Farangs And Falangs

[bendix]

Why oh why do people say 'falang' when it is obviously 'farang'?

Would a foreigner unable to pronounce the letter 'r' and calls a rabbit a 'wabbit' also write 'wabbit' in a letter or a forum post? No, I think not. So copy this mispronunciation, both verbally and in writing? Why 'falang'?

I have a theory.

The type of farang who uses the word 'falang' has spent too much time around Thai's who can't say 'farang'. Read into that what you will . ..

[Jimjim]

One Thai girl said that some Thais use "l" instead of "r" in Thai because they want to be seen as Chinese-Thai as they view them as hip and rich or something. Not saying it's true, but that was her theory. She was mainly referring to youngsters.

[Payboy]

fa-lang = butt-plug

[lannarebirth]

Unless you're rolling that "r" sound, both pronunciations are incorrect. I find that difficult, though I could do it at one tome when I spoke spanish. I seem to have lost that ability for now. Funnily enough, I find that most Thais find it more wrong to say the "r" sound without rolling it, than they do using the totally wrong "l" sound.

[bowthai]

my thai gf and thai female friends all have no problem pronouncing farang with the r correctly but seem to keep calling me rom instead of rob.my former japanese gf and japanese female friends in hawaii had a real problem with r's and l's though and seemed to keep calling me lob instead of rob.don't care as long as they call me for dinner.

[nidge]

The purpose of language is to make yourself understood to other people. If you were from Newcastle and travelled to London you would find many people failing to understand you even though you were effectively speaking the same language.

If you travelled from the south of england to the north and talked about wanting a 'barf', would people know you actually wanted a bath? Better to change to pronunciation so locals can understand than stick with what works in your area and sound like a tit!

Farang or Falang is not important as long as the people hearing you know what you are talking about.

[Edonista]

Why oh why do people say 'falang' when it is obviously 'farang'?

Would a foreigner unable to pronounce the letter 'r' and calls a rabbit a 'wabbit' also write 'wabbit' in a letter or a forum post? No, I think not. So copy this mispronunciation, both verbally and in writing? Why 'falang'?

I have a theory.

The type of farang who uses the word 'falang' has spent too much time around Thai's who can't say 'farang'. Read into that what you will . ..

What a busy guy you must be to find the time to start topics like these...

[garro]

I think that it is always better if using transliteration to write things down as they appear in Thai script otherwise it will be very confusing as different parts of Thailand have different ways of pronouncing the same word. ฝรั่ง does not have ล so in my opinion it shouldn't be written this way.

In my experience those who like to write 'falang' usually picked up their Thai from a bar.

Edited August 22, 2007 by garro

[meadish_sweetball]

Anyone who's interested in this subject can use the forum search (try the search words farang and pronounced). This topic has been discussed so many times I've lost count.

[bendix]

Anyone who's interested in this subject can use the forum search (try the search words farang and pronounced). This topic has been discussed so many times I've lost count.

Well, pardon me for breathing.

My question isn't about why Thais say it. It's why do farangs say it? There was a subtext to the question and it was ironically aimed at another thread, but sometimes I fear I'm too obtuse for my own good.

[meadish_sweetball]

Thank you for your apology bendix, it really wasn't necessary though.

[Stephen Cleary]

It's just laziness over time which has corrupted the proper pronunciation.

Dialects here in Thailand are distinctively different too just as they are in say in the UK. The 'R' is pronounced much clearer in the South of Thailand as it is in the Central region etc.... I'm not too sure about the Cambodian speaking areas of Isarn but in Cambodia itself the locals have no problem with their 'R'.

Going back to England, the dialects there also enjoy leaving out letters. Take the 'T' sound. It's certainly not uncommon to hear "Wa'er" (water) or "Pre'y" (pretty). Then there is the 'H' - still often left out as in "Otel" (Hotel). Then both letters are missed out in say "Its-so" (It's hot).

Of course English news presenters speak much clearer than most locals, and the same quite simply goes for their Thai counterparts.

Edited August 22, 2007 by Stephen Cleary

[kiakaha]

Why oh why do people say 'falang' when it is obviously 'farang'?

Would a foreigner unable to pronounce the letter 'r' and calls a rabbit a 'wabbit' also write 'wabbit' in a letter or a forum post? No, I think not. So copy this mispronunciation, both verbally and in writing? Why 'falang'?

I have a theory.

The type of farang who uses the word 'falang' has spent too much time around Thai's who can't say 'farang'. Read into that what you will . ..

"The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog"

Spoken by 4 guys : British, American ,Aussie, Kiwi...let me ask you, whose pronunciation is correct ?

[meadish_sweetball]

Why oh why do people say 'falang' when it is obviously 'farang'?

