"Sawan" - what does that mean?

[koeko]

Thanks

[Familyonthemove]

Think we'll need some context?

"Suwan" is park.

[krisb]

Sa wan means heaven

Na lok means hell. Or Pattaya

[harrry]

• สวรรค์ [ สะ-หฺวัน ]
• sà-wăn

• This is an heaven ; paradise

This is what thai2english gives for what you asked.

I think we do need more context as park or garden is the more likely thing you are after.

[slipperylobster]

took the liberty to google it...but many Thai-English dictionaries out there, as well as online help.

http://translate.google.com/#auto/th/park

hope you are not going to start a new topic for every word you cannot translate !

[harrry]

took the liberty to google it...but many Thai-English dictionaries out there, as well as online help.

http://translate.google.com/#auto/th/park

hope you are not going to start a new topic for every word you cannot translate !

That is fine if you put in park but he did not know it was a park did he?

https://translate.google.com.au/?hl=en&tab=wT#th/en/sawan

is what he asked and it did not help did it. Maybe it would be nice if he had included the context rather than just a word and does this in future but there is no reason to criticise him. In fact it may help other people learn something new.

สวน may be what he is looking for.it more means garden when used on its own..

Edited January 14, 2014 by harrry

[slipperylobster]

took the liberty to google it...but many Thai-English dictionaries out there, as well as online help.

http://translate.google.com/#auto/th/park

hope you are not going to start a new topic for every word you cannot translate !

That is fine if you put in park but he did not know it was a park did he?

https://translate.google.com.au/?hl=en&tab=wT#th/en/sawan

is what he asked and it did not help did it. Maybe it would be nice if he had included the context rather than just a word and does this in future but there is no reason to criticise him. In fact it may help other people learn something new.

สวน may be what he is looking for.it more means garden when used on its own..

duhhh. Go out and ask a Thai....there are many willing to help.

Google translate or not...i don't care.....

just type it in and ask translate.

watch and learn.......haha https://www.google.com/search?q=thai%20sawan&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=com.yahoo:en-US:official&client=firefox&channel=np&source=hp#channel=np&q=what+does+sawan+mean+in+thai&rls=com.yahoo:en-US:official

as in Nakon Sawan.........a city close to me.....city of heaven.

[slipperylobster]

Sa wan means heaven

Na lok means hell. Or Pattaya

Tell me my dear......have you ever danced with the devil?

[slipperylobster]

Just asked my gal...she said heaven... there ya go........

[harrry]

Just asked my gal...she said heaven... there ya go........

The city may be heavenly ....but the people?

Edited January 14, 2014 by harrry

[p_brownstone]

สวรรค์ - (Sawan) means Heaven, or Heavenly - therefore นครสวรรค์ means "Heavenly City"

สวน - (Suan) means Park or Garden - so สวนสาธารณ means "Public Park"

Patrick

[Chaam local]

It's probably not what OP is after, but sawan (สว่าน) can also mean a driller (hand drill).

[Ajaan]

There's also the possibility that the OP is hearing the word in question incorrectly, and he meant สว่าง (sawang) "to be light out" or "to be wide-awake, alert"...really, OP, context is everything when you're asking for a translation.

[slipperylobster]

There are some problems translating a word, by itself. As mentioned before....

1 Maybe the OP did not hear the word correctly.

2. A word, out of context, may have an entirely different meaning. That is true in any language.

3. Much better to research it on his own. Half the fun of learning Thai is getting a cute girl to help you with it. Learning Thai is a good ice breaker, and many will help you. II you have no access to cute girls/cute wife, then use that expensive computer for what it is best at doing. Google it (yes..you can google a thai word by guessing the spelling and then writing it how it would be spelled in english...like "Sawan".

enter in the google line..."What does the Thai word Sawan mean in English". You will find out immediately, because you know in what situation the word was used. Many dictionaries also give phonetic spellings....

[RedBullHorn]

took the liberty to google it...but many Thai-English dictionaries out there, as well as online help.

http://translate.google.com/#auto/th/park

hope you are not going to start a new topic for every word you cannot translate !

Why can't you just give the OP what he wants ? What is wrong with starting a new topic for every word he can't translate ? Are you trying to be a smart ass !?!! Help him if you want to... but please don't criticize. It is perfectly alright in this sub forum to ask for help.

