Thai society is open to differences of diverse nature and capable of smoothly absorbing such differences without much problem. What enhances this is the fact that the Chinese and the Thais are not much different in terms of physical appearance and culture. Moreover, the first generation of Chinese immigrants opted to have Thai wives. The large numbers of younger generation Chinese with Thai-Chinese blood face no great problem in assimilating into Thai society. The first-generation Chinese who migranted from China either applied for naturalized Thai citizenship or remained aliens, while their offspring born in Thailand enjoy the Thai citizenship and Chinese nationality by birth. The third generation Chinese is Thai in all aspects, i.e. by citizenship and nationality. Referring to themselves as "Thais of Chinese descent", they have full awareness of being Thai and at the same time feel proud of their Chinese ancestry. Thai people of this group mostly have Thai name and family name that still retain the original word or meaning of the ancestors' as part of their Thai family names.
