Informal Terms Of Address

[Jeddah Jo]

Watch a few Thai movies which I quite enjoy, but there are several terms of address I would love to know the English equivalent of if there is one.

Isaan girls tend to call each other 'y-wung' but I have yet to have a satisfactory explanation of what this is in English.

Tough guys call each other 'meung' in the movies which I guess is very informal and certainly not to be used by a farang. I wonder if the English equivalent is something like 'Oi plonker!'.

Finally 'y-burr' which is quite funny as I think it just means 'Oi stupid!'.

Any other good ones?

[Johpa]

In most informal social situations, Thais tend to place people into a family social framework. As the primary family distinction is between elder and younger (phii/noong) as opposed to the western tradition of male/female (brother/sister) the informal pronouns used commonly are variations of phii and noong. Those a generation older will be addressed as aunt or uncle or even as your parent if they are close friends And you will also address the parents of good friends as parents. Now there are some differences between the various Tai languages spoken in Thailand. So whereas the pronouns like ai and ee are seen as common polite informal pronouns when speaking Kham Muang (Northern Thai) or Isaan, in Central Thai they are used and perceived as being somewhat vulger.

Having spent most of my time in-country up north, I often forget that addressing an older male as Ai is not appropriate in Bangkok and this recently led to a post from me to another TV member being taken as an insult when the intention was quite the contrary. Only later, when I perceived that an insult was indeed in order, did I use it again without remorse.

[p_brownstone]

It’s a fairly common misconception among Farang in Thailand – mainly by individuals desperate to “fit in” at whatever cost – that using “informal” language and forms of address will somehow make them accepted among Thais as “one of the boys” . Whilst to some extent this may be true in particular small sectors of society, using such language in general, more respectable company, will at best result in pained condescension from your audience, rather in the way that a small child is indulged when he uses profanity, the true meaning of which he does not really comprehend.

Far better to learn and familiarise yourself with the proper polite Thai first, this will then become your “default” way of speaking and thus be used automatically in most situations.

As Johpa points out, frequent or, worse, exclusive use of coarse language in everyday life can easily cause offence when accidentally employed in more polite society.

Patrick

[zzap]

'Ai' and 'Ee' aren't polite in North Thailand either, at least where I live, and most definitely not to be used when talking about respect persons.

'Meung' is 'King' in pasa neua, only to be used amongst good friends.

[lamphun]

I know that Ee iand Ai in Thai are rude. Ai usually comes with a swear word attached. However Ai is pronounced with a different tone in northern Thai. I had the impression it was an informal but polite address.

Is King a word used by both sexes ?

[zzap]

"However Ai is pronounced with a different tone in northern Thai. I had the impression it was an informal but polite address." You're right, I missed that possibility, it's the same as 'Pee'.

"Is King a word used by both sexes ?"

Yes, King for 'you', hah for 'I'.

[Jeddah Jo]

What's wrong with you people? I just said I enjoyed Thai movies and I wanted to know the English equivalent of various terms of address I often hear in the movies. It doesn't mean I am going to go and use them in day to day conversation!

As for desperately trying to fit in, that's not exactly fair is it? You might as well say, well you can learn English but you aren't allowed to learn any slang so basically you will have no understanding of the language people use in every day conversation!

So nobody has a good translation of what 'Y-wung' might be betweeen two Isaan girl friends then?

[Wanida]

Isan women who have gone to live in cities and forgot their heritage,became snobbish is the explaination of y- wung.

You!snob may be used for this one.

Wanida

[Richard W]

Tough guys call each other 'meung' in the movies which I guess is very informal and certainly not to be used by a farang. I wonder if the English equivalent is something like 'Oi plonker!'.

The best English parallel to มึง is 'thou'. It's an ancient word, going back to Proto-Tai-Kadai and used as evidence that Tai-Kadai is related to Malayo-Polynesian within Austronesian, along with its plural สู.