Would a foreigner unable to pronounce the letter 'r' and calls a rabbit a 'wabbit' also write 'wabbit' in a letter or a forum post? No, I think not. So copy this mispronunciation, both verbally and in writing? Why 'falang'?

I have a theory.

The type of farang who uses the word 'falang' has spent too much time around Thai's who can't say 'farang'. Read into that what you will . ..

"The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog"

Spoken by 4 guys : British, American ,Aussie, Kiwi...let me ask you, whose pronunciation is correct ?

The Swede's?

[garro]

Why oh why do people say 'falang' when it is obviously 'farang'?

Would a foreigner unable to pronounce the letter 'r' and calls a rabbit a 'wabbit' also write 'wabbit' in a letter or a forum post? No, I think not. So copy this mispronunciation, both verbally and in writing? Why 'falang'?

I have a theory.

The type of farang who uses the word 'falang' has spent too much time around Thai's who can't say 'farang'. Read into that what you will . ..

"The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog"

Spoken by 4 guys : British, American ,Aussie, Kiwi...let me ask you, whose pronunciation is correct ?

Saying it is one thing but why do people insist on spelling it this way?

I know that those Thais who say 'falang' still spell it correctly unless they are illiterate.

Due to being Irish I say things in a certain way but I don't write the way I speak as this would lead to confusion.

[Aujuba]

Seems like a lot of the Brits I know say falang just off the top of my head. Most Americans I know say farang. A Thai, Thai language teacher told me that I pronounced 'krup' correctly as I included the 'r'. Most Thai people don't seem to include it.

[tutsiwarrior]

I, for one, become confused when white folks choose to pronounce 'farang' with a hard 'R'...

'fa-Rang...'

'who rang?'

'no, not who rang, fa-Rang...'

The type of farang who uses the word 'falang' has spent too much time around Thai's who can't say 'farang'. Read into that what you will . ..

the implication being that thais that are unable to pronounce the 'R' are browned skinned scum that should be rounded up and put into camps in Issan...save BKK for the hi-sos and their fa-Rang synchophants...ethnic cleansing comes to Thailand...shame on you Mr BenDICKS...

In my experience those who like to write 'falang' usually picked up their Thai from a bar.

I learned what little thai I know and its associated pronunciation from my 5-14 y.o. nieces whom I believe have never seen the inside of a bar...

but, seriously...I like 'ol garro and Bendix...if I didn't, well...

[calibanjr.]

Why oh why do people say 'falang' when it is obviously 'farang'?

Would a foreigner unable to pronounce the letter 'r' and calls a rabbit a 'wabbit' also write 'wabbit' in a letter or a forum post? No, I think not. So copy this mispronunciation, both verbally and in writing? Why 'falang'?

I have a theory.

The type of farang who uses the word 'falang' has spent too much time around Thai's who can't say 'farang'. Read into that what you will . ..

"The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog"

Spoken by 4 guys : British, American ,Aussie, Kiwi...let me ask you, whose pronunciation is correct ?

I wouldn't say that any are correct. I do have an opinion about whose pronunciation (especially when it comes to a more complex sentence/dialogue) would be most easily understood by the other 3 (and even more by other English speakers and non-native English speakers). Still wouldn't make it "correct".

Edited August 22, 2007 by calibanjr.

[duratanium]

The purpose of language is to make yourself understood to other people. If you were from Newcastle and travelled to London you would find many people failing to understand you even though you were effectively speaking the same language.

If you travelled from the south of england to the north and talked about wanting a 'barf', would people know you actually wanted a bath? Better to change to pronunciation so locals can understand than stick with what works in your area and sound like a tit!

Farang or Falang is not important as long as the people hearing you know what you are talking about.

Strangeley enough, up North 'barf' is to be sick, puke, etc. So most Southerners would be given a bucket

As to Farang, Falang, I hear both words used by Thais

[Aujuba]

What if we started saying Dieland instead of Thailand or ConDie instead of ConThai.

[Gerontion]

I have a theory.

The type of farang who uses the word 'falang' has spent too much time around Thai's who can't say 'farang'. Read into that what you will . ..

I too have a theory.

The type of falang who thinks that the plural of Thai is 'Thai's' has not spent enough time around a classroom and would - as a consequence - be well advised not to attempt to sneer at others.

But it's only a theory.

Edited August 22, 2007 by Gerontion

[jasreeve17]

My impression was that people who said "falang" were trying to make the point that they were better at Thai...

(But not having enough authority to carry it off.)

You can also pick up other evidence in their posts like; generally superialistic comments with reagrd to their knowledge of Thailand, "I understand real" Thailand type comments, they are the same people who presume to understand Thai culture really well, etc.

