Why Thailand has so many “ladyboys” – a summary drawn from lived experience

A 700-year-old safety valve, not a progressive paradise
Thailand’s kathoey tradition is at least seven centuries old. “Countries like Thailand have had third genders for at least 700 years … seen as a third sex, being one body containing two souls.” – Affectionate_Act7962 source [citation:c325b1b7-e1a1-4bef-9c87-f2e50a6c28c0] Far from signalling open-mindedness, this role is a conservative mechanism that funnels feminine or gay males into a culturally sanctioned niche so that the wider patriarchal order can stay intact. “The ‘third gender’ is not a sign of progressive attitudes, but conservative attitudes to gender.” – Affectionate_Act7962 source [citation:0cfccb10-a983-40ce-8389-cf66c6ae8921]

Strict gender boxes leave little middle ground
In Thai society the choice is stark: conform to rigid male roles or be pushed into the kathoey box. “Outside the assigned ‘third gender’ (never called women), there is very little room for gender expression. It’s either stay in a small box or be kicked out into another box.” – Affectionate_Act7962 source [citation:727b8dbe-b491-4ff6-9484-69a962d9c5f2] Because homosexuality is heavily stigmatised, transitioning into the kathoey role is often viewed as preferable to living as a gay man.

Foreign demand fuels the visible numbers
Sex tourism creates a ready market. “Foreign demand for ladyboys … is very specifically about the dick on a woman … ladyboys in general are considered more direct, less emotional, more into quick and dirty sex, more willing to do kinks.” – Affectionate_Act7962 source [citation:84a20eb8-2444-4ff9-95b4-b22febdcc492] Economic hardship pushes many kathoey into entertainment or sex work, making the population highly visible.

A non-medical coping path that still limits freedom
The tradition offers a culturally recognised way to live with gender dysphoria without necessarily accessing hormones or surgery, yet it does so by locking individuals into a narrow stereotype—artist, dancer, sex worker—rather than allowing broad gender non-conformity. “Transgender women … become artists, particularly dancers who perform in weddings. In practice, many now resort to prostitution to make a living due to poverty.” – Mandarinette source [citation:7affdb25-6cc5-47fb-b08e-cd0c387a4e5d]

Take-away
Thailand’s “ladyboys” are numerous because centuries-old social rules, economic pressures and foreign demand converge to create a clearly labelled, tightly bounded space for gender non-conforming males. The tradition survives not as proof of liberal values, but as a culturally sanctioned escape hatch within an otherwise conservative, patriarchal system.