Please Don'T Speak To Me In English; It Makes Me Feel Unwelcome

[Murf]

ขอห้ามพูกภาษาอังกฤษกับฉันหน่อยนะ มันจะทำให้ฉันรู้ศึกไม่เป็นที่ต้อนรับ

ขอให้พูดภาไทยกับฉันดีกว่า แล้วคุณจะเห็นร้อยยิ้มปรากฏบนหน้าใบนี้ ขอบคุณครับ/ค่ะ

good luck with the shirt.

That's one big t-shirt!

[coma]

ขอห้ามพูกภาษาอังกฤษกับฉันหน่อยนะ มันจะทำให้ฉันรู้ศึกไม่เป็นที่ต้อนรับ

ขอให้พูดภาไทยกับฉันดีกว่า แล้วคุณจะเห็นร้อยยิ้มปรากฏบนหน้าใบนี้ ขอบคุณครับ/ค่ะ

good luck with the shirt.

That's one big t-shirt!

I agree. Just translating as per the OP request. Maybe it is for size XXXXX large.

[longway]

นหน้าใบนี้

Is bai a classifier for face(s)? I thought it was generally only for flat objects, or is it some kind of play on words to make his face like the page of a book or a card?

[coma]

นหน้าใบนี้

Is bai a classifier for face(s)? I thought it was generally only for flat objects, or is it some kind of play on words to make his face like the page of a book or a card?

It is a classifier for the face,small empty containers, drinking glasses, bowls, playing cards ๆลๆ

[GarryP]

ขอห้ามพูกภาษาอังกฤษกับฉันหน่อยนะ มันจะทำให้ฉันรู้ศึกไม่เป็นที่ต้อนรับ

ขอให้พูดภาไทยกับฉันดีกว่า แล้วคุณจะเห็นร้อยยิ้มปรากฏบนหน้าใบนี้ ขอบคุณครับ/ค่ะ

good luck with the shirt.

That's one big t-shirt!

I agree. Just translating as per the OP request. Maybe it is for size XXXXX large.

Second line, fourth word from the left is incomplete. Should be "ภาษา".

:jap:

Edited March 30, 2011 by GarryP

[longway]

นหน้าใบนี้

Is bai a classifier for face(s)? I thought it was generally only for flat objects, or is it some kind of play on words to make his face like the page of a book or a card?

It is a classifier for the face,small empty containers, drinking glasses, bowls, playing cards ๆลๆ

Thanks, yeah its used quite extensively, but just seemed suprising to use it with a person's face.

[coma]

ขอห้ามพูกภาษาอังกฤษกับฉันหน่อยนะ มันจะทำให้ฉันรู้ศึกไม่เป็นที่ต้อนรับ

ขอให้พูดภาไทยกับฉันดีกว่า แล้วคุณจะเห็นร้อยยิ้มปรากฏบนหน้าใบนี้ ขอบคุณครับ/ค่ะ

good luck with the shirt.

That's one big t-shirt!

I agree. Just translating as per the OP request. Maybe it is for size XXXXX large.

Second line, fourth word from the left is incomplete. Should be "ภาษา".

:jap:

Thanks for correcting my Typo. Hahaha

[Baa_Mango]

พูดไทยสิ

กูจะรู้สึกด๊กว่า

[farangnahrak]

How about this . . .

พูดไทยเป็น

and then above that, have a letter pointing up towards your head.

But of course, if it's not true, they'll just revert back to English with you

[Kilgore Trout]

Sorry for the long post, just thought I’d throw out some observations ..

Given the novella the O/P wants on his shirt; I highly doubt ANY Thai is gonna take the time to read it in its entirety. I can read Thai pretty darned quickly but even I wouldn't waste the time it’d take to read it (and I’ll read just about anything written in Thai, lol). ..

It would appear to me that t-shirts are not all that big of a medium used to convey useful messages in Thai to Thais. Although the t-shirts the red-shirt protestors sell when they are at Rachaprasong do have some good sayings they’re politically based stuff and I don’t see ‘em worn anywhere but there..

I also concur with other posters, insofar as starting off a sentence in the negative, even when using please, just doesn't play culturally to Thais you don't know from "Somchai". The last thing I’d say first to a strange Thai in Thai is “Don’t blah-blah-blah because I feel unwelcome…”

I applaud your effort to try to get Thais to engage you in Thai. Then again, you are a foreigner here right? Given that SO many foreigners here are unable to speak more than ‘2-word-tourist-Thai’ or 'horse-peak', well you can't really blame the Thais for tryin' engrish on you first, can you? If anything, they’re tryin’ to be accommodating not condescending, no matter how it makes you feel inside ..

I think a simple and slightly self-deprecating shirt might play better. Something along the lines of;

กูพูดไทยได้ - โอเคมั้ย

I purposely left out the word language, used the engrish word 'okay' and the more colloquial spelling for ไหม too. Every Thai I know would understand it. After all this is a t-shirt, so you’re not gonna be wearing it at the office. If กู’s too low-so for you use ฉัน.

I think a smiley face, (I've seen one which even uses slanted asian eyes :jap: ), would be fitting under it to reinforce it’s a tongue in cheek message, instead of an ‘info-mercial’ about your feelings.

That's just me though. ... Oh BTW; I’m most definitely pursuing the acquisition of the Thai language, in case you're wondering .

Still if you insist on going with your overly verbose version of the shirt, let us know what you work out as far as the Thai translation, and how it plays for you.

Sorry again, this was a long and offered no direct translation for you. Dam_n these anonymous internet forums. How dare people have an opinion on things!

I wouldn't use the pronoun "go" on a t-shirt, I think many Thais would find it in extremely poor taste.

[tachaya]

Hello, everyone.. Don't know if you guys still look at this thread. I am a Thai person and I have to admit that Tod understands both the Thai language and the sense of humor of the Thai people very well. Some jokes are funny for people of some nationalities but not for others. Tod, I like your first suggestion very much. กูพูดไทยได้ - โอเคมั้ย I think this one is really good. I bet Thai people will find it funny and will actually talk to you in Thai after they have read it!. And the sentense is short but meaningful, funny and effective. I saw some of you were talking if it would sound a little bit too rude because of the word "กู" but in fact, we, Thai people, often use "กู" as a pronoun when we play jokes so it sounds funny! If you keep noticing the words on the T-shorts made by the Thai people, I'm pretty sure you'll realize this. You'll see the word "กู" on T-shirts much more often than all the other pronouns that mean I coz T-shirts are made to be funny. I myself have a farang boyfriend, who sometimes wears this t-shirt he bought from Thailand, saying ""กูไปอัมพวามา". It only means, "I have been to Amphawa". But I can't stop laughing at it every time I read his t-shirt .. and it wouldn't be funny at all if only the word กู was replaced by ฉัน เรา ผม etc. However, I have some suggestion, I don't know if you will agree but personally, I think กูพูดไทยได้ โอเค๊? sounds softer than กูพูดไทยได้ โอเคมั้ย...or only กูพูดไทยได้ will do too! Thai people love a short but meaningful phrase!