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{{Short description|English dialect used by Thai people}}
{{distinguish|text=[[Tanglish]] or [[Tenglish]], interlanguages of English with Tamil and Telugu, respectively}}
{{about|the form of English spoken by some Thai speakers|Tamil|Tanglish|Telugu|Tenglish}}
{{Multiple issues|
{{Multiple issues|
{{refimprove|date=October 2012}}
{{refimprove|date=October 2012}}
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[[Image:Tinglish01.JPG|frame|right|Tinglish is even widespread on official signs in Thailand.]]
[[Image:Tinglish01.JPG|frame|right|Tinglish is even widespread on official signs in Thailand.]]


'''Tinglish''' (US and Thailand)<ref>{{cite news|title=Davos, Tokyo and clueless Tinglish|newspaper=Bangkok Post|date=2012-03-10|author=[[Kong Rithdee]]|page=7|quote=Seriously, watching that clip, I rooted for her to pull it off, to show that [[Suvarnabhumi English]], our Tinglish, is as good as any as long as what she meant to say came off.}}</ref> or '''Thaiglish''' (UK) (also '''Thenglish''', '''Thailish''' or '''Thainglish''') is the imperfect, [[Macaronic language|macaronic]] form of English produced by native [[Thai language|Thai]] speakers due to [[language transfer|language interference]] from the first language {{Citation needed|date=February 2010}}. Differences from standard native English include [[Non-native pronunciations of English#Thai|errant pronunciation]], unusual word choices, and grammatical anomalies, as well as innovative vocabulary items {{Or|date=February 2010}}.
'''Tinglish''' (or '''Thaiglish''', '''Thenglish''', '''Thailish''', '''Thainglish''', etc.) refers to any form of [[English language|English]] mixed with or heavily influenced by [[Thai language|Thai]]. It is typically produced by native Thai speakers due to [[language transfer|language interference]] from the first language. Differences from standard native English occur in [[Non-native pronunciations of English#Thai|pronunciation]], vocabulary, and grammar.<ref name=":0">Lambert, James. 2018. A multitude of ‘lishes’: The nomenclature of hybridity. ''English World-wide'', 39(1): 1-33. DOI: 10.1075/eww.38.3.04lam</ref> The term was coined in 1970, and several alternative terms have been proposed since its inception, such as ''Thainglish'' (1973), ''Thaiglish'' (1992), ''Tinglish'' (1994), ''Thinglish'' (1976), ''Thenglish'' (2003), and ''Tenglish'' (2012).<ref name=":0" />


==Characteristics and examples==
==Characteristics and examples==
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* omission of pronouns
* omission of pronouns
* [[zero copula]]
* [[zero copula]]
* use of [[present tense]] + ''already'', in contrast to [[past tense]] of Standard English
* use of [[present tense]] + ''already'', in contrast to [[past tense]] of Standard English (but similar to [[Hiberno-English#Recent past construction|the recent past tense in Irish English]])
* non-standard use or omissions of [[article (grammar)|article]]s, [[declension]], [[preposition]]s, and [[Grammatical conjugation|conjugation]].
* non-standard use or omissions of [[article (grammar)|article]]s, [[declension]], [[preposition]]s, and [[Grammatical conjugation|conjugation]].
* addition of Thai final [[Grammatical particle|particle]]s, e.g., ''I don’t know na''
* addition of Thai final [[Grammatical particle|particle]]s, e.g., ''I don’t know na''
* ''any'' and ''every'' are used interchangeably
* ''any'' and ''every'' are used interchangeably
* different use of conditional constructions
* different use of conditional constructions
* pronunciation of [[silent letters]] in a word
* omission of the consonant at the end of words ending in a diphthong and a consonant, for instance ''Mickey Mouse'' pronounced “Mickey Mao”, ''white wine'' pronounced “why why”, and ''news'' pronounced “new”.
* inserting vowel sounds into consonant clusters, for instance ''slow'' pronounced “sah-low”
* no use of [[double negatives]]
* no use of [[double negatives]]
⚫
* /ɹ/ pronounced as /l/
* [[Pronunciation of English ⟨th⟩|⟨th⟩]] pronounced as /t/
* using "N" to replace an "L" sound at the end of the word, for instance "school" pronounced "
* sah-koon" or "football" pronounced "futbon"
* moving "S" on singular verbs to the subject, for instance "He's talk too much" instead of "He talks too much"
* moving "S" on singular verbs to the subject, for instance "He's talk too much" instead of "He talks too much"
* omission of prepositions, for instance "I wait you" instead of "I'll wait for you" or "I listen him" for "I listened to him".
* omission of prepositions, for instance "I wait you" instead of "I'll wait for you" or "I listen him" for "I listened to him".
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|-
|-
| Same same || Similar, as usual
| Same same || Similar, as usual
⚫
|-
| Same same but different || Seems similar but different in some ways
|-
|-
| He same you || He is/looks like you
| He same you || He is/looks like you
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|-
|-
| Check bill || Can I have the bill, please?
| Check bill || Can I have the bill, please?
⚫
|-
|Where Hugo?
|Where are you going?
|}
|}


