Guest Posted January 11, 2002 Report Share Posted January 11, 2002 I once travelled around Mexico reading the Spanish-English dictionary looking up words that sounded Spanish that are used in the US. (eg., Boca Raton (Mouth [of the ?] Rat?), Amarillo (yellow), Sierra (saw), etc.)I want to do the same in Thailand but it's not as easy. So far I can only guess at a few because I'm not sure what tone is used. For example, Hua Hin = Head Rock(?) Chaing Rai = ?elephant? "rai" is a unit of measure? Nang Kai = sitting chicken(?) Maybe I'm completely on the wrong track with these(I'm just guessing), but if there are some places you know the meaning of the name (especially if it's interesting)can you post it? I'm curious about "Roi Et" (one hundred and one?) as well as many others (ie., Phuket, Buriram, Udon Thani, Phya Tai(the skytrain station), Ploenchit, Sukhomvit, etc., etc. ...) It's just interesting and makes it easier to learn new vocab. Thanks in advance. Joe BTW, Isaan does not mean "northeast"! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
los Posted January 11, 2002 Report Share Posted January 11, 2002 What does Buriram mean? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 11, 2002 Report Share Posted January 11, 2002 Originally posted by land o' scams: "What does Buriram mean?" Ah, the town and province that has produced so many bar-girls ... I'm a bit at a loss here, but I can speculate. If the "Buri-" is the same as in Kanachanaburi etc. it means town; "-ram" could be from Skt. "rama" (first a short, second a long), which means beloved. "Rama" is also another name for Hindu goddess Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth. (Don't confuse with the Hindu god Rama; in this case the first a is long). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BkkShaggy Posted January 11, 2002 Report Share Posted January 11, 2002 Originally posted by Scum_Baggio: BkkShaggy, I agree with all your translations except the one for Nakhon Nayok. It's Sanskrit Nagara Nayaka, I'm certain. Your interpretation is unlikely as it would combine a Sanskrit word (nagara) with a Thai one. I don't think you would find any such combination. If you're certain, that's fine. But as I said, it's one of the assumptions. There's also a town call Samut Songkhram, literally the "Ocean of Slaughter/Massacre". In today's Thai, "songkhram" of course means war, but the orininal Skt. form (sanhara) means massacre, bloodbath. Why the town name was coined - I haven't got a clue. Some historical occurence? Geez, if you don't know-who knows!! You're our # 1 Thai expert on this board here ! What about Kabinburi? Could it be - as I suspect - "The Reddish/Brown City"? In Thai "Kabinburi" spells as "ka-bin-ta-ra- bu-ri". Thai dictionary says that "ka-bin-ta-ra" meaning "Chief of Money". So the meaning could be "City of Monkey Chief"??? I guess in "Kabinburi" used to have a lot of money in the past?? I'm a bit at a loss here, but I can speculate. If the "Buri-" is the same as in Kanachanaburi etc. it means town; "-ram" could be from Skt. "rama" (first a short, second a long), which means beloved. "Rum" is spelled "rum-ma-ya" meaning entertaining/ funfilled/ satisfied. Soooo"Burirum" means "Entertaining city" or "Funfilled city". No wonder why the girls from this province have been so "funfilled" and "entertaining for farangs!! A little bit more: "Chonburi" means city of water. "Chaiyapum" means the winning region/land as chaiya=win and bhumi became pumi = land. "Ratchaburi" easy one as raja bacame racha meaning royal. So it means the royal town. "Petchboon" means Full of diamond. Petchara = diamond. Scum, you should learn Thai asap otherwise you keep guessing. It's not that hard -really. I think since you mastered Hindi, Skt and Pali, the rest is a piece of cake. It would be more fun for you too. [ January 11, 2002: Message edited by: BkkShaggy ] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 12, 2002 Report Share Posted January 12, 2002 BkkShaggy, thanks for the input. If Buriram is spelled --rumaya at the end (or rather -ramaya, right?), it also makes sense to me, as it is a related word to the one I mention. The words "ramya" or "ramniya" mean charming, lovely; and I guess there we have the root of your "-ramaya". Chonburi, yes, from Skt. "jala", one of the many words for water. The "Kabinburi" is still a bit mysterious to me. The "kabintara" could well contain "Indra", the chief of gods. Can't yet fathom the rest, though. "Kavi" means poet and if you hadn't given your dictionary interpretation, I might have ventured that the name might mean "Town of the Lord of Poets". Yes, indeed I should learn to read proper Thai. When I started living in Thailand I was still honing my Hindi and Sanskrit skills, so I never got much around to Thai. Maybe soon, by the blessings of Saraswati, the goddess of learning ... [ January 11, 2002: Message edited by: Scum_Baggio ] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 12, 2002 Report Share Posted January 12, 2002 JoeyJoJo, one thing about a point you mention in your first post: Isaan stems from Sanskrit "Ishaana" which a) is another name for Hindu god Shiva and also happens to mean north-east. Now, I am convinced that the people naming the area were doing so in honour of Shiva, nothing else. The reason? The north-east of Thailand was for a long time under the rule of the Khmer, who primarily worshipped Shiva and Vishnu. OK, Isaan happens to be the "north-east" as well, as least to us and to the Thais of today; but if the name had been awarded for this geographical reason, the people coining it would have to have been living in the Bangkok area (from where the Isaan is "north-east"). Geddit? But Bangkok is only two and a half centuries old (roughly). So to summarize: "Isaan" does also mean north-east, but this is sheer coincidence in this case. [ January 11, 2002: Message edited by: Scum_Baggio ] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 12, 2002 Report Share Posted January 12, 2002 Thanks for the feedback! I guess it helps a lot to know sanskrit (not something I care to spend time doing). I'm documenting these for future reference. Thanks for the info on Isaan. Cheers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shotover Posted January 12, 2002 Report Share Posted January 12, 2002 Interesting topic. What about the Isaan village "Na Pho"? Shotover Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 12, 2002 Report Share Posted January 12, 2002 Originally posted by shotover: "What about the Isaan village "Na Pho"?" Depends on how its spelled, really. It's impossible to say without seeing the Thai script. "Na" can mean "in front" or "field"; "pho" could be the Peepal or Bodhi tree (thon po, as in Wat Po; botanical name Ficus religiosa), but in a different spelling also "father", and probably something else still. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BkkShaggy Posted January 12, 2002 Report Share Posted January 12, 2002 "thanks for the input. If Buriram is spelled --rumaya at the end (or rather -ramaya, right?), it also makes sense to me, as it is a related word to the one I mention. The words "ramya" or "ramniya" mean charming, lovely; and I guess there we have the root of your "-ramaya". " Thais pronounce 'Buriram' as 'Bu-ree- rum', rum pronounced like Rum - the beverage. In fact, Thai have several words stem from this one,eg. rom-ma-nee-ya, rom (spell as 'ramaya'), pi-rom, a-rom (mood), etc. "The "Kabinburi" is still a bit mysterious to me. The "kabintara" could well contain "Indra", the chief of gods. Can't yet fathom the rest, though. "Kavi" means poet and if you hadn't given your dictionary interpretation, I might have ventured that the name might mean "Town of the Lord of Poets". " I don't think there is anything in the word "kabintara" associated with the word "Kavi" as you suggested. BTW, Did you find out the meaning of "Nana" for us while you were in India? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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