Learning to speak the Thai Language

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About the Thai Language

Thai is the national and official language of Thailand and the mother tongue of the Thai people, Thailand's dominant ethnic group. Thai is a member of the Tai group of the Kradai language family. The Kradai languages are thought to have originated in what is now southern China, and are linked to the Austroasiatic, Austronesian, or Sino-Tibetan language families. Many words in Thai are borrowed from Pali, Sanskrit and Old Khmer. It is a tonal and analytic language. Thai also has a complex orthography and relational markers. Thai is mutually intelligible with Lao.

Standard Thai, also known as Central Thai or Siamese, is the official language of Thailand, spoken by about 65 million people (1990) including speakers of Bangkok Thai (although the latter is sometimes considered as a separate dialect). Khorat Thai is spoken by about 400,000 (1984) in Nakhon Ratchasima; it occupies a linguistic position somewhere between Central Thai and the Isan on a dialect continuum, and may be considered a variant or dialect of either. A majority of the people in the Isan region of Thailand speak a dialect of the Lao language, which has influenced the Central Thai dialect.[citation needed]

In addition to Standard Thai, Thailand is home to other related Tai languages, including:

* Isan (Northeastern Thai), the language of the Isan region of Thailand, a socio-culturally distinct Thai-Lao hybrid dialect which is written with the Thai alphabet. It is spoken by about 15 million people (1983).
* Nyaw language, spoken mostly in Nakhon Phanom Province, Sakhon Nakhon Province, Udon Thani Province of Northeast Thailand.
* Galung language, spoken in Nakhon Phanom Province of Northeast Thailand.
* Lü (Tai Lue, Dai), spoken by about 78,000 (1993) in northern Thailand.
* Northern Thai (Phasa Nuea, Lanna, Kam Mueang, or Thai Yuan), spoken by about 6 million (1983) in the formerly independent kingdom of Lanna (Chiang Mai).
* Phuan, spoken by an unknown number of people in central Thailand, Isan and Northern Laos.
* Phu Thai, spoken by about 156,000 around Nakhon Phanom Province (1993).
* Shan (Thai Luang, Tai Long, Thai Yai), spoken by about 56,000 in north-west Thailand along the border with the Shan States of Burma (1993).
* Song, spoken by about 20,000 to 30,000 in central and northern Thailand (1982).
* Southern Thai (Phasa Tai), spoken about 5 million (1990).
* Thai Dam, spoken by about 20,000 (1991) in Isan and Saraburi Province.

Many of these languages are spoken by larger numbers outside of Thailand.Most speakers of dialects and minority languages speak Central Thai as well, since it is the language used in schools and universities all across the kingdom.

Numerous languages not related to Thai are spoken within Thailand by ethnic minority hill tribespeople. These languages include Hmong-Mien (Yao), Karen, Lisu, and others.

Standard Thai is composed of several distinct registers, forms for different social contexts:

* Street Thai : informal, without polite terms of address, as used between close relatives and friends.
* Elegant Thai : official and written version, includes respectful terms of address; used in simplified form in newspapers.
* Rhetorical Thai: used for public speaking.
* Religious Thai: used when discussing Buddhism or addressing monks.
* Royal Thai used when addressing members of the royal family or describing their activities.

Most of the Thais can speak and understand all of these contexts. Street and Elegant are the basis of all conversations;] rhetorical, religious and royal Thai are taught in schools as the national curriculum.

There is no universal standard for transcribing Thai into the Latin alphabet. For example, the name of King Rama IX, the present monarch, is transcribed variously as Bhumibol, Phumiphon, phuuM miH phohnM, or many other versions. Guide books, text books and dictionaries may each follow different systems. For this reason, most language courses recommend that learners master the Thai alphabet.

What comes closest to a standard is the Royal Thai General System of Transcription (RTGS), published by the Thai Royal Institute. This system is increasingly used in Thailand by central and local governments,especially for road signs. Its main drawbacks are that it does not indicate tone or vowel length. It is not possible to reconstruct the Thai spelling from the RTGS transcriptions.

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