I find it fascinating to know how many readers of Thailandblog are involved with the Thai language, how advanced they are, how they have mastered the language and what obstacles they encounter. So a small survey that others might learn something from.
I have the impression that more and more people are learning or want to learn Thai. It might be nice and instructive to note the experiences of these people. I think others could benefit from this as well.
So I came up with the following questions:
- What level are you at now? Starting? Advanced? Very advanced? Flowing?
- Can you read and write? How good?
- How did you learn the language?
- How long have you been learning?
- What were the biggest difficulties in learning?
- How are you going to progress?
Let me bite the bullet.
1. Almost fluent in ordinary everyday conversation. On the phone most people think I'm Thai, maybe from the Isaan or the Deep South? because I have a definite accent. Flattery I sometimes think…. When it comes to conversations about more difficult subjects, political of course or technical matters, I count myself among the experts. Sometimes I have to ask for clarification. Sometimes I can't think of a word or phrase.
2. I am good at reading. I can handle newspapers, documents and simple literature well. Difficult literature or poetry are still a problem: I am a novice there. I'm between beginner and advanced when it comes to writing. An ordinary letter presents few problems, but it always contains a few grammatical, style or spelling errors.
3. I started in the Netherlands, a year before I moved to Thailand, with old-fashioned tapes that I listened to while driving. When we moved to Thailand in 1999, one of my first visits was to the high school where I asked in the teacher's lounge who would teach me Thai. After a year I started following extracurricular education (see note). (At that time I also only used Thai to communicate here). I was in a group of about twenty middle-aged people. One was even 65 years old. Incredibly cosy. After three years I got my Thai primary school diploma and after another three years the diploma 3 years of secondary school. The state exams were very easy, just multiple choice. I always had a 6 for Thai, a 7 or 8 for the other subjects. After that, unfortunately, I didn't do much with the Thai language until 5 years ago when I went to live in Chiang Mai with my son after my divorce. I now have two hours of Thai lessons a week again.
4. Sixteen years, of which six years very intensively, ie 2-3 hours a day.
5. The pronunciation of Thai (show!) and the spelling. I still have to look up the latter regularly and often make mistakes.
6. I'll keep it that way. Read and listen, talk and write.
Note: Extracurricular education is highly recommended. There is a school in every tambon. Saturday morning lessons and further self-study. Costs almost nothing, a small amount and textbooks. It is called in Thai: การศึกษานอกระบบ kaan seuksǎa nôhk rábop, usually called with an abbreviation กษน koh sǒh noh. Reasonably doable after 1-2 years of intensive self-study.
What are your experiences, intentions and problems?
1. I can call myself advanced. I can cope well in all kinds of everyday situations. At least express what I mean, but don't always understand what the Thai say. It's strange that it's often all or nothing. I understand some Thai perfectly, others with difficulty. I find it difficult on the phone, but I also find that in Dutch. Understanding is the hardest part anyway. I can't really follow the news on TV. Of course I also make mistakes when speaking, but I have a good command of the pronunciation of the tones and sometimes get compliments for that.
2. I can read quite well, but I don't do much about it anymore, only if I have to. But that has often served me very well. This eliminates the disadvantage that I have to understand something at that moment and have the time for it. I used to read books and newspapers to practice, but I don't do that anymore.
3. Bit started in the 90s, counting and all. When I moved there in 2000, a futile attempt and a few years later seriously. Spent a lot of time showing. Being able to read helps with that. Basically all self study. I did take a teacher to talk to to train listening skills. Also benefited a lot from the black Fundamentals book, the old AUA tapes with tone exercises and the former Bangkok Post language lessons on Tuesdays. All in all, it takes years before you have any level and in the beginning you think you are learning the wrong language, that's how bad you really can communicate. And suddenly there is a tipping point and it works. My disadvantage is also that I do not have a Thai partner.
