Sword/knife manufacture has historically been a centralized industry in Burma/Thailand/Yunnan, with dominant manufacturing centers exporting their blades (mounted or unmounted) throughout the area. There was always a village industry, but this produced cruder blades, or focused on repair. Such smiths were often part time (at least in Burma according turn of the century English sources), and worked on everything from dha to cook pots.
I would expect that in recent times it has become even more so.
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