Songkhla Old Town Community in Globalization

Abstract

The objective of this article is to study the Songkhla old town community during globalization. It was found that the old town community has a history dating back more than 200 years. There are various ancient architectural buildings lining both sides of Nakorn Nok Road, Nakorn Nai Road, and Nang Ngam Road. On Nakorn Nok Road, which is located by the side of the lake, had significant port facilities for cargo transportation, and there was a large rice mill known as "Hub Ho Hin" which people call "Red Mill." For the Nang Ngam Road, it was originally known as 'Kao Hong Road' because in the old days, there were only nine row houses along this road. This road is like the heart of the Songkhla old town community. In the past, there was trade with China, making this old town area an economic hub due to its convenient access to maritime transportation. However, as transportation shifted from water to land and with the development of Hat Yai as the economic center of the southern region, the old town community of Songkhla began to decline. People gradually migrated to conduct trade in Hat Yai, leaving the old houses and buildings abandoned and undeveloped until the year 2552 (2009 CE). A group of individuals who had a strong sense of local identity and wanted to revitalize the old town decided to bring it back to life. They developed and transformed the community to keep up with the modern era under the name "People Who Love Songkhla." They collectively used modern technology to gather and communicate information about community activities through online social media platforms such as Facebook and Line. This development of the old town community in Songkhla has led to rapid changes in culture, society, economics, and politics, making it an important cultural tourism destination in the southern region.