[p_brownstone]

Tough guys call each other 'meung' in the movies which I guess is very informal and certainly not to be used by a farang. I wonder if the English equivalent is something like 'Oi plonker!'.

The best English parallel to มึง is 'thou'. It's an ancient word, going back to Proto-Tai-Kadai and used as evidence that Tai-Kadai is related to Malayo-Polynesian within Austronesian, along with its plural สู.

"Thou" may well have been the interpretation given to the word decades ago, it is certainly not the way it would be translated in modern day Bangkok - use it at your peril!

Patrick

[Johpa]

It’s a fairly common misconception among Farang in Thailand – mainly by individuals desperate to “fit in” at whatever cost – that using “informal” language and forms of address will somehow make them accepted among Thais as “one of the boys” . Whilst to some extent this may be true in particular small sectors of society, using such language in general, more respectable company, will at best result in pained condescension from your audience, rather in the way that a small child is indulged when he uses profanity, the true meaning of which he does not really comprehend.

Its kind of funny how different segments of society perceive each other through the use of language. In Bangkok the upper class and the wannabes, as they do in other countries speaking other languages (e.g. the Queen's English in London), prefer to use a specific dialect to identify themselves to each other. They then go about codifying their particular dialect and declare it the official language. Speakers of other dialects, or other closely related neighboring languages, are then looked down upon with a certain condescension, often as country bumpkins if you will, and yes, sometimes even as Ai Pat notes, with an attitude of pained condescension. My wife has encountered this silly prejudice countless times in encounters with Bangkok folks as she speaks Central Thai with a slight accent that clearly marks her as not being from Bangkok. I can only imagine what prejudices the Isaan laborers in Bangkok who often, like my father-in law, speak no Central Thai, encounter on a daily basis. That is perhaps why the rural folks up north often talk about the difficulty of getting along with Bangkok people: "(khon thai (referring to Bangkok or Central Thai speakers) kop kan yaak)."

On the other hand, when someone from Bangkok, for whatever odd reason, ends up in the rural villages such as where my family maintains a home, they are immediately identified as not being Khon Muang and as being Thai. They are in a similar manner treated with a certain amount of condescension and too treated a bit like a small child. Most often they are simply told what the locals expect they want to hear, regardless of the truth value, so that they may be on their way less they make trouble.

As one trained in modern linguistic thought, I tend to see all these languages and dialects as being totally equal from a purely linguistic point of view. The only reason that a particular dialect becomes the "formal" dialect is a matter of mere geographical happenstance. There is no linguistic reason why Cockney did not become the formal "Queen's English" in Britain just as there is no linguistic reason why Isaan did not become the "formal" language preferred by the Bangkok elite. And then we have Royal Thai (rachasaap) which is, socially, the most highly ranked dialect in Thailand, but which for a large part is borrowed words from common Khmer.

So what is considered normal everyday speech in the rural areas where I live in Thailand is contrasted, in Bangkok, with the Central Thai of the elite and demoted as informal Thai by those in Bangkok. But this is a social construct and not a linguistic construct.

Do I attempt to fit into the rural village where I have maintained a home for nearly 20 years, a village inhabited by friend and family, by trying to emulate their speech? Why of course I do. Do I hope to be at least partially accepted as "one of the boys?" Again, but of course I do and, if I may boast a bit, I have made some success over the years in that regard. Is this a small segment of society? Well last time I looked the rural population made up about 60% of the total population of the Kingdom. But that is a trivial point. I believe I have found a group of people in Thailand whose company I enjoy. I find these people to be very admirable and whom I deeply respect. However, I understand that those from the outside, who tend to focus on the physical trappings of the rural Thais, which of course can not compare to the comforts of the Bangkok elites, look down upon the rural folks as being people who somehow deserve less respect while reserving the title of "respectable company" for themselves. It is a nearly universal socio-linguistic phenomena and the best one can do is avoid such pratfalls and laugh at it all.

