Thai language is not difficult!

Sawaddee from Thailand ka

What do you think about Thai language? I have been teaching Thai language for nearly 8 years and have heard so many people say that THAI LANGUAGE IS DIFFICULT. Although it is not a famous language to learn, it is really useful for expats or even tourists who want to get cheaper price and do some 'discount competition'. 

What is it special about Thai language? I've heard so many people say it is a weird language because one word sounds the same but has millions of meanings. For example, 'mai' can mean 'silk', 'new', 'burn', 'wood', the prefix for negative sentence or even a question marker.  These intonations make people crazy and give up learning Thai language.

It is funny sometimes when you want to say the word 'ma' (a house), you end up saying 'ma' (a dog) instead.  However, I think learning Thai language is a form of art. It is like singing songs. If you can change the 5 tones in Thai, it means you can learn any language in Asia (May be in the world, you never know :P)

Learning Thai is also learning culture. Thai people always end their sentences by saying 'ka' (for women) or 'krap' (for men) to show politeness. For example, Sawaddee ka/krap (Hi/Hello), Sabai dee mai ka/krap (How are you?)

You will also see the age hierarchy in the word for family tree. In English, you use 'uncle' and 'aunt' for older or younger brother/sister. However, in Thai language, you use 'Loong' for an uncle (your older brother) , 'Ah' or 'Na' for an uncle who is younger than you. 'Bpa' for an older aunt and 'Ah' or 'Na' for a younger aunt. Moreover, grandfather and grandmother are too broad for Thai people. They use 'Bpu' (grandfather) and 'Ya' (Grandmother) for your father's parents. They use 'Dta' (grandfather) and 'Yaai'(grandmother) for your mother's parents. There are still many words that I cannot explain all here. 

I hope that this short article will not freak you out :) No language is easy or difficult for people, it depends on how much inspiration you want to have. 

Good luck with every language and I am sorry if my English language is not all correct :)

Have a great day

Sawaddee ka