==Pronunciation==
==Pronunciation==
{{cleanup lang|date=June 2021}}
⚫
As some sounds in English do not exist in the Thai language, this affects the way native Thai speakers [[pronunciation|pronounce]] English words, as displayed in loanwords.

=== Adaptation of consonants ===
English consonants with corresponding sounds in Thai are simply carried over, while others are adapted to a similar-sounding consonant.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last1=Kenstowicz|first1=Michael|last2=Suchato|first2=Atiwong|date=2006|title=Issues in loanword adaptation: A case study from Thai|url=https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0024384105001002|journal=Lingua|language=en|volume=116|issue=7|pages=921–949|doi=10.1016/j.lingua.2005.05.006}}</ref>
*{{IPA|/g/}}, {{IPA|/z/}}, and {{IPA|/dʒ/}} are devoiced to {{IPA|/k/}}, {{IPA|/s/}}, and {{IPA|/tɕ/}}: "goal" → {{IPA|/kōː/}}, "zip" → {{IPA|/síp/}}, "jam" → {{IPA|/tɕɛ̄ːm/}}.
*{{IPA|/ʃ/}} becomes the affricate {{IPA|/tɕʰ/}}: "shirt" → {{IPA|/tɕʰɤ́ːt/}}.
*The "th" sounds {{IPA|/θ/}} and {{IPA|/ð/}} are replaced by {{IPA|/t/}} or {{IPA|/d/}}: "thank you" → {{IPA|/tɛ́ŋ.kîw/}}
*Initial {{IPA|/v/}} is replaced by {{IPA|/enwiki/w/}}, but final {{IPA|/v/}} is replaced by {{IPA|/p/}}: "level" → {{IPA|/lēː.wêw/}}, "serve" → {{IPA|/sɤ̀ːp/}}.
*Initial [[Consonant cluster|consonant clusters]] with {{IPA|/s/}} followed by a voiceless unaspirated stop do not occur in Thai, so {{IPA|/ə/}} is added between these consonants: "start" → {{IPA|/sə.táːt/}}
*Final {{IPA|/l/}} became {{IPA|/n/}} in older loanwords, whereas modern adaptation generally favors {{IPA|/enwiki/w/}} instead: "grill" → {{IPA|/krīw/}}.
*Final consonant clusters are generally truncated to only the sound directly after the vowel: "act" → {{IPA|/ɛ́k/}}.