But I think that for the Thais, this disrespect partially arises from a certain amount of insecurity. I see this insecurity expressed often when watching sedan style cars from the city driving through the narrow roads in the rural areas. These cars always seem to drive slowly when travelling through uninhabited forest lands as if in fear of nature itself, but the moment they encounter a village they immediately speed up and race through so as to get out of the sight of the farmers as soon as possible all the while showing contempt for the safety of the villagers. I believe that sight of the farmers seems to cause them to think to themselves a most unpleasant thought: "there for the grace of god go I," a thought these people find so discomforting that it must be erased by distance as soon as possible.

[Rikker]

What a great post! What you say is all very true, particularly about Thai insecurity. I believe Thailand has yet to open-mindedly embrace its past and surroundings. Thais have a fierce national pride, but it's complex and layered. The outer veneer is "We're all Thai people," like a song released last year by Thai rock singer เสือ ธนพล entitled รักคนไทย, meant to be a statement against violence in the South, and a call for unity. The lyrics include these lines: ถึงอย่างไรเราก็คนไทย ถึงบางครั้งจะพลั้งพลาดไป อภัยให้กันได้เสมอ .... รักกันไว้เถอะหนาคนไทย รักกันไว้ง่ายกว่าฆ่ากัน. This appeals to the sense of "Thai-ness" (ความเป็นไทย) that many feel. The problem is, examples like what you describe show the superficiality of this with respect to minority or fringe groups, or those who are perceived as such. While Bangkok Thais completely buy the message of this song, at the same time they speak only Bangkok Thai, whereas over half the country speaks some other language as their first language. Since there are so many other languages spoken by country folk, they are all perceived by the city-folk as a fringe element of "Thai culture"; their festivals, practices and customs are quaint, but ultimately feel foreign to those who have the university educations and white collar jobs. As university education has become more ubiquitous, the new status symbol becomes studying abroad, whether in Australia, England, or the United States. The majority of the country can't or don't keep up with the fast-paced class-crazed Bangkok society, so they come off looking like bumpkins.

Thais also are not comfortable with their history within Southeast Asia. Some historical facts have endowed the Thais with a sense of superiority--like, that they have never been colonized by a European power; or that Thailand is economically the strongest country in Southeast Asia. Those whose language and culture may be more like the neighboring country's than like Bangkok's probably don't share in this perception. But I have seen educated Thais (not educated in linguistics, but still educated) adamantly deny the fact that Thai borrowed so many words (and common ones) come from Khmer. It *must* be the other way around. Thais see themselves as superior to the Khmer, and to their other neighbors. Because of this fact, those whose first language is not Standard Thai see themselves as superior to their upcountry fellow countrymen. It's not like ethnocentricity is a rare or shocking thing, but Thailand would benefit from being ready to accept themselves for who they are, and be willing to accept (not just give lipservice to) the beauty of the diversity of their country, rather than front like there is solidarity, unity and conformity in Thailand.

It's complex, I guess.

[ourmanflint]

Hi

Interesting thread... I wonder how experts on "learn english forums" would interpret the same thing. I wonder if they tell everyone the correct form of address would be Sir or Madame, and that calling someone "love" or "chuck" ( I'm northern!!) would be seen as impolite. I do know that there are a certain class of people mainly in Lonodn who would agree that it is indeed impolite, I don't think that any society should necessarily disparage such forms of friendly address.

In the end I'm sure I'll struggle with all the intricacies of speaking Thai, and if I upset a few people, well that's life. But I will try and I will learn, and I hope I will never be looked down upon because of the way I talk.... in fact that happens all the time to me anyway in the UK... there are snobs everywhere, and they really shouldn't be tolerated should they??

[Rikker]

If a foreigner learning English were to go to the American midwest or speak to educated folks, they would be corrected for saying things like "Hey man," "What's up," calling someone their "dog," etc. Urban slang. Or if they used "ain't," or even slurred English words like "gonna" "wanna" "gotta" "hafta" etc. It may not be a question of polite vs. impolite, but it's a matter of social propriety. Those same people would never think of correcting a native speaker (unless they happen to be an English teacher).

