Geography of Thailand political development of this region. International access through the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand made the south a crossroads for both Theravada Buddhism, centered at Nakhon Si Thammarat, and Islam, especially in the former Pattani Kingdom on the border with Malaysia. Thailand's regions are divided politically into a total of 76 provinces plus Bangkok, which is a special administrative area. Thailand's climate is influenced by monsoon winds that have a seasonal character (the southwest and northeast monsoon). The southwest monsoon, which starts from May until October is characterized by movement of warm, moist air from the Indian Ocean
Provinces of Ethiopia Provinces of Ethiopia Ethiopia was divided into provinces, further subdivided into "awrajja"s or districts, until they were replaced by regions ("kililoch") and chartered cities in 1992. Ethiopia was divided into 12 provinces ("taklai ghizat") by Imperial Ethiopian Government Decree No. 1 of 1942 and later amendments. The 12 provinces were: Bale was created as a 13th province when it was split off from Hararghe in 1960. Eritrea was annexed by Ethiopia and made a 14th province in 1962. When the Derg took power in 1974 they relabeled the provinces as regions ("kifle hager"). By 1981 Addis Ababa had become a