Patani (region)

Patani ปาตานี / ڤتاني
Historical region
View of Krue Se Mosque, an ancient mosque in the Patani region.
Map of the Patani region in the strict sense
Countries	Thailand, Malaysia

Patani (in Malay (derived from Jawi: ڤتاني), also sometimes Patani Raya, or "Greater Patani") is a historical region in the northern part of the Malay peninsula. It includes the southern Thai provinces of Pattani, Yala (Jala), Narathiwat (Menara), and parts of Songkhla (Singgora).

The Patani region has historical affinities with the Singgora (Songkhla), Ligor (Nakhon Si Thammarat), and Lingga (near Surat Thani) sultanates dating back to the time when the Patani Kingdom was a semi-independent Malay sultanate paying tribute to the Siamese kingdoms of Sukhothai and Ayutthaya. After Ayutthaya fell to the Burmese in 1767, the Sultanate of Patani gained full independence, but under King Rama I, it again came under Siam's control.

In recent years a secessionist movement has sought the establishment of a Malay Islamic state, Patani Darussalam, encompassing the three southern Thai provinces. This campaign has taken a particularly violent turn after 2001, resulting in an intractable insurgency problem across southern Thailand and the imposition of martial law.

In Thailand's southernmost provinces, "Patani" has become a controversial term used to refer to the area encompassing the provinces of Pattani (with two t's), Yala, Narathiwat, and parts of Songkhla, mostly inhabited by Malay Muslims. When written in Thai, "Patani" (ปาตานี) "paa-ta-ni" sounds markedly different from "Pattani" (ปัตตานี) "pat-ta-ni". Malays say P’tani (ปตานี), pronounced as "pa-ta-ni" with a very brief first syllable and stress on the second syllable. "P'tani", the original Malay word for the region, has been used for a long time and is usually never written in Thai. So while technically being the same word as "P'tani", "Patani" has a certain newness and a separatist political connotation.