Chanchao Posted September 24, 2003 Report Share Posted September 24, 2003 > I don't know if others have had this expeince, but once in a while I > will slip a bad word into a coversation with a BG, it almost always > draws a very negative reaction. Yes, agree completely. And you gain quite a bit of (surprised?) praise for speaking polite. > Properly learining written Thai, I mean beyond the literate level, > has become one of the biggest nightmares ever. It only gets more > and more complicated. What's 'beyond literate level' ? I'd be quite happy just being 'literate' in written Thai.. I find it refreshingly consistent compared to (shudder) English. Jasmine wrote: > have heard the word "eng" = "you" used though and many called > themselves like "Lung", "Yai" or whatever. 'eng' as in 'tua eng' ? I still think that's terribly confusing.. May sometimes refer either to 'you' or to 'me'. !! "Tua eng pai nai? the horror.... Similar to 'Pun' in Northern Thai; that one is really a hoot as it may refer to pretty much any personal pronoun in existance including you, me, he/she/it, they, we, etc. ;-)) eg 'pun bo ao' can just as easily mean "I don't want it" or "she doesn't want it" It gets worse when either party also happens to be named 'pun' (as in ple as in Apple) ;-) Cheers, Chanchao Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dexi Posted September 24, 2003 Report Share Posted September 24, 2003 Like many people,when I first started to speak Thai I was under the impression that ` krap ` had to be used at the end of every sentence,failure to do this being very impolite.However,in my dealings with ordinary Thais,I`ve found that the polite article is only used when dealing with someone of authority in a formal situation,eg.Govt.official.It`s use also seems to indicate the mood being formal and slightly unfriendly.,although it seems much more used on TV and radio.....On a different note,I noticed on my last trip I am now reffered to as ` Loong `.Does this make me older or younger than ` Por `? Is it a signal to consider hair dye.? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jasmine Posted September 24, 2003 Report Share Posted September 24, 2003 [color:"green"] However,in my dealings with ordinary Thais,I`ve found that the polite article is only used when dealing with someone of authority in a formal situation,eg.Govt.official.It`s use also seems to indicate the mood being formal and slightly unfriendly.,although it seems much more used on TV and radio.....On a different note,I noticed on my last trip I am now reffered to as ` Loong `.Does this make me older or younger than ` Por `? Is it a signal to consider hair dye.? [/color] Depends how "ordinary" the Thais ones met are, the word "Krap" and "kha", IMO, used widely, normal for me. But you got a point though because many of the Thais do NOT speak politely even at home, so what do you expect? Perhaps, they associate the polite Thai as formal as you said. "Lung" is older than a father/mother, older is actually better, perhaps they will use more "krups" with you from now on. Cheers! :: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 25, 2003 Report Share Posted September 25, 2003 yesterday i had a situation again where i used slightly impolite language very effectively again. had a meeting with someone, but he wasn't there. only some people i cannot stand were present. had to ask them where the guy was i was supposed to meet. they were starting this slightly condescending pseudo upper class pisstake with me (very funny...). i gave them my thousand yard stare (i can do that very well), and replied in the tone you talk down in the slums (no gu/mueng though, just that slightly hard pronounciation). the pisstake stopped immediately ( : and i got my required information straight away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jasmine Posted September 25, 2003 Report Share Posted September 25, 2003 Hi, I think you do what is needed in such situation. I do admit that I have a hard time in some environment, perhaps, because,exposure has been limited. Cheers! :: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhatPhak Posted September 26, 2003 Report Share Posted September 26, 2003 "What's 'beyond literate level' ? I'd be quite happy just being 'literate' in written Thai.. I find it refreshingly consistent compared to (shudder) English." I guess I mean being able to read more than signs and simple paragraphs. Actually learing the very complex rules of written Thai for books, poetry, etc., and being able to write at that level. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jasmine Posted September 26, 2003 Report Share Posted September 26, 2003 [color:"red"] 'eng' as in 'tua eng' ? [/color] No, "eng" by itself is used to mean "you", normally from older people adressing younger ones. "tua eng" means oneself or yourself and it is used by equals in age or older to younger people as a a stress or the younger ones will use it to talk to each other. Most strangers I have met addressed me as "pii, Pa, Na" depending on their ages. The older ones, especially "chow ban" have addressed me as "ajarn"= teacher which surprised me. [color:"red"] Similar to 'Pun' in Northern Thai; [/color] I know what you mean. I get confused at times, so I try to listen to the context and sometime, it still does not help. [color:"red"]It gets worse when either party also happens to be named 'pun' (as in ple as in Apple) ;-) [/color] Have fun Jasmine :: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.