4. Seriously about 6 years. Now I don't learn anymore.
5. When learning not really problems, more in the beginning in practice, especially the exact understanding.
6. I am satisfied, I can get by and will never reach the level of native speaker.
I agree with all the answers Kees gave. I had Linguaphone as a cassette course at the time. In my house (in Thailand) only Thai is spoken with partner, and foster son of 13 at Matthayom 2.
Amai, it's great to hear that you had the strength to persevere.
So I can't. I know a few sentences, can count to 100 and that's where it ends.
Been coming to Thailand as a tourist since 96.
Already had a booklet Assimil at the time, but this did not help me much, so you quickly switch to English.
What suits me best is to take lessons in Belgium, but this is not obvious either.
Little offer and/or far from my place of residence.
And when I travel, I don't see myself sitting behind the school benches, then I mainly want to enjoy myself.
I am really still a beginner when it comes to the Thai language. Purchased a self-study at NHA in the Netherlands. Good teaching material with a media player that covers all words from the course in Thai, as well as the 5 pitches. Now living in Thailand (Udon Thani). I've been learning for over a year now, but it's all going very slowly. Sometimes it makes me a bit despondent (especially due to the inability to understand, for example, the Thai news) and I tend to stop.
By the way, I can use the keyboard well with the Thai characters and I can read Thai, albeit very slowly. The problem is that my vocabulary is not yet large enough (I estimate at about 1.200 words).
I do want to persevere and maybe, after another year of self-study, take private lessons. But it will never be perfect. My goal is that I can understand most (especially the Thai newsreaders) and that I can speak Thai quite easily. In addition, it is of course also the case that I am here in the Isaan, which is quite different from the BKK Thai.
I have been married for 11 years now and still live in Belgium.
I learned the Thai language at a school in Antwerp. I maintained this for 1 year because the lessons continued on Saturday mornings and this was easy for me (transport). This is 3 years ago and I forgot a lot. At home we speak English and Dutch and sometimes a Thai word emerges. I note among my friends with Thai women and men that this is also happening in their families.
The intention is, over time, to settle in Thailand and still learn more of the language. Simply because I think people would contact me more quickly.
I wish to start that Thai school again, but this is now Thursday evening. I live about 130km from Antwerp. During the week this is very difficult for me (transportation, late hour at home).
This is possible with books, but my wife really doesn't help me make the correct statements. There are no Thai lessons given in West Flanders. So Self-study is the message
I am advanced, have been studying for about 4 years, and have been taking the LTP course for some time now. Can speak nicely, but have great difficulty understanding/understanding what they are saying. Understand a few words from a sentence, but often don't understand it at all.
Does anyone have that too? Hints?
We all have that in the beginning. Just say: khǒh thôot ná jang mâi khâo tsjai khráp khoen phôet wâa arai. 'Sorry, I don't understand you yet. Can you say it again?' Then the message will be repeated in easier, shorter and slower language.
1. I see myself somewhere between beginner and advanced. My wife says I'm advanced. My wife and I speak mixed Thai-Dutch at home. My wife is learning Dutch. In the village I can have simple conversations, as long as it's not Isan… I can make up my own mind.
2. I can read simple words in Thai with the right tone. But sentences are often difficult to parse, because I don't really know where the words start/end. Writing is limited to letters (consonants and vowels)…
3. I started learning Thai myself, after falling off with my first Thai love. Then I decided to learn Thai so that I could speak Thai there. So also with my in-laws and my in-laws. That's how I get to know them better. And that is absolutely appreciated. I use Paiboon's books and CDs for this.
4. I started listening, reading and speaking phonetically in the summer of 2009. Only about 2 years ago with real Thai reading. But at home I have little (no) time to learn. In Thailand I easily make time for that. (1x 4-6 weeks / year)
5. The biggest problems are reading and remembering! Listening is also a very big problem, because Thais speak quickly and often indistinctly in Isaan. I don't hear well myself and would normally have to wear hearing aids, which I rarely do in practice...
