Do You Make An Effort To Learn Thai?

[Oberkommando]

Some poster say we are all guests here, but that is not true. Many Farangs have everything they own here, they live and work here, family, house etc and they do not want to leave. Such a place is called home.

When you've got a stamp in your passport that says NON-IMMIGRANT or TOURIST that's what you are.

Just because you want to be something badly doesn't automatically make it so.

Its worth noting that many foreigners also have an IMMIGRANT Visa (also known as permanent residency)

Many also have Thai passport. (farang that is NOT foreigners)

Not "many".

There are a few thousand farang permanent residents but certainly not many farang immigrants who have been granted Thai citizenship.

There's a quota on how many foreign nationals of each country are given Thai citizenship each year and the numbers are very low indeed for Western countries (in the dozens I believe).

[kiakaha]

There are a few thousand farang permanent residents but certainly not many farang immigrants who have been granted Thai citizenship.

There's a quota on how many foreign nationals of each country are given Thai citizenship each year and the numbers are very low indeed for Western countries (in the dozens I believe).

I'd also suggest that "farang" are the minority percentage of "foreigners" with permanent residency or grants of citizenship

[Ulysses G.]

I know 1 american guy who can speak Thai like a Thai.

When he is on the phone they think he is Thai. So its rubbish that people claim that you can never speak the language as good or close to a Thai.

This guy has only been learning for 3 years too.

sabaijai (the moderator) can speak Thai better than any foreigner you will ever meet, but he's been learning for something like 30 years.

[Neeranam]

I know 1 american guy who can speak Thai like a Thai.

When he is on the phone they think he is Thai. So its rubbish that people claim that you can never speak the language as good or close to a Thai.

This guy has only been learning for 3 years too.

sabaijai (the moderator) can speak Thai better than any foreigner you will ever meet, but he's been learning for something like 30 years.

He is Thai.

[Neeranam]

Not "many".

There are a few thousand farang permanent residents but certainly not many farang immigrants who have been granted Thai citizenship.

There's a quota on how many foreign nationals of each country are given Thai citizenship each year and the numbers are very low indeed for Western countries (in the dozens I believe).

There's also the "farangs" who were born here.

[Oberkommando]

There are a few thousand farang permanent residents but certainly not many farang immigrants who have been granted Thai citizenship.

There's a quota on how many foreign nationals of each country are given Thai citizenship each year and the numbers are very low indeed for Western countries (in the dozens I believe).

I'd also suggest that "farang" are the minority percentage of "foreigners" with permanent residency or grants of citizenship

Annual quotas on permanent residency are 100 per country so it won't be much different, Western or otherwise.

[Neeranam]

There are a few thousand farang permanent residents but certainly not many farang immigrants who have been granted Thai citizenship.

There's a quota on how many foreign nationals of each country are given Thai citizenship each year and the numbers are very low indeed for Western countries (in the dozens I believe).

I'd also suggest that "farang" are the minority percentage of "foreigners" with permanent residency or grants of citizenship

Annual quotas on permanent residency are 100 per country so it won't be much different, Western or otherwise.

Just answer the question -

What do you do to improve your Thai?

If you do nothing, why?

[Oberkommando]

There are a few thousand farang permanent residents but certainly not many farang immigrants who have been granted Thai citizenship.

There's a quota on how many foreign nationals of each country are given Thai citizenship each year and the numbers are very low indeed for Western countries (in the dozens I believe).

I'd also suggest that "farang" are the minority percentage of "foreigners" with permanent residency or grants of citizenship

Annual quotas on permanent residency are 100 per country so it won't be much different, Western or otherwise.

Just answer the question -

What do you do to improve your Thai?

If you do nothing, why?

Mine rarely improves these days. I pick up certain words occasionally, usually slang or from a dialect.

Been speaking, reading and writing it for over 20 years though.

[JetsetBkk]

sabaijai (the moderator) can speak Thai better than any foreigner you will ever meet, but he's been learning for something like 30 years.

He is Thai.

[sanook2me]

What's the fascination with speaking the same as a native Thai?

Do Thais sound like native English speakers when they are pretty much fluent? No....

you can always tell an Asian on the telephone even if they are fluent in English...so i doubt westerners can ever sound like a native Thai too...

The Thais that I know who speak English fluently sound English - they studied in England.