=== Adaptation of vowels ===
⚫
As some sounds in English just simply don't exist in Thai language, this affects the way native Thai speakers [[pronunciation|pronounce]] English words {{Citation needed|date=February 2010}}:
* [[Rhotic and non-rhotic accents|Non-rhotic]], e.g., more -> maw ({{IPA|[mɔː]}}), gear -> gia ({{IPA|[kia]}}), and car -> kah ({{IPA|[kʰaː]}}).
* all syllables are stressed with the same intensity
* omits consonant clusters. "Mixed" is pronounced "mik".
* final consonants are often omitted or converted according to the rules of Thai pronunciation: ''l'' and ''r'' become ''n''; ''p''; ''b'' and ''f'' become an occlusive ''p''; ''t'', ''th'', ''d'', ''s'', ''st'', ''sh'', ''ch'' and ''j'' become an occlusive ''t''.
* Perversely, given the language constraints for ''d'' and ''l'' among the rules above, ''l'' can become ''r'' and ''d'' can become ''sh'', for instance ''blood'' can become ''brush''.
* If there is more than one consonant at the end of a syllable, only the first is pronounced, the others are omitted. "W" and "Y" sounds count as consonants, too. So, "count down" becomes "cow dow", "size" becomes "sigh"
* "sh" and "ch" sounds can be indistinguishable as the Thai language does not have the "sh" sound, e.g., ship/chip, sheep/cheap
* "v" sound is almost always replaced by "w" sound, e.g. "TV" is pronounced "tee-wee" and "video" is pronounced "wee-dee-oh".
* "g" and "z" sounds are usually devoiced, e.g., dog -> dock ({{IPA|[ˈdɔk]}}), zoo -> sue ({{IPA|[ˈsuː]}})
* "th" sound is often replaced by "t" or "d" sound. Particularly, the voiceless "th" ({{IPA|/θ/}}) is replaced by {{IPA|[t]}} or {{IPA|[tʰ]}}, while the voiced "th" ({{IPA|/ð/}}) is replaced by {{IPA|[d]}}, e.g. thin -> tin ({{IPA|[ˈtin]}}) or {{IPA|[ˈtʰin]}}), through -> true ({{IPA|[ˈtʰɹuː]}}), thank you -> tang kyou ({{IPA|[tɛŋ kiw]}}) or ({{IPA|[tʰɛŋ kiw]}}), and then -> den ({{IPA|[ˈden]}}).
* ambiguity between the short "e" ({{IPA|/ɛ/}}), as in "bled", and a long "a" ({{IPA|/eɪ/}}), as in "blade" because both are pronounced as {{IPA|[e(ː)]}}.
* "e (vowel) " so cherry is pronounced chuhr-lee, error is pronounced err-rer


* Diphthongs and triphthongs are generally simplified to long vowels, such as the {{IPA|/ei/}} in "blade" becoming {{IPA|/eː/}}. Exceptions are diphthongs ending in {{IPA|/i/}} and {{IPA|/u/}}, which are instead reanalysed as the Thai diphthongs ending in {{IPA|/j/}} and {{IPA|/enwiki/w/}}: "tie" → {{IPA|/tʰāj/}}, "view" → {{IPA|/wīw/}}.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book|last=Nacaskul|first=Karnchana|title=Studies in Tai and Mon-Khmer Phonetics and Phonology in Honour of Eugénie J.A. Henderson|publisher=Chulalongkorn University Press|year=1979|editor-last=Thongkum|editor-first=Theraphan L.|location=Bangkok|pages=151–162|chapter=A note on English loanwords in Thai|editor-last2=Panupong|editor-first2=Vichin|editor-last3=Kullavanijaya|editor-first3=Pranee|editor-last4=Tingsabadh|editor-first4=Kalaya|chapter-url=http://sealang.net/sala/archives/pdf8/nacaskul1979note.pdf}}</ref>
In Thai, certain consonants cannot occur as a [[consonant cluster]]. Such illicit clusters include those with [[Sibilant consonants|sibilant sounds]] followed by [[Obstruent consonant|obstruent sounds]]. In order to avoid such illicit forms, a short "a" (ah; [ə]) sound is added between these consonants:


=== Tone assignment ===
*start - sahtat ({{IPA|/səˈtaːt/}})
All Thai syllables must have one of five tones (mid, low, falling, high, rising). English words adapted into Thai are systematically given these tones according to certain rules. English loanwords are often unusual in that tone markers are normally omitted, meaning that they are often pronounced with a different tone from that indicated by their spelling.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />
*sleep - sahleep ({{IPA|/səˈliːp/}})
*speak - sahpeak ({{IPA|/səˈpiːk/}})
*snore - sahnore ({{IPA|/səˈnɔː/}})
*swim - sahwim ({{IPA|/səˈwim/}})
*school - sahkoon ({{IPA|/səˈkʰuːn/}})
*album - alabum ({{IPA|/ələˈbam/}})