6. Don't give up. Often speaking Thai with my wife. In Thailand try to learn as much as possible yourself…
Don't think too highly of my mastery of the language! However, if you should believe the Thais, it's all fine. Started at the same time as the writer. Even with cassette tapes. Two tapes and a book in a box. Wasn't cheap back then. In the gym, the sentences and words were endlessly drilled in through headphones! Can still recite whole sentences as if they were religious scriptures. Got a lot out of it anyway. Without a base you never really get going as you see with many farangs. You simply lay that foundation by old-fashioned stamping.
Learn words. Repeat hundreds of times until it's stuck in your head.
It doesn't happen automatically, as some people wrongly believe. Only children can do that.
Sometimes I have whole conversations with Thai people and that makes me optimistic: I can do it!
However: Some suddenly seem to not understand a word when I say something to them. Especially in South Thailand I experienced major communication problems.
What is striking is that if Thai interlocutors also master English, they also understand my Thai better. Do they understand my farang accent better because of their command of English? Two family members speak very reasonable English, but we still speak Thai
If I switch to English because it is easier for me, they refuse and continue in Thai.
An advantage: My wife has been living here for more than 12 years, but still has so much trouble with Dutch that the main language in the house is Thai. Children are not here. You don't learn Dutch in the restaurant either, because only Thai people work there. Otherwise she would be forced to learn to speak Dutch.
"What is striking is that if Thai interlocutors also master English, they also understand my Thai better."
Dear, it will have to do with the level of education.
Some Thais went to school until they were 14, and can barely read or write Thai correctly. Let alone speak nice / clean Thai.
And if you speak a Thai dialect, you may still belong to the advanced, you will hardly understand them?
Regards.
Thai is the sixth or seventh language I started learning and by far the most difficult, especially in terms of pronunciation and memorization. I'm still a beginner after four years. All the more so because I usually speak English with my wife. In the meantime with many Thai words and I can also manage in a store.
My excuse for not doing much about it lately was because I was too preoccupied with other things.
Plus, I'm still learning language number five: Japanese. I started doing this when I was still working and will continue until I can no longer do it. I personally think it is a much nicer language and also much more interesting than Thai.
But that doesn't mean I wouldn't do anything about Thai.
My language courses are usually American courses: Pimsleur and Rosetta Stone. I also have a number of books and proofing programs on my PC.
Now that the main work at home has been completed, I can take my time again and continue with Thai, in addition to Japanese.
I started it sometime around 96/97 (I think).
Simply because I had been going to Thailand for several years and wanted to know more about the language.
I had quite mastered reading/writing by then.
The biggest problem is giving the right tones to letters and words.
Example. You can understand it and read it as a rising tone, making it sound rising is something else
Stopped after two years due to circumstances and never really put any more time into it.
I now regret that I didn't go further.
In daily life here in Thailand, it is now a combination of Dutch / English and Thai at home.
Planning is to pick it up again and focus more on the language again.
How ? I haven't decided yet, but I will certainly keep Tino's tip (see his note) in mind.
I started it sometime around 96/97 (I think).
Simply because I had been going to Thailand for several years and wanted to know more about the language.
By then I had mastered the basics of reading and writing quite well. Simple texts went quite smoothly. The problem was that my vocabulary was too limited, so I didn't always understand what I was reading when the texts became a bit more difficult.
Speaking was a bigger problem, especially giving the right tones to letters and words.
Example. I could/can read and understand that a letter or word has a rising tone, but making it sound rising when it comes out of my mouth was apparently a major stumbling block.
Stopped after two years due to circumstances and never really put any more time into it.
I now regret that I didn't go further.
In daily life here in Thailand, it is now a combination of Dutch / English and Thai at home.
Planning is to pick it up again and focus more on the language again.
How ? I haven't decided yet, but I will certainly keep Tino's tip (see his note) in mind.
