Info On Sawai People Wanted

[MattBlack]

Hi all,

My wife is from Surin and speaks (among other languages) 'Sawai'.

She says this is the 'elephant people' language.

Does anyone know where i can find more information on these poeple / culture etc.

PS am I spelling it correctly.

Sawai ?

Saui ?

Thanks

[plachon]

They are generally known as "Suay" by Thai people, but "Gui" people by ethnographers and themselves. "Suay" is a name given by Central Thais over a century ago, as a result of them offering themselves as tribute to the King, rather than money or goods. As they were not really farmers, they did not have agricultural surplus to sell or give as taxes to the state. They are thought to have originated in Cambodia and possibly moved from India centuries ago.

The Gui are presently located in several districts of Surin, Sisaket and Buriram provinces, as well as Cambodia and southern Laos, and are frequently associated with elephants, due to their long traditions of capturing and taming wild elephants. A lot of the elephants you see paraded around Thai towns and Bangkok have originated in Surin and their handlers are Gui, many from a single village in Tha Thum District. Their language is quite different from Khmer, but I think is still in the Mon-Khmer group of languages (I am ready to be corrected on this).

If you ever go to Surin, you can find much information about the Gui from the Rajabhat Teachers College (nowadays upgraded to a University) where there are several scholars. Also, a Google search for an American academic called Peter Cuasay may reveal interesting anthropological context to their "ethnic cleansing" from Isaan cultural diversity and Thai-ification of them and their elephants. I hope your wife is proud to be Gui, not "Suay" or "Sawai".

[puchooay]

As mentioned by Plachon there is and elephant village and museum in Tha Thum district,called Ban Ta Klang if memory serves me well. It is on the 214 route going towards Roi et and between the towns of Jom Pra and Tha Thum. Bout 35/40 kms north of Surin. Probably worth a visit.

There is also a village in Satuk in Buriram that keeps elephants and speak Suay/Kuay language. Possible all part of the same group as geographically,off the beaten track, the two villages are not far apart.

[afarang]

The language spoken is only spoken in the 3 provinces listed by Plachon. It is a Khmer language, but it appears it was never spoken in what is Cambodia today. It is also an oral language. The story I have been told was, that back in deepest history, the alphabet was written on a buffalo hide. One night 2 hungry wolves ate it,and so the written language disappeared. Sadly, the language will disappear quite soon ,as the younger are not interested in speaking it. Preferring Isarn. They do have strong links to people in Cambodia who live near the "border", many in my village have relatives and own land in Cambodia. They are also very strongly Animist, in belief. The first belief system was Hindu, then Animism, finally Buddhism. There are 3 Hindu temple ruins, known as Prasat Ta Muen, on the border, in Surin. Close to Ta Miang. This area was Cambodian, until fairly recently, when Thailand exercised "ownership".

[jaideeguy]

Interesting topic......my TW from Surin is from Suay roots and when we were 1st married and I had to do the family thing, they took me to this secret private family spirit house and did some 'mojo' on me over the families ancient temple house that contained elephant parts as well as the old ropes that they used to restrain the elephants......going back how many generations??.

Her being Khmer, I've always wondered how many generations her family has been in Surin/Thailand and she [and the old folks in her family] didn't have a clue. I think just a centruy ago the borders were really vague, especially in that area and eventually Thailand just took it over.

And funny thing is that I've often offered to take her to Cambodia [her roots] and zero curosity about where she came from.

[afarang]

Interesting topic......my TW from Surin is from Suay roots and when we were 1st married and I had to do the family thing, they took me to this secret private family spirit house and did some 'mojo' on me over the families ancient temple house that contained elephant parts as well as the old ropes that they used to restrain the elephants......going back how many generations??.

Her being Khmer, I've always wondered how many generations her family has been in Surin/Thailand and she [and the old folks in her family] didn't have a clue. I think just a centruy ago the borders were really vague, especially in that area and eventually Thailand just took it over.

And funny thing is that I've often offered to take her to Cambodia [her roots] and zero curosity about where she came from.

Spirit houses are 100% Animist, so it was an Animist ceremony you went through.some villagers came here from outside, but generally from the same province, particularly those living near the "border". Even today , the "border" has not been clearly demarcated. They would not have any idea where they came from, if ,indeed they came from Cambodia. The ruins I referred to are about 900 years old.They were located on a super-highway that ran from Siam Reap,into what is now Surin, then to Phanom Rung, finishing at Phi Mai.So, all of this area was ruled by Cambodia. For some hundreds of years.Last year, Silapakorn Uni had a dig near Ban Kruat and unearthed what turned out to be an Animist settlement, mining iron ore,probably dating from about 6-700 years ago.

