The name "Hat Yai" is a short version of "Ma Hat Yai", meaning big Ma Hat tree. The Prince of Songkla University has its biggest campus in Hat Yai. The city is served by the Hat Yai International Airport.
Hat Yai Railway Station, the largest station is an international railway station in Southern Thailand. It handles 28 passenger trains per day (26 trains served by State Railway of Thailand and 2 trains (Ekspres Langkawi) are served by KTMB of Malaysia. It is also the hub of local trains in Southern Thailand.
Also parallel to the railway is the Asian highway 2. Asian highway 18 begins in Hat Yai and runs south along the eastern coast of the Malay peninsula.
Originally named Khok Sa-Met Choon, Hat Yai was a small village until the southern railway was built there. The junction which connected the town of Songkhla with the main route was originally located in the Utapao area, but was moved to Khok Su-Met Choon in 1922 when the Utapao area turned out to be flood prone. Khok Su-Met Choon had only four residences at that time, but due to the investments of Khun Niphatchinnkhon the railway contractor for the railway connection from Nakhon Si Thammarat to Pattani, it quickly grew into a small town.
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