The second civilization to emerge in what is now Thailand was the Dvaravati civilization, which lasted from the 6^th to the 11^th century AD (possibly later). Most people who lived there were not Thai, but Mon people. They likely lived alongside other racial/ethnic groups like Khmers and Malays. Dvaravati, therefore, was a very diverse civilization.

The Dvaravati people were ruled by kings, but not much is known about them. We do know that the king did not have a lot of power over the entire area that made up the kingdom. Instead, it seems that each city operated somewhat independently. That means, while the people of the Dvaravati kingdom shared a common culture, they were not a strong, united group. Instead, they were more like a collection of city-states, like the Sumerian civilization.

Many languages were probably spoken throughout Dvaravati, but three languages were particularly important. These were the Mon language, Sanskrit, and Pali. The latter two languages were learned through contact with Indians, and were used mostly for religious purposes. Mon would have been spoken by most people living in Dvaravati on a daily basis, while Pali and Sanskrit were used for religious purposes.