After Age 60: Is it possible to learn to Read and Speak Thai? And, Is it Worth the Effort?

[JohnBarleycorn]

 

Yes, of course, on both counts.  Absolutely!

 

When I first washed up on these blessed shores, I thought that learning a new language might be pointless, as well as beyond my capabilities, given my meager intellect and poor language skills in written and spoken English.

I almost believed that I should give up before I started.

Thankfully, as soon as I arrived in Thailand, I immediately logged-on to the ThaiVisa website where I found enough inspiration to get me started toward a whole new life, and also a doable roadmap which could lead me to fluency in the Thai language.

Thai is not an easy language, and truthfully, learning Thai is rather more difficult than learning Mandarin, although Thai women are more handsome.

Yet, with a bit of persistence and a love for Thailand, almost any fool, such as I, can learn to communicate in the local language, and can learn to read the beautiful Thai script, too.

The reason I write this post is to tell you, those who are 60 years or over, that it is not impossible to come to Thailand, retire, and be able to learn the local language well enough to make yourself feel part of your new neighborhood in this Asian paradise.

 

=====================

There is no secret to effectively learning the Thai language.

But there are a few tools, and my best suggestions are the following:

aa.  Anki

Anki is a free and open-source flashcard program that utilizes spaced repetition. Spaced repetition has been shown to increase rate of memorization. "Anki" is the Japanese word for "memorization".

I could not have learned to read Thai script without the help of Anki.  Also, the developer of Anki is a really nice person.  Super nice, in fact.

bb. Don’t get a Girlfriend

If you want to learn the language, a GF will just slow down your progress and deplete your resources of time and money, and generally make you tired due to wasted bodily fluids, etc.

cc. Google Translate app

This is a great app, as you know.

dd.  Word in the Hand, Thai Dictionary (ported to Windows, Android and the crabapple platform Apple) ((I will not post a link here, because advertising is against TV rules. But, you can easily find it and download it by searching “word in the hand”))

Word in the Hand is an app that you might not know, but is probably the very best dictionary for both learners of Thai and also Thai people who wish to learn English.  There is really no better dictionary, and so stop looking for a better one, because I guarantee that you will not find anything better.

ee. Paiboon Publishing’s books for learning Thai

These are really the best. I do not know these people, and there is no love found or love lost between us. However, from my long experience, the neophyte learner of Thai will not find a better set of books than these.

 

When I first contemplated the prospect of learning a new language at age 60, I thought that such a proposition was most ridiculous. Would it even be possible, even if I had the will? There is actually very little evidence-based literature concerning the documentation of age 60+ second- or third-language learners learning Thai.

But who gives a <deleted>?

I now know that learning a new language after age 60 is possible, and also quite pleasurable, although not quite as pleasurable as some other things. And according to my experience, learning a new and difficult language is more satisfying than sex.  This, I can say for sure, after experiencing almost 45 years of sex before my 60^th birthday which resulted in no issue.

 

So, this is the reason for this post.

I know that there will be those reading here who wonder if they have what it takes to learn a new language after they settle in paradise.

Although L2 language learning is not something easy, still it is always pleasurable, and I do find that learning Thai is one of the more satisfying parts of my day.  Learning Thai makes me feel more productive, and Thai language has become an important tool which helps me to be a better teacher.

Importantly, being able to speak Thai means that I am more easily able to make friends in Thailand. I have gotten to know so many wonderful people here just through my being able to speak the local language.

Well, OK…I provide this inspirational message, today, with just one caveat:

Learning Thai originally seemed to me to be more difficult than learning Mandarin Chinese.

Yet, for those who have never been confused by needing to learn Chinese, then I am sure that your experience learning Thai will be easier than mine.

Persistence is key.

Never give up, and never give in.

Just keep your flashcards about you at all times, and you will win in the end.

 

Hopefully, one day, you will learn to speak Thai, as did I, most miraculously, before I died.

 

IMPORTANT FINAL NOTE:  When my language study efforts seemed weak and weary, I gained strength and encouragement from my Thai myna-bird friends, and their tapping and gently rapping outside my chamber door drove me ever forward and toward my language-learning goal. Tapping, tapping, rapping and rapping, singing and singing, actually talking and talking, very soon my soul grew stronger while I listened and listened to these miraculous myna birds speaking foreign languages so naturally, evermore.

