Ladyboys and Good Sons: Contemporary Mediums and Gender Identity in
Northern Thai Trance Dance

http://international.ucla.edu/asia/events/showevent.asp?eventid=6920
11/1/2008


Lanna (Northern Thai) culture is largely Animist in origin. Belief systems and rituals that go back many centuries and refer to humans' relationship with and dependence on spirits of the dead are found in various forms throughout the region. Chief among these is the Chiang Mai region, including the cities and surrounding areas of Chiang Mai, Lamphun, and Lampang. Each year in the late Spring and early Summer months leading up to the Buddhist Lent, dozens of trance dance ceremonies take place that pay homage to royal, working class, and hero spirits within family, clan, and social lineages.