Thai name
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Thai names follow the
Thai given names generally convey positive attributes, and a number of Thai people change their given names frequently (and their family names less frequently, as it requires permission from the head of a family or, in the case of children, father and mother). This practice is virtually unknown in most countries outside of marriage. Besides standard reasons of separation and divorce, many name changes are done to get rid of bad luck (which, if caused by a ghost or spirit, would confuse the malignant entity, allowing the victim to get free from them).
For centuries, inhabitants of Thailand, formerly known as Siam, did not have
Official surnames
Last names became legally required of Thai citizens in 1913 with the passing of the Surname Act 1913.
The Surname Act of 1913 decreed that "married woman can bear her husband's surname or keep her maiden name" (Clause 6 of the act). A woman's right to choose her surname ended in 1941 with the passage of the "Personal Name Act 1941". The law forced women to use their husband's surname after marriage (Clause 13). The Personal Name Act of 1941 was revised in 1962. The 1962 law allowed a divorced woman to resume her maiden surname (Clause 13 of the Personal Name Act 1962). A widow could keep her husband's surname or could revert to her maiden surname (Clause 14). The Personal Name Act 2002 gave a married woman the right to use her maiden name or assume her spouse's surname. She has to choose one or the other when the marriage is registered. A couple also has the right to use a different surname.[1]
As a measure of the diversity of Thai names, in a sample of 45,665 names, 81% of family names were unique and 35% of given names were unique. The people with shared family names are related, and the diversity of given names is conventional.[8]
Generic surnames
The surnames of most of the non-
Chinese surnames
Surnames among Thais of Chinese descent are mostly derived from the Chinese surname and contain hints toward the original. For example, the family of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, adopted the surname in 1938, where the first syllable of the surname, "shin", is derived from the Chinese surname 丘, while the surname of former Prime Minister Banharn Silpa-archa contains "archa", which means horse in Chinese.
Malay surnames
Malay traditional culture does not include surnames. The majority of Thais of Malay descent surnames are in the same style as mainstream Thai, such as Madsiri or Pitsuwan. However, some Thai Malays also use Malay language terms in their surnames such as Dolah, Lahsoh, Soleb, Sriyankem, Yousoh, etc.
Romanization of surnames
The romanization of Thai in some surnames, especially ones bestowed by the king, do not follow the standard Royal Thai General System of Transcription (RTGS), which follows Thai phonology, but instead follow the romanization of the original Pali or Sanskrit root.[9] For example, in the surname Temeeyaves เตมียาเวส, the ว consonant corresponds to /w/ in Thai phonology, but the relevant Sanskrit root has /v/ there, leading to the transcription with v. This kind of romanization can also be seen in the name of monarchs. For example, the usual romanization for the current King's name is Vajiralongkorn, as opposed to Wachiralongkon.
The main purpose of Royal Thai General System of Transcription (RTGS) transcription is to transcribe Thai words in newspapers, official government publications, and road signs. The general Thai public hardly knows about this system, not to mention knows how to transcribe their names with it. Therefore, people come up with their own romanization of their names. It is very common to find two people with the same Thai names (given names or surnames) but spelling their names differently in the Latin alphabet. [10]
Nicknames
According to Denis Segaller, author of Thai Ways, there are at least "tens of thousands" of formal given names in Thailand,[11] and that compared to any given country in the West "there are many times more first names".[12] He also stated that people in Thailand were creating more given names on a daily basis.[11] Such given names are usually gender-specific;[13] according to Segaller, the number of truly gender-neutral names numbered "perhaps two or three hundred";[12] he characterised this number as being very small.[13] Because family names are relatively new in Thai society, dating only to 1913, Thai people are primarily known by their given names. According to Segaller, some Thai who have been friends for long periods of time do not know their friends' family names, and "The first-name habit is so deeply ingrained in Thai society".[14]
Informal names are awarded at birth and may continue in use to the extent that one may have to check the formal registration to find a person's given formal name.[citation needed]
Thais typically address one other by
The evolution of Thai nicknames dates back to the
Some Thai Chinese have courtesy names which are used when interacting with Mainland Chinese and Taiwanese people only, like Dhanin and Suphachai Chearavanont known in Chinese as 'Kok Min' (國民) and 'Rong Ren' (榕仁).
During the time of Field Marshal Plaek Phibunsongkhram (1897–1964), gender-based naming was introduced. Names ending in "-sak", "-chai", and "-yot" were for male babies, "-porn" or "-sri" for females. In the 21st century, assigning nicknames still relies heavily on astrological beliefs, but also in keeping up with current naming fashions. Observers have noted such modern nicknames as "Porsche", "Mercedes", "Benz", "Man U", "Big Mac", "Internet", and "Google", among others.[16]
In contrast with nicknames, at present the vast majority of Thai people's personal names are Sanskrit names, or compounds of Sanskrit with Thai or Khmer. Thai names in Sanskrit usually have a different style from Indian names. For example, names such as Dhiradora, Dhirashila, Janadhipa, Shivarak, Shubhanata, and Surajati are not common names in India. Although there are some Thai names that are based on Muslim or Malay forms such as Adul or Nurul, Burmese names such as Newin, or Western names (perhaps for Luk khrueng) such as Mika or Elias, these are less common.
