How usefull is thai launguage in Laos

[farangmick]

most Lao will understand Thai if spoken relatively correctly, as they all watch Thai TV. though many / most wont speak Thai very well or at least will have a strong accent.

i used to have a trick to remember - change all ร to ห as a general rule and the guess usually worked or would get close, like school and hotel. They do something else with Rs to Ls as well.

anyway, I often wonder if those who understand no Thai and have no interest in learning it are sort of insulated in a protective way from things. Ignorance is bliss. Sorry to drift off topic... its been a long damn week. month. year. decade.

In my head I am fluent in Thai. What comes out of my mouth is a different matter. Maybe Thai and a Yorkshire accent just don't go together?

[Spock]

For anyone who have been to Laos, this thread is good. Laos is a fantastic place, perhaps a trifle more expensive than Thailand and the local food is not so varied or tasty as Thai food, but the people are really nice, even more so if you speak Thai with them.

I agree with posters who say that chances are you'll find an English speaker, but that's not really true of the very ordinary folk with whom you'd like a simple conversation that's not too taxing on your Thai. Why wouldn't you want to speak directly to waiters, waitresses, tuk tuk drivers, a room cleaner, a street stall owner etc if you could? The vans and buses you take long distance stop sometimes at the most God-forsaken establishment for meals and refreshments. I felt hugely advantaged over other travellers being able to talk about their dog, how old it is, what the weather has been like, how many kids they have and other aspects of their life and mine etc etc. 'No sugar in the coffee' thanks, which means no sweet can milk, just the ordinary tinned milk.

I treasure my encounters with local people more than any other memories of time spent in a country. I am confident in speaking 400+ or so words 'fluently' in a flattish sort of way. I plucked a figure out of the air with 400, but it may be many more or perhaps less.

Enjoy Laos. I am 62 and just finished back-packing for 3 months and felt rejuvenated if at times feeling the oldest person in Vang Vieng or the least spiritual in Luang Prabang. You'll love it even more if you can speak Thai and love mountains and big rivers.

As an aside, Cambodians and Laos people seem to have a better grasp of spoken English than Thais.Why? Is it the French colonization of both countries versus Thailand's inwards looking culture and character? Or is my assessment of the English competency of the three countries simply incorrect?

Edited October 3, 2015 by Spock

[farangmick]

For anyone who have been to Laos, this thread is good. Laos is a fantastic place, perhaps a trifle more expensive than Thailand and the local food is not so varied or tasty as Thai food, but the people are really nice, even more so if you speak Thai with them.

I agree with posters who say that chances are you'll find an English speaker, but that's not really true of the very ordinary folk with whom you'd like a simple conversation that's not too taxing on your Thai. Why wouldn't you want to speak directly to waiters, waitresses, tuk tuk drivers, a room cleaner, a street stall owner etc if you could? The vans and buses you take long distance stop sometimes at the most God-forsaken establishment for meals and refreshments. I felt hugely advantaged over other travellers being able to talk about their dog, how old it is, what the weather has been like, how many kids they have and other aspects of their life and mine etc etc. 'No sugar in the coffee' thanks, which means no sweet can milk, just the ordinary tinned milk.

I treasure my encounters with local people more than any other memories of time spent in a country. I am confident in speaking 400+ or so words 'fluently' in a flattish sort of way. I plucked a figure out of the air with 400, but it may be many more or perhaps less.

Enjoy Laos. I am 62 and just finished back-packing for 3 months and felt rejuvenated if at times feeling the oldest person in Vang Vieng or the least spiritual in Luang Prabang. You'll love it even more if you can speak Thai and love mountains and big rivers.

As an aside, Cambodians and Laos people seem to have a better grasp of spoken English than Thais.Why? Is it the French colonization of both countries versus Thailand's inwards looking culture and character? Or is my assessment of the English competency of the three countries simply incorrect?

Good post. I think you are right about Thais and the English language. The rest of SE Asia has had English, French or Dutch imposed on them as an official language at some point. So a lot ended up proficient in at least two languages. Never having been colonised by farang, Thais seem to have an inverted snobbery about learning farang languages. The opposite situation to Britain, but with a similar result. In my long ago school days, it was a given that any foreigner except the lowly peasants would understand English if it was spoken slowly and loudly. LOL.

[Stone Inscription 1]

I can get by in Thailand with spoken, written and reading Thai. That helped me pick up written and spoken Lao in about three months. I can also read Lao but do not always know what the phrase means.

As one member mentioned many Lao, in particular, young people can speak English in the cities and towns. This holds true up north in places like Oudomxai and Sam Neua, and in the south around Pakse too.

If I got really stuck with speaking Lao/Thai or English, I would write out the words in Lao, and that helped immensely.

[anotheruser]

The two languages are quite similar, infact when I was there in February at a market ordering some Kanom, one cheerful lady walks up to me and says in Lao "Farang, you speak Lao very good!", Pood Pasa Lao dee mak Farang! It was quite hilarious for my friends that were with me (Thai people) to hear that.. there is a difference in accent, but that accent is evident even in the outer villages towards Nong Khai. I have never ventured too deep into Laos but can only imagine that the accent would vary so be harder to understand?

The only problem is that what you wrote here isn't Lao. Your sentence was Thai. pood=wao dee mak= keng lai.

I would disregard most of this thread in terms of educating myself to the Lao language.

If you know Thai reasonably well they will understand you. I have lived in Laos a few years and always amuse the Thais when I speak "Isaan" I tell them that I speak no such language and speak Lao. Helps with the taxis though as a good deal of taxi drivers are from Isaan. The downside is you will be faced with the same repetitive conversations during your trip.

Edited October 7, 2015 by anotheruser

[meltingpot2015]

How about learning to spell in English. (It's Language, not Launguage)

Also, learning how to use the 'edit' feature to correct mistakes on your post.

Yep, spelling police here. That's what we do.

[Too]

Hello,

You'll be better off in Laos if you can speak Thai than English, especially

in the countryside because most of the Lao people can understand Thai,

basically speaking. This will help you communicate with them and have

a more enjoyable stay in the country.

Edited October 10, 2015 by Too