What Is The Reality Of The 'farang' Word?

[fisherd3]

MyThai lady quite often says 'You farang me Thai' in making a point usually about our contrasts.

According to the Thaivisa explanation of the farang word this could mean she is lacking in respect for me.

Any comments?

[the scouser]

"Farang" is not perjorative. There has been some discussion about the word's origins. Some people say it is derived from "francais", the French being active in colonising most of SE Asia and others suggesting that it's base is in the Arabic "ferrengi" which means foreigner. I am no etymologist so take your pick.

Scouse.

[PvtDick]

The word "farang" in and of itself is not a perjorative.

[siamruby]

No,as a Thai myself I can tell you that it 's just a Thai word which means white European person,we don't call African or Indian who live in Europe farang.

Think the origin of the word is from foreigner and the Thais love shorten up the word so it became foreign and then said it so many times during the years it became farang..well that what I learnt from school

[rod_kalashnikov]

 

[Limbo]

As you say, it's a local adaptation of "foreign". She said the word was colloquially akin to the Chinese "gwai loh" or Japanese "gai jin" ... used to categorize fair-skinned foreigners with round eyes. (This is probably true ... although I have fair skin, I have the hooded eyelids of my Mongol ancestors ... and I've been politely told/asked many times over the years "You no farang" or "You half farang".)

"One of the very few Thais I met in the early 1960s who spoke excellent English told me that "farang" isn't even a Thai word".

Wrote mr. Kalashnikov, of who we still don't know if he was (and is) family of a very famous Russian engineer or just an arms-fanatic with a short organ who seeks for compensation. A short 'rod' so to say.

I must admit that I am surprised and overwhelmed to be able to share mr. Kalashnikovs experiences of forty years ago. And I have the greatest admiration that he recalls things over such a long time period.

It is a fact that a 'long time' memory is still working reasonable when the 'short term' memory starts to malfunction. That's clearly supported by mr. Kalashnikovs postings. Thank you very much mr. Kalashnikov, for your postings.

Sometimes they even don't relate to your state of mind but actually to Thailand (time for a smiley .).

Time didn't stand still and wisdom developed.

At the moment the most accepted explanation is the reference to the French 'tall men' of King Rama IX, comparable to the 'lange Kerle' of Ludwig, who were his show-guards. Many Thai loan-words reflect the Thai pronunciation of written or transcribed European words more than their sounds.

That was the first time that Europeans were seen as a group.

The second explanation refers to an earlier event, the entrance of the Faranghi in Thailand. Also they came in a big group.

They are siad to have come from the Eufrat-Tigris area, one of the oldest civilisations in the world (at the moment occupated by usurpators).

And by the way: some people in Europe and America are called 'mongolians' because of their hooded eyelids. Not all of them actually have mongol ancestors.

You confuse us, dear mr. Rod Kalashnikov, are you Russian or Mongolian?

And what kind of Mongolian if that might be the answer?

[Limbo]

Oh my dear, poor mr. Rod Kalshnikov, I hope mongolians have a sense of humour.

[Richard W]

I'm convinced that the origin of 'farang' is indeed the obvious one - it's the word 'Frank' (> Arabic Faranji), whose meaning expands as you go East. Thus while Greeks will call Western Europeans 'Franks' (starting by the time of the First Crusade), Greeks themselves are farangs when they come to Thailand. The best summary of the facts I could quickly find is at How widesporead is 'farang'?.

The words France, French, français and Franconia are all derivatives of Frank.

It's a cultural term as well as a racial term, though the tension may be relieved by expressions such as, literally, 'black farang', for American blacks.

[siamruby]

Watch out!! When I was a kid the history lesson in Thai school about the origin of Thai people alway started with.. The Thais came from the Altile moutain ..{not sure if i spell that right...} in...wait for it.Mongolia!!! then we all traveled down all the way to the Indo china cape and some of us stopped and stayed during the way down and some travelled right all the way to where Thailand is nowaday. So I wonder if it will be any comfort to Rod to know that we Thais are all from the same area!!