Factors Affecting The Landscape Changes of Significant Monasteries in Chiang Mai’s Municipality

Abstract

This research’s objective is to study monastery landscape changes and factors that affect the landscape changes of significant monasteries in Chiang Mai’s municipality, namely Wat Chiang Man, Wat Pra Singh, Wat Buppharam (or Wat Suan Dok), Wat Chedi Luang and Wat Photharam (or Wat Ched Yod) that are located in central district of Chiang Mai, have historical values and significance, been registered the archaeological sites of Ministry of Fine Arts and are the tourist attraction of Chiang Mai by studying the aerial photographs, old pictures together with information collected from surveys and semi–structure interviews with the monasteries’ abbots, committees, and elderly in neighboring communities to analyze historical monastery landscape, monastery landscape change and factors affecting monastery landscape changes

The result shows that monastery landscapes have been modified according to changes in land use surrounding the monasteries - from community to commerce - which affected the change of use within. Moreover, there are modified monastery landscape characters with hard materials and additional planted trees decreasing open space in monasteries. The factors affecting monasteries’ landscape changes consist of internal factors; the monasteries’ abbots, committees, Buddhists and nearby urban communities, and three external factors: Firstly, the governmental policy such as National Economic and Social Development Plan and Ministry of Fine Arts. Secondly, factors in relation to tourism such as its promotional encouragement and high competition of religious commerce. And lastly, the social factors generated from urbanization.