I naturally stay away from the "falang" speakers, as they tend to spend their time in Khao San Rd, just after their 2 week meditation trip... and I find them really boring people.

[Losangels]

Thailand's erection instead of election? Like to have a bowl of lice instead of rice ?

[bendix]

I have a theory.

The type of farang who uses the word 'falang' has spent too much time around Thai's who can't say 'farang'. Read into that what you will . ..

I too have a theory.

The type of falang who thinks that the plural of Thai is 'Thai's' has not spent enough time around a classroom and would - as a consequence - be well advised not to attempt to sneer at others.

But it's only a theory.

Hahahaha. Hoisted on my own petard.

But, really, I'm not sneering. I'm genuinely baffled as to why farang people who can quite easily say farang . . ummm . . don't. Instead they say falang.

[Naam]

"The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog"

Spoken by 4 guys : British, American ,Aussie, Kiwi...let me ask you, whose pronunciation is correct ?

zere is only vone korreckt pronuntziashon und zat is ze tchermann vay, namely "ze kvick braun focks tchumps over ze lazy dock".

[londonthai]

Why oh why do people say 'falang' when it is obviously 'farang'?

Would a foreigner unable to pronounce the letter 'r' and calls a rabbit a 'wabbit' also write 'wabbit' in a letter or a forum post? No, I think not. So copy this mispronunciation, both verbally and in writing? Why 'falang'?

I have a theory.

The type of farang who uses the word 'falang' has spent too much time around Thai's who can't say 'farang'. Read into that what you will . ..

see how many spelling mistakes are here on the forum by the native english speakers - and imagine how their spoken language might be.

Still, although annoying sometimes, nobody cares that much - it's a discussion forum, tool for communication, and not a gathering of literary nobel price winners.

[bendix]

Still, although annoying sometimes, nobody cares that much - it's a discussion forum, tool for communication, and not a gathering of literary nobel price winners.

Speak for yourself. I'm saving all my contributions here to be collected into an erudite volume. The Collected Ravings of Bendix.

Seriously though, I think this forum is a fantastic subject for a novel. I must get round to it one day.

[technocracy]

Well here it may just have something to do with little ole'Laos. Since everyone here says falang . . . since it's spelt that way (I would show you but TV doesn't seem to support Lao script) and as a large majority of the North and North East of Thailand (Lao-Issan) used to be part of Lao I would expect here is where the difference comes from.

Since full bloodied Thai - mainly in Bangkok and surrounds is totally unlike anything Issan or Lao. Personally as much as I can understand and follow conversation in Lao and Issan - full bloodied Bangkok Thai I have absolutely no idea just the odd word here and there that'll be the same!

So just maybe people who say falang have been in a different areas of the country than you . . . don't be so quick to judge especially why it appears you have what appears a very limited knowledge of dialects in Thailand.

[Crow Boy]

Well here it may just have something to do with little ole'Laos. Since everyone here says falang . . . since it's spelt that way (I would show you but TV doesn't seem to support Lao script) and as a large majority of the North and North East of Thailand (Lao-Issan) used to be part of Lao I would expect here is where the difference comes from.

Since full bloodied Thai - mainly in Bangkok and surrounds is totally unlike anything Issan or Lao. Personally as much as I can understand and follow conversation in Lao and Issan - full bloodied Bangkok Thai I have absolutely no idea just the odd word here and there that'll be the same!

So just maybe people who say falang have been in a different areas of the country than you . . . don't be so quick to judge especially why it appears you have what appears a very limited knowledge of dialects in Thailand.

Since it is spelt in Thai with a R - rua not L- ling and we are in Thailand not Laos your point is moot. The correct anglicised spelling and pronunciation of the word is farung. Anyone farung pronouncing it falung or falang or any other derivation is incorrect and only showing their ignorance. To continue to argue it is to reinforce that ignorance.

CB

[sceadugenga]

Well here it may just have something to do with little ole'Laos. Since everyone here says falang . . . since it's spelt that way (I would show you but TV doesn't seem to support Lao script) and as a large majority of the North and North East of Thailand (Lao-Issan) used to be part of Lao I would expect here is where the difference comes from.

Since full bloodied Thai - mainly in Bangkok and surrounds is totally unlike anything Issan or Lao. Personally as much as I can understand and follow conversation in Lao and Issan - full bloodied Bangkok Thai I have absolutely no idea just the odd word here and there that'll be the same!

So just maybe people who say falang have been in a different areas of the country than you . . . don't be so quick to judge especially why it appears you have what appears a very limited knowledge of dialects in Thailand.

I was consuming a few Beer Lao... quite a few, one night in Chez Cafe with a couple of long term expats who assured me that the letter R, or the equivalent Lao sound had been banned by the Communist Government because it had "Royal connotations".

Not sure I believed that though.