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Thai
Language and Where to Learn More
(See
links below for free online audio lessons)
Thai is
the main language of Thailand. Several different dialects are spoken in
the various parts of the country, namely Central (Bangkok), Northern,
Northeastern, and Southern. Lao is also closely related to Thai.
[edit] Pronunciation Thai is a tonal language with five tones: Mid, Low,
Falling, High, and Rising. Meanings can change critically based on the
tone, but Thais are fairly used to hearing foreigners mangle their
language and can often work out the correct tone based on context. Try not
to inflect your sentences; in particular, any questions should be
pronounced as flat statements, without the rising intonation ("...yes?")
typical to English questions.
The
Thai written language is essentially alphabetic, but notoriously difficult
to read due to a profusion of 44 consonants (many redundant), complicated
tone and vowel signage around consonants and a complete lack of spaces
between words.
Fast
functional use of Thai language is not easy - but it is quite possible to
learn some simple phrases and words that you will enjoy using - and your
hosts will also enjoy your efforts.
Learn
how to say - using polite terminology - on the links below:
Hello
/ Good bye - Thank you - You're welcome - No problem - Very good - I
want/don't want - Delicious
You'll
find Thais amazingly tolerant of your efforts and quite pleased that you
made the effort.
All of
the following links have audio - and most are oriented for beginning level
learners.
http://www.learningthai.com
http://www.seasite.niu.edu/Thai
http://www.thaisouth.com/learn_thai.php
http://www.sriwittayapaknam.ac.th/thailanguage/
http://sunsite.au.ac.th/education
http://www.travlang.com/languages
http://thaiarc.tu.ac.th/thai/introth.htm
http://www.into-asia.com/thai_language
As
Thai is a tonal language - you might find it useful to listen to tapes or
CDs to help you get the pronunciation right.
partially sourced from www.Wiki.com |