Interesting...

[meadish_sweetball]

It makes sense to learn the "power lingo" first, and then branch out from there. If nothing else, so because of the fact that the bulk of the writings in any language are typically produced in this power lingo.

If you go and learn fluent Southern Thai or Kham Meuang first, the literary canon and especially contemporary material in modern Thailand will be inaccessible.

These arguments work for me, anyway. I am slowly learning Northern Thai along with the passable Central Thai I have already acquired. It is far more convenient in Thailand as a whole to speak Central Thai. It is possible to follow the rules of politeness to such a degree that you are respected, but also for you to state clearly that you do not believe other dialects or areas are inferior... At least it has been so far for me.

In my opinion, a too fervent nationalism is a deterrent to analytical and critical thinking, and I try to question it whenever I have the time and chance.

[Johpa]

It makes sense to learn the "power lingo" first, and then branch out from there. If nothing else, so because of the fact that the bulk of the writings in any language are typically produced in this power lingo.

I absolutely agree with Svenske man that fellow ex-pats should learn Central Thai first. I cheated and spent two years in university learning Central Thai before I married into a family from up north that did not speak Central Thai. I still speak and understand Central Thai better then Kham Muang, expecially the Kham Muang spoken in my wife's village that is heavily laced with words from K'mu, the language spoken by the eldest generation in the area as a mother tongue. But after nearly 20 years of constant interacting with Kham Muang speakers and actually little time spent in Bangkok apart from transiting through Don Muang (Bangkok is the only Thai city where I still feel like a tourist) , my Central Thai is laced with Kham Muang words and phrases unless I am in a situation where I sense I must be more careful with my words, not a common situation for a curmudegon like myself.

[HarryHerb]

Excellent post from Johpa, explains very well the importance of territory and where you come from in Thailand - and the key to establishing it: language.

The dominant or 'official' dialect / accent in any country tends to come from the social elite in the urban capital and is then disseminated throughout the land via TV and other media.

Upcountry wannabes (like so many young girls from the south) visit the bright lights and change their accent to the more 'sophisticated' tones of Bangkok. Those who don't (or couldn't like myself on an early visit - horribly embarrassing a Thai friend by speaking some Central Thai with southern tones - the shame!!) get looked down upon as being yokels.

But what I like is that these same girls are generally frowned on themselves when they come back as they have 'forgotten where they come from'.

And when the Bangkok 'sophisticates' leave their home territory their outsider language certainly does not command respect from the locals and, more often than not, they are derided as being shallow or empty-headed. The shoe in Thailand is on both feet, in other words. So it is extra important to know which words to use, when.

I fully agree with Mr Sweetballs - and learned the hard way - that the official dialect is the one to be learned first. Spoken without the arrogant attitude unfortunately so prevalent in Bangkokians, central Thai will certainly take you everywhere in the kingdom. If you live full-time in one particular area upcountry, however, it certainly pays to learn the local dialect. Firstly, you yourself get a greater understanding of where you are living. And secondly, an outsider making the effort to learn is in simple fact more readily welcomed into the community.

I don't agree that all dialects are somehow 'vulgar' in themselves - my southern Thai spoken here is perfectly polite! However these words used in a different context can of course be construed as tasteless, or perhaps even insulting - this is part of the social hierarchy of language.

But remember the difference between the 2 languages and you can't really go too far wrong.

