Why Thailand Is 543 Years in the Future

In Thailand, it's not 2026. It's 2569. That's not a typo. Thailand counts years in the Buddhist Era, which starts 543 years before the calendar most of the world uses.

You'll see it everywhere, not just at temples: wall calendars, newspapers, government papers. On a Thai ID card, the Thai side shows a birth year starting with 25, while the English side shows 19. Same person, same card, 543 years apart.

Here's something even many Thais don't know. Thailand used to start the new year on 1 April. In 1941 the country switched to 1 January, so the Thai year 2483 only had nine months. January, February and March of that year never happened.

Sri Lanka uses a Buddhist calendar too, but counts one year ahead of Thailand.