The Journal of the Siam Society Vol. LXIV, Part 1-2, 1976 - Khamkoo

HEVIEW AHTICLE 357
basins, or at least Szechuan and Hupei. Manit apparently accepts this
version, but not the opinion that the Thai only moved into their present
area in the "16th-18th centuries of the Buddhist era", that is 7-900 years
ago. According to him, the Thai occupied the river valleys of /aem don
the "golden peninsula", at least 2000 years ago, and TS is proof of it.6 8
He continues his argument with reference to Mr. Wolfram E.
Berbard's [sic] A History of China as a source for information that China
was only unified under Ch'in Shih Huang Ti in the 3rd century B.C. and
that earlier it bad consisted of various tribes (gotra), whom Manit assumes
to have been mostly non-Chinese. He then asks,