Edited January 15, 2014 by RedBullHorn

[krisb]

Sa wan means heaven

Na lok means hell. Or Pattaya

Tell me my dear......have you ever danced with the devil?

No I'm not religious.

[Senechal]

Depending on the context, this is unlikely to mean heaven. (Unless you were having a deep, spiritual conversation).

More likely the word was "sawaang" (the last g is almost unpronounced) -- this means "bright", or "intense light". e.g: Like if you're trying to sleep and there's too much light: "sawaang mak" (It's so bright!) or "sawaang guern pbai" (It's too bright).

Edited January 20, 2014 by Senechal

[BEVUP]

It's probably not what OP is after, but sawan (สว่าน) can also mean a driller (hand drill).

Ah yes that was my thought as in suwan ( drill ) Issan terms

[Mole]

Although a long shot, it could also be สุวรรณ su-wan, which means gold. It's a loan word from Sanskrit suvarna.

[Ace of Pop]

In general layman's Thai terms it means" Up There" a nice bit of a Heaven, the opposite sounds like Na Lok, down there near Hell. There is no prob translating it unless you just want to be pedantic . Dont bring Thai Lao and other dialects into it, it muddles everyone up.

[Ajaan]

In general layman's Thai terms it means" Up There" a nice bit of a Heaven, the opposite sounds like Na Lok, down there near Hell. There is no prob translating it unless you just want to be pedantic . Dont bring Thai Lao and other dialects into it, it muddles everyone up.

The whole reason for people suggesting variations on what the meaning of the word the OP heard could be is the very real possibility that the OP didn't hear the word correctly in the first place.

BTW, hell = นรก (narok)

[Ace of Pop]

Yeh ,we all hear it differently, but some just like to pontificate, like narok, when Thais say it it sounds like nalok, as they drop the R to an L.. .. Boon Boon Gri Gri.., thats Thailao by the way., means nothing to Kings Thai speakers either..

[Ajaan]

Yeh ,we all hear it differently, but some just like to pontificate, like narok, when Thais say it it sounds like nalok, as they drop the R to an L.. .. Boon Boon Gri Gri.., thats Thailao by the way., means nothing to Kings Thai speakers either..

It's not a question of "hearing it differently;" there's a correct way to say everything (based on the writing system) and an informal way to pronounce it, based on one's dialect.

My point is simply that when giving information on a language forum, you should give the correct pronunciation before giving a dialect pronunciation...as you yourself said, dialects [and non-standard pronunciations] "muddle everyone up".

[Ace of Pop]

Who determines the Correct Pronunciation on this Forum A Ferang.

[Ajaan]

Who determines the Correct Pronunciation on this Forum A Ferang.

There's nothing "wrong" with pronouncing นรก as "นลก" in and of itself...the latter is a way that people communicate informally, to be sure. But an educated Thai--even if that education is minimal--will always use the former pronunciation, which is REINFORCED BY THE SPELLING OF THE WORD, in any sort of formal or semi-formal situation. To do otherwise is to sound uneducated and crude, or like a child...or in the case of a farang, to sound like one learned to speak Thai in a bar beer. It's important to know--and all Thais do--which pronunciation to use in which social context.

Let me put it in terms that might be easier for you to understand: when I speak English informally, with friends, I often say things like "gonna"...even though I am quite aware that the correct form is "going to". I would never say "gonna" in, say, a job interview...I know in which social situation to use the correct pronunciation, and in which situation to use the colloquial, informal one. And if I were instructing someone who was in the process of learning English, I most certainly would make sure they knew the correct form--"going to"--before I introduced them to the colloquial "gonna". Because I don't want them to embarrass themselves, sound crude, childish, etc.

You're obviously way out of your league here...the language forum is for people to ask questions about Thai language and (hopefully) get informed answers from those who are native speakers of Thai or who have studied it (including reading and writing) to a respectable level...you should probably go back to commenting on light-hearted topics in "Farang Pub" if you can't have a serious, well-informed and reasonable conversation on basic matters of written Thai and how words are pronounced.

Edited January 21, 2014 by Ajaan

[harrry]

Who determines the Correct Pronunciation on this Forum A Ferang.