Forms of address
In the past, different words were used to address men and women. Nai (นาย) or Ay (อ้าย) were used before a man's given name. Am daeng (อําแดง) or Ii (อี) were used before a woman's given name. A man named Somchai was addressed as Nai Somchai or Ay Somchai. A woman whose name was Somsri was addressed as Am daeng Somsri or Ii Somsri. There was no law concerning this matter, it was purely a matter of custom.[1]
In 1917, Rama VI declared a new law, the "Form of Address for Woman Act, 1917". The act mandated a new form of address, Nangsao (นางสาว) ('Miss') for women who were unmarried (the wording used in the act was "woman who has no husband") and Nang (นาง) ('Missus' [Mrs.]) for women who were married ('married woman or woman who has husband'). Once a woman married, she had to use the address Nang before her given name for the rest of her life even if she divorced or widowed. This form of address applied to commoners, not to women in royal or noble families.[1]
In 1921, the king proclaimed the form of address for girls. He specified that that "girl" meant a female under 15 years old; they were addressed as nangsao, as were females older than 15 years of age and unmarried (meaning 'married to a man').[1]
The Form of Address for Women Act 2008 mandates that married or divorced women can choose to use either Nang or Nangsao before their given names. It gives a married woman the right to change all her documents (ID card, driver's license, bank account) to include the title Nangsao before her given name.[1]
Today, in
Royal and noble names
East Asian monarchs often adopted
Kings
Indexing
According to the
See also
References
- Segaller, Denis (2005). "Names, Words, and Language". Thai Ways. ISBN 978-974-9575-73-4.
Notes
- ^ a b c d e f g Shigetomi, Supaporn (2014). "Marriage and Marriage Registration in Thailand" (PDF). Kanda Gaigo Group. Kanda University. Retrieved 2019-08-07.
- ISBN 978-0-521-767-682.
- Royal Institute of Thailand. Archived from the originalon 2014-12-28. Retrieved 2014-12-28.
- Royal Institute of Thailand. Archived from the originalon 2014-12-28. Retrieved 2014-12-28.
- ^ สุวรรณ ทำเสมอดี (1995). นามสกุลชาวโคราช [Surnames of Korat people] (in Thai). Archived from the original on 2015-09-24. Retrieved 2014-12-28.
ในจังหวัดนครราชสีมาหรือโคราชนั้น นิยมตั้งนามสกุลตามภูมิลำเนาที่เกิด หรืออยู่อาศัย ใช้ชื่อตำบล อำเภอ และหมู่บ้านเป็นส่วนท้ายของนามสกุล
- DOC(in Thai)[dead link]
- ^ ต้นตระกูลไธสง (in Thai). Archived from the original on 2014-12-01. Retrieved 2014-12-28.
- ^ 45,665 Thai names: Examining passlist.96 Archived 2008-02-26 at the Wayback Machine, by Doug Cooper
- ISBN 978-1-135-79116-2.
- ISBN 979-8831513219. Retrieved 2023-02-10.
- ^ a b c Segaller, p. 205.
- ^ a b Segaller, p. 207.
- ^ a b Segaller, p. 209.
- ^ Segaller, p. 213.
- ISSN 0859-3485. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2021-07-31. Retrieved 2016-11-02.
- ^ Pongpipat, Kaona (2016-11-02). "What's in a Name?". Bangkok Post. Retrieved 2016-11-02.
- ^ Crutchley, Roger (2016-10-02). "Introducing Fatty, Piggy and Mrs Frog" (Opinion). Bangkok Post. Retrieved 2016-10-04.
- ^ 'ปู'ปัดบินฮ่องกงพบพี่ชาย ไม่รู้'สมศักดิ์'อยากร่วมรบ. ["'Pu' denied flying to Hong Kong to see her brother, not knowing Somsak's joining coalition"]. Thairath (in Thai). Bangkok. 2011-07-08.
- ^ a b c Segaller, p. 212.
- ^ Segaller, p. 212-213.
- Chicago Manual of Style. Retrieved on 23 December 2014. p. 28 (PDF).
External links
- Peansiri Vongvipanond (2009-09-27). "Linguistic perspectives of Thai culture". This paper was presented to a workshop of teachers of social science organized by the University of New Orleans (Summer 1994). Thai Language Audio Resource Center. Archived from the original on 2012-11-20. Retrieved 2013-01-05.