Mae Sot

Mae Sot belongs to the western Thai frontier near the Moei River, where valleys and mountain routes connected the Chao Phraya world with Burma. Farming settlements supplied food, while forest products and trade linked communities with different languages and political traditions. Paths through the hills gave local people an important role as guides, carriers and intermediaries between larger regional centres.

The wider frontier saw rivalry between Siamese and Burmese powers as well as movement and exchange across the hills. Some accounts identify Mae Sot with the older town of Mueang Chot.