[Rikker]

For that matter, it's just as important to know the appropriate registers of Thai within the Bangkok dialect. I can't say that I speak any other dialects. I only lived in Yasothon in the Isaan for four months, and I didn't really make an effort to learn Isaan because I didn't have to, since all the people spoke standard Thai just fine, and many folks who lived in the ตัวเมือง and weren't originally from there didn't really even speak it well themselves. So having spent a couple of years in Bangkok, I learned very proper and polite language first. You will never be 'one of the gang' if that's all you speak in Bangkok either, though. When I was courting my wife (who was the first and only Thai girlfried I ever had), I had to figure out how to talk to her various acquaintances. We would go out to dinner with friends from the office, or hang out with her best buddies, or I would meet her relatives, etc. In my mind, these different registers can be as complex as learning Isaan or Khammuang, but maybe that's just my perception. There are so many levels: I know a fair amount of Ratchasap that is used in Thai Christian churches with God and Jesus. In doing research I've begun to learn some of the language of academia. Attending meetings at the Royal Institute and interviewing some of its members, I had to polish my use of the super-polite deferential speech of the educated, especially since these people were up to 50 years my senior. Not to mention that my wife basically had to teach me to speak familiarly and even romantically.. I had never used the word ฉัน to refer to myself before we dated. And somewhere in the middle is how I speak to my mother- and father-in-law, who were both educators in the public secondary-school system, and expect a certain level of correct and respectful speech from me. That I speak Standard Thai with very little of a foreign accent only increases this expectation. If someone was willing to forgive me because I'm a farang, once they start hearing me speak I find that people expect me to know exactly when I should and shouldn't say things, because of my Thai-like accent. So I stick my foot in my mouth sometimes. Even within Bangkok there are so many levels to speaking.. when to simply your consonant clusters to sound more native, and when to pronounce them to sound more educated, or when to use this word or that... it's all very complex, but fascinating. I eat it up.

I don't know if I will ever be proficient at another Thai dialect, because I constantly feel like there is so much more I still have yet to learn about Bangkok Thai. My longterm goal is to compile a huge corpus of Thai language to use to create a comprehensive dictionary built on the linguist's notion that all words are created equal, but that lies many years down the road.

I can't wait to get there, though.

[robitusson]

Anytime I use "goo" or "mung" with my nearest and dearest she whacks me in the stomach and gives me that look of disapproval in the way only the fairer sex can. Then when she's on the phone to her pals she uses it all the time!?

[ourmanflint]

Stop it!!! You're scaring the hel_l out of me!! Levels.. registers.... what the heck??

How many years is this gonna take me just to be able to chat confidently????

[meadish_sweetball]

Anytime I use "goo" or "mung" with my nearest and dearest she whacks me in the stomach and gives me that look of disapproval in the way only the fairer sex can. Then when she's on the phone to her pals she uses it all the time!?

Husband/wife is a different relation from close friend/close friend. I havent heard a married couple using 'goo/meung' to each other, although imagine they might pop up when screaming and arguing at each other. As always I am sure there are exceptions, but my many years of experience here hasn't seen any.

First names, "tee rak" (honey)... and occasionally "khun" from Thai wife to Western husband, is what I hear. "tee rak" is definitely most common.

[Rikker]

Yeah, there are definitely Thai married couples who use กู and มึง to yell at each other. Once up in the Isaan a woman told me what a great husband she had, because he was very gentle all of the time, she said he never raised his voice or said กู or มึง to her. But I think it's probably more used by the type of couples who go at it cat-and-dog style, like drunken rages, kicking and screaming, etc. Or by a very rude husband, like if he's watching TV and his wife asks him to do some chore around the house, saying กู or มึง would be like throwing the f-word into your reply in English, I think. And you can imagine how well a farang woman would respond to something like that. I can't imagine my parents-in-law calling each other those words, so maybe husband and wife resorting to those terms would be a marker of lower tiers of society, too. Dunno.

As for the polite end of the spectrum, I know a man who calls his wife คุณนุ่ม (นุ่ม is her nickname) all the time, at least when I'm around. But when I'm around he even uses it to address her, which even my wife agrees is very formal. He's also 14 years older than his wife (they're 46 and 32), so I'm sure that has something to do with it. Being polite is a way of elevating her status, to show he's treating her with more respect? I'm not sure.

As for me, I often use nickname + จ๋า for my wife. Or even ที่รักจ๋า.