1. In daily life I speak it (almost) fluently. This also applies to topics about economics or politics. I speak Thai 70% of the day and have a central Thai accent. I can follow Isarn or Southern Thai quite well, but I can't speak it. When I switch languages, for example after speaking English or Dutch for a long time, I sometimes cannot find the right word. But that also applies to English or Dutch.
2.I can read well but write badly.
3. I took a reading and writing course 35 years ago. But most of it I learned by helping my kids to do homework, starting in kindergarten. I think that's why I don't have a foreign accent and the tones automatically go well. On the phone people think I'm Thai.
4. 35 years already. You learn every day.
5. I experience the many exceptions in writing as the most difficult part of the written language. Even a well-educated Thai often doesn't know how to spell a word correctly.
The 'classifiers' are difficult to always get right.
6. Further training will follow automatically. Apart from the course 35 years ago, I have never had formal lessons and no plans to start now.
How well do you know the Thai language, Mr. Kuis?
Well, that is often disappointing. I my note above I wrote about extracurricular education with the abbreviation กษน. Wrong! That should be กศน with a soh salaa. Cook soh noh.
Good thing you didn't write กกน
ตลกเลย ก.ก.น.
For fun I sometimes ask a Thai lady what สสส means. What you that?
Do you know that?
Moderator: Please do not chat.
Been living here for two years now and every Saturday and Sunday morning I attend 1 hour of lessons with a young teacher (28) who normally teaches Thai English in a commercial language school in Cha Am. I go there privately, after her weekly job and she has two other students , of French descent. Almost 1,5 years now. At first we followed her curriculum, but soon we switched to what I use every day. Now I tell my stories to her every week completely in Thai. Of course she is also happy with this because the spicy things… yes yes, no matter how prudish she is, she definitely wants to know. She is quick to interrupt and correct me in terms of correct pronunciation and tonation. I myself was shy at first, always looking into her beautiful eyes, at her beautiful hair. These things help to learn the language. My wife was against me learning Thai from the beginning because I would quickly make contact with others… namely with other women and indeed, I like to talk to my massage lady weekly, completely in Thai.
It works pretty well, despite the fact that my lovely wife refused to speak Thai with me at the beginning. Now she knows there is no holding back. It is useful if you go to the store yourself, ask people to speak slowly and then it goes quickly and smoothly.
I also write a lot, but during the week the book never opens… my exciting stories circulate in Thai in my head. Now I am happy that I can go back to school…yes…that used to be different…
Tip: don't take too much on your fork and use the words you learned over the weekend.
I will start writing in two months.
Sawasdee khrab!
44 consonants and 15 vowel marks of which at least 28 vowels can be formed plus 4 tone marks while the base marks are the consonants with an implied vowel or consistently modified to indicate a vowel other than the implied succeeding vowel, with the vowel marks to the left or right of or above or placed under the corresponding consonant. Or a combination thereof, of course. And at the end of a word you pronounce a sign differently than when that sign is somewhere else. Sometimes.
Having taken cognizance of this wisdom, I am heavy hearted.
No, it's not for me. I even have trouble with girls' names. If I don't practice certain names every day, I'll make another mess of the first letter that you pronounce, for example, as a combination of a k, a g, and a semi-soft g, with a hint of dzj and give up. Then I get an incredible appetite for a cold bottle of beer and I must not forget to pronounce the last syllable of the well-known brand / family name as if someone has just stepped on my toes, otherwise this mission will also fail.
My admiration for people who do manage to master Thai is enormous.
I will stick to some common expressions and familiar words, plus the numbers, which are not difficult and very useful.
The language is the biggest barrier, I will never manage to come up with a nice witticism. I think that the problem is initially underestimated by many expats. Personally, I wouldn't think about staying permanently in a country where you don't understand the people and cannot read the texts.
I would like to learn it but where do I have to be in Thailand for that I live in Udon Thani and my wife is from there and we are now going there for 6 months so I want to learn something from Thais
g Pierre
1) Beginner/Advanced. I can save myself on the market and in a 1 on 1 conversation. Despite not actively speaking the language for 16 years now, what I knew is still there.
