered its peaceful beaches.

The railway arrived in 1910, making Hua Hin more accessible to visitors from Bangkok and beyond. Hua Hin Railway Station became a distinctive local landmark, combining Victorian and Thai architectural styles.

The Railway Hotel opened in 1922 to serve an upscale clientele. Now known as Centara Grand Beach Resort & Villas Hua Hin, the hotel helped establish the town as a resort destination, giving visitors accommodation alongside the new access provided by rail.

King Rama VII's construction of Klai Kangwon Palace in 1928 marked another turning point. Its name means "Far From Worries," and the palace established Hua Hin as a royal retreat while raising its standing as a premier holiday destination.

Rail travel, hotel accommodation and royal patronage together shaped Hua Hin's early growth. The fishing village became a place people could reach for leisure, stay in comfort and associate with the royal family's coastal life.

A Resort Town Keeps Its Local Traditions

Hua Hin continued to expand in the following decades, attracting visitors from Thailand and overseas. Improved infrastructure, including expanded roads and airport facilities, supported its development into a major tourism destination and a hub for expatriates.

The town retained elements of its fishing village origins alongside the sophistication associated with a royal resort. Its identity developed through both parts of that history, rather than through tourism alone.

Festivals, traditional cuisine and local handicrafts remain ways of celebrating Hua Hin's cultural heritage. The annual Kite Festival and the Vegetarian Festival give visitors a view of traditions that sit alongside the beaches and holiday accommodation.

Historic places also retain a role in the town's public identity. The preservation of Hua Hin Railway Station reflects a commitment to honoring the past, including the transport connection that helped turn a coastal village into a resort.

Koh Kong's Cambodian Present and Thai Roots

Koh Kong is now an integral part of southwestern Cambodia. Its natural surroundings include mangrove forests, rivers and the Cardamom Mountains, giving the province an identity rooted in its landscape as well as its border history.

The Thai community remains a minority, but its influence continues in local speech and cultural practices. The settlement's earlier name, Prachanta Khiri Khet, connects that surviving heritage to the period when Siam sought to anchor its presence on the eastern side of the gulf.

Knowledge of that history is largely confined to academic circles outside the communities with a personal connection to it. For families tracing their ancestry to the former settlement, however, the past survives through stories, language and customs.

Hua Hin and Koh Kong consequently carry their shared history in different ways. Hua Hin's royal buildings, railway heritage and established tourism scene make its development highly visible. Koh Kong's Siamese connections often remain within family memory and local cultural life.

What the Two Towns Reveal About Borders

The Franco-Siamese agreements formed part of a wider colonial reshaping of Southeast Asia. Borders were drawn and redrawn under pressure from outside powers, often with little regard for the communities whose homes and relationships lay across the affected territories.

Siam's concessions were painful but strategic. Giving up territories such as Prachanta Khiri Khet helped the kingdom maintain its independence during an era when many neighboring countries fell under colonial rule.

Families experienced those decisions through displacement, changed surroundings and divided connections. Their histories explain how an agreement between states can continue to affect language, identity and belonging long after a border has been established.

Hua Hin's success as a tourist destination has kept its royal and resort history prominent. Remembering Prachanta Khiri Khet preserves the other side of the coastal pairing, including the experiences of people whose community changed through colonial expansion and territorial concessions.

Articles, documentaries and community initiatives can help document and share these memories. Preserving them supports an understanding of national identity, cultural heritage and the different histories that continue to shape Southeast Asia.

Key Points

• King Rama IV paired the names Prachuap Khiri Khan and Prachanta Khiri Khet to express Siam's coastal unity across the Gulf of Thailand.
• French pressure and territorial agreements in 1893 and 1904 reshaped Siam's borders and broke the connection with Prachanta Khiri Khet, now Koh Kong.
• Thai residents moved to places including Ko Kut and Chanthaburi. Ethnic Thais now account for about 25% of Koh Kong's population.
• A Cambodian ban on speaking Thai in 1963 put cultural identity under pressure, while dialects, surnames and family memories endured.
• Hua Hin's railway arrived in 1910, the Railway Hotel opened in 1922, and Klai Kangwon Palace followed in 1928.
• Hua Hin became a major resort, while Koh Kong developed as part of Cambodia and retained traces of its Thai heritage.