Pidgeon English

[iwad2010]

I no like, when I hear Enlish man speak no good.

You live England come Thailand and talk me in stupid pidgeon. I no like.......I tell reason why.......

BECAUSE I'M ENGLISH AND SO ARE YOU.

I UNDERSTAND ENGLISH.

STOP DOING IT.

[ukrules]

It is funny when these idiots speak in 'pidgeon' English to fellow English speakers.

[sanook2me]

When l went back to the UK last year l was doing it to my mates, think it's habit. I mean doing it every day in LOS. Idiot, perhaps.

yup, same same here..

My family back home in the UK always say..why you speaking like that..idjut..."we spake English doe we" in their best Birmingham twang !!

An old Thai g/f who met them and could speak English and even studied in London couldn't understand my sisters speaking local lingo !

defo, from speaking stupid yoda everyday makes it automatic to start with...

I remember after been away for 4 years solid then returning to England and walking to the corner shop to buy some stuff i was thinking in Thai how to ask for eggs, sausage and bacon !!

[Slip]

Why you so serious???

[iwad2010]

I visited an English Language school in BKK.

The teacher (English guy) was supposed to be one of their 'top boys'.

I listened in...expecting to hear a master class from this language expert..........

he said " today we have farang come from England.

He come long way. He want live here....etc etc etc.

I thought, 'and this guys teaching English'!!!!

Chicken or the egg

Chicken or the egg!!!!

[centrico]

You problem what I speak same same way?

[Slip]

I visited an English Language school in BKK.

The teacher (English guy) was supposed to be one of their 'top boys'.

I listened in...expecting to hear a master class from this language expert..........

he said " today we have farang come from England.

He come long way. He want live here....etc etc etc.

I thought, 'and this guys teaching English'!!!!

Chicken or the egg

Chicken or the egg!!!!

This is a problem. Your 'top boy' teacher was making a serious pedagogical mistake. He has probably been here a long time. Anyone can slip into this hole when they speak mostly to Thais rather than English speakers. Perhaps it wasn't a very good language school, or he wasn't really a very good teacher. Regardless, all teachers who have lived in this country need to actively guard against this happening IMO. It sneaks up on you.

[Clearpresentmoment]

no like people england stay thailand speak same same people thai learn speak england not same me stay here long time speak Thai same same I speak england good long time nah?

[Dont Panic]

What really makes me chuckle is when this form of English is used when speaking to their kids.

[Geekfreaklover]

Don't hear it too often nowadays, but used to get a lot of sex tourists/backpackers not only speaking yoda, but also employing a high pitched 'Asian voice,' to help get their point across. Cracks me up everytime.

[MSingh]

What really makes me chuckle is when this form of English is used when speaking to their kids.

It is one of my biggest Pet hates, i despise it..

The way people talk to Kids using that pathetic form of English is shameful, i pull people daily when talking to my Daughter & it drives me nuts..

But something that is far worse is Mum speaking it to the Kid ( " Him say " etc etc ), & Dad speaking horrifc Thai which i seem to see a lot for some crazy reason..

How on Earth is the Kid meant to learn a Language properly when that sort of sh*t is going on & being pumped into his/her poor little brain on a daily basis ??

[britmaveric]

Well however one gets their point across though do find it funny when someone tries to speak the same way to a native English speaker.

[h90]

me think same same

[anothertorres]

people are angry tonight. stop hanging around people who annoy you. can do!

[galvheim]

They are simply translating Thai word-by-word in their head. Thai language really not have all those things that we use in English. One word in Thai doesnt change in time as it do in our languages, and the adjective has only one grade of it. So a word like "good" will not change to "better", "best" in Thai as in English. Also the adjective is put behind the subjective in Thai. So its not a "red car" but "car red" in Thai.

Understanding their language will help you understand their english a lot better too, and in the end you can even learn Thai from the way they speak english.

Their language is still very advanced, altthough I was lead to believe by a man that had lived here for 25 years that it was really useless in most circumstances.

If you want your kid to master English there is really no other way then taking it up to english-speaking country. Period.

