100 Things You Didn't Know About Thailand

[teacup]

Not sure if it's true or not, but, drinking (drank, drunk) with my Thai neighbour last night and he mentioned that 'common' Thai people can only have a first name that has three syllables and names with than three syllables is reserved for Royalty. True? I don't know.

no.....nope.....false.....not true

[qwertz]

Here's another, don't know if it's true - the Thais only write the name of people in red ink if they are dead, or they wish them dead.

[Buzby]

Thailand is the only place in the world as far as I know that you can buy a bar-b-qued egg!

[hamishgillan]

Thai people can be stellar, given the chance.

[Payboy]

The Thai reticulated python is Thailand's largest snake (max. 10m long) and the second largest in the world after the anaconda.

i dont know where you got that information, but it seems that source is unaware of the trouser snake species which is known to have its habitat in soi nana, soi cowboy, and other areas of thailand.

Mere worms by comparison.

Anyway, how did Soi Cowboy come by its name?

most common view is that soi cowboy was named after an american soldier called Cowboy Edwards who owned one of the first bars to open there in the 70's...

[agudbuk]

The strength of gravity is higher in Thailand than elsewhere in the world: hence the number of people falling over when leaving bars and doing high dives from balconies.

[dingdongrb]

In Issan when a woman who is single dies all (most) the married women in the local village place a scarecrow at the road in the front of their house. This is to keep the ghost of the dead single woman from returning and stealing their husband.

[Graphics]

If you put all Thai transvestites head-to-toe you would span the globe twice.

Yeah.

[lucky2103]

ง่วงนอน "ngûang non" is the most difficult word for an English speaker to say - it means 'sleepy'.

Thats why the Lao people invented the word "หิ้วนอน".

Dont know how the Brits fare with this, but for me, who speak the south-western German dialekt (no Goethe Institute graduate will understand it for sure), its more easy to learn than Thai.

[qwertz]

There are over 5,000 varieties of rice in Thailand.

[MaiChai]

Instead of darling use tee-rak; then there is no confusion

Lots of Thais go hungry and can't shop on Mondays in the street because its the day the King was born. I don't really understand the cultural significance of this, so if some one will enlighten me, that would be great. Many a time I have wandered out onto the streets of Bangkok to find a food vendor, to not find a single one in sight, and then remember 'its Monday'! Then I would be hungry...

White elephants are sacred in Thailand and cannot be worked, coining the English phase 'a white elephant' meaning not of any use. I can imagine an Englishman coining that one in a bout of anger in Thailands past...

Most Thais don't speak 'official just north of Bangkok Thai' as their first language, but instead learn the official Thai at school and from watching tv. Instead their first language will be 'pasah baan', which is the local language where they live. This explains why in Sukhothai province, where I learn't most of my Thai, everyone understands me, and when I speak Thai in Bangkok, almost no one understands me. A friend advises me that the problem is not me, but that most people I meet in bangkok don't understand or listen for 'official/proper Thai', or they just assume as I am farang I cannot speak Thai and just don't listen.

Thailand is the land of the free. This means everyone does what they want with little regard to rules or laws. Everyone understands this and thus others will respect 'your freedom'. This also means police only exist to extract money from you rather than to enforce the law. Buddhism encourages people to do good deeds for others and anyone who doesn't is basically ostricised from society; hence another reason why you don't need police in Thailand to enforce the law, and if you do something bad, the whole village will know and ignore you.

[qwertz]

Why does Thailand have an independence day if it was never colonised?

[hamishgillan]

Why does Thailand have an independence day if it was never colonised?

Probably national pride!

(And why do all countries have a Victory Monument, does it mean that noone lost?!)

[thaiwalker]

Good facts MaiChai, but this one is in every country

This also means police only exist to extract money from you rather than to enforce the law.

[HYENA]

Anyway, how did Soi Cowboy come by its name?

It is my understanding that after the Viet Nam war, a black American went to BKK to open a go go bar, then with the profits he opened another. Not sure if he wore the cowboy hat or not commonly worn by certain combatants during that time but the area was referred to as Soi Cowboy from then on.

Not sure if it's true but if it is it makes sense (many Americans didn't want to go directly home after the VN war).

[kiakaha]

Why does Thailand have an independence day if it was never colonised?

It doesn't.

The 5th Decemeber is called วันชาติ

It is also the birthday of the current King.

[dr_Pat_Pong]

Prost*tution is illegal here, not many people know this though.

including the prostitutes

[qwertz]

The 2 night life streets in Pat Pong are owned by one family.

[MiG16]

Why does Thailand have an independence day if it was never colonised?

It doesn't.

The 5th Decemeber is called วันชาติ

It is also the birthday of the current King.

theres 10th December which is constitution day, to celebrate when Thailand had its first constitution (and a change from monarchy rule to democracy)

I didnt realise 5th December is called national day. not heard that before actually. are you sure? in fact I dont think I know thailand has anything that is referred to as national day......./ or independence day.

it certainly is the king's birthday.

[kiakaha]

Why does Thailand have an independence day if it was never colonised?

It doesn't.

The 5th Decemeber is called วันชาติ

It is also the birthday of the current King.

theres 10th December which is constitution day, to celebrate when Thailand had its first constitution (and a change from monarchy rule to democracy)

I didnt realise 5th December is called national day. not heard that before actually. are you sure? in fact I dont think I know thailand has anything that is referred to as national day......./ or independence day.

it certainly is the king's birthday.

it is kinda kings bday/national day(วันชาติ)/thai fathers day(วันพ่อ) all rolled into one. I've heard all these Thai terms used to reference the day, usually วันพ่อ more so than วันชาติ though.

[Aikido]

Darkling actually means Monkey's arse! so my wife tells me.

[KamnanT]

The bar girls aren't calling you "Darling" (English)..... they are called you "NaLing" (Thai -> Monkey Face)

You wont find that on Wikipedia !!!

Hmmm....I'm pretty sure they're saying "dtà-ling" (ตะลิง), which is at the other end of the monkey.

[BugJackBaron]

This is one for Nignoy, Bendix and the few Thai BMs - or anyone else who knows things.

I know so little but I'll start eith - only one hill tribe in Thailand has a written language.

I believe it must be the Lisu tribe. The written language was a a recent invention

of Christian missionaries I heard

[eefoo]

'Daak' is also used in Thai as I imagine you have all heard, examples I know are: 'daak pad lom'- lie/sit in front of the fan, 'daak daid'-to sunbathe. mabye I'm just being too imaginative but if a monkey's bum can be refered to as 'daak' then surely the word generally refers to any type of sitting/ laying out/ resting, verb or noun....

That would be a different word - ตาก (dtaak) - meaning to lay out (something) to dry

[dhind1]

The name Thailand means Land of the Free - from World Info Zone

[whimsy]

Sukhumvit is the longest road in Thailand.

[madjbs]

^ No it isn't

[whimsy]

^ No it isn't

Make that 101 things I don't know about Thailand Which road is the longest?

[madjbs]

Phetkasem Road is the longest, stretching from Bangkok all the way to Malaysia.

[who]

The first westerner known to visit Thailand was Marco Polomin 1288. His journal The Travels of Marco Polo describes the wonders of the Sukothai Kingdom but he used the Khmer word for Thailand, Siam.

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