* Monosyllabic words that end in [[Sonorant|sonorants]] take the mid tone, while those that end in [[Obstruent|obstruents]] either take the low tone or the high tone, with the high tone predominant.
'R' or 'l' after another consonant may be omitted completely.
* For polysyllabics, the nonfinal consonants follow similar rules to monosyllabics, although they always take high tone when ending in obstruents.
* The tone of final consonants that end in sonorants depend on where the stress falls in the original English word. If the final syllable is stressed, the mid tone is taken, while non-final stress correlates with the falling tone being taken.
* Final consonants ending in obstruents take the low, high, or falling tone in descending order of frequency.
According to Wei and Zhou (2002), Thai is a tonal language, whose syllables take approximately the same time to pronounce, Thai people often have difficulty with English word stress. They, instead, stress the last syllable by adding high pitch (Choksuansup, 2014).
When it comes to vowels, there are 21 phonemes in Thai compared with 15 vowels in English; therefore, it is relatively easy for Thai people to imitate the English vowels. However, the two systems have a significant discrepancy: Thai vowels are distinguished by shortness and length, while for English, it is laxness and tenseness. That explains why Thai English speakers perceive and produce lax sounds as short sounds and tense sounds as long sounds, which gives their pronunciation its uniqueness (Kruatrachue, 1960).
In terms of consonants, there are a number of English consonants which do not exist in Thai. This makes it difficult for the Thai to perceive the difference among some sounds and produce them correctly. Instead, they replace the English consonants with the most similar sounds in Thai (Trakulkasemsuk, 2012):
⚫
/r/ can be pronounced as /l/ or dropped.
/tʃ/, /ʃ/ and /ʒ/ are altered by Thai /tɕʰ/ (aspirated voiceless fortis palatal stop with slight affrication).
/dʒ/ is substituted by Thai /tɕ/ (weakly glottalized unaspirated voiceless fortis palatal stop).
/θ/ become either / t̪⁼/ (voiceless unaspirated apical alveolar stop), /t/, or /s/.
/ð/ is replaced by /d/
/v/ is pronounced as /enwiki/w/, and /z/ as /s/
In addition, consonant cluster /st/ does not exist in Thai, so they pronounce it as /sə.t/; for example: stop /sə.tɑːp/. Ending sounds are oftentimes omitted (Choksuansup, 2014).


==References==
==References==

Latest revision as of 04:29, 20 November 2024

This article is about the form of English spoken by some Thai speakers. For Tamil, see Tanglish. For Telugu, see Tenglish.
Tinglish is even widespread on official signs in Thailand.

Tinglish (or Thaiglish, Thenglish, Thailish, Thainglish, etc.) refers to any form of English mixed with or heavily influenced by Thai. It is typically produced by native Thai speakers due to language interference from the first language. Differences from standard native English occur in pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar.[1] The term was coined in 1970, and several alternative terms have been proposed since its inception, such as Thainglish (1973), Thaiglish (1992), Tinglish (1994), Thinglish (1976), Thenglish (2003), and Tenglish (2012).[1]

Characteristics and examples

[edit]

Characteristics and examples (direct translation) include [dubious – discuss]:

  • omission of pronouns
  • zero copula
  • use of present tense + already, in contrast to past tense of Standard English (but similar to the recent past tense in Irish English)
  • non-standard use or omissions of articles, declension, prepositions, and conjugation.
  • addition of Thai final particles, e.g., I don’t know na
  • any and every are used interchangeably
  • different use of conditional constructions
  • no use of double negatives
  • moving "S" on singular verbs to the subject, for instance "He's talk too much" instead of "He talks too much"
  • omission of prepositions, for instance "I wait you" instead of "I'll wait for you" or "I listen him" for "I listened to him".
  • "very" and "very much" are used interchangeably, for instance "I very love my daughter" and "She beautiful very much".

Examples of words and phrases

[edit]

Examples (direct translation) include:

Phrase Meaning
Same same Similar, as usual
He same you He is/looks like you
Open/close the light Turn on/off the light
No have … There is no ..., I do not have a …
I send you airport I will take you to the airport
I have ever been to London I have been to London
I'm interesting in football I am interested in football
I very like it I really like it, I like it very much
I used to go Phuket I have been to Phuket before
Take a bath Take a shower
She black She's dark skinned/tanned
Are you spicy? Does your food taste spicy?
Are you boring? Do you feel bored?
I play internet/phone I'm using the internet/my phone
Check bill Can I have the bill, please?
Where Hugo? Where are you going?

Pronunciation

[edit]

As some sounds in English do not exist in the Thai language, this affects the way native Thai speakers pronounce English words, as displayed in loanwords.