THe real problem is people form england thinking that they ought to be understood by pseaking english in their native dialect and then getting pissed off because nobody seem to understand english in this country. Thats even more sad IMHO.

[sicktodeathofit]

Whats with this stupid word stretched out at the end of the sentence I keep hearing all about?

I like you suuuuuurrrrrreeee

I come back suuuuuurrrreee

I big money suuuuureeeeeee

Yeah right, jog on you lemon.

[galvheim]

Today me and my girlfriend was talking to an older lady in the city. They where joing a lot about how farangs did similar mistakes when they tried to speak Thai, so it goes both ways. One example was the man trying to tell the girl that she was "suai mak mak" but since the tone was wrong it was actually a great insult to her. They also joked about an english guy who did not know the difference about "ngoo" and "noo". So when he was trying to tell his girlfriend about the snake he was seeing in their house, she didn't really care too much and asked why he was screaming over a seeing a mouse.

[Gluestick]

I refuse to speak in this "stupid English." For one, it turns my English into crap. For two, the student/person I am talking to thinks that I am speaking English properly. I always speak English properly to anyone I talk to. I hope that it will show them to speak English properly without dumbing down the language. Kids learn English because you talk to them normally. Talking to a person like they are retarded only reinforces the retardedness. Stop talking to people with retarded English because all you do is reinforce retarded English.

[britmaveric]

^well if they are a student then you are correct, but if you are trying to get a point across in a simple fashion pidgeon is very effective.

[tuky]

^well if they are a student then you are correct, but if you are trying to get a point across in a simple fashion pidgeon is very effective.

It is true Brit, sometimes broken english is unavoidable.

It works the other way too, both Thai and Bahasa Indo speaking people are a lot easier to understand if they "dumb" their sentences down a touch too.

If I had spoken to my ex-wife in my normal speaking english she couldn't understand me, so I just spoke to her like she is a retard...funny how mud sticks eh?

[britmaveric]

I agree Tuky - you bring your language down to the level that can be easily understood. As language comprehension increases you match it. How do babies learn? Short noun/verb sentences and repetition.

[laphroaig]

This isn't pidgin english, just crap english. Pidgin english is still widely used in South Pacific and was a language developed for traders

[iwad2010]

This isn't pidgin english, just crap english. Pidgin english is still widely used in South Pacific and was a language developed for traders

There are many forms and claims to pidgin. The origins are uncertain.

However, the basis was in communication between to groups with no common original language.

There is defiantly the root of pidgin working. Take the word 'farang' pidgin I think.

Poor, or base English in Thailand is often mixed with poorly spoken Thai words. Inevitably, a language, patois, creole will develop.

[BigWheelMan]

I’ve had this done to me in the past.

Now, I’m from Essex in England, white and English through and through.

Yet some Farangs I have met on my travels have spoken to me as if I have just travelled into town from a hill tribe village up in the mountains.

When this happens I usually reply; white man speak with forked tongue, why you speak me like that? Bledin el, are you think I’m idiot or something?

Another thing with some Farangs that really peeves me off:

I’m all for Farangs that can speak Thai. Good on em I say. But it`s when they can speak Thai and want everyone to know it, that really makes me want to snack them over the head with the heal of my boot.

Last year I was waiting in a queue at my bank. There was this loud mouthed Yank standing behind me. He first began speaking loudly into his mobile phone in Yankish, then the conversation turned into Thai. The whole bank could hear his conversation, he was constantly looking around with this stupid, look at me, aren’t I good smirky grin on his face.

Being as this moron was standing behind me, his deep loud piecing voice was droning right into my head. The urge to smack him in the face and smash his phone was over whelming.

I’ve witnessed this many times in shops and in public places.

I`m proud of those Farangs who can speak fluent Thai, but there is no need to try and impress us. Speaking normally and without that annoying in your face tone, will have a better impressive effort and hold more credibility.