[Johpa]

...... I know a fair amount of Ratchasap that is used in Thai Christian churches with God and Jesus.....

Wow, I didn't know that the Thai Christian churches use ratchasaap in their liturgy! Is that legal in Thailand?

[Richard W]

Wow, I didn't know that the Thai Christian churches use ratchasaap in their liturgy! Is that legal in Thailand?

INRI.

[Rikker]

I can't imagine it being illegal. Translations of the Bible have been around since shortly after the printing press was introduced by Bradley (he was a Protestant missionary and all). The Ratchasap used is not exactly the same as with the King and Queen. Here are some examples:

พระองค์ is the pronoun used with God and Jesus. Used in both the second and third persons; in the second person in direct prayers to God (ขอพระองค์ทรงคุ้มครอง); in the third person in reference to God (พระองค์ทรงรักคนบาป).

Verbs with Ratchasap alternates mostly use the Ratchasap form.

เสด็จไป, เสด็จมา = ไป, มา

เสวย = กิน, รับประทาน

กันแสง = ร้องไห้

ทอดพระเนตร = ดู, เห็น

Other times an intermediate verb is used, higher than polite speech, but not the same as the King's Ratchasap. For many of these, ทรง is used before the common or polite verb to elevate it. For example:

ทรงบังเกิด, ทรงประสูติ, สมพภ is usually used for Jesus, while พระราชสมภพ would be used for a king. Although I have heard Christmas described as วันพระราชสมภพของพระเยซู

Like to say Jesus walked on water is พระเยซูทรงดำเนินบนน้ำ while the King walking is ทรงพระราชดำเินิน.

Any word with ใจ in it uses พระทัย (e.g. การทำความดีจะทำให้พระเจ้าพอพระทัย).

Nouns referring to God and Christ are elevated. Some example:

พระนาม = ชื่อ, นาม

พระบุตร = ลูกชาย, บุตร (as in the Son of God)

พระเนตร = ตา

พระบาท = เท้า

พระพักตร์ = หน้า

พระเ๊ศียร, ศีรษะ = หัว

พระพาหุ = แขน

พระกร = มือ

Sometimes the Bible uses a very formal version and in common use Christians talk about it with the polite but not Ratchasap word, like I have mostly heard 'head' used as ศีรษะ in spoken reference (like putting the crown of thorns on Christ's head), but the Bible uses พระเศียร, which is usually reserved for Buddha. I think the King's head would be พระเกศา, but I don't really know.

Other random words:

พระบัญญัติ = commandment, whereas a Royal Decree is พระราชบัญญัติ

พระปรีชาญาณ = wisdom (God's wisdom would thus be พระปรีชาญาณของพระเจ้า)

พระพิโรธ = wrath

And as for God or Christ speaking in the first person, เรา is used for 'I', เจ้า is used for 'you' when speaking to lowly humans, and other than that they don't use Ratchasap in self-reference, just like the King doesn't. In my Church when people pray they use ข้าพระองค์ in the first person singular, and พวกข้าพระองค์ in the plural.

It's all over the place. I don't know how widespread in every Christian church, though. I imagine some places would simplify much of it, just like in English we see simplified English translations of the Bible, etc. I know there's an "easy reading" version of the Thai Bible out there, I've seen it, but I don't own a copy. My version is Ratchasap-riffic. Complete with gems like พระเมษโปดกของพระเจ้า [พระ-เมด-สะ-โป-ดก] 'the Lamb of God.' You can learn quite a bit of Pali/Sanskrit just reading the Thai Bible. เมษ means sheep, same as we see in the month of April เมษายน, and โปดก means offspring. The ordering of elements follows Sanskrit, reversed from Thai, so เมษโปดก means ลูกแกะ.

I think it's interesting, anyhow.

[johnnyk]

I just stumbled on this thread and it has been most interesting to read. Thanks to all who contributed to my knowledge and enjoyment.

I have one question though.

