It’s still Bangkok: Thailand quells talk of name change

By DAVID RISING and CHALIDA EKVITTHAYAVECHNUKUL
Associated Press

BANGKOK (AP) — No, English speakers and others using the Roman alphabet aren’t going to have to start calling the Thai capital by its local name, Krung Thep Maha Nakhon, and drop the more familiar “Bangkok.” That’s the message from Thailand’s Royal Society after a seemingly innocuous change in punctuation in official guidance sparked a flurry of speculation that the name was being changed. To put an end to the talk, the Royal Society issued a clarification explaining: “Writing the capital city’s official name with the Roman alphabet can be done both as Krung Thep Maha Nakon and Bangkok.”