Etymology

Of unknown origin. There are several suggestions regarding the etymology:

1. Chiiang-mài is a wordplay on a Pali name of the city, นพีสี ‎(ná-pii-sǐi). Ná-pii-sǐi is from Pali nava ‎(“nine”) + isi ‎(“ascetic; hermit; priest; etc.”), literally "nine hermits", referring to the nine hermits in the local folklore. But nava also means "new". Hence came chiiang-mài, from เชียง ‎(chiiang, “ascetic; hermit; priest; etc.”) +‎ ใหม่ ‎(mài, “new”), literally "new hermits".
2. Chiiang-mài is from เชียง ‎(chiiang, “fort; fortification; fortress; etc.”) +‎ ใหม่ ‎(mài, “new”); literally "new fort".

Pronunciation

Orthographic	เชียงใหม่ e d͡ʑ ī y ŋ au h m ˋ
Phonemic	เชียง-ไหฺม่ e d͡ʑ ī y ŋ – ai h ̥ m ˋ
Paiboon	chiiang-mài
(Bangkok) IPA(key)	/t͡ɕʰi(ː)a̯ŋ˧.mäj˨˩/
Audio