About National Elephant Day
National Elephant Day or Chang Thai Day was created by the Elephant Coordination Committee and the National Identity Committee of the Prime Minister's Secretariat to raise people's awareness of the importance of elephant conservation. Elephants have played an important role in Thai history and culture.
March 13th was declared National Elephant Day, as on this day the white elephant was chosen by the Royal Forest Department as the national animal and symbol of Thailand. This decision was approved by the Cabinet and announced in a Royal Decree in May 1998.
National Elephant Day has three main purposes. The first is to show how significant elephants are to Thailand. The second is to demonstrate how Thai culture depends on elephants. Lastly, this annual celebration promotes awareness about protecting and conserving the Thai elephant population and its habitats.
The elephant found in Thailand is the Indian elephant (Elephas maximus indicus), a subspecies of the Asian elephant. In the early-1900s there were an estimated 100,000 captive elephants in Thailand.