Likewise, if an expat learned his Thai in Thailand, OF COURSE he might sound like a native Thai.

In Edinburgh, it's funny speaking to the Indians and Pakistanis, who, GUESS WHAT, speak with a heavy Edinburgh accent.

Does the new Thai prime minister educated at Eton/Oxford sound English when he is speaking English?

[oevna]

Benjawan Poontang looks and dresses lovely. However, the a sound in baht and mahk and khrap is not a schwa. All the a sounds in Alaska sound nothing like it. Alaska begins and ends with a schwa sound, like the uh in....duh....Now, if a well trained expert in teaching Thai cannot start the alphabet correctly, why continue? In fact, it took a Slovene to show me that the basic vowels of Thai are almost identical to Spanish. A Slovene! And he wrote a book for Slovenes to learn Thai.

Actually, the short "a" vowel sound as described in Benjawan's book is close to a schwa in pronunciation (like the initial "A" in "Alaska", like you said). The words "baht" and "mahk" (บาท and มาก) do not contain this short vowel sound and her book doesn't say that they do; they contain (and are spelled with) a long "aa" vowel -า, which is pronounced like the "a" in "father". The word "khrap" is spelled with the short "a" sound (however, its pronunciation is occasionally drawn out longer in everyday speech, making it sound a bit closer to the long "aa").

To my ears, the pronunciation of the short "a" vowel varies a little bit in actual speech, depending on the words that it appears in. For example, the word for card (as in credit card or phone card) is บัตร and is pronounced very much like the English word "but" (i.e. with a schwa), however the word for whole, entire is ทั้ง and is pronounced "tang," where the "a" is closer to a shorter-duration version of the "a" in "father", and not like the English word "tongue".

No transliteration system will be totally adequate, and this book recommends that students attempt to wean themselves off of it and use the Thai script as soon as possible. It also comes with an audio CD with recordings of native speakers pronouncing the words and sentences in the lessons. However, nothing will beat being immersed in the language by actually living in Thailand, so you are lucky!

[Ulysses G.]

sabaijai (the moderator) can speak Thai better than any foreigner you will ever meet, but he's been learning for something like 30 years.

He is Thai.

Why is he applying for permanant residency then?

[PeaceBlondie]

Benjawan Poontang looks and dresses lovely. However, the a sound in baht and mahk and khrap is not a schwa. All the a sounds in Alaska sound nothing like it. Alaska begins and ends with a schwa sound, like the uh in....duh....Now, if a well trained expert in teaching Thai cannot start the alphabet correctly, why continue? In fact, it took a Slovene to show me that the basic vowels of Thai are almost identical to Spanish. A Slovene! And he wrote a book for Slovenes to learn Thai.

Actually, the short "a" vowel sound as described in Benjawan's book is close to a schwa in pronunciation (like the initial "A" in "Alaska", like you said). The words "baht" and "mahk" (บาท and มาก) do not contain this short vowel sound and her book doesn't say that they do; they contain (and are spelled with) a long "aa" vowel -า, which is pronounced like the "a" in "father". The word "khrap" is spelled with the short "a" sound (however, its pronunciation is occasionally drawn out longer in everyday speech, making it sound a bit closer to the long "aa").

To my ears, the pronunciation of the short "a" vowel varies a little bit in actual speech, depending on the words that it appears in. For example, the word for card (as in credit card or phone card) is บัตร and is pronounced very much like the English word "but" (i.e. with a schwa), however the word for whole, entire is ทั้ง and is pronounced "tang," where the "a" is closer to a shorter-duration version of the "a" in "father", and not like the English word "tongue".

No transliteration system will be totally adequate, and this book recommends that students attempt to wean themselves off of it and use the Thai script as soon as possible. It also comes with an audio CD with recordings of native speakers pronouncing the words and sentences in the lessons. However, nothing will beat being immersed in the language by actually living in Thailand, so you are lucky!

Trying to agree - let's agree that the transliteration system leaves much to be desired. And I had the audio CD's, etc. Thanks, but no thanks. I could not learn it and am stubborn enough after three attempts to refuse to try again. As for the joys of immersion, after six years here, and now living in a Thai village, that does nothing to help. Wonderful country, nearly impossible language.

But to those of you who can learn it, kungradyulashuns.

[Neeranam]

sabaijai (the moderator) can speak Thai better than any foreigner you will ever meet, but he's been learning for something like 30 years.