There's nothing "wrong" with pronouncing นรก as "นลก" in and of itself...the latter is a way that people communicate informally, to be sure. But an educated Thai--even if that education is minimal--will always use the former pronunciation, which is REINFORCED BY THE SPELLING OF THE WORD, in any sort of formal or semi-formal situation. To do otherwise is to sound uneducated and crude, or like a child...or in the case of a farang, to sound like one learned to speak Thai in a bar beer. It's important to know--and all Thais do--which pronunciation to use in which social context.

Let me put it in terms that might be easier for you to understand: when I speak English informally, with friends, I often say things like "gonna"...even though I am quite aware that the correct form is "going to". I would never say "gonna" in, say, a job interview...I know in which social situation to use the correct pronunciation, and in which situation to use the colloquial, informal one. And if I were instructing someone who was in the process of learning English, I most certainly would make sure they knew the correct form--"going to"--before I introduced them to the colloquial "gonna". Because I don't want them to embarrass themselves, sound crude, childish, etc.

You're obviously way out of your league here...the language forum is for people to ask questions about Thai language and (hopefully) get informed answers from those who are native speakers of Thai or who have studied it (including reading and writing) to a respectable level...you should probably go back to commenting on light-hearted topics in "Farang Pub" if you can't have a serious, well-informed and reasonable conversation on basic matters of written Thai and how words are pronounced.

Sorry,....you sound elitist to me. Language does not belong to any one person or class.

[Mole]

Sorry, ajaan, being a native Thai, I'll have to kind of disagree on your statement regarding the usage of ร in Thailand.

Although personally I'm fully capable of pronouncing this sound, I don't really use it at all.

Nowadays it's used only in settings like news broadcasts or perhaps formal speeches.

If you're using it during normal speech, you'd be considered to be kind of "trying too hard" to sound "educated" and "hi-class".

The usage of ร is becoming more and more phased out now.

However, for a farang who speaks Thai with an accent anyway, I'd actually do recommend to pronounce the ร differently than ล (in whatever way according to your native language).

For example, do say farang and narok instead falang and nalok.

Since you're a farang, this "social faux pas" doesn't really apply to you and you should pronounce the ร and ล differently in order to get more clarity.

[Ace of Pop]

After 25 Years of working with everyday Thais . both Hi So and Lo So i am understood perfectly, in fact they love my Thailao fun talk. I also avoid some English English teachers who scare Thai Kids with their Know it all attitude, im now a Mole Fan, eloquently put, and without arrogance.

[Ace of Pop]

I context to the O.P.s question my reply would be. Take Nakasawan City for example, sawan infers a heavenly place to live . No need to ramble on IMO. .

[Ajaan]

Sorry, ajaan, being a native Thai, I'll have to kind of disagree on your statement regarding the usage of ร in Thailand.

Although personally I'm fully capable of pronouncing this sound, I don't really use it at all.

Nowadays it's used only in settings like news broadcasts or perhaps formal speeches.

If you're using it during normal speech, you'd be considered to be kind of "trying too hard" to sound "educated" and "hi-class".

The usage of ร is becoming more and more phased out now.

However, for a farang who speaks Thai with an accent anyway, I'd actually do recommend to pronounce the ร differently than ล (in whatever way according to your native language).

For example, do say farang and narok instead falang and nalok.

Since you're a farang, this "social faux pas" doesn't really apply to you and you should pronounce the ร and ล differently in order to get more clarity.

I don't think you're disagreeing with me. My main points are:

1. All literate Thais know the difference between formal written and informal spoken pronunciation

2. In the right context (as you said, a formal speech, etc.), Thai native speakers can and will pronounce words according to how they're written

3. It's important for non-native speakers (e.g. farangs learning Thai) to know the proper form as well as the informal form

It is true that in modern spoken Thai, there are only two groups of speakers that strongly maintain the r/l distinction in everyday informal speech: Surin/Buriram/Sisaket ethnic Khmers, and Southern Thai speakers. Maybe I'm overly sensitive to the spelling/pronunciation issue because I teach Khmer language, from which Thai acquired a good 30% of its vocabulary (and in modern standard spoken Khmer, the ร sound is pronounced very clearly, with the exception of a few dialects).

Still, I work with a lot of native-speaking teachers of Thai in universities in the US and Thailand, and all of them would be very quick to correct a student in the classroom if they substituted ล in a word that's spelled with a ร. As I said, I believe foreigners should learn the "correct" way first, and the informal/dialect way later...which is pretty much the same thing that you said.

Edited January 22, 2014 by Ajaan