Edited April 30, 2010 by BigWheelMan

[Changian]

I know an aging English guy, must be in his early 70s who has gone 'Full Pidgin' and doesn't appear to be able to get his head around using verb forms, not talking about himself in the third person and being able to form sentences anymore. He has been living in some desolate part of Isaan with his farmer's daughter for the best part of 20 years and talks in a mix of broken English and Bargirl-ese Thai.

One morning when he was staying here I remember him telling me something on the lines of: "Lek go talad gin breakfast, David mai bai, have coffee" when i asked if he wanted any breakfast. Not too bad, but when it was complete with gesticulating hands indicating she had gone somewhere and he would stay and drink something you knew he had to get out of the house more before his brain ceased to work entirely.

[mca]

"Lek go talad gin breakfast, David mai bai, have coffee"

That sort of stuff does me. I was in a supermarket about a month ago and there was a western guy with a Thai wife and a little boy of about 8. Mixed race so obviously his judging by their facial similarity. The bloke said to the boy " Dad go hong nam. You want go?"

Give me strength.

Talking pidgin to your own kid?

[Sisaketmike]

"Lek go talad gin breakfast, David mai bai, have coffee"

That sort of stuff does me. I was in a supermarket about a month ago and there was a western guy with a Thai wife and a little boy of about 8. Mixed race so obviously his judging by their facial similarity. The bloke said to the boy " Dad go hong nam. You want go?"

Give me strength.

Talking pidgin to your own kid?

Dad go Hong Naam. You want go? Dad go you no go Mae mohho you ching chong rot.

Obviously a strange situation, when people act like this. It shows a lot how educated this dad was. Is it possible that the guy wasn't from an English speaking country, and the boy couldn't speak Suaheli?

Edited May 1, 2010 by Sisaketmike

[Donnyboy]

Whats with this stupid word stretched out at the end of the sentence I keep hearing all about?

I like you suuuuuurrrrrreeee

I come back suuuuuurrrreee

I big money suuuuureeeeeee

Yeah right, jog on you lemon.

no different to some americian slang, yo dawg watsuuuuuuuuuuuupp

[Sisaketmike]

I've had this done to me in the past.

Now, I'm from Essex in England, white and English through and through.

Yet some Farangs I have met on my travels have spoken to me as if I have just travelled into town from a hill tribe village up in the mountains.

When this happens I usually reply; white man speak with forked tongue, why you speak me like that? Bledin el, are you think I'm idiot or something?

Another thing with some Farangs that really peeves me off:

I'm all for Farangs that can speak Thai. Good on em I say. But it`s when they can speak Thai and want everyone to know it, that really makes me want to snack them over the head with the heal of my boot.

Last year I was waiting in a queue at my bank. There was this loud mouthed Yank standing behind me. He first began speaking loudly into his mobile phone in Yankish, then the conversation turned into Thai. The whole bank could hear his conversation, he was constantly looking around with this stupid, look at me, aren't I good smirky grin on his face.

Being as this moron was standing behind me, his deep loud piecing voice was droning right into my head. The urge to smack him in the face and smash his phone was over whelming.

I've witnessed this many times in shops and in public places.

I`m proud of those Farangs who can speak fluent Thai, but there is no need to try and impress us. Speaking normally and without that annoying in your face tone, will have a better impressive effort and hold more credibility.

Please use some high heels, not your boots. And you'll be the headknocker.......

[Sisaketmike]

I visited an English Language school in BKK.

The teacher (English guy) was supposed to be one of their 'top boys'.

I listened in...expecting to hear a master class from this language expert..........

he said " today we have farang come from England.

He come long way. He want live here....etc etc etc.

I thought, 'and this guys teaching English'!!!!

Chicken or the egg

Chicken or the egg!!!!

Sorry, but I haven't seen anybody, being an English teacher in a classroom using Tenglish. Are you sure that this guy was a Native English speaker? Sounds very weird to me.

I doubt it, an experienced teacher wouldn't speak like that. There're several reasons, his students would speak Tenglish too, the Thai colleagues wouldn't hire a guy using their language. Now please tell me, chicken or the egg? Egg or chicken,===========