Adaptation of consonants

[edit]

English consonants with corresponding sounds in Thai are simply carried over, while others are adapted to a similar-sounding consonant.[2]

  • /g/, /z/, and /dʒ/ are devoiced to /k/, /s/, and /tɕ/: "goal" → /kōː/, "zip" → /síp/, "jam" → /tɕɛ̄ːm/.
  • /ʃ/ becomes the affricate /tɕʰ/: "shirt" → /tɕʰɤ́ːt/.
  • The "th" sounds /θ/ and /ð/ are replaced by /t/ or /d/: "thank you" → /tɛ́ŋ.kîw/
  • Initial /v/ is replaced by /enwiki/w/, but final /v/ is replaced by /p/: "level" → /lēː.wêw/, "serve" → /sɤ̀ːp/.
  • Initial consonant clusters with /s/ followed by a voiceless unaspirated stop do not occur in Thai, so /ə/ is added between these consonants: "start" → /sə.táːt/
  • Final /l/ became /n/ in older loanwords, whereas modern adaptation generally favors /enwiki/w/ instead: "grill" → /krīw/.
  • Final consonant clusters are generally truncated to only the sound directly after the vowel: "act" → /ɛ́k/.

Adaptation of vowels

[edit]
  • Diphthongs and triphthongs are generally simplified to long vowels, such as the /ei/ in "blade" becoming /eː/. Exceptions are diphthongs ending in /i/ and /u/, which are instead reanalysed as the Thai diphthongs ending in /j/ and /enwiki/w/: "tie" → /tʰāj/, "view" → /wīw/.[3]

Tone assignment

[edit]

All Thai syllables must have one of five tones (mid, low, falling, high, rising). English words adapted into Thai are systematically given these tones according to certain rules. English loanwords are often unusual in that tone markers are normally omitted, meaning that they are often pronounced with a different tone from that indicated by their spelling.[2][3]

  • Monosyllabic words that end in sonorants take the mid tone, while those that end in obstruents either take the low tone or the high tone, with the high tone predominant.
  • For polysyllabics, the nonfinal consonants follow similar rules to monosyllabics, although they always take high tone when ending in obstruents.
  • The tone of final consonants that end in sonorants depend on where the stress falls in the original English word. If the final syllable is stressed, the mid tone is taken, while non-final stress correlates with the falling tone being taken.
  • Final consonants ending in obstruents take the low, high, or falling tone in descending order of frequency.

According to Wei and Zhou (2002), Thai is a tonal language, whose syllables take approximately the same time to pronounce, Thai people often have difficulty with English word stress. They, instead, stress the last syllable by adding high pitch (Choksuansup, 2014). When it comes to vowels, there are 21 phonemes in Thai compared with 15 vowels in English; therefore, it is relatively easy for Thai people to imitate the English vowels. However, the two systems have a significant discrepancy: Thai vowels are distinguished by shortness and length, while for English, it is laxness and tenseness. That explains why Thai English speakers perceive and produce lax sounds as short sounds and tense sounds as long sounds, which gives their pronunciation its uniqueness (Kruatrachue, 1960). In terms of consonants, there are a number of English consonants which do not exist in Thai. This makes it difficult for the Thai to perceive the difference among some sounds and produce them correctly. Instead, they replace the English consonants with the most similar sounds in Thai (Trakulkasemsuk, 2012): 

/r/ can be pronounced as /l/ or dropped.

/tʃ/, /ʃ/ and /ʒ/ are altered by Thai /tɕʰ/ (aspirated voiceless fortis palatal stop with slight affrication). /dʒ/ is substituted by Thai /tɕ/ (weakly glottalized unaspirated voiceless fortis palatal stop). /θ/ become either / t̪⁼/ (voiceless unaspirated apical alveolar stop), /t/, or /s/. /ð/ is replaced by /d/ /v/ is pronounced as /enwiki/w/, and /z/ as /s/ In addition, consonant cluster /st/ does not exist in Thai, so they pronounce it as /sə.t/; for example: stop /sə.tɑːp/. Ending sounds are oftentimes omitted (Choksuansup, 2014).

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b Lambert, James. 2018. A multitude of ‘lishes’: The nomenclature of hybridity. English World-wide, 39(1): 1-33. DOI: 10.1075/eww.38.3.04lam
  2. ^ a b Kenstowicz, Michael; Suchato, Atiwong (2006). "Issues in loanword adaptation: A case study from Thai". Lingua. 116 (7): 921–949. doi:10.1016/j.lingua.2005.05.006.
  3. ^ a b Nacaskul, Karnchana (1979). "A note on English loanwords in Thai" (PDF). In Thongkum, Theraphan L.; Panupong, Vichin; Kullavanijaya, Pranee; Tingsabadh, Kalaya (eds.). Studies in Tai and Mon-Khmer Phonetics and Phonology in Honour of Eugénie J.A. Henderson. Bangkok: Chulalongkorn University Press. pp. 151–162.
[edit]
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