2) I can read and write a little, but often don't know what I'm reading...
3) In 1996 I worked in Chachoengsao in a place with Thai colleagues who didn't speak English (I didn't speak either). In a short time I learned the basics of Thai and English (when I got a Swedish colleague). After a month I started working in Phuket, where I also worked with Thai and international colleagues and I had a lot of contact with the local population and spoke to them in Thai. Also, I had some Thai friends who didn't speak English. Later I got Thai in-laws who also didn't speak English. I also went to Songkla University for a Thai course, where I learned the basics of writing and reading.
4) Between 1996 and 2000 on the street and 1 hour a week in school for half a year. Then I spoke with my Thai husband Thinglish, simple English with Thai grammar and both Thai and Dutch words. A mix that was not good for both our language development, but in which we could understand each other very well.
5) I find it difficult to learn which “k” belongs to which pitch, for example, koh kai or koh khai, is that a middle or low tone, for example? This mainly causes problems when writing.
6) I would like to learn to speak and read/write better Thai. This because I intend to live in Thailand again in a few years. I have self-study books that will hopefully help me increase my vocabulary and improve my writing skills.
It's a beautiful language!
My Thai doesn't get any further than taxi Thai: left, right, straight ahead, 0-9999, hot, cold, yes, no, tasty, smelly, and so on. And of course some sweet (juub, jubu jubu, chan rak thur), naughty or vulgar words (hee, hi, ham).
When I met my wife one of her first questions was if I spoke Thai too, when I said I didn't get beyond yes/no and "khun suay" (no doubt pronounced in such a way that it wasn't a compliment) , that was an invitation to teach me more words. She showed me the song Rak Na Dek Ngo by the Thai band Pink (thanks Tino for your translation) and in the first days of our chatting, she taught me words like jub (kiss), jubu jubu (kiss kiss but with a Japanese touch, something for the youth) and vulgar words. 555 We had the greatest fun and not much later she asked if I really wanted more than jubu jubu with her. Yes, I did, but I actually thought she just enjoyed teaching Thai to a foreigner like that. When I wrote that I actually thought she was a very nice lady, she told me that she also wanted more with me. This is how our relationship came about after a short meeting in real life, followed by a few days of chatting.
But then we also started focusing on Dutch. My darling wanted me to learn Thai too and then Isaan (Lao), for obvious reasons: so that I could manage independently there and not be totally dependent on her. Several friends speak reasonable English, but many family and friends speak very limited and how it is more sanook if you can talk to all of them. So our focus was first on her Dutch. After her immigration, she said with some annoyance that I still spoke English too often. She didn't like that: I now live in the Netherlands, I have to learn to speak Dutch because otherwise people will laugh at me and I can't be independent either. At that time practically only Dutch was spoken to her and no longer in English out of convenience.
In the meantime bought language books from Poomdam-Becker and the Dutch translation of a textbook by Ronald Schuette. We were about to finish her Dutch on the last parts and start my Thai. Tragically, my wife passed away in an accident (September last year) and it never came to this. Will it ever happen again? No idea. If I met a Thai, I would, but I've never been looking for a Thai. Love struck both of us unexpectedly and whether I happen to meet a Thai again is the question.
It seems to me only normal that you at least try to learn the language of your partner or the language of your (future) country of residence. And of course your partner helps, but a pitfall is falling back on the common language (English). If the partner doesn't want you to have a decent conversation and be self-reliant, I would start to worry.
I forgot to write that I only speak the language imperfectly as a real beginner. At home 97% Dutch together, 1% English and 2% Thai. Of course, my sweetheart would whisper sweet nothings to me in Thai, and I would sometimes whisper to her. I still remember the moments when she gave me or I gave her a sniffing kiss followed by sweet Thai words. I miss that, kid teung laai laai. I write this with pain and sadness. 🙁
Dear Rob V.,
Your story was very nice to read, but the ending really hit me like a bomb. Very sad and I understand very well that you miss your wife very much. I hereby express my condolences.