And now that I have provided you with these encouraging words, as well as my best wishes for you to heed my example and waste not your time, but yet beg you to master the Thai language, now is the time for me to begin napping, napping within my chamber door, and napping again, evermore.

[torturedsole]

Quote

And, is it worth the effort?

Hell yes!  You show the Thais that you're the superior Thai-talking falang then the reverence is only about two rungs down from Buddha.  

[hgma]

the more you learn the more distance will appear between you and GF, phone calls are answered in a different space etc etc

my suggestion is lean basics for polite returns to family and unknown Thai, the less you know what is simmering around you the better off you be. and gives you more time to watch and check the most important issue here......money trails

[AlexRich]

Yes, and no!

[GinBoy2]

I think a lot depends on how your brain is wired, whether or not as you get older you even can pick up another language.

 

I grew up bilingual, so could swap between English and Spanish without even thinking.

 

My first tonal language was Mandarin, which was tough  I think enabled me to get my head around Thai and Lao fairly easily. Curiously Lao came to be easier than Thai, somehow I found it easier to hear the words. 

Somewhat similar to Spanish, where obviously I understand everything in Spain, but the Spanish lisp makes the words sound less clipped to me, which is how I find Thai & Lao

 

Now was understanding Thai & Lao worth it?

 

Well, obviously it made life easier, but it also makes the absurdities more evident.

Just simple act of watching Thai TV 'news' can leave me shaking my head in despair.

 

Oh I forgot to add, the writing bit.

 

Mandarin was really hard to master, and even today after all these years I'm OK in simplified Mandarin, but I really struggle like a small kid with Traditional Mandarin. Thai was OK, it's a alphabet after all

Then you get to the tricky one, Isaan Lao.

This is basically a transliteration of the Lao language using Thai characters, there ain't no dictionary for that, and I can read it when I see it by sounding it out but it's dodgy at best

Edited June 2, 2020 by GinBoy2

[HerbyJFlash]

1 hour ago, hgma said:

the more you learn the more distance will appear between you and GF, phone calls are answered in a different space etc etc

my suggestion is lean basics for polite returns to family and unknown Thai, the less you know what is simmering around you the better off you be. and gives you more time to watch and check the most important issue here......money trails

My dad married a thai Lady 15 years ago and she has lived in the U.K. for most of that.
 

She is wonderful wife and mother and step mother to me. By now it’s obvious she hasn’t got ulterior motives like some Thai women . My dad is broke , in fact she lends him money and there is absolutely nothing left for her once he goes.

 

However, I have noticed that when I show her my newly learnt Thai she almost disapproves or shrugs it off. 
I get the feeling she doesn’t like me knowing it. 

 

[JohnBarleycorn]

24 minutes ago, HerbyJFlash said:

My dad married a thai Lady 15 years ago and she has lived in the U.K. for most of that.
 

She is wonderful wife and mother and step mother to me. By now it’s obvious she hasn’t got ulterior motives like some Thai women . My dad is broke , in fact she lends him money and there is absolutely nothing left for her once he goes.

 

However, I have noticed that when I show her my newly learnt Thai she almost disapproves or shrugs it off. 
I get the feeling she doesn’t like me knowing it. 

 

If you are serious about learning the Thai language, then you should let your mother know.

If she is as wonderful as you say she is, then she will help you learn Thai.

There are very few people in Thailand who are not very willing to help others learn their language.

If you wish to let your mother know that you are serious about learning Thai, then please begin by learning 1000 basic Thai vocabulary words. If you can do this, then I guarantee that your mother will take your Thai-language learning project much more seriously.

[JohnBarleycorn]

37 minutes ago, JohnBarleycorn said:

If you are serious about learning the Thai language, then you should let your mother know.

If she is as wonderful as you say she is, then she will help you learn Thai.

There are very few people in Thailand who are not very willing to help others learn their language.

If you wish to let your mother know that you are serious about learning Thai, then please begin by learning 1000 basic Thai vocabulary words. If you can do this, then I guarantee that your mother will take your Thai-language learning project much more seriously.