When I was with my first TGF (from Kalasin) she would call a service boy or girl in a restaurant phii even though she was older than they were (she was 33 and they were 18-20 so the age diff was clear).

Can anyone explain why she called the younger person phii?

BTW, I agree its generally best to learn the dialect that is considered 'standard' in whatever country you are in. I was raised in Quebec and learned Parisian/Loire French. I am understood perfectly in France and Quebec but if I use a Quebecois dialect and expressions in France I am less easily understood and often get quizzical looks.

[Rikker]

Well, for one thing they are strangers, so if she's not that much older than them then น้อง /nong/ might seem too familiar. I'd guess that it's a combination of things, though, including (1) she wants to feel young, but also (2) calling someone พี่ is a way of being polite and respectful in certain situations regardless of age. I've had tons of poor street vendors call me พี่ because they were trying to convince me to buy their wares. I'm only in my early 20s, but people old enough to be my parents call me that, kind of like a "Yeah, พี่ that's a good one, you should really buy that... help me out here พี่" sort of thing.

That and it's probably just ติดปาก, too. A force of habit. Probably called them พี่ without really thinking too much about it.

[Johpa]

Wow, I didn't know that the Thai Christian churches use ratchasaap in their liturgy! Is that legal in Thailand?

INRI.

Well that is stretching the "Royal" connection a wee bit. But it at least argues against my lese majeste concerns. I am trying to remember if the Thai journalists use ratchasaap for the pope too?

[robitusson]

Anytime I use "goo" or "mung" with my nearest and dearest she whacks me in the stomach and gives me that look of disapproval in the way only the fairer sex can. Then when she's on the phone to her pals she uses it all the time!?

Husband/wife is a different relation from close friend/close friend. I havent heard a married couple using 'goo/meung' to each other, although imagine they might pop up when screaming and arguing at each other. As always I am sure there are exceptions, but my many years of experience here hasn't seen any.

First names, "tee rak" (honey)... and occasionally "khun" from Thai wife to Western husband, is what I hear. "tee rak" is definitely most common.

They're good to use when you want a reaction.

[Rikker]

I seemed to recall that they do use ราชาศัพท์ for the Pope, but searching around confirms its use in formal settings, but I also found some Pope jokes in Thai which don't use it. So the most common informal name in Thai is สันตะปาปา (alternately spelled สันตปาปา), but โป๊ป is also seen. Officially his title in Thai is สมเด็จพระสันะตปาปา.

On the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs' website about Vatican City (http://www.mfa.go.th/web/479.php?id=271) has this paragraph about the Pope:

สมเด็จพระสันตะปาปา

สมเด็จพระสันตะปาปาทรงอำนาจสูงสุดทั้งด้านนิติบัญญัติ บริหาร และตุลาการ สมเด็จพระสันตะปาปาองค์ปัจจุบัน คือ สมเด็จพระสันตะปาปา Benedict ที่ 16 เป็นชาวเยอรมันมีพระนามเดิมว่า Joseph Ratzinger พระชนมายุ 78 พรรษา ทรงได้รับเลือกตั้งเมื่อวันที่ 19 เมษายน ค.ศ. 2005 โดยสภาที่ปรึกษาของสมเด็จพระสันตะปาปา ซึ่งประกอบด้วยสมเด็จพระราชาคณะชั้น Cardinal (College of Cardinals) ซึ่งมีสิทธิออกเสียงเลือกตั้งเฉพาะสมเด็จพระราชาคณะชั้น Cardinal ที่มีอายุต่ำกว่า 80 ปีเท่านั้น สมเด็จพระสันตะปาปาที่ทรงได้รับเลือกตั้งแล้วจะอยู่ในตำแหน่งไปจนตลอดพระชนม์ชีพ สมเด็จพระสันตปาปา Benedict ที่ 16 ทรงเข้าพิธีเข้ารับตำแหน่งเมื่อวันที่ 24 เมษายน ค.ศ. 2005

As you can see, plenty of ratchasap in there.