He is Thai.

Why is he applying for permanant residency then?

Really - I haven't met many foreigners whose real surname is "Sabaijai".

[Neeranam]

Benjawan Poontang looks and dresses lovely. However, the a sound in baht and mahk and khrap is not a schwa. All the a sounds in Alaska sound nothing like it. Alaska begins and ends with a schwa sound, like the uh in....duh....Now, if a well trained expert in teaching Thai cannot start the alphabet correctly, why continue? In fact, it took a Slovene to show me that the basic vowels of Thai are almost identical to Spanish. A Slovene! And he wrote a book for Slovenes to learn Thai.

Actually, the short "a" vowel sound as described in Benjawan's book is close to a schwa in pronunciation (like the initial "A" in "Alaska", like you said). The words "baht" and "mahk" (บาท and มาก) do not contain this short vowel sound and her book doesn't say that they do; they contain (and are spelled with) a long "aa" vowel -า, which is pronounced like the "a" in "father". The word "khrap" is spelled with the short "a" sound (however, its pronunciation is occasionally drawn out longer in everyday speech, making it sound a bit closer to the long "aa").

To my ears, the pronunciation of the short "a" vowel varies a little bit in actual speech, depending on the words that it appears in. For example, the word for card (as in credit card or phone card) is บัตร and is pronounced very much like the English word "but" (i.e. with a schwa), however the word for whole, entire is ทั้ง and is pronounced "tang," where the "a" is closer to a shorter-duration version of the "a" in "father", and not like the English word "tongue".

No transliteration system will be totally adequate, and this book recommends that students attempt to wean themselves off of it and use the Thai script as soon as possible. It also comes with an audio CD with recordings of native speakers pronouncing the words and sentences in the lessons. However, nothing will beat being immersed in the language by actually living in Thailand, so you are lucky!

Trying to agree - let's agree that the transliteration system leaves much to be desired. And I had the audio CD's, etc. Thanks, but no thanks. I could not learn it and am stubborn enough after three attempts to refuse to try again. As for the joys of immersion, after six years here, and now living in a Thai village, that does nothing to help. Wonderful country, nearly impossible language.

But to those of you who can learn it, kungradyulashuns.

Out of all the books I've read, this is one of the best regarding transliteration.

PB, you don't have to do another course but don't give up. Thai is different from other languages I've learned in that it doesn't come in a linear fashion. It seems to come in "moments of clarity", almost like an enlightenment. After 2 years 4 months, I found I could have a conversation. After 4 years, I found I could understand the soaps. After 14 years, I found that I wasn't actuall translating in my head etc. However small your "enlightenment", it will come.

[Neeranam]

What's the fascination with speaking the same as a native Thai?

Do Thais sound like native English speakers when they are pretty much fluent? No....

you can always tell an Asian on the telephone even if they are fluent in English...so i doubt westerners can ever sound like a native Thai too...

The Thais that I know who speak English fluently sound English - they studied in England.

Likewise, if an expat learned his Thai in Thailand, OF COURSE he might sound like a native Thai.

In Edinburgh, it's funny speaking to the Indians and Pakistanis, who, GUESS WHAT, speak with a heavy Edinburgh accent.

Does the new Thai prime minister educated at Eton/Oxford sound English when he is speaking English?

Good point.

[Ulysses G.]

Really - I haven't met many foreigners whose real surname is "Sabaijai".

I think that the sly devil is using an alias!

[sbk]

And for sake of his privacy, let's just leave it at that, shall we?

[Ulysses G.]

Of course!

[Gaccha]

What's the fascination with speaking the same as a native Thai?

Do Thais sound like native English speakers when they are pretty much fluent? No....

you can always tell an Asian on the telephone even if they are fluent in English...so i doubt westerners can ever sound like a native Thai too...

The Thais that I know who speak English fluently sound English - they studied in England.

Likewise, if an expat learned his Thai in Thailand, OF COURSE he might sound like a native Thai.

In Edinburgh, it's funny speaking to the Indians and Pakistanis, who, GUESS WHAT, speak with a heavy Edinburgh accent.

Does the new Thai prime minister educated at Eton/Oxford sound English when he is speaking English?

No he doesn't. He has quite a strong Thai accent. Weird. At least it isn't Geordie (for that is he)