Tambon

Tambon (Thai: ตำบล, pronounced [tām.bōn]) is a local governmental unit in Thailand. Below district (amphoe) and province (changwat), they form the third administrative subdivision level. As of 2016^[update] there were 7,255 tambons,^[1][2] not including the 180 khwaeng of Bangkok, which are set at the same administrative level, thus every district contains eight to ten tambon. Tambon is usually translated as "township" or "subdistrict" in English — the latter is the recommended translation,^[3] though also often used for king amphoe, the designation for a subdistrict acting as a branch (Thai: king) of the parent district. Tambon are further subdivided into 74,944 villages (muban) as of 2008.^[4] Tambon within cities or towns are not subdivided into villages, but may have less formal communities called chumchon (ชุมชน) that may be formed into community associations. The average area of a subdistrict in Thailand is about 70.72 km² (27.31 sq mi), while its average population of a subdistrict in Thailand is about 9,637 people.