More importantly:  Your mother may not feel comfortable or qualified to teach Thai.  And, if this is the case, then please don't press the issue.  Instead, if you wish to learn Thai, then take advantage of the many resources on the internet.

[bkk6060]

No.

Waste of time especially if you travel around the country.  The dialects are different Thais lets say in the north, cannot understand everthing a Bangkok Thai says.

[JohnBarleycorn]

10 minutes ago, bkk6060 said:

No.

Waste of time especially if you travel around the country.  The dialects are different Thais lets say in the north, cannot understand everthing a Bangkok Thai says.

Traveling around Thammasat, how many dialects do you think you might hear.  And yet, most students at Thammasat are from Thailand.

[ezzra]

Basic Thai is a good tool to have so at least you can manage your way around, and if you think that you still have the patience and capabilities to learn than do so, what have you got to lose?...

[cmarshall]

Is ignorance ever better than knowledge? 

 

I started learning Thai at age 60 on my own in the States.  I have continued to study here in Thailand, first at the Intensive Thai program at Chulalongkorn U and subsequently one-on-one at Sumaa Institute.  Yesterday, for example, I had a three-hour online session with my teacher in which we talked about politics, the current situation in the US, the performance of several countries in controlling Covid, Thai expressions, etc.  I was able to express my thoughts throughout, sometimes fluently, sometimes groping for specialist vocabulary.  My teacher taught me several new expressions, which is a current focus of mine: ราดน้ำมันเข้ากองไฟ, หน้าไหว้หลังหลอก (an indispensable phrase which I had learned, but forgotten), and ปล่อยไปตามยถากรรม, discussion of which helped refine my understanding of the niceties of the Thai concept of karma.

 

I am just finishing reading Tongchai Winichakul's "Siam Mapped" in Thai with my teacher which has enriched the academic Thai in my Anki deck.

 

But the frustrations haven't stopped, of course.  The handymen in my building speak with a strong Isaan accent, very clipped.  I can hardly make out a word they say.

 

My Anki deck has 14,271 cards of which I can probably recognize 60% to 70% and cold recall somewhat fewer.  But from Anki I also learned to touch-type Thai nearly as fast as English, which helps a great deal with remembering Thai spellings.  However, I am not fully satisfied with my retention rate with Anki and plan to add memory palace techniques for the stubborn words.

 

Language study is a very fair enterprise.  The more you put in, the more you get out.  

 

In my opinion the best thing about Thailand is the Thai language.  It's too bad so many expats miss out on its unique pleasures.

Edited June 2, 2020 by cmarshall

[tracker]

discovered anki couple months ago. use is every other day. It really is boosting my thai. I know a lot of words, but the connection words to make the thai sentences I do not know. Anki has been a great help in this regard. 

[1FinickyOne]

37 minutes ago, cmarshall said:

It's too bad so many expats miss out on its unique pleasures.

I am relatively fluid conversationally but even after 20 years feel I am scratching the surface of what does give me some insight into the unique Thai personality and outlook on life... my original curiousity here was in finding people [even poor people] who seemed much happier than the middle and upper middle class people that I knew from Western culture... the language does give insight.

 

37 minutes ago, cmarshall said:

ราดน้ำมันเข้ากองไฟ, หน้าไหว้หลังหลอก (an indispensable phrase which I had learned, but forgotten), and ปล่อยไปตามยถากรรม, discussion of which helped refine my understanding of the niceties of the Thai concept of karma.

can you translate these phrases for us? - - - my ability to read is poor - I can sound them out poorly but the meaning is beyond me... thanks C.

Edited June 3, 2020 by kenk24

[AhFarangJa]

I suppose as you get older it depends on the ability to retain information, and for how long, as far as, er, um, sorry, please give me a minute to scroll to the top again to see what the question was..............

[OneMoreFarang]

4 hours ago, hgma said:

the more you learn the more distance will appear between you and GF, phone calls are answered in a different space etc etc

And is the language the problem or your choice of girlfriend?