[jaideeguy]

From what I've seen here, most Thais are Animists. Seems most have spirit houses and my TW pays more homage to the spirit house than Buddhism. Not a month goes by that she doesn't feed and honor the little cement house in our yard.....the first piec of 'furniture' before we officially moved in. Then there was the pig's head, chicken, whiskey and cigarettes etc......

The Suay.....working with wild elephants makes me wonder how long ago the wild elephants roamed that part of Essan??

[plachon]

From what I've seen here, most Thais are Animists. Seems most have spirit houses and my TW pays more homage to the spirit house than Buddhism. Not a month goes by that she doesn't feed and honor the little cement house in our yard.....the first piec of 'furniture' before we officially moved in. Then there was the pig's head, chicken, whiskey and cigarettes etc......

The Suay.....working with wild elephants makes me wonder how long ago the wild elephants roamed that part of Essan??

As I mentioned, it's probably better to refer to this ethnic group as Gui, so they don't lose their ethnic roots altogether via Thai-ification processes. The term "Suay" is mildly derogative, a bit like Maew for Hmong people or Gaew for Vietnamese. They are not "servants" or "tribute" to the dominant Thais, but have their own ethnic identity (rapidly being lost admittedly). So, please, give them some respect and return them their real name. :jap:

As for wild elephants in that part of Isaan, their were still lots roaming the forests along the Thai-Cambodian border, up until about 50 years ago, and were regularly hunted in the dry season by the Gui of Ban Ta Glang and other villages on big, ritual hunts on elephant back. So they chased, herded and caught wild elephants with those sturdy ropes made from twisted vines and using lots of sacred rites and mojo, as there was serious danger involved and there were often serious injuries and occasional deaths on the long hunts. Captured elephants were broken and led back to the village for training, then sale on to people in the rest of Thailand wanting them for logging. Eventually, the wild elephants were hunted out and their forests logged out, so the Gui of Surin and Buriram were reduced to showing off their elephants for a few baht to curious Thais and tourists and selling the offspring to circuses and zoos.

The Elephant Festival in Surin dates back to the mid-50s, when a bunch of elephant owners around Surin were drawn to the city's airfield by one of the first aircraft to land there. They were tempted by the sight of the magical iron bird that could take off and fly around. The funny thing was that they went to see the aeroplane, but other people went to see the gathering of elephants and their owners camped around the airfield and BINGO, the idea for the Elephant Festival was born. It was only much later that politicians and TAT hi-jacked it for their own ends and the Gui's role in the Festival was gradually air-brushed out in the normal manner of Central Thai domination of ethnic minorities within the nation (think of the Long-neck Karen for the worst example of Thai exploitation of human beings). Thus today, the Festival is all about the elephants and v. little is about the owners and once-proud Gui tamers of the wild elephants in the Dongrak mountains.

Out of interest, is your wife a bit messy and not so good at clearing up, especially when you are away from home for a while. If so, don't be upset by it, as it was the tradition that when the menfolk were away on an elephant hunt, the Gui wives and womenfolk couldn't clean the house or sweep up dust until the men returned home. This tradition was still persisting in the mid 90s in Ban Ta Glang, but with the men away working in Bangkok and abroad, rather than elephant hunting and there was always quite a bit of litter just thrown around the houses in the village. So, be interested to know if those with Gui wives notice any continuation of this tradition even away from the home village?

[bina]

one of the mahouts that i met in the korat zoo three/four years ago is from there; he was very surprised that i, a farang woman, would even know about the 'suey/gui' and elephants. how did i know? the elephant caretakers at the jerusalem zoo were predominantly from the same area, fathers/sons/brothers (rotating visas when one guy goes home for home visit or finishes working, an other guy comes in place of him, its all special visas as the parent elephants were Royal presents to the zoo, and the workers have a slightly more 'special' status'). anyhow, thru my work at my petting zoo (now no longer) i met these guys; some others come from up north, but the elephants 'speak' 'suay'... and the workers called it 'passaa chang'... (elephant language)...

and as far as history and curiousity-- thais seem to show no curiousity whatsover about roots/family history/trees etc... itsjust not a cultural thing like with us.

bina

israel

[Svenn]

and as far as history and curiousity-- thais seem to show no curiousity whatsover about roots/family history/trees etc... itsjust not a cultural thing like with us.

Which is in some sense a positive thing... often times ethnic pride can lead to much darker consequences, if not just irritating superiority/inferiority complexes or fabricated 'identities' that just alienates groups from their fellow countrymen. I find the lack of European-style/biological racism in Thailand refreshing (though granted, they are severly prejudiced against economic status), and so I don't think it does any good to start telling a happy-go-lucky Isaan kid that all of a sudden he/she is descendant from strange Lao or Khmer people differentiated from the 'true' Thai or whatever. Once people get in their minds a certain identity they have, they tend to get carried away and frame their whole life around it. Somehow this Gui culture needs to be preserved without all the messiness we see in the West.