You also say very well that learning another language should not be taken seriously, but that it can also be done in a playful way. This is Thai: sanuk. This sanouk can be very stimulating when learning a language.
You wrote 'Poomdam-Becker' which reminds me of 'Paiboon' with Benjawan Poomsan Becker (and Chris Pirazzi) as authors… That's the same course I use (see my earlier response).
Never say never… But it will never be the same as it was… But it could be a first building block towards a more distant future… It could have been an invitation from your wife to do something with her language in her country… Let the don't fall into your shoes!
I sincerely wish you a lot of courage!
Dear Daniel, thank you. Having fun and being immersed in a language bath every day helps enormously. Then you learn words in a fun way. That comes in handy for the real study and block work (with your nose in the books),
I did indeed mean Poomsan Becker. But that already starts with the punctuation marks and stuff. And the example phrases kai-kai-kai and mai-mai-mai (various tones) were great fun. I told my love that Thais are crazy with such a language. The Dutch also hear with their grammar. If I ever seriously mastered the Thai language, my love would certainly have been happy or proud of it. Never say never.
In my anecdotes I also included some memories with language. Can be found if you search for the keyword 'Widower' (letters from one). But I stop here otherwise we deviate from the Thai language and don't want to chat how sanoek that may be.
1 I think I am at the level of advanced speaking. I can hold a reasonable conversation in Thai about everyday matters and more importantly, the Thai people understand what I am saying. That was different in the beginning. However, it shouldn't get too complicated, because then I can't follow it anymore. Also depends on what region you are in. In Bangkok I can follow it reasonably well if they speak slowly, but with some Thai people I have a lot of trouble understanding them. But you also have that in the Netherlands: Frisian, Limburgish. But getting to know someone, where she comes from, how many children, what work, hobbies, etc. is quite easy for me. In recent years I have also often received compliments that I speak Thai well (but I know better myself, of course, I am at the level of a 4 year old I think.)
2 I can read slowly, but I often don't understand what it means. I may know a few words in a sentence, but not enough to fully understand it. That has also improved in the last 2 years, because I have taken 15 hours of reading and writing lessons here in the Netherlands, and I will certainly continue with that. Mastering reading and writing helps quite a bit to speak the Thai language better, I've noticed. Writing is a lot more difficult because I still don't see any logic when to use which letter, eg the th, the kh, ph etc. There are different versions of that. I don't think there's any real logic in it. I see the same in Dutch: when do you use ei and when ij or ou and au. As a Dutchman you just know that. But we don't give up, we keep on learning. Have translated quite a lot of songs Karabou (Thai pop group) into phonetic Thai / Dutch. That went well for me. Now also play some songs from it on the guitar. Ps Does very well with the Thai ladies, although I'm not interested in that.
3. After several holidays in Thailand, I thought it would be smart to also learn the language. I had 10 private lessons in the Netherlands with an excellent teacher, who also let me practice the 5 tones in Thai, which helped me a lot. Then practice words in Thai with a friend for 1 or 2 hours every week and keep learning new words. At one point we got stuck in that, because we noticed that some words just don't stick. I now know 1000 words or more, but that is actually still too little to learn a language. And when you are a bit older you notice that after a few months you have forgotten half the words again. That also makes it difficult. Completely stopped learning the Thai language for about 4 years, did nothing at all on that point. With the underlying thought it will not be anything and it will never be. Picked it up again last year, but now with reading and writing and that has given me a nice push in the right direction. I started enjoying learning again.
4 All in all, I have been trying to learn the Thai language for about 10 years with varying degrees of success.
It just remains a difficult language to learn for Dutch people, I have noticed that you really have to put a lot of time and energy into it.
5 The biggest problem for me was converting the words you already know into fluent Thai sentences. In addition, remembering the words you already know. If you only go on vacation for 4 weeks, you notice that a lot of words don't come to mind when you need them.
I think it also has to do with age.