[Pilotman]

I have commented elsewhere on my motivation, or lack of it, to become fluent in Thai.  However, on the general point of getting older and the ability to learn. I don't think it's the ability that changes, I think it's the prioritisation in one's life that changes. As one gets older and there are many more years behind than in front, how you live your life day to day comes into sharper focus.  How you use each waking hour becomes more obviously important and I  personally would not wish to spend my own precious remaining time learning a language I would hardly use and don't really need every day, even living here. Others will have a different view and that is for them. I have some facility in the language, not much, but its enough not to wish to spend additional time becoming more fluent. I have other interests that keep my brain active and that require intellectual effort.  

[OneMoreFarang]

Is it good to be able to communicate with most people around you? Yes.

Are most people around you Thais with limited knowledge of English? Probably yes.

Lern Thai, at least enough for basic communication. 

[cmarshall]

2 hours ago, tracker said:

discovered anki couple months ago. use is every other day. It really is boosting my thai. I know a lot of words, but the connection words to make the thai sentences I do not know. Anki has been a great help in this regard. 

Connector words are very important, but there isn't a huge number of them.  So, learning them pays a big dividend in expression for not that much effort.  A few years ago I started tagging them in Anki with the tag "connector."  I currently have 123.  I periodically review them filtering on tag:connector.  It's very helpful particularly in specifying the logical relationship between clauses.  My current favorite connector is actually an adverb, not a conjunction: ต่างหาก which means separately, See also: independently, on one's own, on the contrary, far from it."  

[sanuk711]

8 hours ago, JohnBarleycorn said:

If you want to learn the language, a GF will just slow down your progress and deplete your resources of time and money, and generally make you tired due to wasted bodily fluids, etc

That's where I went wrong , by going too Pattaya first........complete waste of my bodily fluids --took me 5 years to be able to say Sawadee.........

[Kadilo]

8 hours ago, bkk6060 said:

No.

Waste of time especially if you travel around the country.  The dialects are different Thais lets say in the north, cannot understand everthing a Bangkok Thai says.

Typically a lazy persons answer. 

Edited June 3, 2020 by Kadilo

[transam]

3 minutes ago, Kadilo said:

Typically a lazy persons answer. 

I must be lazy then.............????...................????

[GinBoy2]

11 hours ago, bkk6060 said:

No.

Waste of time especially if you travel around the country.  The dialects are different Thais lets say in the north, cannot understand everthing a Bangkok Thai says.

No thats totally wrong.

 

We aren't talking dialect we're talking language and I think you have it totally backwards.

 

The Thais in the North and Northeast will speak Lanna & Lao, but they all speak Thai as well. They can all understand  completely what a person in Bangkok is speaking standard Thai is saying.

 

The reverse however is not true. Take a Bangkokian to Khon Kaen and they won't have a clue whats being said to them, until the person changes to Thai 

[BritManToo]

14 hours ago, OneMoreFarang said:

Is it good to be able to communicate with most people around you? Yes.

Are most people around you Thais with limited knowledge of English? Probably yes.

Lern Thai, at least enough for basic communication. 

Why would I want to talk with stupid people?

(Beyond simple commerce)

[BritManToo]

17 hours ago, JohnBarleycorn said:

There are very few people in Thailand who are not very willing to help others learn their language.

I've not met one Thai person who ever encouraged me to learn Thai.

Two of my former 'loves' even tried to mislead me.

 

Not one!

[BritManToo]

14 hours ago, OneMoreFarang said:

And is the language the problem or your choice of girlfriend?

I'll take what I can bed the same night.

Pointless looking any further than that.

Edited June 3, 2020 by BritManToo

[teatime101]

25 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Why would I want to talk with stupid people?

Ask the guy in the mirror.

Edited June 3, 2020 by teatime101

[Sujo]

Too old to bother. Learn other languages when young when your brain is a sponge.

 

no its not even worth it. Get a girl who has the education to speak the international language of english.

 

What happens if you have to leave because of another change in visa, do you then want to learn vietnamese, tagalog etc.

 

If the girl cannot converse enough with you in english then dont bother.

Edited June 3, 2020 by Sujo

[ChipButty]

Learn Thai bye all means but never let them know how much you understand then you can have some fun just sit in the bar say nothing and listen to the gossip 

[pineapple01]

NO