[afarang]

Interesting about the term "Gui".In my village, in A. Ban Kruat, C. Buriram ,In 20 years I have never heard them refer to themselves as "Gui". Only refer to the language as Suay, Though in this area, much of the culture has already died. The young ones have no interest , particularly as agriculture here has changed in the last 10 years.From growing many food crops to now,Primarily Rubber, Cassava, a little sugar cane and a little Eucalyptus.As cash money(read cash for rubber) now dominates.people are now much more consumer oriented.In the recent past, every house had buffaloes, grew silkworms, wove silk, . No longer.Only the older people (grandparents mainly) speak Suay.The children do understand it, but speak Isan in reply. So, as the older generation die out, the language will also die. As will their crafts. People used to work for each other , no money- You help me with my paddy, planting or harvesting , and I will help you. No longer, this is now a cash for work society. And they know the minimum wage for day labour. When I first came here, there were no motorbikes, only 1 T.V. owned by a shop, people used to come at night, and watch T.V.. Now , too many motorbikes to count, every house has at least 1 T.V. Many pick-ups. And the other amusements of consumerism. Do I blame them ? Definitely not. Life here was tough ,very tough.

[farangfool]

I thought that the Suay were actually Vietnamese, and from what is today's North Vietnam. I came across references now and then. Apparently they moved first into today's South Laos, around Attapue, before moving on to Surin. The area was controlled by the Thais in those days.

A friend of mine is half Suay and half southern Thai. Poor girl got her father's dark tan and not mom's white skin.

Thus, the language is not a Khmer dialect (if my info is correct). The local claim that it is a form of Khmer but not intelligible is a nice example on nationalist Khmer figuring.

The Khmer around Surin speak an old form of the language. My ex could communicate in Siem Reap. Her family was originally from there and left when the French took over. The settlement history of the region must have been greatly impacted by the railway construction in the 1920s. In Sisaket province the administrative center was shifted to today's location.

[plachon]

I thought that the Suay were actually Vietnamese, and from what is today's North Vietnam. I came across references now and then. Apparently they moved first into today's South Laos, around Attapue, before moving on to Surin. The area was controlled by the Thais in those days.

A friend of mine is half Suay and half southern Thai. Poor girl got her father's dark tan and not mom's white skin.

Thus, the language is not a Khmer dialect (if my info is correct). The local claim that it is a form of Khmer but not intelligible is a nice example on nationalist Khmer figuring.

The Khmer around Surin speak an old form of the language. My ex could communicate in Siem Reap. Her family was originally from there and left when the French took over. The settlement history of the region must have been greatly impacted by the railway construction in the 1920s. In Sisaket province the administrative center was shifted to today's location.

No, the Gui (not Suay, please) language is one of the Mon-Khmer group and the people originate from present-day Cambodia, but have migrated into southern Laos and Isaan in recent centuries. Their language is similar to Multa in Assam, NE India, and their is a suspicion that their origins are probably from India, prior to coming to Cambodia. For much more information about this ethnic group, follow the link below:

http://www.thapra.lib.su.ac.th/objects/thesis/fulltext/thapra/Pattrapon_Vetayasuporn_Doctor/Chapter4.pdf

This mostly confirms my earlier contentions, with one exception. The author states that the Gui and their elephants (numbering about 300) from Ban Tha Glang went to see a helicopter, rather than an aeroplane, land at Surin airport back in 2598 BE, which I make 1955 AD. The Elephant Festival started 5 years later and was originally in Tha Tum District before later moving to Surin sport stadium in 1961. There is a good quality B&W, wide angle photo from that first gathering of tuskers and their keepers, which may be available at the Elephant Festival, and makes a great souvenir or present of the event.

Hope this article in the link helps dispel some of the myths and misunderstandings about the Gui of Surin/Buriram/Sisaket.

Edited October 20, 2010 by plachon

[MattBlack]

Thank you all for your input into this thread, and sorry for my absense from here over the last few weeks.

In regard to the above comments.....

My wife refers to hereself and family as 'Suay' not 'Gui'.

She tells a story about an 'Admin' building being burnt down which had all 'Suay' documents, and since then the written version of the language has been lost.

She speaks Thai, Cambodian, Laos (issan?) and Suay. She speaks Suay with her parents and other village elders, but Cambodian to others in the village and Thai to her children. She claims that the Suay language is different enough from the others that Thai and Cambodian speakers do not understand her when she speaks Suay with her parent.

Interestingly my wife also claims that when speaking with her mother if she want to speak 'nasty' about anyone she has to switch to another language usually cambodian because there is no suitable words in Suay.

She is very proud of her 'Suay' roots but seems to have little interest in researching or saving it, and as has been mentioned her children have little or no interest in it.

Once again - Many thanks for all the replys.

Matt

:-)