6 I am now happily continuing my learning. In September I will again take 5 lessons of 1,5 hours to better master reading and writing.
By the way, highly recommended for anyone who wants to learn Thai in the Netherlands.
She lives and teaches in Leidsche Rijn (Utrecht) and is really good and not expensive.
Her email address is [email protected]
She teaches all levels from beginner to advanced.
She always prepares the lessons very well.
Highly recommended for anyone who thinks that the Thai language cannot be learned.
Next year I will live in Thailand and then of course I will take about 4-5 hours of Thai lessons every week.
A difficult language, that Thai. Not complicated in terms of structure – after all: no conjugations/cases of verbs or nouns, no difference between singular and plural, etc. – but they show……….. The Thai ears are so keen on this that they actually has the right word, but in terms of pitch/intonation or vowel length is only slightly off, often not understanding.
That structure of the Thai language is also reflected in 'Thenglish': think, for example, of the often heard 'no have' – 'mai mie'.
I have also studied the Thai language in recent years, in the beginning I purchased the Thai Trainer III course via the computer and I must say that went reasonably, I was already over half of the 90 lessons and it was getting better .
I did all this in the Netherlands and when I went to Thailand again for a month I thought I could test what I had already learned in practice. Well that was a bit disappointing because most of them were looking at me as if I had just fallen out of a tree.
I mispronounced most of them because I hadn't really studied the pitches at that time.
That made me pretty depressed and thought to myself that wouldn't help either and then didn't do anything with it for a few years.
My girlfriend spoke good English (better than me) and I kept it at that.
Over time my retirement date came closer and since it was my intention to go to Thailand for 8 months a year, I thought I should start again.
I believe that if you decide for yourself to go to another country for so long, you should (try to) speak at least a little of the language.
Because what I had already learned did not really satisfy me (sorry, I don't know another word), I decided to try it in a different way, namely first trying to read and write in combination with the words I still knew, which came down to learning 44 consonants and of course also being able to write them, it took me a while before I figured it all out, which makes sense if you assume that there are already 6 different k's and what that K stands for depends on of the pronunciation and I can give a number of examples.
After this I started to study the vowel (signs) because the pronunciation of each consonant is determined by the vowel (sign) that is linked to it.
So I thought it would be a bit easier because there are only 32 of them, but it soon turned out to be a mistake because there are already 4 E's, for the experts e,ee,E,EE and O's too. 4 o,oo,O,OO and so on.
Both with the consonants and the vowel (signs) there were a number that I kept getting mixed up, but after the necessary g;d verses and anti depressants (joke) I can now say that I know them all.
Recognize and write.
It now comes down to the fact that if I see a word in Thai: s that I know what it says and how to pronounce it, but I don't know what the word means, so that doesn't help (yet).
So I fell back on the Thai Trainer III course and combined it with the Thai script.
I am now retired and therefore 8 months in Thailand and 4 in the Netherlands, which also gives me more time.
What I am now encountering is the fact that a Thai does not use capital letters and does not leave spaces between words and no commas/periods ECT. So I now have to look carefully at when a sentence or word begins or ends.
All in all I have now been working for a total of 3-4 years, the last year a bit more than previous years and I try to repeat those 44+32 scary signs every day, otherwise I will have forgotten them after 2 weeks and I don't want to put myself fool the second time.
Finally, I must say that I find it very difficult, but it is fun, especially if at some point the bath falls every now and then.
Peter Bol
1. Difficult to estimate my level. Certainly not fluent or very advanced. But at least an advanced beginner, I think.
2. I can read many of the one-sentence Facebook posts from my wife and her FB friends. But by no means everything. I can't (yet) read short stories, newspaper articles, let alone a book. I can write Thai even less.
3+4. I have been coming to Thailand since 1990 and from that moment on I have learned words. Count first. After that, every holiday (every two years) I learned a few more words and later, every now and then, I also worked on my vocabulary at home in the Netherlands with aids, such as CDs borrowed from the library. But during holidays in Thailand I always learned the most words and sentences.
