Local Healing in Northern Thailand - An Anthropological Study of its Effectiveness

Oct 22, 2026

Local Healing in Northern Thailand examines how local healing practices operate and how their effectiveness is understood within northern Thai communities. Based on anthropological research on local healers and patients, the thesis analyzes disease concepts and treatment principles related to HIV and AIDS, including the role of khang. It also explores how healers and healing spaces undergo meaning transformations, how medicines gain social and moral significance, and how these processes contribute to outcomes and recovery perceptions.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages255

Reading Time10 h 43 min

AccessFree to download

Contents

Chapter I: Introduction

Chapter II: Origin and historical development of Lanna society and its healing tradition

Chapter III: Local healers’ search for a disease theory of and healing methods for HIV and AIDS

Chapter IV: Meaning transformations as a key aspect of healing

Chapter V: Meaning attributions to medicines and their effects

UvA-DARE (Digital Academic Repository) Local healing in northern Thailand: An anthropological study of its effectiveness Tantipidoke, Y. Publication date 2013 Document Version Final published version Link to publication Citation for published version (APA): Tantipidoke, Y. (2013) . Local healing in northern Thailand: An anthropological study of its effectiveness. [Thesis, fully internal, Universiteit van Amsterdam] . General rights It is not permitted to download or to forward/distribute the text or part of it without the consent of the author(s) and/or copyright holder(s), other than for strictly personal, individual use, unless the work is under an open content license (like Creative Commons) . Disclaimer/Complaints regulations If you believe that digital publication of certain material infringes any of your rights or (privacy) interests, please let the Library know, stating your reasons. In case of a legitimate complaint, the Library will make the material inaccessible and/or remove it from the website. Please Ask the Library: [https://uba.uva.nl/en/contact](https://uba.uva.nl/en/contact), or a letter to: Library of the University of Amsterdam, Secretariat, P.O. Box 19185 , 1000 GD Amsterdam, The Netherlands. You will be contacted as soon as possible. UvA-DARE is a service provided by the library of the University of Amsterdam ( [http](https://dare. uva. nl)[s](https://dare. uva. nl)[://dare. uva. nl](https://dare. uva. nl)) Download date:22 Oct 2026 Local Healing in Northern Thailand An Anthropological Study of its Effectiveness Yongsak Tantipidoke ISBN: 978-90-5335-728-6 Cover: Yongsak Tantipidoke Lay-out: Simone Vinke, Ridderprint B.V., Ridderkerk, the Netherlands Printing: Ridderprint B.V., Ridderkerk, the Netherlands © 2013 Yongsak Tantipidoke All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author. Local Healing in Northern Thailand An Anthropological Study of its Effectiveness Academisch Proefschrift ter verkrijging van de graad van doctor aan de Universiteit van Amsterdam op gezag van de Rector Magnificus prof. dr. D. C. van den Boom ten overstaan van een door het college voor promoties ingestelde commissie, in het openbaar te verdedigen in de Agnietenkapel op dinsdag 12 november 2013, te 10 uur door Yongsak Tantipidoke geboren te Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand Promotor: Prof. dr. J.M. Richters Copromotores: Dr. H. C. F. ten Brummelhuis Dr. K. Chuengsatiansup Overige leden: Prof. dr. J.D.M. van der Geest Prof. dr. S.E. Wieringa Prof. dr. H. Beukers Dr. M. Bode Faculteit der Maatschappij-en Gedragswetenschappen Contents List of tables, figures, maps, and illustrations ix List of abbreviations and acronyms x A note on Thai language and spelling x Acknowledgements xi Chapter I: Introduction 1 Situating local healing in Thailand 4 Theoretical concepts 6 Pluralism and local systems of health care 6 The local world and its moral aspects 7 The healing process 9 Effectiveness of healing 10 Traditional medicine in Thailand: From past to present 12 Heritage from the past 12 Revival of traditional Thai medicine 13 Research objective and research questions 17 Research methodology 17 The sampling of local healers and patient 18 Data collecting methods and engagement with the field 20 Data analysis 23 Ethical considerations 24 Outline of the thesis 24 Chapter II: Origin and historical development of Lanna society and its 27 healing tradition The multi-ethnic origin of Lanna society 29 Main characteristics of local communities 33 The heritage of Lanna healing 34 Common beliefs and healing practices in Lanna 36 The introduction and expansion of Western medicine 40 State medical services and the medic

FAQs

What is the main research focus of the thesis?

The thesis focuses on local healing in northern Thailand and evaluates its effectiveness through anthropological analysis of beliefs, healing processes, and outcomes.

How does the study address HIV and AIDS in local healing practice?

It examines local disease theories and treatment principles for HIV and AIDS, including the concept of khang, and how healers approach symptoms and side effects.

What role do meaning transformations play in healing?

The thesis argues that healing effectiveness is linked to how healers and healing spaces transform, including shifts in how AIDS is understood and how emotional distress is transcended.

Oct 22, 2026

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