Pagoda

A Pagoda is a building in buddhist temples mostly in South-East Asia. They are usually bell-shaped towers, but many regional and historical architectural styles lead to many different designs of pagodas.

The name pagoda is actually the name for Burmese building style, however it became the main english term. Other local names include:

• Pagoda - Myanmar (Burma)
• Dagoba - Sri Lanka
• Stupa - India
• Chedi - Thailand
• Prang - Cambodia
• That - Laos
• Tap - Korea

Pagodas are often extensively decorated, most commonly covered with gold, or with ceramics. They often contained alleged relics of Buddha, or were built as burial shrines for kings or nobles.

The biggest pagoda is the Phra Pathom Chedi in Nakhon Pathom, Thailand, with a height of 127 meters.

For further examples, see:

• Daqin Pagoda (China)
• Sanchi (India)