I started reading and writing about ten years ago by first trying to learn the alphabet. And that also went more smoothly during holidays in Thailand. I have always used the car license plates as an aid while driving. For a few years now I have also had a course folder (for beginners and advanced students) with accompanying CDs. But sometimes I don't have the time or enough energy to work on it consistently for a longer period of time.
5. Tone and pronunciation are still a big problem and I don't have many opportunities to practice speaking and listening in practice. My wife is Thai and of course I have picked up a lot from her over the years, but she is not a teacher. That's why I get much more out of practice during holidays.
6. I continue to develop myself slowly. After all, every step is one. I notice progress after every holiday and family and friends in Thailand sometimes speak Thai to me and I get the impression that they think I am further (understand and understand more) than I think. That encourages. However, I will - one day - take my biggest steps when I live there. Whenever that may be.
*And maybe there will be a chance to get a master's degree in the Netherlands. Because if I'm right I read a while back that Tino is coming back to the Netherlands in connection with his son's studies. So perhaps he wants to transfer his knowledge and skills to interested parties. I'm in the front!
Regards,
Michel
1. Starting.
2. I am starting to recognize more and more letters and sometimes also words and structure of compound words. But it's still small. I know just enough to know what and how to look. In any case, that is already very useful 🙂
3. Had weekly lessons from a Thai in NL for a number of months. Gained a good insight into the structure of the language, and learned a lot of letters. The teaching method, however, was aimed at toddlers, but they have to learn to write, but they already know the language. Despite the enormous enthusiasm of the teacher, we got stuck there. Only now that our move is in sight are we taking it up a bit more fanatically.
4. A year more intensive, 2 years hardly and now a bit more.
5. The tones and the very different writing.
6. Currently learning words through apps. Maybe a lesson later (anyone have a good tip in the Chiang Dao area?).
Incidentally, the translation apps are becoming more and more advanced. I now have one where I speak English and it comes out Thai, both speech and writing. I can check that by translating the Thai back and see that the translation is almost always correct.
It might be nice to mention that I have often acted as an interpreter in legal conflicts and also during testimony at court. Directly from Dutch or English to Thai and vice versa. So if anyone needs it let me know. Of course for a fee.
Another, but related matter is of course that the Thais themselves should learn to speak a word outside the door. My brother-in-law, good education and job, found out about this when we traveled through Cambodia together. My wife didn't want to come, so he had to come along to see if I wouldn't get involved with women. When he found out that he was completely dependent on me because he spoke no English, he decided to do something about it
Of course it never happened.
What I mean: Thai is of course only spoken in a very limited area.
Just like Dutch. That is why an American, even if he comes to live here for years, does not actually have to learn Dutch.
Learning Thai is the same as learning Albanian, for example. It takes a lot of energy, but what good is it if you don't live there permanently?
I also speak Spanish. There I can feel myself throughout Latin America (even in Brazil (Portuguese) people understand me well) Can go to Spain of course, Portugal is also going well! Thai? Only Thailand, at most one can do something with it in Laos.
Been living here in Bangkok for almost 10 years now and I haven't really made any progress in learning the Thai language. Understand much more than I can speak. Perhaps, on the one hand, laziness, on the other hand, there is no need to learn Thai at all. My wife is a manager of an internationally operating company and speaks excellent English; so did her brother and her father. We have no children. So I always speak English and rarely, if ever, Thai or Dutch.
I work as a teacher at a university and all classes are in English. Students must speak English, also among themselves. Also applies to my Thai colleagues. And they also expect a foreign teacher to speak English and they appreciate that because they improve their own English. The situation will change when I retire and move to the Northeast. But then I also have enough time to learn Thai.
Help Wanted:
The ex-husband of a friend of mine here in the Netherlands has passed away and telephone contact with his widow in Thailand is very difficult. Would anyone be willing to help translate?
Please report/email to [email protected]